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diff --git a/old/53285-0.txt b/old/53285-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 558abca..0000000 --- a/old/53285-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,22568 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Historical Characters, by Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: Historical Characters - Mackintosh, Talleyrand, Canning, Corbett, Peel - -Author: Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer - -Release Date: October 15, 2016 [EBook #53285] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORICAL CHARACTERS *** - - - - -Produced by Clarity and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by The Internet -Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - - - - - -HISTORICAL CHARACTERS - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration: TALLEYRAND] - - - - - HISTORICAL CHARACTERS - - MACKINTOSH TALLEYRAND - CANNING COBBETT - PEEL - - BY - SIR HENRY LYTTON BULWER - (LORD DALLING) - - London - MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED - NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY - 1900 - - _All rights reserved_ - - _First Edition, in 2 vols., demy 8vo, 30s., November 1867. - Second Edition, in 2 vols., demy 8vo, 30s., March 1868. Third - Edition, in one volume, crown 8vo, 6s., December 1869. Fourth - Edition, in which was included, for the first time, the Life of - Sir Robert Peel, in one volume, crown 8vo, 6s., December 1875. - Transferred to Macmillan and Co., Ltd., August 1898. Reprinted - May 1900._ - - - - -TO LORD LYTTON. - - -MY DEAR EDWARD, - -The idea of this work, which I dedicate to you in testimony of the -affection and friendship which have always united us, was conceived -many years ago. I wished to give some general idea of modern history, -from the period of the French Revolution of 1789 down to our own times, -in a series of personal sketches. In these sketches I was disposed to -select types of particular characters, thinking that in this way it -is easier to paint with force and clearness both an individual and -an epoch. The outlines of Talleyrand, Cobbett, and others, were then -imperfectly traced; and Canning and Mackintosh have been little altered. - -The manuscript, however, was laid aside amidst the labours of an active -professional career, and only thought of since complete leisure created -the wish for some employment. It was then that I resumed my task. - -I need not say that the portraits I give here are but a few of those -I commenced, but the constant change of residence, rendered necessary -by the state of health in which I left Constantinople, interfered with -the completion of my design, and added to the defects which, under any -circumstances, would have been found in the following pages. - -Ever yours affectionately, - - H. L. BULWER. - -13, RUE ROYALE, PARIS, _Oct 10, 1867_. - - - - -PREFACE TO THIS NEW EDITION. - - -The sale which this work has had in its original form has induced my -publisher to recommend a cheaper and more popular one; and I myself -gladly seize the opportunity of correcting some of the errors in -print and expression which, though gradually diminished in preceding -editions, left even the last edition imperfect. An author with ordinary -modesty must always be conscious of many defects in his own work. I -am so in mine. Still I venture to say that the portraits I have drawn -have, upon the whole, been thought truthful and impartial; and though -I have been often reminded of the difficulty which Sir Walter Raleigh, -when writing the History of the World, experienced in ascertaining the -real particulars of a tumult that took place under his windows--almost -every anecdote one hears on the best authority being certain to find -contradiction in some of its particulars--I have not refrained from -quoting those anecdotes which came to me from good authority or the -general report of the period; since a story which brings into relief -the reputed character of the person it is applied to, and which, to -use the Italian proverb, ought to be true if it is not so, is far from -being indifferent to history. - -In conclusion, I cannot but express my thanks, not only to public, but -to private and previously unknown critics, whose remarks have always -received a willing and grateful attention, and to whose suggestions I -am greatly indebted. - - _Nov. 6, 1869._ - - - - -TALLEYRAND, THE POLITIC MAN. - - - - -PART I. - -FROM THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE REVOLUTION TO THE EXPOSITION OF THE STATE -OF THE NATION. - - Different types of men.--M. de Talleyrand, the politic - man.--Character of the eighteenth century, which had formed - him.--Birth, personal description, entry into church.--Causes - of revolution.--States-General.--Talleyrand’s influence over - clergy; over the decision as to the instructions of members, - and the drawing up of the rights of man.--Courage in times - of danger.--Financial knowledge.--Propositions relative to - church property.--Discredit with the Court party.--Popularity - with the Assembly.--Charged to draw up its manifesto to the - nation.--Project about uniformity of weights and measures. - - -I. - -There are many men in all times who employ themselves actively in -public affairs; but very few amongst these deserve the title of “Men of -action.” - -The rare individuals who justly claim this designation, and whose -existence exercises so important an influence over the age in which -they appear, must possess, in no ordinary degree, intelligence, energy, -and judgment; but these qualities are found blended in different -degrees in the different classes or types of men who, as soldiers, -sovereigns, or statesmen, command the destiny of their times. - -They in whom superior intelligence, energy, and judgment are equally -united, mount with firm and rapid pace the loftiest steeps of ambition, -and establish themselves permanently on the heights to which they -have safely ascended. Such men usually pursue some fixed plan or -predominant idea with stern caution and indomitable perseverance, -adapting their means to their end, but always keeping their end clearly -in view, and never, in the pursuit of it, overstepping that line by -which difficulties are separated from impossibilities. Cardinal de -Richelieu in France, and William III. in England, are types of this -heroic race. - -On the other hand, they in whom the judgment, however great, is -not sufficient to curb the energy and govern the intellect which -over-stimulates their nature, blaze out, meteor-like, in history, but -rather excite temporary admiration than leave behind them permanent -results. Their exploits far surpass those of other men, and assume -for a moment an almost supernatural appearance: but, as their rise is -usually sudden and prodigious, their ruin is also frequently abrupt -and total. Carried on by a force over which they gradually lose all -control, from one act of audacity to another more daring, their genius -sails before the wind, like a vessel with overcrowded canvas, and -perishes at last in some violent and sudden squall. Charles XII. of -Sweden was an example of this kind in the last century, and Napoleon -Bonaparte, if we regard him merely as a conqueror, a more striking one -in our own days. - -Thirdly, there are men whose energy though constant is never violent, -and whose intellect, rather subtle than bold, is attracted by the -useful, and careless of the sublime. Shrewd and wary, these men rather -take advantage of circumstances than make them. To turn an obstacle, to -foresee an event, to seize an opportunity, is their peculiar talent. -They are without passions, but self-interest and sagacity combined give -them a force like that of passion. The success they obtain is procured -by efforts no greater than those of other candidates for public -honours, who with an appearance of equal talent vainly struggle after -fortune; but all their exertions are made at the most fitting moment, -and in the happiest manner. - -A nice tact and a far-sighted judgment are the predominant qualities of -these “_politic_” persons. They think rarely of what is right in the -abstract: they do usually what is best at the moment. They never play -the greatest part amongst their contemporaries: they almost always play -a great one; and, without arriving at those extraordinary positions to -which a more adventurous race aspires, generally retain considerable -importance, even during the most changeful circumstances, and most -commonly preserve in retirement or disgrace much of the consideration -they acquired in power. During the intriguing and agitated years -which preceded the fall of the Stuarts, there was seen in England a -remarkable statesman of the character I have just been describing; and -a comparison might not inappropriately be drawn between the plausible -and trimming Halifax and the adroit and accomplished personage whose -name is inscribed on these pages. - -But although these two renowned advocates of expediency had many -qualities in common--the temper, the wit, the knowledge, the -acuteness which distinguished the one equally distinguishing the -other--nevertheless the Englishman, although a more dexterous debater -in public assemblies, had not in action the calm courage, nor in -council the prompt decision, for which the Frenchman was remarkable; -neither is his name stamped on the annals of his country in such -indelible characters, nor connected with such great and marvellous -events. - -And yet, notwithstanding the vastness of the stage on which M. de -Talleyrand acted, and the importance of the parts which for more than -half a century he played, I venture to doubt whether his character -has ever been fairly given, or is at this moment justly appreciated; -nor is this altogether surprising. In a life so long, brilliant, and -varied, we must expect to find a diversity of impressions succeeding -and effacing each other; and not a few who admired the captivating -companion, and reverenced the skilful minister of foreign affairs, -were ignorant that the celebrated wit and sagacious diplomatist had -exhibited an exquisite taste in letters, and a profound knowledge in -legislation and finance. Moreover, though it may appear singular, it -will be found true, that it is precisely those public men who are the -most tolerant to adverse opinions, and the least prone to personal -enmities, who oftentimes gather round their own reputation, at least -during a time, the darkest obloquy and the most terrible reproaches. -The reason for this is simple: such men are themselves neither subject -to any predominant affection, nor devoted to any favourite theory. -Calm and impartial, they are lenient and forgiving. On the other hand, -men who love things passionately, or venerate things deeply, despise -those who forsake--and detest those who oppose--the objects of their -adoration or respect. Thus, the royalist, ready to lay down his life -for his legitimate sovereign; the republican, bent upon glorious -imitations of old Rome and Greece; the soldier, devoted to the chief -who had led him from victory to victory, could not but speak with -bitterness and indignation of one who commenced the Revolution against -Louis XVI., aided in the overthrow of the French Republic, and dictated -the proscription of the great captain whose armies had marched for a -while triumphant over Europe. - -The most ardent and violent of the men of M. de Talleyrand’s time were -consequently the most ardent and violent condemners of his conduct; and -he who turns over the various works in which that conduct is spoken -of by insignificant critics,[1] will be tempted to coincide with the -remark of the great wit of the eighteenth century: “_C’est un terrible -avantage de n’avoir rien fait; mais il ne faut pas en abuser._”[2] - -How far such writers were justified will be seen more or less in -the following pages, which are written with no intention to paint a -character deserving of eulogy or inviting to imitation, but simply with -the view of illustrating a remarkable class of men by a very remarkable -man, who happened to live at a period which will never cease to occupy -and interest posterity. - - -II. - -Charles Maurice Talleyrand de Périgord was born February 2, 1754.[3] -The House of Périgord was one of the noblest in France, and in the -earliest ages of the French monarchy possessed sovereign power. The -principality of Chalais, the only one which existed, I believe, in the -time of Louis XIV. (for the other personages called princes at the -French court took their titles as princes of the Roman States or the -German Empire, and ranked after French dukes), is said to have been -eight centuries in this family. Talleyrand, a name usually attached -to that of Périgord, and anciently written _Tailleran_, is supposed -to have been a sort of _sobriquet_, or nickname, and derived from the -words, “_tailler les rangs_” (cut through the ranks). It was borne -by Helie V., one of the sovereign counts of Périgord, who lived in -1118; and from this prince (Helie V.) descended two branches of the -Talleyrand-Périgords; the one was extinct before the time of Louis -XVI., the other, being the younger branch, was then represented by a -Comte de Périgord, Captain of the Guards, and Governor of the States -of Languedoc. A brother of this Comte de Périgord was the father of -Charles Maurice Talleyrand de Périgord (the subject of this memoir), -whose mother, Eléonore de Damas, daughter of the Marquis de Damas, was -also of a highly noble family, and a lady alike remarkable for her -beauty and her virtue.[4] - - -III. - -The seal which marks our destiny has usually been stamped on our -childhood; and most men, as they look back to their early youth, can -remember the accident, the book, the conversation, which gave that -shape to their character which events have subsequently developed. - -M. de Talleyrand was in infancy an exile from his home; the fortune -of his parents did not correspond with their rank: his father,[5] -a soldier, was always at the court or the camp; his mother held a -situation in the household at Versailles. To both a child was an -incumbrance, and Maurice immediately at his birth was put out to nurse -(as was indeed at that time frequently the custom) in the country, -where, either by chance or neglect, he met with a fall which occasioned -lameness. This infirmity, when the almost forgotten child at the age of -twelve or thirteen was brought up to Paris for the purpose of receiving -rather a tardy education, had become incurable; and by a _conseil -de famille_, it was decided that the younger brother, the Comte -d’Archambaud--subsequently known as one of the handsomest and most -elegant of the courtiers of Louis XVI., and whom I can remember under -the title of Duc de Périgord--(a title given by Louis XVIII.), should -be considered the elder brother, and enter the army, whilst the elder -son should be pronounced the younger son, and devoted to the clerical -profession, into which the Périgords knew they had sufficient influence -to procure his admission, notwithstanding the infirmity which, under -ordinary circumstances, would have been a reason for excluding him from -the service of the church. From this moment the boy--hitherto lively, -idle, and reckless--became taciturn, studious, and calculating. His -early propensities remained, for nature admits of no radical change; -but they were coloured by disappointment, or combated by ambition. -We see traces of gaiety in the companion who, though rarely smiling -himself, could always elicit a laugh from others; we see traces of -indolence in the statesman who, though always occupied, never did more -than the necessity of the case exacted; we see traces of recklessness -in the gambler and politician who, after a shrewd glance at the -chances, was often disposed to risk his fortune, or his career, on a -speculation for money or power: but the mind had been darkened and -the heart hardened; and the youth who might easily and carelessly -have accepted a prosperous fate, was ushered into the world with a -determination to wrestle with an adverse one. - -Nor did any paternal advice or maternal care regulate or soften the -dispositions which were thus being formed. From the nurse in the -country, the lame young Périgord--for Périgord was the name which at -this time he bore--was transplanted to the “Collége d’Harcourt,” since -called that of St. Louis. He entered it more ignorant, perhaps, than -any boy of his years; but he soon gained its first prizes, and became -one of its most distinguished scholars. - -At the “Séminaire de St. Sulpice,” to which he was removed in 1770, -his talent for disputation attracted attention, and even some of his -compositions were long remembered and quoted by contemporaries. Whilst -at the Sorbonne, where he subsequently completed his studies, this -scion of one of the most illustrious French houses was often pointed -out as a remarkably clever, silent, and profligate young man: who made -no secret of his dislike to the profession that had been chosen for -him, but was certain to arrive at its highest honours. - -With such prospects and such dispositions, M. de Talleyrand entered, in -1773, the Gallican Church. - - -IV. - -At this time we have to fancy the young ecclesiastic--a gentleman about -twenty years of age, very smart in his clerical attire, and with a -countenance which, without being handsome, was singularly attractive -from the triple expression of softness, impudence, and wit. If we -are to credit the chronicles of that day, his first advance in his -profession was owing to one of those _bon mots_ by which so many of the -subsequent steps of his varied career were distinguished. - -There were assembled at Madame Dubarry’s a number of young gentlemen, -rather free in their conversation and prodigal in their boasts: no -beauty had been veiled to their desires, no virtue had been able to -resist their attacks. The subject of this memoir alone said nothing. -“And what makes you so sad and silent?” asked the hostess. “_Hélas! -madame, je faisais une réflexion bien triste._” “_Et laquelle?_” “_Ah, -madame, que Paris est une ville dans laquelle il est bien plus aisé -d’avoir des femmes que des abbayes._” - -The saying, so goes the story, was considered charming, and being -reported to Louis XV., was rewarded by that monarch with the benefice -desired. The Abbé de Périgord’s career, thus commenced, did not long -linger. Within a few years after entering the church, aided by his -birth and abilities, he obtained (in 1780) the distinguished position -of “Agent-General” of the French clergy--this title designating an -important personage who administered the ecclesiastical revenues, which -were then immense, under the control of regular assemblies. - -It is a curious trait in the manners of these times that, whilst -holding this high post as a priest, the Abbé de Périgord fitted out -a vessel as a privateer; and, it being his intention to plunder the -English, received from the French government the cannon he required for -so pious a purpose.[6] - -I am unable to say what success attended M. de Talleyrand’s naval -enterprise; but when, in 1785, he had to give an account of his -clerical administration, the very clear and statesmanlike manner in -which he did so, raised him, in the opinion of the public, from the -position of a clever man, into that of an able one. Nor was this all. -The peculiar nature of the first public duties which he thus exercised, -directed his mind towards those questions which the increasing deficit -in the French treasury, and the acknowledged necessity of supplying -it, made the fashion: for every one at that time in Paris--ladies, -philosophers, wits, and men of fashion--talked finance. Few, however, -troubled themselves with acquiring any real insight into so dry a -subject. But M. de Talleyrand, although constitutionally averse to -hard or continued study, supplied this defect by always seeking and -living with men who were the best informed on those subjects with which -he wished to become acquainted. In this manner his own information -became essentially practical, and the knowledge he obtained of details -(furnishing him with a variety of facts, which he always knew how to -quote opportunely), attracted the attention and patronage of M. de -Calonne, then at the head of the French government, and who, being -himself as much addicted to pleasure as to affairs, was not sorry to -sanction the doctrine that a man of the world might also be a man of -business. - -Still, though thus early marked out as a person who, after the example -of his great ecclesiastical predecessors, might rise to the highest -dignities in the Church and State, the Abbé de Périgord showed an -almost ostentatious disregard for the duties and decorum of the -profession which he had been forced to embrace. Indeed, he seemed to -make in this sort of conduct a kind of protest against the decree by -which his birthright had been set aside, and almost to glory in the -publication of profane epigrams and amorous adventures which amused -the world but scandalised the Church. Thus, each year, which increased -his reputation for ability, added to the stories by which public -rumour exaggerated his immorality; and in 1788, when the bishopric -of Autun, to which he had for some time been looking forward, became -vacant, Louis XVI. was unwilling to confer the dignity of prelate on -so irregular an ecclesiastic. For four months the appointment was not -filled up. But the Abbé de Périgord’s father lay at that time on his -death-bed: he was visited by the kind-hearted Louis in this condition, -and he begged the monarch, as the last request of a dying and faithful -servant, to grant the bishopric in question to his son. The King could -not withstand such a prayer at such a moment, and the Abbé de Périgord -was consecrated Bishop of Autun on the 17th of January, 1789--four -months before the assembling of the States-General. - - -V. - -The period which had elapsed between the time at which M. de Talleyrand -had entered the Church, and that at which he attained the episcopal -dignity, is, perhaps, the most interesting in modern civilization. At -no epoch did society ever present so bright and polished a surface -as it did in the French capital during these fourteen or fifteen -years. The still great fortunes of the _grand seigneur_, the profuse -expenditure of the financier, the splendour of a court embellished -by that love for the arts and for letters which the Medici had -imported from Italy, and which Louis XIV. had made a part of his royal -magnificence, all contributed to surround life with a taste in luxury -which has never been surpassed. Rich manufactures of silk, exquisite -chiseling in bronze, china equally beautiful in form and decoration, -and paintings somewhat effeminate, but graceful, and which still give -celebrity to the names of Watteau, Boucher, and Greuze, mark the -elegant refinement that presided over those days. - -Nothing, however, in those courtly times had been carried to such -perfection as the art of living, and the habits of social intercourse. -People did not then shut up their houses from their friends if they -were poor, nor merely open them in order to give gorgeous and pompous -entertainments if they were rich. Persons who suited and sympathised, -assembled in small circles, which permitted the access of new members -cautiously, but received all who had once been admitted without -preference or distinction. - -In these circles, the courtier, though confident of the fixed -superiority of his birth, paid homage to the accident of genius in the -man of letters; and the literary man, however proud of his works, or -conscious of his talents, rendered the customary tribute of respect to -high rank and station. - -Thus poets and princes, ministers of state, and members of learned -academies--men of wit, and men of the world--met on a footing of -apparent equality, and real familiarity, on a stage where Beauty, -ambitious of universal admiration, cultivated her mind as much as her -person, and established one presiding theory--“that all had to make -themselves agreeable.” - -The evening parties of Madame de Brignole, and of Madame du Deffand, -the little suppers of Madame Geoffrin, the dinners of Baron Holbach -and Helvetius, the musical receptions of the Abbé Morelet, and the -breakfasts of Madame Necker, were only specimens of the sort of -assemblies which existed amongst different classes, and throughout -every street and corner of Paris and Versailles. - -Here, all orders mingled with suitable deference towards each other. -But beneath this brilliant show of actual gaiety and apparent unity -there lay brooding a spirit of dissatisfaction and expectation, -which a variety of peculiar circumstances tended, at that time, to -exaggerate in France, but which is in fact the usual characteristic of -every intellectual community, when neither over-enervated by luxury -and peace, nor over-wearied by war and civil commotion. Its natural -consequence was a desire for change, which diffused its influence over -all things--great and small. Léonard revolutionized the head-dress of -the French lady: Diderot and Beaumarchais, the principles of the French -stage: Turgot and Necker, the political economy and financial system of -the French state: and just at this moment, when the imagination was on -the stretch for novelty, as if Providence designed for some mysterious -end to encourage the aspiring genius of the epoch, the balloon of -Montgolfier took its flight from the Tuileries, and the most romantic -dreams were surpassed by a reality. - -It was not, however, a mere discontent with the present, a mere hope -in the future, a mere passion after things new, however violent that -passion might be, which constituted the peril, nor, indeed, the -peculiarity of the hour. - -In other seasons of this kind, the wishes and views of men have -frequently taken some fixed form--have had some fixed tendency--and in -this way their progress has been regulated, and their result, even from -a distance, foreseen. - -But at the period to which I am referring, there was no general -conception or aim which cast a decisive shadow over coming events, and -promised any specific future in exchange for the present, evidently -passing away. - -There still lived, though on the verge of the tomb, an individual to -whom this distinguishing misfortune of the eighteenth century was in no -small degree attributable. The keen sagacity of Voltaire, his piercing -raillery, his brilliant and epigrammatic eloquence, had ridiculed and -destroyed all faith in old abuses, but had never attempted to give -even a sketch of what was to come in their room. “_Magis habuit quod -fugeret quam quod sequeretur._” The effect of his genius, therefore, -had been to create around him a sort of luminous mist, produced by -the blending of curiosity and doubt; an atmosphere favourable to -scepticism, favourable to credulity; and, above all things, generative -of enthusiasts and empirics. St. Germain the alchymist, Cagliostro -the conjurer, Condorcet the publicist, Marat the politician, were the -successive produce of this marvellous and singular epoch. And thus -it was,--amidst a general possession of privileges, and a general -equality of customs and ideas--amidst a great generosity of sentiment, -and an almost entire absence of principle in a society unequalled in -its charms, unbounded in its hopes, and altogether ignorant of its -destiny,--that the flower of M. de Talleyrand’s manhood was passed. - - -VI. - -I have dwelt at some length upon the characteristics-- - - “Of those gay times of elegance and ease, - When Pleasure learnt so gracefully to please: - When wits and courtiers held the same resorts, - The courtiers wits, and all wits fit for courts: - When woman, perfect in her siren art, - Subdued the mind, and trifled with the heart; - When Wisdom’s lights in fanes fantastic shone, - And Taste had principles, and Virtue none: - When schools disdained the morals understood, - And sceptics boasted of some better good: - When all was Fairyland which met the view, - No truth untheorized, and no theory true.” - -I have dwelt, I say, at some length upon the characteristics of those -times; because it is never to be forgotten that the personage I have to -speak of was their child. To the latest hour of his existence he fondly -cherished their memory; to them he owed many of those graces which his -friends still delight to recall: to them, most of those faults which -his enemies have so frequently portrayed. - -The great test of his understanding was that he totally escaped all -their grosser delusions. Of this I am able to give a striking proof. -It has been said that M. de Talleyrand was raised to the episcopal -dignity in January, 1789, four months previous to the assembling of the -States-General. To that great Assembly he was immediately named by the -_baillage_ of his own diocese; and perhaps there is hardly to be found -on record a more remarkable example of human sagacity and foresight -than in the new bishop’s address to the body which had chosen him its -representative. - -In this address, which I have now before me, he separates all the -reforms which were practicable and expedient, from all the schemes -which were visionary and dangerous--the one and the other being at -that time confused and jumbled together in the half-frenzied brains -of his countrymen: he omits none of those advantages in government, -legislation, finance--for he embraces all these--which fifty years have -gradually given to France: he mentions none of those projects of which -time, experience, and reason have shown the absurdity and futility. - -A charter giving to all equal rights: a great code embodying and -simplifying all existing and necessary laws: a due provision for prompt -justice: the abolition of arbitrary arrest: the mitigation of the laws -between debtor and creditor: the institution of trial by jury: the -liberty of the press, and the inviolability of private correspondence: -the destruction of those interior imposts which cut up France into -provinces, and of those restrictions by which all but members of -guilds were excluded from particular trades: the introduction of order -into the finances under a well-regulated system of public accounts: -the suppression of all feudal privileges: and the organization of a -well-considered general plan of taxation: such were the changes which -the Bishop of Autun suggested in the year 1789. He said nothing of -the perfectibility of the human race: of a total reorganization of -society under a new system of capital and labour: he did not promise -an eternal peace, nor preach a general fraternity amongst all races -and creeds. The ameliorations he proposed were plain and simple; -they affiliated with ideas already received, and could be grafted on -the roots of a society already existing. They have stood the test of -eighty years--now advanced by fortunate events, now retarded by adverse -ones--some of them have been disdained by demagogues, others denounced -by despots;--they have passed through the ordeal of successive -revolutions; and they furnish at this instant the foundations on which -all wise and enlightened Frenchmen desire to establish the condition -of government and society in their great and noble country. Let us do -honour to an intelligence that could trace these limits for a rising -generation; to a discretion that resisted the temptation to stray -beyond them! - - -VII. - -About the time of the assembling of the States-General, there appeared -a work which it is now curious to refer to--it was by the pen of -Laclos--entitled _Galerie des États-Généraux_. This work gave a sketch -under assumed names of the principal personages likely to figure in -the States-General. Amongst a variety of portraits, are to be found -those of General Lafayette and the Bishop of Autun; the first under -the name of Philarète, the second under that of Amène; and, assuredly, -the author startles us by his nice perception of the character and by -his prophetic sagacity as to the career of these two men. It is well, -however, to remember that Laclos frequented the Palais Royal, which the -moral and punctilious soldier of Washington scrupulously avoided. The -criticism I give, therefore, is not an impartial one. For, if General -Lafayette was neither a hero nor a statesman, he was, take him all in -all, one of the most eminent personages of his time, and occupied, -at two or three periods, one of the most prominent positions in his -country. - -“Philarète,” says M. Laclos, “having found it easy to become a hero, -fancies it will be as easy to become a statesman. The misfortune of -Philarète is that he has great pretensions and ordinary conceptions. -He has persuaded himself that he was the author of the revolution in -America; he is arranging himself so as to become one of the principal -actors in a revolution in France. - -“He mistakes notoriety for glory, an event for a success, a sword for -a monument, a compliment for immortality. He does not like the court, -because he is not at his ease in it; nor the world, because there he is -confounded with the many; nor women, because they injure the reputation -of a man, while they do not add to his position. But he is fond of -clubs, because he there picks up the ideas of others; of strangers, -because they only examine a foreigner superficially; of mediocrity, -because it listens and admires. - -“Philarète will be faithful to whatever party he adopts, without being -able to assign, even to himself, any good reasons for being so. He -has no very accurate ideas of constitutional authority, but the word -‘liberty’ has a charm for him, because it rouses an ambition which he -scarcely knows what to do with. Such is Philarète. He merits attention, -because, after all, he is better than most of his rivals. That the -world has been more favourable to him than he deserves, is owing to the -fact that he has done a great deal in it, considering the poverty of -his ability; and people have been grateful to him, rather on account of -what he seemed desirous to be, than on account of what he was. Besides, -his exterior is modest, and only a few know that the heart of the man -is not mirrored on the surface. - -“He will never be much more than we see him, for he has little genius, -little nerve, little voice, little art, and is greedy of small -successes.” - -Such was the portrait which was drawn of Lafayette; we now come to that -of M. de Talleyrand. - -“Amène has charming manners, which embellish virtue. His first title -to success is a sound understanding. Judging men with indulgence, -events with calmness, he has in all things that moderation which is the -characteristic of true philosophy. - -“There is a degree of perfection which the intelligence can comprehend -rather than realise, and which there is, undoubtedly, a certain degree -of greatness in endeavouring to attain; but such brilliant efforts, -though they give momentary fame to those who make them, are never -of any real utility. Common sense disdains glitter and noise, and, -measuring the bounds of human capacity, has not the wild hope of -extending them beyond what experience has proved their just limit. - -“Amène has no idea of making a great reputation in a day: such -reputations, made too quickly, soon begin to decline, and are followed -by envy, disappointment, and sorrow. But Amène will _arrive at -everything_, because he will always profit by those occasions which -present themselves to such as do not attempt to ravish Fortune. Each -step will be marked by the development of some talent, and thus he will -at last acquire that general high opinion which summons a statesman to -every great post that is vacant. Envy, which will always deny something -to a person generally praised, will reply to what we have said, that -Amène has not that force and energy of character which is necessary to -break through the obstacles that impede the course of a public man. It -is true he will _yield to circumstances_, to reason, and will deem that -he can make _sacrifices to peace without descending from principle_; -but firmness and constancy may exist without violent ardour, or vapid -enthusiasm. - -“Amène has against him his pleasing countenance and seductive manner. -I know people whom these advantages displease, and who are also -prejudiced against a man who happens to unite the useful chance of -birth with the essential qualities of the mind. - -“But what are we really to expect from Amène in the States-General? -Nothing, if he is inspired with the spirit of class; much, if he acts -after his own conceptions, and remembers that a national assembly only -contains citizens.” - - -VIII. - -Few who read the above sketch will deny to the author of the “_Liaisons -Dangereuses_” the merit of discernment. Indeed, to describe M. de -Talleyrand at this time seems to have been more appropriate to the -pen of the novelist than to that of the historian. Let us picture to -ourselves a man of about thirty-five, and appearing somewhat older: -his countenance of a long oval; his eyes blue, with an expression at -once deep and variable; his lips usually impressed with a smile, which -was that of mockery, but not of ill-nature; his nose slightly turned -up, but delicate, and remarkable for a constant play in the clearly -chiseled nostrils. “He dressed,” says one of his many biographers, -“like a coxcomb, he thought like a deist, he preached like a saint.” At -once active and irregular, he found time for everything: the church, -the court, the opera. In bed one day from indolence or debauch, up the -whole of the following night to prepare a memoir or a speech. Gentle -with the humble, haughty with the high; not very exact in paying his -debts, but very scrupulous with respect to giving and breaking promises -to pay them. - -A droll story is related with respect to this last peculiarity. The -new Bishop had ordered and received a very handsome carriage, becoming -his recent ecclesiastical elevation. He had not, however, settled the -coachmaker’s “small account.” After long waiting and frequent letters, -the civil but impatient tradesman determined upon presenting himself -every day at the Bishop of Autun’s door, at the same time as his -equipage. - -For several days, M. de Talleyrand saw, without recognising, a -well-dressed individual, with his hat in his hand, and bowing very low -as he mounted the steps of his coach. “_Et qui êtes vous, mon ami?_” -he said at last. “_Je suis votre carrossier, Monseigneur._” “_Ah! -vous êtes mon carrossier; et que voulez-vous, mon carrossier?_” “_Je -veux être payé, Monseigneur_,” said the coachmaker, humbly. “_Ah! -vous êtes mon carrossier, et vous voulez être payé; vous serez payé, -mon carrossier._” “_Et quand, Monseigneur?_”[7] “Hum!” murmured the -Bishop, looking at his coachmaker very attentively, and at the same -time settling himself in his new carriage: “_Vous êtes bien curieux!_” -Such was the Talleyrand of 1789, embodying in himself the ability and -the frivolity, the ideas and the habits of a large portion of his -class. At once the associate of the Abbé Sieyès, and of Mademoiselle -Guimard: a profligate fine gentleman, a deep and wary thinker; and, -above all things, the delight and ornament of that gay and graceful -society, which, crowned with flowers, was about to be the first victim -to its own philosophy. As yet, however, the sky, though troubled, -gave no evidence of storm; and never, perhaps, did a great assembly -meet with less gloomy anticipations than that which in the pomp and -gallantry of feudal show, swept, on the 1st of May, through the royal -city of Versailles. - -Still, there was even at that moment visible the sign and symbol of the -approaching crisis; for dark behind the waving plumes and violet robes -of the great dignitaries of Church and State, moved on the black mass, -in sable cloak and garb, of the Commons, or tiers-état, the body which -had, _as yet, been nothing_, but which had just been told by one of its -most illustrious members,[8] that it _ought to be everything_. - -The history of the mighty revolution which at this moment was -commencing, is still so stirring amongst us,--the breath of the tempest -which then struck down tower and temple, is still so frequently fancied -to be rustling about our own dwellings,--that when the mind even now -wanders back, around and about this time, it is always with a certain -interest and curiosity, and we pause once again to muse, even though we -have often before meditated, upon that memorable event which opened a -new chapter in the history of the world. And the more we reflect, the -more does it seem surprising that in so civilised an age, and under so -well-meaning a sovereign, an august throne and a great society should -have been wholly swept away; nor does it appear less astonishing that -a monarch with arbitrary sway, that a magistracy with extraordinary -privileges, each wishing to retain their authority, should have -voluntarily invoked another power, long slumbering in an almost -forgotten constitution, and which, when roused into activity, was so -immediately omnipotent over parliament and king. - - -IX. - -The outline of Louis XVI.’s reign is easily, though I do not remember -where it is briefly, and clearly traced. At its commencement, the -influence of new opinions was confined to the library and drawing-room. -The modern notions of constitutional liberty and political economy -prevalent amongst men of letters, and fashionable amongst men of the -world, had not been professed by men in power, and were consequently -disdained by that large class which wishes in all countries to pass for -the practical portion of the community. At this time, an old minister, -himself a courtier, and jealous lest other courtiers should acquire -that influence over his master which he possessed, introduced into -affairs a set of persons hitherto unknown at court, the most eminent -of whom were Turgot, Malesherbes, and Necker; and no sooner had these -three eminent reformers obtained a serious political position, than -their views acquired a political consideration which had not before -belonged to them, and the idea that some great and general reform was -shortly to take place entered seriously into the public mind. Each of -these ministers would have wished to make the reforms that were most -necessary with the aid of the royal authority; and, had they been able -to do so, it is probable that they would have preserved the heart -and strength of the old monarchy, which was yet only superficially -decayed. But the moderate changes which they desired to introduce -with the assent of all parties, were opposed by all parties, in spite -of--or, perhaps, on account of--their very moderation: for losers are -rarely satisfied because their losses are small, and winners are never -contented but when their gains are great. - -In the meantime, Maurepas, who would have supported the policy of his -colleagues, if it had brought him popularity, was by no means disposed -to do so when it gave him trouble. Thus, Malesherbes, Turgot, and -Necker were successively forced to resign their offices, without having -done anything to establish their own policy, but much to render any -other discreditable and difficult. - -The publication of the famous “_Compte Rendu_,” or balance-sheet of -state expenses and receipts, more especially, rendered it impossible to -continue to govern as heretofore. And now Maurepas died, and a youthful -queen inherited the influence of an old favourite. M. de Calonne, a -plausible, clever, but superficial gentleman, was the first minister of -any importance chosen by the influence of Marie-Antoinette’s friends. -He saw that the expenses and receipts of the government must bear -some proportion to each other. He trembled at suddenly reducing old -charges; new taxes were the only alternative; and yet it was almost -impossible to get such taxes from the lower and middle classes, if the -clergy and nobility, who conjointly possessed about two-thirds of the -soil, were exempted from all contributions to the public wants. The -minister, nevertheless, shrunk from despoiling the privileged classes -of their immunities, without some authorization from themselves. He -called together, therefore, the considerable personages, or “notables,” -as they were styled, of the realm, and solicited their sanction to new -measures and new imposts, some of the former of which would limit their -authority, and some of the latter affect their purses. - -The “notables” were divided into two factions: the one of which was -opposed to M. de Calonne, the other to the changes which he wished -to introduce. These two parties united and became irresistible. -Amongst their ranks was a personage of great ambition and small -capacity--Brienne, Archbishop of Toulouse. This man was the most -violent of M. de Calonne’s opponents. The court turned round suddenly -and chose him as M. de Calonne’s successor. This measure, at first, -was successful, for conflicting opinions end by creating personal -antipathies, and the “notables,” in a moment of exultation over the -defeated minister, granted everything with facility to the minister -who had supplanted him. A new embarrassment, however, now arose. -The notables were, after all, only an advising body: they could -say what they deemed right to be done, but they could not do it. -This was the business of the sovereign; but his edicts, in order -to acquire regularly the force of law, had to be registered by the -Parliament of Paris; and it is easy to understand how such a power -of registration became, under particular circumstances, the power of -refusal. The influence of that great magisterial corporation, called -the “Parliament of Paris,” had, indeed, acquired, since it had been -found necessary to set aside Louis XIV.’s will by the sanction of -its authority, a more clear and positive character than at former -periods. This judicial court, or legislative assembly, had thus become -a constituent part of the State, and had also become--as all political -assemblies, however composed, which have not others for their rivals, -will become--the representative of popular opinion. It had seen, with -a certain degree of jealousy, the convocation, however temporarily, of -another chamber (for such the assembly of notables might be called), -and was, moreover, as belonging to the aristocracy, not very well -disposed to the surrender of aristocratical privileges. It refused, -therefore, to register the new taxes proposed to it: thus thwarting -the consent of the notables, avoiding, for a time, the imposts with -which its own class was threatened, and acquiring, nevertheless, some -increase of popularity with the people who are usually disposed to -resist all taxation, and were pleased with the invectives against the -extravagance of the court, with which the resistance of the parliament -was accompanied. - -The government cajoled and threatened the parliament, recalled it, -again quarrelled with it, attempted to suppress it--and failed. - -Disturbances broke out, famine appeared at hand, a bankruptcy was -imminent; there was no constituted authority with sufficient power -or sufficient confidence in itself to act decisively. People looked -out for some new authority: they found it in an antique form. “The -States-General!” (that is, an assembly chosen from the different -classes, which, in critical periods of the French nation had been -heretofore summoned) became the unanimous cry. The court, which -wanted money and could not get it, expected to find more sympathy in -a body drawn from all the orders of the State than from a special and -privileged body which represented but one order. - -The parliament, on the other hand, imagined that, having acquired the -reputation of defending the nation’s rights, it would have its powers -maintained and extended by any collection of men representing the -nation. This is why both parliament and court came by common accord to -one conclusion. - -The great bulk of the nobility, though divided in their previous -discussions, here, also, at last agreed: one portion because it -participated in the views of the court, and the other because it -participated in those of the parliament. - -In the meantime, the unfortunate Archbishop, who had tried every plan -for filling the coffers of the court without the aid of the great -council now called together, was dismissed as soon as that council was -definitively summoned: and, according to the almost invariable policy -of restoring to power the statesman who has increased his popularity by -losing office, M. Necker was again placed at the head of the finances -and presented to the public as the most influential organ of the crown. - - -X. - -It will be apparent, from what I have said, that the court expected to -find in the States-General an ally against the parliament, whilst the -parliament expected to find in the States-General an ally against the -court. Both were deceived. - -The nobility, or notables, the government, and the parliament, had -all hitherto been impotent, because they had all felt that there was -another power around them and about them, by which their actions were -controlled, but with which, as it had no visible representation, they -had no means of dealing. - -That power was “public opinion.” In the Commons of France, in the -Deputies from the most numerous, thoughtful, and stirring classes of -the community, a spirit--hitherto impalpable and invisible--found at -once a corporate existence. - -Monsieur d’Espremenil, and those parliamentary patricians who a year -before were in almost open rebellion against the sovereign, at last -saw that they had a more potent enemy to cope with, and rallied -suddenly round the throne. Its royal possessor stood at that moment -in a position which no doubt was perilous, but which, nevertheless, I -believe, a moderate degree of sagacity and firmness might have made -secure. The majority of the aristocracy of all grades, from a feudal -sentiment of honour, was with the King. The middle classes also had -still for the monarch and his rank considerable respect; and were -desirous to find out and sanction some just and reasonable compromise -between the institutions that were disappearing, and the ideas that -had come into vogue. It was necessary to calm the apprehensions of -those who had anything to lose, to fix the views of those who thought -they had something to gain, and to come at once to a settlement with -the various classes--here agitated by fear, there by expectation. But -however evident the necessity of this policy, it was not adopted. -Suspicions that should have been dissipated were excited; notions that -should have been rendered definite were further disturbed; all efforts -at arrangement were postponed; and thus the revolution rushed onwards, -its tide swelling, and its rapidity being increased by the blunders -of those who had the greatest interest and desire to arrest it. The -fortune of M. de Talleyrand was embarked upon that great stream, of -which few could trace the source, and none foresaw the direction. - - -XI. - -I have just said that none foresaw the direction in which the great -events now commencing were likely to run. That direction was mainly to -be influenced by the conduct and character of the sovereign, but it -was also, in some degree, to be affected by the conduct and character -of the statesman to whom the destinies of France were for the moment -confided. - -M. Necker belonged to a class of men not uncommon in our own time. -His abilities, though good, were not of the first order; his mind -had been directed to one particular branch of business; and, as is -common with persons who have no great genius and one specialty, he -took the whole of government to be that part which he best understood. -Accordingly, what he now looked to, and that exclusively, was balancing -the receipts and expenditure of the State. To do this, it was necessary -to tax the nobility and clergy; and the class through whose aid he -could best hope to achieve such a task was the middle-class, or -“tiers-état.” For this reason, when it had been decided to convoke -the States-General, and it became necessary to fix the proportionate -numbers by which each of the three orders (viz. the nobility, clergy, -middle-class, or “tiers-état,”) which composed the States-General, -was to be represented, M. Necker determined that the sole order of -the “tiers-état” should have as many representatives as the two other -orders conjointly; thinking in this way to give the middle-class a -greater authority, and to counterbalance the want of rank in its -individual members, by their aggregate superiority in numbers. - -But when M. Necker went thus far he should have gone farther, and -defined in what manner the three orders should vote, and what power -they should separately exercise. This precaution, however, he did not -take; and therefore, as soon as the States-General assembled, there -instantly arose the question as to whether the three orders were to -prove the validity of their elections together as members of one -assembly, or separately as members of three distinct assemblies. This -question, in point of fact, determined whether the three orders were -to sit and vote together, or whether each order was to sit and vote -apart; and after M. Necker’s first regulation it was clear that, in one -case, the order of the Commons would predominate over all opposition; -and that, in the other, it would be subordinate to the two rival -orders. A struggle then naturally commenced. - - -XII. - -The members of the “tiers-état,” who, as the largest of the three -bodies forming the States-General, had been left in possession of the -chamber where all the orders had been first collected to meet the -sovereign--an accident much in their favour--invited the members of -the two other orders to join them there. The clergy hesitated; the -nobles refused. Days and weeks passed away, and the minister, seeing -his original error, would willingly have remedied it by now proposing -that which he might originally have fixed, namely, that the three -orders should vote together on questions of finance, and separately -on all other questions. This idea was brought forward late; but, even -thus late, it might have prevailed if the court had been earnest in -its favour. The King, however, and those who immediately influenced -him, had begun to think that a deficit was less troublesome than the -means adopted to get rid of it; and fancying that the States-General, -if left to themselves, might ere long dissolve amidst the dissensions -which were discrediting them, were desirous that these dissensions -should continue. Nor would this policy have failed in its object if -negotiation had been much further prolonged. - -But it is at great moments like these that a great man suddenly steps -forth, and whilst the crowd is discussing what is best to be done, -does it. Such a man was the Comte de Mirabeau; and on the 15th of -June, this marvellous personage, whose audacity was often prudence, -having instigated the Abbé Sieyès (whose authority was at that time -great with the Assembly) to bring the subject under discussion, called -on the tiers-état, still doubting and deliberating, to constitute -themselves at once, and without further waiting for the nobility, “The -Representatives of the French people.” They did so in reality, though -not in words, declaring themselves duly elected, and taking as their -title “The National Assembly.” The government thought to stop their -proceedings by simply shutting up the chamber where they had hitherto -met, but so paltry a device was insufficient to arrest the resolutions -of men whose minds were now prepared for important events. Encouraging -each other, the Commons rushed unhesitatingly to a tennis-court, and in -that spot, singularly destined to witness so solemn a ceremony, swore, -with but one dissentient voice, to stand by each other till France -had a constitution. After such an oath, the alternative was clearly -between the old monarchy, with all its abuses, and a new constitution, -whatever its dangers. On this ground, two orders in the State stood -hostilely confronted. But another order remained, whose conduct at such -a juncture was all-decisive. That order was the clergy,--which, still -respected if not venerated,--wealthy, connected by various links with -each portion of society, and especially looked up to by that great -and sluggish mass of quiet men who always stand long wavering between -extremes--had been endeavouring to effect some compromise between -the privileged classes and their opponents, but had as yet taken no -prominent part with either. The moment was come at which it could no -longer hesitate. - - -XIII. - -M. de Talleyrand, though but a new dignitary in the church, was -already one of its most influential members. He had been excluded by -a prejudice of the nobility from the situation to which his birth had -entitled him amongst them. He had long resolved to obtain another -position at least as elevated through his own exertions. His views, -as we have seen, at the time of his election, were liberal, though -moderate, whilst he was sufficiently acquainted with the character -of Louis XVI. to know that that monarch would never sincerely yield, -nor ever sturdily resist, any concession demanded with persistency. -Partly, therefore, from a conviction that he was doing what was best -for the public, and partly, also, from the persuasion that he was -doing what was best for himself, he separated boldly from the rest of -his family (who were amongst the most devoted to the Comte d’Artois and -Marie-Antoinette), and laboured with unwearied energy to enlist the -body he belonged to on the popular side. - -To succeed in this object he had the talents and advantages most -essential. His natural courtesy flattered the curates; his various -acquirements captivated his more learned brethren; his high birth gave -him the ear of the great ecclesiastical dignitaries; and, finally, a -majority of his order, instigated by his exertions and address, joined -the Third Estate, on the 22nd of June, in the Church of Saint-Louis. - -From that moment the question hitherto doubtful was determined; for -at no time have the clergy and the commons stood side by side without -being victorious. It was in vain, therefore, that even so early as -the day following, the descendant of Louis XIV., in all the pomp of -royalty, and in the presence of the three orders--whom he had for that -day summoned to assemble--denounced the conduct which the tiers-état -had pursued, annulled their decisions, and threatened them with his -sovereign displeasure. - -The tiers-état resisted; the King repented--retracted,--and showing -that he had no will, lost all authority. Thus, on the 27th of June, -the States-General, henceforth designated by the title which had been -already assumed by the Commons (the National Assembly), held their -deliberations together, and the three orders were confounded. - - -XIV. - -But one step now remained in order to legalise the revolution in -progress. Each deputy had received a sort of mandate or instruction -from those who named him at the moment of his election. Such -instructions or mandates, which had been given at a time when -people could hardly anticipate the state of things which had since -arisen, limited, or seemed to limit, the action of a deputy to -particular points which had especially attracted the attention of his -constituents. - -The conservative party contended that these mandates were imperative, -the liberal party that they were not. According to the first -supposition, the States-General could do no more than redress a few -grievances; according to the other, they could create a perfectly new -system of government. - -The Bishop of Autun, in the first speech he delivered in the National -Assembly--a speech which produced considerable effect--argued in -favour of his own liberty and that of his colleagues, and his -views were naturally enough adopted by a body which, feeling its -own force, had to determine its own power. Hence, on the record of -two great decisions--the one solving the States-General into the -“National Assembly;” the other extending and fixing that Assembly’s -authority--decisions which, whatever their other results, were at least -fatal to the power and influence of the class to which he belonged by -birth, but from which he had, in spite of himself, been severed in -childhood--was indelibly inscribed the name of the once despised and -still disinherited cripple of the princely house of Périgord. - - -XV. - -There was nothing henceforth to impede the labours of the National -Assembly, and it commenced those labours with earnestness and zeal, -if not with discretion. One of its first acts was to choose by ballot -a committee of eight members, charged to draw up the project of a -constitution, which was subsequently to be submitted to the Assembly. -The Bishop of Autun was immediately placed upon this select and -important committee. It had for its task to render practical the -political speculations of the eighteenth century. Things, however, had -commenced too violently for them to proceed thus peaceably; and as the -success of the popular party had been hitherto obtained by braving -the crown, it was to be expected that the crown would seize the first -opportunity that presented itself for boldly recovering its authority. -A well-timed effort of this kind might have been successful. But -neither Louis XVI., nor any of the counsellors in whom he confided, -possessed that instinct in political affairs which is the soul of -action, inspiring men with the resolve to do the right thing at the -right moment. It has often been found easy to crush a revolution at its -commencement, for the most ardent of its supporters at such a time act -feebly, and doubt about the policy they are pursuing. It has often been -found possible to arrest a revolution at that subsequent stage of its -progress when the moderate are shocked by some excess, or the sanguine -checked by some disappointment; but a revolution is invincible at -that crisis, when its progress, begun with boldness, has neither been -checked by misfortune, nor disgraced by violence. - -Nevertheless, it was just at such a crisis that the unfortunate -Louis XVI., guided in a great degree by the fatal influence of his -brother, after having gradually surrounded Versailles and the capital -with troops, suddenly banished M. Necker (July 10th), whose disgrace -was instantly considered the defeat of those who advised the King -to renovate his authority by concessions, and the triumph of those -who counselled him to recover and re-establish it by force. But the -measures which were to follow this act were still in suspense, when a -formidable insurrection broke out at Paris. A portion of the soldiery -sided with the people. The Bastille was taken, and its commandant -put to death, the populace got possession of arms, the prevôt or -mayor of the city was assassinated, whilst the army which had been so -ostentatiously collected in the Champ de Mars and at St. Denis was left -an inactive witness of the insurrection which its array had provoked. -The results were those which usually follow the strong acts of weak -men: Louis XVI. submitted; M. Necker was recalled; the Comte d’Artois -emigrated. - -It was M. de Talleyrand’s fortune not merely at all times to quit a -falling party at the commencement of its decline, but to stand firm -by a rising party at the moment of its struggle for success. This -was seen during the contest we have just been describing. Throughout -that contest the Bishop of Autun was amongst the most determined -for maintaining the rights of the nation against the designs of the -court. His decision and courage added not a little to the reputation -which had been already gained by his ability. We find his name, -therefore, first in the list of a small number of eminent men,[9] whom -the Assembly, when surrounded by hostile preparations for restoring -the despotism which had been abolished, charged, in a bold but not -imprudent spirit of defiance, with the task of at once completing and -establishing the constitution which had been promised, and which it -had become evident there was no intention to accord. The labour of -these statesmen, however, was not easy, even after their cause was -triumphant, for political victories often leave the conquerors--in -the excess of their own passions, and the exaggeration of their own -principles--worse enemies than those whom they have vanquished. Such -was the case now. - - -XVI. - -In the exultation of the moment all moderate notions were laid -aside, and succeeded by a blind excitement in favour of the most -sweeping changes. Nor was this excitement the mere desire of vulgar -and selfish interest stirring the minds of those who hoped to better -their own condition: nobler and loftier emotions lit up the breasts -of men who had only sacrifices to make with a generous enthusiasm. -“Nos âmes,” says the elder Ségur, “étaient alors enivrées d’une -douce philanthropie, qui nous portait à chercher avec passion les -moyens d’être utiles à l’humanité, et de rendre le sort des hommes -plus heureux.”[10] On the 4th of August, “a day memorable with one -party,” observes M. Mignet, “as the St. Bartholomew of property, -and with the other as the St. Bartholomew of abuses,”--personal -service, feudal obligations, pecuniary immunities, trade corporations, -seignorial privileges, and courts of law,--all municipal and provincial -rights,--the whole system of judicature,--based on the purchase and -sale of judicial charges, and which, singular to state, had, however -absurd in theory, hitherto produced in practice learned, able, and -independent magistrates,--in short, almost all the institutions and -peculiarities which constituted the framework of government and society -throughout France, were unhesitatingly swept away, at the instigation -and demand of the first magistrates and nobles of the land, who did not -sufficiently consider that they who destroy at once all existing laws -(whatever those laws may be), destroy at the same time all established -habits of thought;--that is, all customs of obedience, all spontaneous -feelings of respect and affection, without which a form of government -is merely an idea on paper. - -In after times, M. de Talleyrand, when speaking of this period, said, -in one of his characteristic phrases, “_La Révolution a désossé la -France._” But it is easier to be a witty critic of by-gone history, -than a cool and impartial actor in passing events; and at the time to -which I am alluding the Bishop of Autun was, undoubtedly, amongst the -foremost in destroying the traditions which constitute a community, and -proclaiming the theories which captivate a mob. The wholesale abolition -of institutions, which must have had something worth preserving or -they would never have produced a great and polished society honourably -anxious to reform its own defects, was sanctioned by his vote; and the -“rights of man,” the acknowledgment of which did so little to secure -the property or life of the citizen, were proclaimed in the words that -he suggested. - -It is difficult to conceive how so cool and sagacious a statesman could -have imagined that an old society was to be well governed by entirely -new laws, or that practical liberty could be founded on a declaration -of abstract principles. A sane mind, however, does not always escape -an epidemic folly; any more than a sound body escapes an epidemic -disease. Moreover, in times when to censure unnecessary changes is to -pass for being the patron, and often in reality to be the supporter, -of inveterate abuses, no one carries out, or can hope to carry out, -precisely his own ideas. Men act in masses: the onward pressure of one -party is regulated by the opposing resistance of another: to pursue -a policy, it may be expedient for those who do not feel, to feign, -a passion; and a wise man may excuse his participation in an absurd -enthusiasm by observing it was the only means to vanquish still more -absurd prejudices. - -Still, if M. de Talleyrand was at this moment an exaggerated reformer, -he at least did not exhibit one frequent characteristic of exaggerated -reformers, by being so wholly occupied in establishing some delusive -scheme of future perfection, as to despise the present absolute -necessities. He saw from the first that, if the new organization of the -State was really to be effected, it could only be so by re-establishing -confidence in its resources, and that a national bankruptcy would be a -social dissolution. When, therefore, M. Necker (on the 25th of August) -presented to the Assembly a memoir on the situation of the finances, -asking for a loan of eighty millions of francs, the Bishop of Autun -supported this loan without hesitation; demonstrating the importance of -sustaining the public credit; and shortly afterwards (in September), -when the loan thus granted was found insufficient to satisfy the -obligations of the State, he again aided the minister in obtaining from -the Assembly a tax of twenty-five per cent. on the income of every -individual throughout France. A greater national sacrifice has rarely -been made in a moment of national distress, and has never been made -for a more honourable object. It is impossible, indeed, not to feel an -interest in the exertions of men animated, amidst all their errors, by -so noble a spirit, and not to regret that with aspirations so elevated, -and abilities so distinguished, they should have failed so deplorably -in their efforts to unite liberty with order--vigour with moderation. - -But Providence seems to have prescribed as an almost universal rule -that everything which is to have a long duration must be of slow -growth. Nor is this all: we must expect that, in times of revolution, -contending parties will constantly be hurried into collisions contrary -to their reason, and fatal to their interests, but inevitably suggested -by their anger or suspicions. Hence the wisest intentions are at the -mercy of the most foolish incidents. Such an incident now occurred. - -A military festival at Versailles, which the royal family imprudently -attended, and in which it perhaps idly delighted to excite a profitless -enthusiasm amongst its guards and adherents, alarmed the multitude -at Paris, already irritated by an increasing scarcity of food, and -dreading an appeal to the army on the part of the sovereign, as -the sovereign dreaded an appeal to the people on the part of the -popular leaders. The men of the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, and the -women of the market-place, either impelled by their own pressing -wants and indefinite fears, or guided (as it was then--I believe -falsely--reported) by the secret influence of the Duc d’Orléans, were -soon seen pouring from the dark corners of the capital, and covering -the broad and stately road which leads to the long-venerated palace, -where, since the time of the “Great Monarch,” his descendants had held -their court. In the midst of an accidental tumult, this lawless rabble -entered the royal residence, massacreing its defenders. - -The King was rescued from actual violence, though not from insult, and -escorted with a sort of decorum to the Tuileries, which he henceforth -inhabited, nominally as the supreme magistrate of the State, but in -reality as a prisoner. The National Assembly followed him to Paris. - - -XVII. - -The events of which I have been speaking took place on the 5th -and 6th of October; and were, to the advocates of constitutional -monarchy, what the previous insurrection, in July, had been to the -advocates of absolute power. Moderate men began to fear that it -was no longer possible to ally the dignity and independence of the -crown with the rights and liberties of the people: and MM. Mounier -and Lally-Tollendal, considered the leaders of that party which -from the first had declared the desire to establish in France a -mixed constitutional government, similar to that which prevailed in -England--disheartened and disgusted--quitted the Assembly. Hitherto, M. -de Talleyrand had appeared disposed to act with these statesmen, but he -did not now imitate their conduct: on the contrary, it was precisely at -the moment when they separated themselves from the Revolution, that he -brought forward a motion which connected him irrevocably with it. - -Had affairs worn a different aspect, it is probable that he would not -have compromised himself so decidedly in favour of a scheme which -was certain to encounter a determined and violent opposition: still -it is but just to observe that his conduct in this instance was in -perfect conformity with the course he had previously pursued, and -the sentiments he had previously expressed, both with respect to the -exigencies of the State and the property of the Church. I have shown, -indeed, the interest he had manifested in maintaining the public -credit, first by supporting a loan of eighty millions of francs, and -secondly by voting a property tax of twenty-five per cent. But the -one had proved merely a temporary relief, and the other had not given -an adequate return; for, as the whole administration of the country -had been disorganized, so the collection of taxes was precarious and -difficult. Some new resource had to be sought for. There was but one -left. The clergy had already resigned their tithes, which at first had -only been declared purchasable, and had also given up their plate. When -M. de Juisné, Archbishop of Paris, made the two first donations in the -name of his brethren, he had been seconded by the Bishop of Autun; and -it was the Bishop of Autun who now proposed (on the 10th of October) -that all that remained to the clergy--their land--should, on certain -conditions, be placed at the disposal of the nation. - - -XVIII. - -M. Pozzo di Borgo, a man in no wise inferior to M. de Talleyrand, -though somewhat jealous of him, once said to me, “Cet homme s’est fait -grand en se rangeant toujours parmi les petits, et en aidant ceux qui -avaient le plus besoin de lui.”[11] - -The propensity which M. Pozzo di Borgo somewhat bitterly but not -inaccurately described, and which perhaps was in a certain degree -the consequence of that nice perception of his own interests which -guided the person whom I designate as “politic” through life almost -like an instinct, was especially visible in the present instance. No -one can doubt that, at the moment when every other institution was -overturned in France, a great change in the condition of the French -church, against which the spirit of the eighteenth century had been -particularly directed, was an event not to be avoided. Alone amidst the -general prodigality, this corporation by its peculiar condition had -been able to preserve all its wealth, whilst it had lost almost all its -power. - -The feeble and the rich in times of commotion are the natural prey of -the strong and the needy; and, therefore, directly the nation commenced -a revolution to avoid a bankruptcy, the ecclesiastical property was -pretty sure, a little sooner or a little later, to be appropriated to -the public exigencies. Such an appropriation, nevertheless, was not -without difficulties; and what the laity most wanted was a churchman of -position and consideration who would sanction a plan for surrendering -the property of the church. The opinions expressed by a man of so high -a rank amongst the nobility and the clergy as the Bishop of Autun, were -therefore of considerable importance, and likely to give him--those -opinions being popular--an important position, which was almost certain -(M. Necker’s influence being already undermined) to lead--should a -new ministry be formed on the liberal side--to office. Mirabeau, in -fact, in a note written in October, which proposes a new ministerial -combination, leaves M. Necker as the nominal head of the government -“in order to discredit him,” proposes himself as a member of the royal -council without a department, and gives the post of minister of finance -to the Bishop of Autun, saying, “His motion on the clergy has won him -that place.”[12] - -The argument with which the Bishop introduced the motion here alluded -to has been so often repeated since the period to which I am referring, -and has so influenced the condition of the clergy throughout a great -portion of Europe, that it cannot be read without interest. “The -State,” said M. de Talleyrand, “has been for a long time struggling -with the most urgent wants. This is known to all of us. Some adequate -means must be found to supply those wants. All ordinary sources are -exhausted. The people are ground down. The slightest additional -impost would be justly insupportable to them. Such a thing is not -to be thought of. Extraordinary means for supplying the necessities -of the State have been resorted to: but these were destined to the -extraordinary wants of this year. Extraordinary resources of some -kind are now wanted for the future; without them, order cannot be -established. There is one such resource, immense and decisive: and -which, in my opinion (or otherwise I should reject it), can be made -compatible with the strictest respect for property. I mean the landed -estate of the church. - -… - -“Already a great operation with regard to this estate is inevitable, in -order to provide suitably for those whom the relinquishment of tithes -has left destitute. - -… - -“I think it unnecessary to discuss at length the question of church -property. What appears to me certain is, that the clergy is not a -proprietor like other proprietors, inasmuch as that the property -which it enjoys (and of which it cannot dispose) was given to it--not -for its own benefit, but for the performance of duties which are to -benefit the community. What appears to me also certain is, that the -nation, exercising an almost unlimited power over all the bodies within -its bosom, possesses--not the right to destroy the whole body of the -clergy, because that body is required for the service of religion--but -the right to destroy any particular aggregations of such body whenever -they are either prejudicial or simply useless; and if the State -possesses this right over the existence of prejudicial or useless -aggregations of the clergy, it evidently possesses a similar right over -the property of such aggregations. - -“It appears to me also clear that as the nation is bound to see -that the purpose for which foundations or endowments were made is -fulfilled, and that those who endowed the church meant that the clergy -should perform certain functions: so, if there be any benefices where -such functions are not performed, the nation has a right to suppress -those benefices, and to grant the funds, therefrom derived, to any -members of the clergy who can employ them according to the object with -which they were given. - -… - -“But although it is just to destroy aggregations of the clergy -which are either prejudicial or useless, and to confiscate their -property--although it is just to suppress benefices which are no longer -useful for the object for which such benefices were endowed--is it just -to confiscate or reduce the revenue of those dignitaries and members -of the church, who are now actually living and performing the services -which belong to their sacred calling? - -… - -“For my own part, I confess the arguments employed to support the -contrary opinion appear to me to admit of several answers. I shall -submit one very simple answer to the Assembly. - -“However the possession of a property may be guaranteed and made -inviolable by law, it is evident that the law cannot change the nature -of such property in guaranteeing it. - -“Thus, in a question of ecclesiastical property, it can only assure to -each titulary the enjoyment of the actual donation of the founder. But -every one is aware that, according to the titles of church property, as -well as according to the various laws of the church, which explain the -spirit and meaning of these titles, the only part of church property to -which the ecclesiastic has any individual right is that necessary for -his honest subsistence: the remainder has to be applied to the relief -of the poor, or to the maintenance of places of worship. If then the -nation assures to the holder of a benefice, whatever that benefice -may be, his necessary subsistence, it does not violate his individual -property; and if at the same time that it takes possession of that -portion of his revenue which is not required for his subsistence, it -assumes the other obligations attached to the benefice in question, -such as the maintenance of hospitals, the performance of works of -charity, the repairing of churches, the expenses of public education, -&c.; and, above all, if it does this in a moment of general distress, -I cannot but believe that the intentions of the donors will be fully -carried out, and that justice will still be maintained. - -“I think, then, that the nation in a period of general distress may -appropriate the property of those religious establishments which it -deems it necessary to suppress, by securing to their dependants their -necessary subsistence; that it may also profit by all benefices to -which no duties are attached, and assure to itself the reversion of -all such benefices as may hereafter fall into that condition; and -lastly, that it may reduce all extravagant salaries now enjoyed by the -clergy if it take to itself all the obligations--apart from the decent -maintenance of the clergy--which originally attached to church property -according to the founder’s bequest. Such are the principles according -to which the State may, in my opinion, legitimately appropriate the -whole of the ecclesiastical property, on assuring to the clergy -therefrom what would be sufficient for their decent support.” - - -XIX. - -Thus M. de Talleyrand contended:-- - -1st. That the members of the clergy were not like other proprietors, -inasmuch as they held their property not for their own enjoyment but -for the performance of certain duties, and that it was only intended -that they should have out of the proceeds of that property a decent -subsistence, the residue being destined for the support of the poor and -the maintenance of religious edifices. - -2nd. That the State could alter the distribution of church property, -or rather the payment of the clergy, and also totally suppress such -ecclesiastical institutions as it deemed injurious or not requisite; as -well as such useless benefices as were then vacant, or might become -vacant; and, as a matter of course, employ the revenue which was -thereto attached, in the manner which might seem best adapted to the -general advantage. - -3rd. That in a moment of great and national distress it might -altogether take possession of the whole property held by the clergy, -and appropriate the same to public purposes; if at the same time it -took upon itself those charges with which the clergy were intrusted, -and also provided for the clergy themselves a fixed and adequate -support. He did not, however, propose, as some may have idly imagined, -and have unjustly stated, to reduce his order to a state of indigence; -on the contrary, presuming the revenue of the church property, -including the tithes (which he would still have had collected as -national revenue), to be about a hundred and fifty millions of francs, -he advised the government to make a yearly grant of no less than a -hundred millions--never to be reduced below eighty-five millions--for -the support of the clergy, no member of it receiving less than twelve -hundred francs, to which was added a dwelling; and when we consider -that the tithes having been surrendered, the ecclesiastical revenue was -at that time reduced to seventy-five millions, the rent of the land; -and when we consider also that the ecclesiastical budget, including the -payment of all religions, has never, since that period, amounted to -the sum which M. de Talleyrand was disposed to allow, I think it must -be acknowledged that the proposals I have been describing, looking at -all the difficulties of the times, were not to be despised, and that -the French clergy would have acted more prudently if they had at once -accepted them, although it must be confessed that any bargain made in -changeful times between a power which is sinking in the State and a -power which is rising, is rarely kept faithfully by the latter. - -But the clergy, at all events, and the high clergy especially, -would not accept this bargain. They complained not so much of the -insufficiency of the provision which was to be made for them, as of the -grievance of having an income as proprietors changed into a salary as -functionaries. They contended, in short, that they were proprietors -like other proprietors, and that the Bishop of Autun had misstated -their case and justified their robbery. - -In this state of things--whatever the real nature of the title under -which the church held its possessions--whatever the imprudence of the -clergy themselves in resisting the compromise that was proposed to -them as an equivalent for the surrender of those possessions--it was -impossible forcibly to confiscate a property which a great corporation -had held indisputedly for ages and which it declared itself unwilling -to resign, without weakening the respect for property in general, -and weakening also, by the questions and discussions to which such -a measure was certain to give rise, the respect for religion: thus -enfeebling and undermining--at a moment when (amidst the falling ruins -of an old government and society) it was most essential to strengthen -and preserve--those foundations on which every society that pretends to -be civilized, and every government that intends to be honest, has to -establish its existence. - -“The wise,” says a great reformer, “should be cautious about -making great changes when the foolish are clamorous for dangerous -innovations.” But although the maxim may be a good one, I suspect that -it is more likely to be professed by the speculative philosopher than -followed by the ambitious statesman. - -There are, in fact, moments in the history of nations when certain -events are, by the multiplied force of converging circumstances, -inevitably foredoomed; and in such moments, whilst the ignorant man -is obstinate, the proud man firm, the religious man resigned, the -“_politic_ man” accommodates himself to fate, and only attempts to mix -up as much good as he can with the evil which has to be accepted. - -It is easy to conceive, therefore, that when M. de Talleyrand proposed -the appropriation of the church property by the State, he did so -because he saw that at all events it would be appropriated; because he -thought that he might as well obtain the popularity which was to be -got by the proposition; and likewise because he could thus bargain for -such conditions as, if they had been frankly accepted by one party -and fairly carried out by the other, would have secured an honourable -existence to the clergy and an immense relief to the State. I say an -immense relief to the State, since, according to the calculations which -the Bishop of Autun submitted to the Assembly--and these seem to have -been made with consideration--had the immense property, valued at two -milliards of francs, been properly sold, and the proceeds properly -applied, these, by paying off money borrowed at enormous interest and -life annuities which were granted at an extravagant loss, might with -tolerable economy have converted a deficit of some millions of francs -into a surplus of about the same amount. - -But it happened at this time, as it not unfrequently happens when -passion and prudence unite in some great enterprise, the part which -passion counselled was consummated completely and at once; the part -which prudence suggested was transformed and spoilt in the execution. -To this subject I shall by-and-by have to return. - - -XX. - -The motion of M. de Talleyrand with respect to the property of the -church was carried on the 2nd of November, 1789, after some stormy -debates; and the party he had defeated now classed him amongst its -bitterest opponents. But, on the 4th of December, he gained more than -a party triumph by the singular lucidity with which, on the question -of establishing a bank at Paris and restoring order generally to the -French finances, he explained the principles of banking and public -credit, which the public at that time enveloped in the mystery with -which ignorance surrounds those subjects which are detailed in figures, -and involve such vast interests as the resources and necessities of a -nation. - -The admirable talent which M. de Talleyrand displayed on this occasion -consisted in rendering clear what appeared obscure, and simple what -seemed abstract. After showing that a bank could only exist with -benefit to itself and to others by its credit--and that this credit -could not be the effect of a paper money with a forced currency, on -which some persons were disposed to form one, inasmuch as that a -currency which was forced was nothing more or less than an exhibition -of the insolvency of the institution which it was intended to -protect--he turned to the general condition and credit of the State, -and said: “The time, gentlemen, is gone by for complicated fiscal -plans, learnedly and artfully combined, which are merely invented to -delay by temporary resources the crisis which is inevitably arriving. -All the contrivances of wit and cunning are exhausted. For the future, -honesty must replace genius. Side by side with the evidence of our -calamities must be placed the evidence of their remedy. All must be -reduced to the simplicity of an account-book--drawn up by good sense, -kept by good faith.” - -This speech obtained for its author general encomiums: it was praised -in the boudoir of the fine lady, for the elegance of its style; in -the country house of the banker, for the soundness of its views; -even the Faubourg St. Germain acknowledged that M. de Talleyrand, -though a _scélérat_ (a rascal), was a statesman, and that in those -iniquitous times a _scélérat_, a man of quality, and a statesman, -might be useful to his country. Such universal popularity did not last -long. In the following month (January 31, 1790), the liberal bishop -declared himself in favour of conferring upon a Jew the rights of a -French citizen. This opinion--considered by many as a double outrage -against the distinctions hitherto maintained between castes and between -creeds--admitted of no pardon from a large portion of that society -which M. de Talleyrand had formerly frequented; and I have read, in -some tale of the time, that the Marquis de Travanet, a famous player of -“tric-trac,” used subsequently to say, in making what is called “_la -case du diable_,” “_je fais la case de l’évêque d’Autun_.” - -A man’s reputation, however, when parties run high, is not unfrequently -made by his opponents; and the name of M. de Talleyrand now rose in the -country and the Assembly just in proportion as it sank in the circles -of the court and amongst the extreme partisans of priestly intolerance -and royal prerogative. - -Few persons had, in fact, rendered such important services to the cause -which he had espoused. To his endeavours, as we have seen, it was -mainly owing that the clergy joined the commons in the church of St. -Louis, and thus constituted the States-General. Shortly afterwards, -by contending against the imperative nature of those orders which the -members of the States-General had received from their constituents, he -had aided in no small degree in releasing the National Assembly from -the instructions which would otherwise have fettered its progress. -Elected a member of the committee, appointed to prepare the new -constitution which was to be given to France, his labours had been -amongst the most valuable of that body, and the future rights of -Frenchmen had been proclaimed in the words which he had suggested as -most appropriate. Evincing on all questions of finance that knowledge -of principles which produces clearness of statement, he had ably -assisted M. Necker in the measures by which that statesman had sought -to reassure public credit and raise the revenue; and, finally, he had -delivered up the wealth and power of his own order, as a sacrifice -(such, at least, was his pretension) to the public weal. - -The part which he had taken in the proceedings of the Assembly was, -indeed, so considerable, that it was thought that no one could be -better qualified to explain and defend its conduct. With such an -explanation or defence he was charged; and he executed his task in -a sort of memoir or manifesto to the French nation. This manifesto -was read in the National Assembly on the 10th of February, 1790, and -subsequently published and circulated throughout France. It has long -since been forgotten amongst the many papers of a similar kind which -have marked and justified the successive changes that France has for -the last eighty years undergone. - -But the skill and address of its composition was the subject of -universal praise at the time of its appearance, and it still remains -a remarkable exhibition of the ideas, and a skilful and able attempt -to vindicate the actions, of an epoch which is yet awaiting the final -judgment of posterity. - - -XXI. - -The memoir or manifesto, to which I have been alluding, announced the -abolition of privileges, the reform of the church, the institution -of a representative chamber and a citizen guard; and promised a new -system of taxation, and a general plan of education. It was read, as -I have said, on the 10th of February, in the National Assembly, and -on the 16th of the same month its author was named president of that -assembly[13] by a majority of three hundred and seventy-five votes -to one hundred and twenty-five, although the Abbé Sieyès--no mean -rival--was his competitor. - -This honour received additional solidity from a most able report -in favour of the uniformity of weights and measures, which M. de -Talleyrand made to the Assembly on the 30th April, 1790: a report -which, carrying out the idea that Turgot had been anxious to establish, -and furnishing a method for destroying the inconvenient distinctions -which separated province from province, laid the foundation for that -uniform system which now prevails throughout the French dominions. -Nor would M. de Talleyrand have applied this project merely to -France; he at the same time suggested that commissions from the -Academy of Sciences in Paris and the Royal Society in London should -be appointed to fix on some natural unity for measure and weight, -which should be alike applicable to England and France. “_Chacune des -deux nations_,” he added, “_formerait sur cette mesure ses étalons, -qu’elle conserverait avec le plus grand soin, de telle sorte que si, au -bout de plusieurs siècles, on s’apercevait, de quelque variation dans -l’année sidérale, les étalons pussent servir à l’évaluer, et par là à -lier ce point important du système du monde à une grande époque--celle -de l’Assemblée Nationale. Peut-être même est-il permis de voir dans -ce concours de deux nations interrogeant ensemble la nature, pour -en obtenir un résultat important, le principe d’une union politique, -operée par l’entremise des sciences._”[14] - -It is impossible not to sympathise with a conception at once so -elevated and so practical as that which is here expressed; and rejoice -at thus finding an example of what Bacon--himself no less a statesman -than a philosopher--claims as the attribute of men of science and -letters, viz.: that when they do give themselves up to public affairs, -they carry thereunto a spirit more lofty and comprehensive than that -which animates the mere politician. - -The greater part of the work which the Assembly had proposed to itself, -was now terminated. The old monarchy and aristocracy were destroyed; -the new powers of the crown and the people were defined; the new -divisions of the country into departments, districts, and communes, -were marked out; the new organisation of the tribunals of justice -was decreed. No one entirely approved of the constitution thus to be -created, but there was an almost universal satisfaction at its being so -nearly completed. - - - - -PART II. - -FROM THE FESTIVAL OF THE 14TH OF JULY TO THE CLOSE OF THE NATIONAL -ASSEMBLY. - - Blesses the standard of France at festival of the 14th of - July.--Increasing financial distress.--M. de Talleyrand’s - views.--Civil constitution of the clergy.--M. de Talleyrand’s - conduct.--Refuses archbishopric of Paris.--Letter to editors - of Chronicle.--Mirabeau’s death.--Sketch of his career, - and relations with M. de Talleyrand, who attends his - death-bed.--Probabilities as to his having initiated M. de - Talleyrand into plots of court.--Leaves M. de Talleyrand his - intended speech on the law of succession, which regulated the - present state of the law in France, and which M. de Talleyrand - read in the National Assembly.--M. de Talleyrand suspended from - his episcopal functions, and quits the Church.--The King’s - flight.--Conduct and views of M. de Talleyrand.--Wishes to - aid the King.--Foolish conduct of court party.--Fatal decree - of National Assembly, forbidding the re-election of its - members.--M. de Talleyrand’s project of education.--Assembly - closes the 13th of September, 1791.--M. de Talleyrand goes to - England, January 1792. - - -I. - -We are arrived at the festival of the 14th of July, held to celebrate -the destruction of the Bastille, and to do honour to the new government -which had risen on its ruins: let us pause for a moment on that day of -joy! - -An immense and magnificent amphitheatre is erected on the Champ de -Mars: there the hereditary sovereign of France, and the temporary -president of an elected assembly--the joint symbols of two ideas and -of two epochs--are seated on two equal thrones, resplendent with the -arms which the nation has taken from its ancient kings; and there -is the infant prince, on whom an exulting people look kindly as the -inheritor of his father’s engagements, and who is to perpetuate -the race of Saint Louis: and there is that queen, “decorating and -cheering the sphere she moves in, glittering like the morning star, -full of life, and splendour, and joy;” and there that royal maiden, -beauteous with the charms of the palace, blessed with the virtues of -the cloister--a princess, a saint--destined to be a martyr! And there -is the vain but honest Lafayette, leaning on his citizen sword: and -there the terrible Mirabeau--his long hair streaming to the wind: and -there that well-known and still memorable Assembly, prematurely proud -of its vaunted work, which, alas! like the spectacle we are assisting -at, is to be the mere pageant of a day. And, behold, in yonder balcony, -the most graceful and splendid court in Europe, for such even at that -time was still the court of France; and lo! in the open space, yon -confederated bands, bearing their respective banners, and representing -every portion of that great family which at this moment is rejoicing -over the triumph it has achieved. On a sudden the sky--the light of -which mingles so well with the joy of men, but which had hitherto been -dark and sullen--on a sudden the sky clears up, and the sun blends his -pomp with that of this noble ceremony! And now, robed in his pontifical -garments, and standing on an altar thronged by three hundred priests, -in long white robes and tricoloured girdles, the Bishop of Autun -blesses the great standard, the oriflamme of France, no longer the -ensign of war, but the sign and token of peace between the past and the -future--between the old recollections and the new aspirations of the -French people. - -Who, that had been present that day in Paris, could have believed -that those who wept tenderly with the children of Bearne, at the foot -of the statue of Henry IV., would so soon laugh horribly round the -scaffold of his descendant? that the gay multitude, wandering in the -Champs Elysées, amidst garlands of light, and breathing sounds of -gentle happiness and affection, would so soon be the ferocious mob, -massacreing in the prisons, murdering in the public streets, dancing -round the guillotine dripping with innocent blood? that the monarch, -the court, the deputies, every popular and princely image of this -august pageant, the very forms of the religion with which it was -consecrated, would in two or three brief years be scoffingly cast -away: and that even the high priest of that gorgeous solemnity, no -longer attached to his sacred calling, would be wandering a miserable -exile on foreign shores, banished as a traitor to the liberty for which -he had sacrificed the prejudices of his caste, the predilections of his -family, the honours and wealth of his profession? - - -II. - -From the 14th of July, 1789, to the 14th of July, 1790, the scenes -which were comprehended in this, which may be called the first act in -the great drama then agitating France, were upon the whole such as -rather to excite the hopes than the fears of mankind; but from the -latter period the aspect of things greatly changed, and almost each day -became marked by some disappointment as to the success of a favourite -scheme, or the fortune of a popular statesman. - -On the 4th of September, 1790, M. Necker left almost unnoticed, and -altogether unregretted, that Paris to which but a year before he had -returned amidst unanimous acclamation. About the same time, Mirabeau -began to be suspected; and the shouts of “Vive Lafayette!” were not -unfrequently changed into “à bas Lafayette!”[15] by the ever fickle -multitude. At this period also it became apparent that the sale of the -church property, which, properly managed, might have restored order -to the finances, was likely, on the contrary, to render the national -bankruptcy more complete. - -In order to give a just idea of the conduct of M. de Talleyrand, it is -necessary that I should explain rapidly how this calamity occurred. -The Assembly, desiring to secure the irrevocability of its decrees by -disposing as soon as possible of the vast estate which it had declared -was to be sold, and desiring also to increase its financial resources -without delay, looked out for some means by which this double end could -be accomplished. After two or three projects, for a moment taken up -and then abandoned, the idea finally adopted was that of issuing State -notes, representing a certain value of national property, and giving -them a forced currency, so that they would have an immediate value -independent of that which they acquired as the representatives of -property. - -These notes or bonds, in short, thus became money; and they had this -advantage over ordinary paper money, that they represented something -which had a positive value; and as the first issue of four hundred -millions of francs took place at a time when some substitute was -really required for the coin which every one, from alarm and want -of confidence, had then begun to hoard, its effects were rather -beneficial than the reverse. The Assembly instantly thought it had an -inexhaustible fund at its disposal; consequently a new issue of eight -hundred million bonds followed shortly after the first issue of four -hundred millions, as a matter of course; and it became evident that -this mode of meeting the current wants of the State was to be adopted -to a greater and greater extent, thereby increasing the currency in a -manner not in any way called for by the increased wealth or business of -the community, and altering the value of money in all the transactions -of life. M. de Talleyrand at once foresaw the evils to which this -system would naturally lead; and saying, “_Je serais inconsolable si de -la rigueur de nos décrets sur le clergé il ne résultait pas le salut -de la chose publique_,”[16] demonstrated, with a singular clearness -and sagacity, that the course on which the Assembly had entered must -inevitably cause the total disappearance of bullion, an enormous rise -in provisions, a daily depreciation of State paper and of land (such -State paper representing land), a rapid variation of exchanges, an -impossibility of all regular commerce. - -But men in desperate times disregard ultimate results. The Assembly -wanted funds at the moment: forced assignats created those funds; and -when Mirabeau shrewdly observed that to multiply assignats was, at all -events, to multiply the opponents to reaction, since no man who had -an assignat could wish the property on which its value depended to be -restored to its former possessors, this political argument settled the -financial one. - - -III. - -The great characteristic of modern legislation is the principle of -representation by election. It by no means follows, however, that -because it has been an invaluable discovery to make a portion of -government depend upon a particular principle, that every portion of -a government should be deduced from that principle. On the contrary, -the mobility given to a government by any system that introduces into -it the popular passions and variations of opinion, requires some -counteracting element of fixity and stability to give permanence to its -duration, and steadiness to its action. But the National Assembly--like -those invalids who, having found a remedy for their disease, fancy -that if a little of such remedy does some good, a great deal must do -much more--made the whole of their institutions, with one exception, -depend upon the same basis; and as their chamber was elective, their -municipalities elective--so their judges were to be elective, and their -clergy and bishops elective also. - -Here commenced the first serious schism in the nation, for that which -had hitherto existed had been between the nation and the court. I -have said that the clergy, and more especially the higher clergy, had -not willingly abandoned the property which they had been accustomed -to consider theirs. This loss, however, furnished them with but a -worldly cause of feud; it neither affected their consciences, nor the -consciences of their flocks. But the new regulations, whatever their -intrinsic merits, entirely changed the existing condition of the Roman -church, and struck at the root of its discipline. These regulations, -consequently, were denounced by the Pope, and could not be solemnly -accepted by the more zealous of the priesthood. - -In such circumstances it would have been far wiser to have left -the spiritual condition of the clergy untouched. To oblige all -ecclesiastics either to give up their benefices, or to swear to uphold -the “Civil Constitution of the Clergy” (such being the title given to -the new system), was to provoke many who might otherwise have been -silent to declare hostility to the Revolution; and at the same time -gave to the Revolution itself that persecuting bias by which it was -finally disgraced and ruined. Such a measure, besides, divided the -clergy into two classes--one of which excited the veneration of the -people by its sacrifices, and the indignation of the government by its -complaints: the other satisfied the government by its obedience, but -lost the respect of the people by its servility. A Catholic clergy -disowned by the Pope was useless to those professing the Catholic -religion; no clergy at all was wanted for those who professed no -religion whatsoever. The course which M. de Talleyrand observed in this -business was wary and cautious up to the moment at which it was bold -and decided. - -The Assembly had determined upon the “Civil Constitution of the -Clergy,” prior to the 14th of July. The King, however, had requested -a delay, with the intention of referring to Rome, and the law did not -finally pass the Legislature till the 27th of November. - -The struggle during this period was between the Sovereign and the Pope -on the one side, and the philosophers and the church reformers--for -both took a part in the matter--on the other. - -It was disagreeable for a bishop, still looking to ecclesiastical -preferment, to venture to quarrel with one party in the dispute, and -equally disagreeable for a statesman aspiring to popular authority to -separate himself from the other. The result of the contest, also, was -for a while uncertain; and as there was no absolute necessity for the -Bishop of Autun to express any opinion upon its merits, he was silent. -But when the Assembly had pronounced its final decree, and that decree -had received the formal though reluctant assent of the King, the case -was different. A law had been regularly passed, and the question was, -not whether it was a good law, but whether, being a law, it was to be -obeyed. A battle had been fought, and the question was, not whether the -victors were in the right, but whether it was better to join with those -who had conquered, or with those who had been conquered. - -In such a condition of things M. de Talleyrand rarely hesitated. He -took his side with the law against the church, and with those who were -daily becoming more powerful, against those who were daily becoming -more feeble; and having once taken a step of this kind, it was never -his custom to do so timidly. - -He at once took the required oath, which all his episcopal -brethren--with the notorious and not very creditable exceptions -of the Bishops of Babylon and Lydia, whose titles were purely -honorary--refused to take. He also justified this course in a letter -to the clergy of his own department, and ultimately undertook to -consecrate the new bishops who were elected to supply the place of -those whom the Assembly had deprived of their dioceses. - -We shall presently see the results of this conduct. But it may be -as well at once to state, that although M. de Talleyrand accepted -for himself those new regulations for his church which the State, in -spite of the head of his church, had established, and took an oath to -obey them without unwillingness, and although he even maintained that -the State, considering the clergy as public functionaries enjoying -a salary in return for the performance of public duties, might -deprive any members of the clergy of such salary if they would not -submit to the laws of the government which paid and employed them; -he nevertheless contended, boldly and consistently and at all times, -that all ecclesiastics thus dispossessed would have a right to the -pension which, at the time of confiscating the church property, had -been granted to any ecclesiastic whom the suppression of religious -establishments or of useless benefices left without income or -employment; a principle at first accepted as just, but soon condemned -as inexpedient; for there is no compromise between parties when one is -conscientiously disposed to resist what it deems an act of injustice, -and the other resolutely determined to crush what it deems a selfish -opposition. - - -IV. - -Amidst the various vacancies which were occasioned by the refusal -of the high dignitaries of the church to take the oath which the -Constitution now exacted from them, was that of the archbishopric of -Paris; and as it was known that M. de Talleyrand could be elected for -this post if he so desired it, the public imagined that he intended to -take advantage of his popularity and obtain what, up to that period, -had been so honourable and important a position. In consequence of this -belief a portion of the press extolled his virtues; whilst another -painted and, as usual in such cases, exaggerated his vices. - -M. de Talleyrand was, up to the last hour of his life, almost -indifferent to praise, but singularly enough (considering his long -and varied career), exquisitely sensitive to censure; and his -susceptibility on this occasion so far got the better of his caution, -as to induce him to write and publish a letter in the _Moniteur_, of -Paris, February 8th, 1791. - - _Letter of M. de Talleyrand to the editors of the “Chronicle,” - respecting his candidature for the diocese of Paris._ - - “GENTLEMEN, - - “I have just read in your paper that you have been good enough - to name me as a candidate for the archbishopric of Paris. I - cannot but feel myself highly flattered by this nomination: - some of the electors have in fact given me to understand that - they would be happy to see me occupy the post to which you have - alluded, and I, therefore, consider that I ought to publish my - reply. No, gentlemen, I shall not accept the honour of which my - fellow-citizens are so obliging as to think me worthy. - - “Since the existence of the National Assembly, I may have - appeared indifferent to the innumerable calumnies in which - different parties have indulged themselves at my expense. - Never have I made, nor ever shall I make, to my calumniators - the sacrifice of one single opinion or one single action which - seems to me beneficial to the commonwealth: but I can and - will make the sacrifice of my personal advantage, and on this - occasion alone my enemies will have influenced my conduct. - I will not give them the power to say that a secret motive - caused me to take the oath I have recently sworn. I will not - allow them the opportunity of weakening the good which I have - endeavoured to effect. - - “That publicity which I give to the determination I now - announce, I gave to my wishes when I stated how much I should - be flattered at becoming one of the administrators of the - department of Paris. In a free state, the people of which - have repossessed themselves of the right of election--_i.e._ - the true exercise of their sovereignty--I deem that to - declare openly the post to which we aspire, is to invite our - fellow-citizens to examine our claims before deciding upon - them, and to deprive our pretensions of all possibility of - benefiting by intrigue. We present ourselves in this way to the - observations of the impartial, and give even the prejudiced and - the hostile the opportunity to do their worst. - - “I beg then to assure those who, dreading what they term my - ambition, never cease their slanders against my reputation, - that I will never disguise the object to which I have the - ambition to pretend. - - “Owing, I presume, to the false alarm caused by my supposed - pretensions to the see of Paris, stories have been circulated - of my having lately won in gambling houses the sum of sixty - or seventy thousand francs. Now that all fear of seeing me - elevated to the dignity in question is at an end, I shall - doubtless be believed in what I am about to say. The truth is, - that, in the course of two months, I gained the sum of about - thirty thousand francs, not at gambling houses, but in private - society, or at the chess-club, which has always been regarded, - from the nature of its institution, as a private house. - - “I here state the facts without attempting to justify them. - The passion for play has spread to a troublesome extent. I - never had a taste for it, and reproach myself the more for not - having resisted its allurements. I blame myself as a private - individual, and still more as a legislator who believes that - the virtues of liberty are as severe as her principles: that - a regenerated people ought to regain all the austerity of - morality, and that the National Assembly ought to be directed - towards this vice as one prejudicial to society, inasmuch as - it contributes towards that inequality of fortune which the - laws should endeavour to prevent by every means which do not - interfere with the eternal basis of social justice, viz., the - respect for property. - - “You see I condemn myself. I feel a pleasure in confessing it; - for since the reign of truth has arrived, in renouncing the - impossible honour of being faultless, the most noble manner we - can adopt of repairing our errors is to have the courage to - acknowledge them. - - “TALLEYRAND A. E. D’AUTUN.” - -From this document we learn that the Bishop of Autun, notwithstanding -his labours in the Assembly, was still a gay frequenter of the world: -to be found pretty frequently at the chess-club, as well as in private -society; and, though he lamented over the fact, a winner at such -places of thirty thousand francs within two months. We also learn that -he abandoned at this moment the idea of professional advancement, in -order to maintain unimpeached the motives of his political conduct; and -we may divine that he looked for the future rather to civil than to -ecclesiastical preferment. - -The most striking portion of this document, however, is the tone -and style--I may almost say the cant--which prevails towards its -conclusion. But every epoch has its pretensions: and that of the period -which intervened between May, 1789, and August, 1792, was to decorate -the easy life of a dissolute man of fashion with the pure language of -a saint, or the stern precepts of a philosopher. “_Le dire_,” says old -Montaigne, “_est autre chose que le faire: il faut considérer le prêche -à part, et le prêcheur à part_.”[17] - - -V. - -And now, or but a little after this time, might have been seen an -agitated crowd, weeping, questioning, and rushing towards a house in -the Rue de la Chaussée d’Antin. It was in the first days of April, -and in that house--receiving through the open windows the balmy air -which for a moment refreshed his burning forehead, and welcoming yet -more gratefully the anxious voice of the inquiring multitude--lay -the dying Mirabeau, about to carry into the tomb all the remaining -wisdom and moderation of the people; and, as he himself sadly and -proudly added, all the remaining fragments of that monarchy which -he had shown the power to pull down and had flattered himself he -might have the power to reconstruct. By his death-bed stood the -Bishop of Autun. It was a curious combination of circumstances which -thus brought together these two personages, whose characters were -essentially different, but whose position was in some respects the -same. The one was eloquent, passionate, overbearing, imprudent; the -other cool, urbane, logical, and cautious. But both were of illustrious -families, endowed with great abilities, ejected from their legitimate -place in society. Both also were liberal in their politics, and this -from vengeance and ambition, as well as from principle and opinion. -Aristocrats allied with a democratic faction; monarchists in desperate -conflict with those by whom monarchy was most held in reverence; they -had engaged in a battle for moderation with extreme auxiliaries and -extreme opponents. Mirabeau, the fifth child, but who became, by a -brother’s death, the eldest son of the Marquis de Mirabeau (a rich -proprietor of a noble house in Provence), had been, when very young, -married to a wealthy heiress, and intended for the profession of -arms. Nevertheless, quitting his profession, separated from his wife, -constantly involved in scrapes--now for money, now for love--he had -led a bachelor’s life of intrigue, indigence, and adventure, up to the -age of forty, alternately the victim of his own wild nature and of the -unwise and absurd severity of his father, whose two pursuits in life -were persecuting his family and publishing pamphlets for the benefit -of mankind. Thus, frequently in confinement--always in difficulties -(the first and last means of correction with the old marquis being to -procure a “_lettre de cachet_,” and to stop his son’s allowance), the -Comte de Mirabeau had supported himself almost entirely by his talents, -which could apply themselves to letters, though action was their proper -sphere. - -During a short interval in his various calamities--an interval -which he had passed at Paris in a desperate effort to better his -condition--he had become acquainted with M. de Talleyrand, who, struck -by his abilities and affected by his misfortunes, recommended him to -M. de Calonne, at whose suggestion he was sent by M. de Vergennes, -then minister of foreign affairs, on a sort of secret mission into -Germany, just prior to the Great Frederick’s death. From this mission -he returned when France was being agitated by the convocation of the -“notables,” speedily succeeded by that of the States-General. He saw -at a glance that an era was now approaching, suited to his eminent -talents, and in which his haughty but flexible character was likely to -force or insinuate its way: his whole soul, therefore, was bent upon -being one of that assembly, which he from the first predicted would -soon command the destinies of his country. - -Certain expenses were necessary to obtain this object, and, as usual, -Mirabeau had not a farthing. The means which he adopted for procuring -the money he required were the least creditable he could have devised. -He published a work called “The Secret History of the Court of Berlin,” -a work full of scandal, public and private, and betraying the mission -with which he had recently been intrusted.[18] - -The government was naturally indignant; a prosecution was instituted -against him before the Parliament of Paris; M. de Montmorin, and -others, by whom he had previously been patronised, told him plainly -they wished to drop his acquaintance. - -Through all these disgraceful difficulties Mirabeau scrambled. He -denied that the work was published by his authority. - -Rejected from their sittings by the nobility of Provence, who decreed -that, having no fiefs of his own, and being merely invested with his -father’s voice, he had no right to sit among the nobles, he became the -successful candidate of the tiers-état for Aix; and at the meeting of -the States-General stood before the ministry which had accused, and the -aristocracy which had repudiated him, a daring and formidable enemy. - -But, though made a desperate man by circumstances, he was not so either -by inclination or by ideas. - -His views for France were limited to the procuring it a representative -government; and his views for himself were those which frequently -lead ambitious men under such a government to adopt opposition as a -road to power. “_Tribun par calcul_,” as was justly said of him by a -contemporary,[19] “_aristocrat par goût_.” He aimed at obtaining for -his country a constitution, and being minister of the crown under that -constitution. - -M. de Talleyrand had the same wish, and probably the same ambition. -These two statesmen, therefore, would naturally, at the meeting of the -States-General, have acted together as two private friends who thought -the same on public matters. But the publication of “The Secret History -of the Court of Berlin,” offensive to the minister who had employed -Mirabeau, could not be otherwise than painful and disagreeable to M. de -Talleyrand, at whose intercession Mirabeau had been employed, and to -whom, indeed, Mirabeau’s correspondence had been principally addressed. -This circumstance had, therefore, produced a cessation of all private -intimacy between these two personages who were about to exercise so -great an influence over approaching events. It is difficult, however, -for two men to act a prominent part on the same side for any length -of time in a popular assembly, and this at a great national crisis, -without relapsing into an old acquaintance, or forming a new one. To -what extent the old relations between Mirabeau and M. de Talleyrand -were thus renewed, it is difficult to say, but that on the 21st of -October, 1789, they already talked together with some degree of -intimacy is evident from a letter of Mirabeau to the Comte de la Marck, -in which letter Mirabeau states that he had been told the history of a -secret political intrigue by the Bishop of Autun.[20] - -About this time, too, it is now known that Mirabeau projected a -ministry to which I have already alluded, and in which he and M. de -Talleyrand were to be united. Had this ministry been formed, it is very -possible that the history of France during the next sixty years would -have been different. - -But the most fatal measure adopted by the Assembly was that (November -9, 1789) which prevented any of its members from being minister during -its continuance, and from entering the service of the crown for two -years after its dissolution. The consequences of this resolution, -aimed at those who, like Mirabeau and Talleyrand, were hoping to erect -a constitutional government, and to have the direction of it, were -incalculable. The persons at that time who had most influence in the -Assembly were men with moderate opinions, great talents, and great -ambition. Had such men been placed as the head of affairs they might -have controlled them and established a government at once popular and -safe. But this new regulation prevented those who were powerful as -representatives of the people from using their influence in supporting -the executive power of the crown. It drove them, moreover, if their -passions were violent and their positions desperate, to seek for power -by means hostile to the constitution which annihilated their hopes. - -It had this effect upon Mirabeau; and his sentiments becoming known to -the court, a sort of alliance established itself between them in the -spring of 1790;--an alliance entered into too late (since most of the -great questions on which Mirabeau’s influence might have been useful -were already decided) and most absurdly carried on; for whilst the King -opened to Mirabeau his purse, he shut from him his confidence, and at -first, and for a long time, exacted that the compact he had entered -into with the great orator for the defence of his throne should be kept -altogether secret, even from his own ministers.[21] - -Mirabeau was to advise the King in secret, to help him indirectly in -public; but he was not to have the King’s countenance, and he was to be -thwarted and opposed by the King’s friends. - -The error which both parties to this arrangement committed was the -result of the feeble and irresolute character of the one, who never did -anything wholly and sincerely, and of the over-bold and over-confident -character of the other, who never doubted that whatever he attempted -must succeed, and who now easily persuaded himself that having -vanquished the difficulty of opening a communication with the court, -he should promptly vanquish that of governing it. Indeed, the desire -of Mirabeau to serve the crown being sincere, and his ability to do so -evident, he (not unnaturally perhaps) felt convinced that his sincerity -would be trusted, and his talents given fair play. - -But it is clear that the King thought of buying off a dangerous enemy, -and not of gaining a determined ally. Thus he went on supplying -Mirabeau’s wants, receiving Mirabeau’s reports, attending little -to Mirabeau’s counsels, until matters got so bad that even the -irresolution of Louis XVI. was vanquished (this was about the end of -1790), and then, for the first time, was seriously entertained a plan -which the daring orator had long ago advised, but which the King had -never, up to that period, rejected nor yet sanctioned. - -This plan consisted in withdrawing the King from Paris; surrounding -him with troops still faithful, and by the aid of a new assembly, -for which public opinion was to be prepared, reforming the -constitution--now on the point of being completed--a constitution -which, while it pretended to be monarchical, not only prevented the -monarch from practically exercising any power without the express -permission of a popular assembly, but established, as its fundamental -theory, that the King was merely the executor of that assembly’s -sovereign authority: an addition which, at first sight, may seem of -small importance, but which, as it was calculated daily to influence -the spirit of men’s actions, could not but have an immense effect on -the daily working of their institutions. Nor was this all. Nations, -like individuals, have, so to speak, two wills: that of the moment--the -result of passion, caprice, and impulse; and that of leisure and -deliberation--the result of foresight, prudence, and reason. All free -governments possessing any solidity (whatever their appellation) have, -for this reason, contained a power of some kind calculated to represent -the maturer judgment of the people and to check the spontaneous, -violent, and changeful ebullitions of popular excitement. Even this -barrier, however, was not here interposed between a chamber which was -to have all the influence in the State, and a chief magistrate who was -to have none. - -The constitution about to be passed was, in short, an impracticable -one, and no person saw this more clearly than Mirabeau; but, whilst -ready and desirous to destroy it, he by no means lent himself to -the ideas, though he was somewhat subjugated by the charms of -Marie-Antoinette. - -“Je serai ce que j’ai été toujours,” he says in a letter to the King, -15th December, 1790, “défenseur du pouvoir monarchique réglé par les -lois; apôtre de la liberté garantie par le pouvoir monarchique.”[22] - -Thus he undertook the difficult and almost impossible enterprise of -rescuing liberty at the same time from a monarch in the hands of -courtiers enthusiastic for absolute power, and from a mob under the -influence of clubs, which intended to trample constitutional monarchy -under the feet of a democratical despotism. - -I have narrated what had undoubtedly been Mirabeau’s projects; for -we have to consider what were probably his thoughts when, in acute -suffering but with an unclouded mind and a clear prescience of his -approaching dissolution, he summoned his former friend, with whom, it -is said, he was never till that instant completely reconciled, to the -couch from which he was no more to rise. - -Must we not suppose that Mirabeau in this, his last conversation with -M. de Talleyrand, spoke of the schemes which then filled his mind? And -does it not seem probable that he at that hour conceived the Bishop of -Autun to be the person best fitted to fill the difficult position which -he himself was about to leave vacant, and amidst the various intrigues -and combinations of which it required so much skill to steer? - -For this supposition there are many plausible reasons. M. de -Talleyrand, like Mirabeau, was an aristocrat by birth, a liberal by -circumstances and opinion; he was also one of the members of the -Assembly, who possessed the greatest authority over that portion of -it which Mirabeau himself influenced; and likewise one of a very -small number of members upon whom M. de Montmorin, the minister with -whom Louis XVI. at last consented that Mirabeau should confidentially -communicate, had told Mirabeau he most relied. Lastly, he was -acquainted with all the classes and almost all the individuals then -seeking to disturb, or hoping to compose, the disordered elements of -society. He knew the court, the clergy, the Orleanists. He had been -one of the founders of the Jacobins; he was a member of its moderate -rival, the Feuillans; and although, undoubtedly, he wanted the fire and -eloquence necessary to command in great assemblies, he was pre-eminent -in the tact and address which enable a man to manage those by whom such -assemblies are led. - -In short, though Mirabeau left no Mirabeau behind him, M. de Talleyrand -was, perhaps, the person best qualified to supply his loss, and the -one whom Mirabeau himself was most likely to have pointed out for a -successor. I have no clue, however, beyond conjecture, to guide me on -this subject, unless the public trust which Mirabeau confided to M. -de Talleyrand in his last hours may be cited as a testimony of his -other and more secret intentions. What this trust was, we may learn -from the statement of M. de Talleyrand himself, who, on the following -day, amidst a silence and a sorrow which pervaded all parties (for a -man of superior genius, whatever his faults, rarely dies unlamented), -ascending the tribune of the National Assembly, said in a voice which -appeared unfeignedly affected: - -“I went yesterday to the house of M. de Mirabeau. An immense crowd -filled that mansion, to which I carried a sentiment more sorrowful than -the public grief. The spectacle of woe before me filled the imagination -with the image of death; it was everywhere but in the mind of him -whom the most imminent danger menaced. He had asked to see me. It is -needless to relate the emotion which many things he said caused me. But -M. de Mirabeau was at that time above all things the man of the public; -and in this respect we may regard as a precious relic the last words -which could be saved from that mighty prey, on which death was about to -seize. Concentrating all his interest on the labours that still remain -to this Assembly, he remembered that the law of succession was the -order of the day, and lamented he could not assist at the discussion of -the question, regretting death, because it deprived him of the power of -performing a public duty. But, as his opinion was committed to writing, -he confided the manuscript to me, in order that I might in his name -communicate it to you. I am going to execute this duty. The author -of the manuscript is now no more; and so intimately were his wishes -and thoughts connected with the public weal, that you may imagine -yourselves catching his last breath, as you listen to the sentiments -which I am about to read to you.” - -Such were the words with which M. de Talleyrand prefaced the memorable -discourse which, in establishing the principles on which the law of -inheritance has since rested in France, laid the foundations of a new -French society, on a basis which no circumstance that can now happen -seems likely to alter. - -“There is as much difference,” said Mirabeau, “between what a man does -during his life, and what he does after his death, as between death -and life. What is a testament? It is the expression of the will of a -man who has no longer any will respecting property which is no longer -his property; it is the action of a man no longer accountable for his -actions to mankind; it is an absurdity, and an absurdity ought not to -have the force of law.” - -Such is the argument set forth in this celebrated and singular speech. -Ingenious rather than profound, it does not seem, as we turn to it -coolly now, worthy of the reputation it attained, nor of the effect -which it has undoubtedly produced. But, read in M. de Talleyrand’s deep -voice, and read as the last thoughts upon testamentary dispositions of -a man who was making his own will when he composed it, and who since -then was with his luminous intellect and marvellous eloquence about to -be consigned to the obscure silence of the grave, it could hardly fail -to make a deep impression. It was, moreover, the mantle of the departed -prophet; and the world, whether wrong or right in the supposition, -fancied that it saw in this political legacy the intention to designate -a political successor. - - -VI. - -Thus, M. de Talleyrand, already, as we have seen, a member of the -department of Paris, was immediately chosen to fill the place in the -directorship of that department, an appointment which Mirabeau’s death -left vacant. - -In this municipal council, considerable influence still existed; nor -did it want various means for exercising that influence over the middle -classes of the capital; so that a man of resolution and tact could have -made it one of the most useful instruments for restoring the royal -authority and consolidating it on new foundations. - -It seems not unlikely, indeed, that M. de Talleyrand had the design -of making it popular as the organ of good advice to the King, and of -making the King popular by engaging him to listen to this advice, -since we find that it drew up an address to him on the 18th April -(about a fortnight after Mirabeau’s death), urging him to put aside -from his councils those whom the nation distrusted, and to confide -frankly in the men who were yet popular: whilst there is reason to -believe, as I shall by-and-by have occasion to show, that M. de -Talleyrand entered about this time into secret negotiations with the -King, or, at least, offered him, through M. de Laporte, his best -assistance. - -But Louis XVI. was more likely to trust a bold and passionate man like -Mirabeau, whom, notwithstanding his birth, he looked upon--considering -the situation in which the Revolution had found him--as an adventurer -who had been almost naturally his opponent, until he had purchased his -support, rather than a man like M. de Talleyrand; a philosopher, a wit, -who might be said to have been bred a courtier; and, on the other hand, -M. de Talleyrand himself was too cautious to commit himself boldly -and entirely to the daring and doubtful schemes which Mirabeau had -prepared, until he saw a tolerable chance of their being successful. - -Other circumstances, moreover, occurred at this time, which could not -but have an unfavourable influence as to the establishment of any -serious concert between the scrupulous and mistrustful monarch, and the -chess-playing, constitutional bishop. - - -VII. - -When M. de Talleyrand rejected the archbishopric of Paris, it was -clear that he expected nothing further from the church; and he no -doubt from that moment conceived the idea of freeing himself from its -trammels on the first decent opportunity: nor did he long wait for this -opportunity, for, on the 26th of April, one day after his consecration -of the Curé Expelles, the newly-elected Bishop of Finisterre, arrived a -brief thus announced in the _Moniteur_ of the 1st of May, 1791: - -“_Le bref du Pape est arrivé jeudi dernier. De Talleyrand-Périgord, -ancien évêque d’Autun, y est suspendu de toutes fonctions -et excommunié, après quarante jours s’il ne revient pas a -résipiscence._”[23] - -The moment had now come for that decisive measure which the unwilling -ecclesiastic had for some time contemplated; for he had too much tact -to think of continuing his clerical office under the interdiction of -the head of his church, and was by no means prepared to abandon his -political career, and to reconcile himself with Rome, on the condition -of separating himself from wealth and ambition. But one alternative -remained--that of abandoning the profession into which he had been -forced to enter. This he did at once, and without hesitation; appearing -in the world henceforth (though sometimes styled in public documents -the Abbé de Périgord, or the ancien évêque d’Autun) under the plain -designation of M. de Talleyrand, a designation which I have already -frequently applied to him, and by which, though he was destined to be -raised to far higher titles, he has by universal consent descended -to posterity. The act was a bold one; but, like most bold acts in -difficult circumstances, it was not (I speak of it as a matter of -worldly calculation) an imprudent one: for it released an indifferent -priest from a position which he could only fill with decency by a -constant hypocrisy, for which he was too indolent; and it delivered up -an able statesman to a career for which, by the nature of his talents, -he was peculiarly fitted. Neither was M. de Talleyrand’s withdrawal -from the church so remarkable a fact at that moment as it would have -been at any other; for France, and even Europe, were then overrun -by French ex-ecclesiastics of all grades, who were prohibited from -assuming their rank and unable to fulfil their duties, and who, in many -cases, were obliged to conceal their real calling under that from which -they earned a daily subsistence. - -Nevertheless, the Bishop of Autun’s particular case excited and -merited attention. It had been as an organ and representative of -the French church, that this prelate had contributed in no slight -degree to alienate its property and change its constitution; and now, -his brethren in the French clergy being what he had made them, he -voluntarily threw their habit from his shoulders and renounced all -participation in their fate. - -It might, it is true, be urged that none had lost more by the -destruction of the ancient church and its institutions than himself, -that he had originally become a priest against his inclinations, -and that he was compelled to decide either against his convictions -as a citizen or against his obligations as a churchman. Still, this -desertion from his order by one who had been so conspicuous a member -of it, was undoubtedly a scandal, and though the world usually pardons -those whom it has an interest to forgive, and though M. de Talleyrand, -if he erred, had the consolation of living to see his errors forgiven -or overlooked by many very rigid Catholics, who enjoyed his society, -by many very pious princes, who wanted his services, and even by the -Pope himself, when his holiness was in a situation to fear his enmity -and require his goodwill--he himself never felt entirely at his ease -as to his early profession, and was so sensitive on the subject that -the surest way to offend him was to allude to it. I was told by a lady, -long intimate with M. de Talleyrand, that even the mention of the word -“lawn” annoyed him. - -As to Louis XVI., although making perpetual compromises with his -conscience, he was of all persons the one most likely to be shocked by -a bishop thus coolly converting himself into a layman; whilst it must -be added that M. de Talleyrand was of all persons the one least likely -to respect Louis XVI.’s scruples. - -We may, therefore, reasonably suppose that whatever relations -were indirectly kept up between them at this time, such relations -were neither intimate nor cordial, but rather those which men not -unfrequently maintain with persons whom they neither like nor trust, -but are ready to serve under or be served by, should circumstances -arrive to render a closer connection mutually advantageous. - -The King, however, had become more and more puzzled by the opposing -advice of his various and never-trusted counsellors, and more and -more dissatisfied with the prospect of having shortly to assent to a -constitution which, in reality, he looked upon as an abdication. It was -not surprising, therefore, that, on the morning of the 21st of June, it -was discovered that he had, with his family, quitted Paris; and it was -shortly afterwards ascertained that the fugitives had directed their -course towards the north of France and the camp of M. de Bouillé. - -It will be remembered that, to withdraw from the capital to the camp of -this officer, in whose judgment, ability, and fidelity Louis XVI. most -relied, was part of Mirabeau’s old scheme. - -But this was not all: the King, in a paper which he left behind him, -stated that it was his intention to retire to some portion of his -“kingdom where he could freely exercise his judgment, and there to -make such changes in the proposed constitution” (it was on the point -of being terminated) “as were necessary to maintain the sanctity of -religion, to strengthen the royal authority, and to consolidate a -system of true liberty.” A declaration of this kind (though the words I -have cited were rather ambiguous) was also comprised in the scheme of -Mirabeau. - -Now, M. de Montmorin, the minister of foreign affairs--with one of -whose passports the King had actually made his escape as a servant of -a Madame de Korff--had been initiated, as we know, into Mirabeau’s -secrets, and M. de Talleyrand was one of M. de Montmorin’s friends, -and had been, as we have recently seen, by Mirabeau’s bedside during -his last hours. Hence it might be inferred, notwithstanding the causes -which prevented any real sympathy or cordial understanding between -the King and the ex-Bishop of Autun, that the latter was privy to the -flight of the former, and prepared to take part in the plans of which -that flight was to be the commencement. - -Rumours, indeed, to this effect, concerning both M. de Montmorin and M. -de Talleyrand, were for a moment circulated in Paris. - -But M. de Montmorin proved to the satisfaction of the Assembly that -he was innocent of all participation in the King’s evasion; and the -reports respecting M. de Talleyrand never went further than to one or -two of those journals which at that time disgraced the liberty of the -press by their total indifference as to whether they published truth or -falsehood. - -It is also to be remarked that M. de Lafayette, whom on that subject -one must accept as a good authority, expressly charges the King with -having left M. de Montmorin and his most intimate friends ignorant of -his intentions. - -“Il était ignoré,” says M. de Lafayette, “de ses ministres, des -royalistes de l’Assemblée, tous laissés exposés à un grand peril. Telle -était la situation non seulement des gardes nationaux de service, de -leurs officiers, mais des amis les plus dévoués du roi, du duc de -Brissac, commandant des cent-suisses, et de M. de Montmorin qui avait -très-innocemment donné un passeport sous le nom de la baronne de -Korff.”[24] - -It is difficult to account for the inconsistency in Louis XVI.’s -conduct, except by referring to the inconsistency of his character: -I am, however, disposed to surmise that, after Mirabeau’s death, he -considered it would be impossible to unite a considerable portion of -the Assembly and the army in one common plan; and that he then began -carrying on at the same time two plans: the one relative to the policy -he should pursue in the event of his stay in the capital, which he -probably conducted through M. de Montmorin, who was intimate with the -leading members of the constitutional party in the Assembly; the other -relative to his flight, which he only entrusted to the general whose -camp he was about to seek, and to those private friends and adherents -who took little part in public affairs. It is further to be presumed -that, according to his constant incertitude and indolence, never long -or firmly fixed on any one project, he was scared by apprehensions -of the mob at the moment when most disposed to remain quietly in his -palace, and alarmed at the risk and trouble of moving when actually -pressing the preparations for his journey. - -In this manner we may best reconcile his writing to M. de Bouillé, to -expect him at Montmedy within a week of his declaring to the sovereigns -of Europe (23rd April) that he was satisfied with his condition at -Paris: in this manner, likewise, we may explain his solemnly assuring -the general of the National Guard that he would not quit the Tuileries, -only two or three days before he actually did so.[25] - -He rarely did what he intended to do; and belied himself more -frequently from change of intentions, than from intentional insincerity. - - -VIII. - -At all events, it seems probable (returning to the fact with which we -are in the present instance most concerned) that Louis XVI.’s departure -took place without M. de Talleyrand’s active assistance, but I do not -think it probable that it was altogether without his knowledge. - -The ex-Bishop had such a varied and extensive acquaintance that he was -pretty certain to know what he wished to know; and it was according to -his usual practice to contrive that he should not be compromised if the -King’s projects failed, and yet that he should be in a situation to -show that the King was indebted to him if those projects succeeded. It -is useless to speculate on what might have occurred had the unfortunate -monarch reached his destination; for travelling in a carriage -peculiarly heavy and peculiarly conspicuous at the rate of three miles -an hour, walking up the hills, putting his head out of the windows -at the post-houses, Louis XVI. arrived at the place where he was to -have met his escort twenty hours later than the appointed time, and -was finally stopped at the bridge of Varennes by a few resolute men, -and reconducted leisurely to the capital, amidst the insults of the -provinces and the silence of Paris. - -The important question then arose, What was to be done respecting him? - -Was he to be deposed in favour of a republic? All contemporary writers -agree that, at this moment, the idea of a republic was only in a few -visionary minds. Was he to be deposed in favour of a new monarch, -which, considering the emigration of his brothers and the infancy of -his child, could only be in favour of a new dynasty? or, was he to be -reinstated in the position he had quitted? - - -IX. - -The views and conduct of M. de Talleyrand are at this crisis -interesting. We have been told by contemporaries, that he and Sieyès -were of opinion that there was a better chance of making the Revolution -successful with a limited monarchy under a new chief, elected by the -nation, than under the old one, who claimed his throne in virtue of -hereditary right; and we can easily understand their reasoning. - -A king who had succeeded to a throne from which his ancestors had been -accustomed for centuries to dictate absolutely to their people, could -hardly be sincerely satisfied with possessing on sufferance a remnant -of his ancestors’ former authority; nor could a people be ever wholly -without suspicion of a prince who had to forget the ideas with which he -had received the sceptre before he could respect those which restricted -the use of it. - -Louis XVI., moreover, had attempted to escape from his palace, as a -prisoner escaping from his gaol, and as a prisoner thus escaping he had -been caught and brought back to his place of confinement. - -It was difficult to make anything of a sovereign in this condition -save a puppet, to be for a while the tool, and ere long the victim, of -contending parties. - -Now, M. de Talleyrand had always a leaning to the Orleans branch of -the House of Bourbon: neither did he think so ill of the notorious -personage who was then the representative of the Orleans family, as the -contemporaries from whose report posterity has traced his portrait. - -Of this prince he once said, in his own pithy manner, “Le duc -d’Orléans est le vase dans lequel on a jeté toutes les ordures de la -Révolution;”[26] and this was not untrue. - -Philippe d’Orléans, indeed, who has figured in history under the -nickname or _sobriquet_ of “Egalité,” was neither fitted for the part -of a great sovereign in turbulent times nor for that of a quiet and -obscure citizen at any more tranquil period. Nevertheless, he was not -so bad a man as he has been represented; for both Legitimists and -Republicans have been obliged to blacken his character in order to -excuse their conduct to him. - -His character has, furthermore, been mystified and exaggerated, as -we have looked at it by the lurid glare of that unnatural vote which -brings the later period of his life always prominently and horribly -before us. Still, in reality, he was rather a weak man, led into -villainous deeds by want of principle, than a man of a strong and -villainous nature, who did not scruple at crimes when they seemed -likely to advance his ambition. His only one strong passion was a -desire to be talked about. - -It is possible that the King, by skilful management, might have turned -this ruling wish of his most powerful subject to the profit of his -monarchy: for the young Duc de Chartres was at one time anxious to -shine as an aspirant to military fame. The government, however, denied -his request to be employed as became his rank; and when, despite of -this denial, he engaged in a naval combat as a volunteer, the court -unjustly and impoliticly spread reports against his courage. To risk -his life in a balloon, to run riot in every extravagance of debauch, -to profess the opinions of a republican though the first prince of the -blood royal, were demonstrations of the same disposition which might -have made him a gallant soldier, a furious bigot, a zealous royalist, -and even a very tolerable constitutional monarch. - -As to the various stories of his incessant schemes and complicated -manœuvres for exciting the populace, debauching the soldiery, and -seizing the crown, they are, in my opinion, no more worthy of credit -than the tales which at the same period were equally circulated -of Louis XVI.’s drunkenness, and Marie-Antoinette’s debaucheries. -Belonging to those whom Tacitus has described as “men loving -idleness--though hating quiet,” seeking popularity more than power, and -with a character easily modelled by circumstances, I am by no means -certain, that if M. de Talleyrand did think of bestowing on him what -was afterwards called a “citizen crown,” (it must be remembered that he -had not then been lowered and disgraced by the follies or crimes into -which he was subsequently led), the plan was not the best which could -have been adopted. But there was one great and insurmountable obstacle -to this design. - -General Lafayette commanded the National Guard of Paris, and although -his popularity was already on the wane, he was still--Mirabeau being -dead--the most powerful citizen that had been raised up by the -Revolution. He did not want to run new risks, nor to acquire greater -power, nor to have a monarch with more popularity or more authority -than the runaway king. - -Courageous rather than audacious, more avid of popularity than of -power, a chivalric knight-errant, an amiable enthusiast, rather than -a great captain, or a practical politician, the part which suited him -was that of parading himself before the people as the guardian of the -constitution, and before the sovereign as the idol of the nation. To -this part he wished to confine himself; and the monarch under whom he -could play it most easily was Louis XVI. Nor was this all. - -Ambitious men may agree as to sharing the attributes of office; vain -men will not agree as to sharing the pleasure of applause: and it is -said that Lafayette never forgot that there was another bust, that -of the Duc d’Orléans, carried about the streets of Paris together -with his own, on the memorable day which saw the destruction of the -Bastille. To any idea, therefore, of the Duc d’Orléans as King of -France, he was decidedly opposed. - - -X. - -Thus, after making just that sort of effort in favour of the younger -branch of the Bourbons which left him free to support the elder one, -if such effort proved abortive, M. de Talleyrand finally declared for -Louis XVI., as the only person who could be monarch, if a monarchy -could be preserved; and was also for giving this prince such a position -as he might honourably accept, with functions that he might really -fulfil. - -The King himself, it must be added, was now in a better disposition -than he had hitherto been for frankly accepting the conditions of the -new existence proposed to him. - -A hero, or rather a saint, when it was required of his fortitude to -meet danger or to undergo suffering, his nature was one of those which -shrink from exertion, and prefer endurance to a struggle for either -victory or escape. - -It was with difficulty that he had been so far roused into action as to -attempt his recent expedition; he had been disgusted with its trouble, -more than awed by its peril. Death itself seemed preferable to another -such effort. - -He had seen, likewise, from the feeling of the provinces, and even -from the infidelity of the troops, who, sent to escort him, might have -attempted his rescue; but who, when told to cry, “_Vive le Roi!_” -cried, “_Vive la Nation!_” that, even if he had reached M. de Bouillé’s -camp, it would have been difficult for that general, notwithstanding -his firmness of character and military ability, to have placed the -sovereign of France in any position within the French territory from -which he might have dictated to, or even treated with, the French -people. To quit Paris, therefore, a second time was evidently to quit -France and to unite himself with, and to be subordinate to, that party -of _émigrés_ which had always preferred his younger brother, whose -presumption had become insulting to his authority and offensive to -Marie-Antoinette’s pride. - -On the other hand, many persons of note in the Assembly who had -hitherto employed their talents and their popularity towards the -weakening of the monarchical power, were at this juncture disposed to -strengthen it. - -Amongst the commissioners sent to conduct Louis XVI. from Varennes to -Paris, was Barnave, an eloquent young lawyer, who, from a desire to -distinguish himself in a glorious rivalry with Mirabeau, had adopted -that party in the Assembly which, whilst declaring itself against a -republic, contended in all discussions, and especially in the famous -discussion on the _veto_, for abridging and in fact annihilating the -royal authority. Struck by the misfortunes of Marie-Antoinette,--beauty -never appearing so attractive to a generous heart as in the hour of -distress,--and convinced, perhaps, by his own personal observations -that Louis XVI. had in many respects been grossly calumniated, Barnave -had at last adopted the views which had previously been formed by his -great rival, whose ashes then slept in the Pantheon. - -The two Lameths also, officers of noble birth, possessing some talent -and more spirit, perceiving that by the course they had hitherto -pursued they had raised up at each step more formidable rivals amongst -the lower classes of society than any they would otherwise have had to -encounter amongst the leaders of the nobility or the favourites of the -court, were now as anxious to restrain the democracy which they hated, -as Barnave was to assist the queen whom he loved; whilst many of all -ranks, conscientiously in favour of liberty, but as justly alarmed at -anarchy, beginning to consider it more important to curb the license -of the mob and the clubs than that of the King and the government, -were for rallying round the tottering throne and trying to give it a -tolerable foundation of security. - - -XI. - -For these reasons, then, there was a combination of interests, desires, -and abilities, in favour of establishing Louis XVI. at the head of such -a constitution, as, if not the best possible, would have been the best -possible at that time; and, every other rational project seeming out -of the question, M. de Talleyrand entered, as I have said, into this -one, although with less faith in its practicability than some of his -coadjutors. - -There were, however, at this moment circumstances which favoured it. -An assemblage, collected together by the influence and exhortations of -the most violent of the Jacobins for the purpose of signing a petition -to the Assembly against the continuance of the monarchy, having given a -sufficient pretext by its tumultuous character and excesses to justify -the act, was dispersed by Lafayette at the head of the National Guard, -and with the authority of Bailly, mayor of Paris;--that is, with the -force and authority of the whole mass of the _bourgeoisie_, or middle -class. - -The Republicans were daunted. A revision of the constitution, moreover, -was required; for the desultory and inconsistent manner in which many -of the measures of the Assembly had been voted, rendered it necessary -to distinguish between those which were temporary in their character -and those that were to remain fundamental laws of the State. This -revision offered the opportunity of introducing changes of importance -into the constitution itself, and amongst these a second chamber or -senate. - -To this addition even Lafayette consented; although his opinion was -that such second chamber should be elective, as in the United States -(his constant model), and not hereditary as in England, which another -section of public men--anxious to maintain an aristocracy as well as a -monarchy--desired. - -The moderate party, still powerful in the departments, in Paris, and -in the National Guard, as well as in the army, had not, nevertheless, -by itself a majority in the Assembly; and a mere majority could not -have undertaken so great a plan as that contemplated. With the aid -of the Royalists, however, the execution of this plan was easy. But -the Royalists, consisting of two hundred and ninety members, with the -Abbé Maury at their head (Cazales, the other leader of the Royalist -party, at this time emigrated), retaining their seats in the Assembly, -declined to take any part in its proceedings;--and in this manner the -only hope of safety for the King was destroyed by the very persons who -arrogated to themselves the title of “the King’s friends;” nor was this -course, though foolish and unpatriotic, altogether unnatural. - -What a party can least bear is the triumph of its opponents: the -consolidation of a constitutional government was the triumph of that -party, which from the beginning of the Revolution had advocated such a -government and declared it possible. The triumph of the opposite party, -on the contrary, was, that there should be an absolute monarchy, or -no monarchy; a government of “_lettres de cachet_,” or no government. -This party had to prove that to diminish the sovereign’s power was to -conduct him to the scaffold; that to give the people freedom was to -overthrow society. Thus, if they did not hope for the worst, they would -do nothing to secure the best that was practicable. It is conjunctures -like these which confound the calculations of those who fancy that men -will act according to their interests. - -Left to themselves, the Constitutionalists had not sufficient power -to give battle to the democrats in the Assembly and the clubs out -of it. They voted the King a body-guard and a privy purse--measures -better calculated to excite the envy than to curb the license of -the populace; and then, betrayed by the same wish to show their -disinterestedness, which had made them parties, in November, 1789, -to the stupid declaration that no member of the National Assembly -should be the King’s minister, they committed the still greater folly -of declaring that no member of the National Assembly should sit in -the next legislature, nor hold any office under the Crown during its -continuance; a decree decapitating France, and delivering an untried -constitution into the hands of inexperienced legislators. - -This decree left the future too obscure for any man of calmness -and judgment to flatter himself that there was more than a faint -probability of fixing its destinies for some years to come; but -whatever these destinies might be, the reputation of the statesman -whose views formed the mind of a rising generation, would survive the -errors and passions of a past one. - -It was with this thought before him that M. de Talleyrand, just -previous to the dissolution of the National Assembly, or, as it is -sometimes called, _l’Assemblée constituante_, brought under its -notice a vast project of education, then too late to be decided upon, -but which, printed and recommended to the attention of the coming -legislature, and having at one extremity the communal school and at the -other the Institute, exists with but slight alterations at this very -day. - -The Assembly now separated (on the 13th of September) amidst that -usual exhibition of fireworks and fêtes which mark the history of -the animated and variable people, who, never contented and never -despairing, exhibit the same joy when they crown their heroes or break -their idols. - -Such was the end of that great Assembly which passed away rapidly from -the face of affairs at the moment, but which left its foot-print on the -world for generations that have not yet effaced it. - -In this Assembly, M. de Talleyrand was the most conspicuous figure -after Mirabeau, as he was hereafter in the Empire the most conspicuous -personage after Napoleon; and I have dwelt more on this portion of his -career than I may do upon others, because it is the one least known, -and for which he has been least appreciated. - -The reputation, however, which he obtained and justly earned in -those violent and turbulent times, was not of a violent or turbulent -character. A member of the two famous clubs of the day (Jacobins and -Feuillans), he frequented them occasionally, not to take part in their -debates, but to be acquainted with and influence those who did. In the -National Assembly he had always sided with the most moderate who could -hope for power, and who did not abjure the Revolution. - -Necker, Mounier, Mirabeau, had successively his support so long as they -took an active part in public affairs. In the same manner he acted, -when they disappeared, with Barnave and the two Lameths; and even with -Lafayette, though he and that personage disliked and despised each -other. No personal feeling altered his course; it was never marked -by personal prejudices, nor can I say that it was ever illumined by -extraordinary eloquence. His influence arose from his proposing great -and reasonable measures at appropriate times, in singularly clear and -elegant language; and this from the height of a great social position. -He did not pretend to be guided by sentiment or emotion; neither -hatred, nor devotion, nor apprehension, ever seemed to affect his -conduct. He avowed that he wished for a constitutional monarchy, and -was willing to do all he could to obtain one. But he never said he -would sacrifice himself to this idea if it proved impossible to make it -successful. - -Many have attacked his honour because, being a noble and a churchman, -he sided against the two orders he belonged to; but in reality he -rather wished to make ancient things live amongst new ideas than to -sweep ancient things away. Others have denied his sagacity in promoting -a revolution which drove him from affluence and power into poverty and -exile. But, in spite of what has been said to the contrary, I by no -means believe that the end of the Revolution of 1789 was the natural -consequence of its commencement. The more we examine the history of -that period, the more we are struck by the incessant and unaccountable -follies of those who wished to arrest it. There was no want of -occasions when the most ordinary courage and good sense on the part of -the King and his friends would have given the one all the power it was -advisable he should exercise, and preserved the other in as influential -a position as was compatible with the abolition of intolerable abuses. -No man can calculate with accuracy on all the faults that may be -committed by his opponents. It is probable that M. de Talleyrand did -not calculate on the utter subversion of the society he undertook to -reform; but it appears that at each crisis he foresaw the dangers that -were approaching, and counselled the measures most likely to prevent -their marring his country’s prospects and his own fortunes. - -At the actual moment, he perceived that the new legislature would be -a new world, which could neither have the same notions, nor belong to -the same society, nor be subject to the same influences, as the last; -and that the wisest thing to do was to withdraw himself from the Paris -horizon until the clouds that obscured it had, in some direction or -other, passed away. - -In England, he was sufficiently near not to be forgotten, and -sufficiently distant not to be compromised. England, moreover, was the -natural field of observation at that moment for a French statesman. To -England, therefore, he went, accompanied by M. de Biron, and arrived in -London on the 25th of January, 1792. - - - - -PART III. - -FROM CLOSE OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY TO CONSULATE. - - M. de Talleyrand in London.--Manner and - appearance.--Witticisms.--Visit to England.--Lord Grenville - refuses to discuss business with him.--Goes to Paris; returns - with letter from King.--State of affairs in France prevents - success of any mission in England.--Arrives in Paris just prior - to the 10th of August.--Escapes and returns to England, the - 16th of September, 1792.--Writes to Lord Grenville, declaring - he has no mission.--Sent away the 28th of January, 1794.--Goes - to America.--Waits until the death of Robespierre.--Gets then - permission to return to France.--Chénier declares that he was - employed by Provisional Government in 1792, when he had told - Lord Grenville he was not.--Successful reception.--Description - of Directory and of society at that time.--Chosen Secretary - of Institute, and read two remarkable memoirs to it.--Named - Minister of Foreign Affairs.--Sides with Barras and - Executive against the Assemblies.--Negotiations at Lille - broken off.--Address to diplomatic agents.--Peace of Campo - Formio.--Bonaparte goes to Egypt.--Democrats triumph in the - Directory.--M. de Talleyrand quits office, and publishes an - answer to accusations made against him.--Paris tired with the - Directory.--Bonaparte returns from Egypt.--Talleyrand unites - with Sieyès to overturn the Government, and place power in - Bonaparte’s hands. - - -I. - -When M. de Talleyrand made his first appearance in our country, many -persons in it still continued favourable to the French Revolution, -and viewed with esteem those who had rather sought to destroy crying -abuses than to put fantastical theories into practice. Thus, although -naturally preceded by the calumnies which were certain to be circulated -about a man who had played so remarkable a part on so eventful a scene -as that which he had just quitted, the ex-Bishop of Autun was, on -the whole, well received by a large portion of our aristocracy, and -became particularly intimate at Lansdowne House. The father of the late -marquis mentioned to me that he remembered him dining there frequently, -and being particularly silent and particularly pale. A contemporary, -indeed, describes M. de Talleyrand at this time as aiming to impose on -the world by an air of extreme reserve:-- - -“His manner was cold, he spoke little, his countenance, which in early -youth had been distinguished for its grace and delicacy, had become -somewhat puffed and rounded, and to a certain degree effeminate, -being in singular contrast with a deep and serious voice which no one -expected to accompany such a physiognomy. Rather avoiding than making -advances, neither indiscreet, nor gay, nor familiar, but sententious, -formal, and scrutinizing,--the English hardly knew what to make of a -Frenchman who so little represented the national character. - -“But this exterior was a mask, which he threw off in the circles -in which he was at his ease, talking in these freely, taking the -greatest pains to please, and being remarkable for the choice of his -expressions and a certain epigrammatic wit, which had a singular charm -for those who were accustomed to his society. His was the saying cited -by Chamfort, _à propos_ of Rulhières,[27] who--on observing that he -did not know why he was called ill-natured, for in all his life he -had never done but one ill-natured action--was replied to by M. de -Talleyrand’s drily observing, ‘_Et quand finira-t-elle?_’--‘when will -it end?’ - -“One evening, playing at long whist, the conversation turned on an old -lady who had married her footman; some people expressed their surprise, -when M. de Talleyrand, counting his points, drawled out in a slow -voice, ‘_At nine, one does not count honours_.’ - -“Another time,” says the person from whom I am quoting, “we were -speaking of the infamy of a colleague, when I burst out by exclaiming, -‘That man is capable of assassinating any one!’ ‘_Assassinating, no!_’ -said M. de Talleyrand, coolly; ‘_poisoning, yes!_’ - -“His manner of narrating was full of grace; he was a model of good -taste in conversation. Indolent, voluptuous, born for wealth and -grandeur, he accustomed himself in exile to a life simple and full of -privations, sharing with his friends the produce of his magnificent -library, which he sold very ill, the spirit of party preventing many -from becoming purchasers.” - -This description, from Dumont (pp. 361, 362), is interesting as -a personal sketch at one of the most critical periods of M. de -Talleyrand’s life; that is, at the commencement of his career as -a diplomatist; for the voyage to England which he was now making, -first suggested to Louis XVI. by M. de Montmorin, and subsequently -realized by the minister who succeeded him, was (though this could -not be officially avowed on account of the self-denying ordinance of -the National Assembly) of an official character; a fact suspected if -not known at the time. Lord Gower, indeed (our ambassador at Paris), -speaks of it in January as a _mission_ of peace. Lord Grenville, in -a communication to Lord Gower, in February, says M. de Talleyrand -had brought him a letter from M. Delessart, then Minister of Foreign -Affairs, and in March again he thus writes:[28] - -“I have seen Monsieur de Talleyrand twice since his arrival on the -business of his _mission_ to this country. - -“The first time he explained to me very much at large the disposition -of the French government and nation to enter into the closest -connection with Great Britain, and proposed that this should be done -by a mutual guarantee, or in such other manner as the government of -this country should propose. Having stated this, he earnestly requested -that he might not receive any answer at the time, but that he might -see me again for that purpose. I told him that, in compliance with -his request, I would see him again for the object he wished, though -I thought it fair to apprise him that, in all probability, my answer -would be confined to the absolute impossibility of entering into any -kind of discussion or negotiation on points of so delicate a nature -with a person having no official authority to treat upon them. When I -did see him again I repeated this to him, telling him it was the only -answer I could give to any proposal that he might make to me, although -I had no difficulty in saying to him individually, as I had to every -Frenchman with whom I had conversed on the present state of France, -that it was very far from being the disposition of H. M. Government to -foment or prolong any disturbances there with a view of any profit to -be derived from them to this country.” - -The coyness of Lord Grenville to enter into political discussions at -this moment with M. de Talleyrand might arise in some degree from -the position of the French ministry, for though M. de Talleyrand had -brought a letter, as has been said, from M. Delessart, who belonged -to the more moderate section of the French ministry, his intimate -friend in it was the Comte de Narbonne; named, just previous to M. de -Talleyrand’s departure, minister of war, and who, being the youngest -and most ardent member of the government, was all for an immediate war -with Austria, as the only means of saving France from the internal -agitation that was preying on her, and the only means of definitively -separating the King from the French _émigrés_ and the court of Vienna, -whose counsels rendered it impossible to count on his conduct. - -M. de Talleyrand shared these ideas. Narbonne’s colleagues, however, -soon began to think the young soldier’s views, to which they had at -one time half assented, were too adventurous; and M. de Talleyrand’s -position becoming more and more difficult, was, after Lord Grenville’s -conversation in March, untenable. He returned, therefore, to Paris, and -on arriving at its gates, learnt that M. de Narbonne was out of office. - -But the moderate Constitutionalists who thought of governing without -M. de Narbonne had not been employed till their party had lost its -influence, and were unable to stem the opposition to which the removal -of their popular colleague had given a new impulse. They soon, -therefore, gave way to the celebrated Gironde, a band which, though -rigid in its own principles of conduct, was not indisposed to profit -by the assistance of able men less scrupulous; and General Dumouriez, -a clever and bold adventurer, became minister of foreign affairs. He -had precisely the same views as Narbonne with respect to a war with -Austria, and thought that it was of the utmost importance to make sure -of the neutrality of England. - -M. de Talleyrand had, as we learn from Lord Gower, the address to -speak satisfactorily of the sentiments of the British Government after -returning from his late expedition, and to attribute whatever was -unfriendly in its language to the irregularity of the character he had -appeared in. He was again chosen, then, as the French negotiator; and -though, as in the former instance, he could not be named ambassador, -everything that the law permitted was done to give weight to his -character;--Louis XVI. giving him a letter to George III. expressive -of his confidence in the bearer. In the meantime, M. de Chauvelin, a -gentleman of fashion, professing popular principles, but who would -never have been placed in so important a post had not M. de Talleyrand -been his counsellor, was named minister plenipotentiary. - -M. Dumouriez announces this double appointment to Lord Grenville on -the 21st of April, that is, the day after the declaration of war with -Austria, saying-- - -“That M. de Talleyrand, in his recent voyage to London, had stated to -Lord Grenville the desire of the French government to contract the -most intimate relations with Great Britain. That it was particularly -desirable at that moment, when France was on the eve of a war that she -had not been able to avoid, to assure herself of the friendship of that -government which could most aid in bringing about a peace; that for -this object M. de Chauvelin had been named minister plenipotentiary, a -gentleman chosen on account of the knowledge which his Majesty had of -his person, sentiments, and talents; and that to him had been adjoined, -in consequence of the extreme importance of the negotiation, M. de -Talleyrand (whose abilities were well known to Lord Grenville), and M. -de Roveray,[29] formerly _procureur-général_ in Geneva--a gentleman -known in Switzerland as well as in France; and the King hoped that the -efforts of three persons, understanding the situation of France, and -enjoying great confidence with the French people, would not be without -result.” - -This letter was dated, as we have said, on the 21st April, but the -embassy did not reach its destination till the month of May: M. de -Chauvelin having been at first displeased with the adjunction of M. -de Talleyrand, and not indisposed to prolong his dissatisfaction, had -not the minister, fatigued with quarrels about trifles at so critical -a moment, terminated them by saying, “M. de Talleyrand s’amuse, M. de -Chauvelin fronde, M. de Roveray marchande:[30] if these gentlemen are -not off by to-morrow night they will be superseded.” - -The story (told by Dumont) is worth notice, as showing the careless -indolence which the _ci-devant_ bishop often affected in the affairs -which he had most at heart--an indolence which he afterwards justified -by the well-known maxim, “Point de zèle, Monsieur!”[31] - - -II. - -It was not for want of zeal, however, that this second mission, -notwithstanding the King’s letter, was even more unsuccessful than -the first; but for another very good reason: viz., that whatever MM. -de Chauvelin or Talleyrand might say and do in London, the turn which -affairs were taking more and more decidedly at Paris was such as could -not but destroy the credit of any agent of the French government. - -The Legislative Assembly had been especially framed to place power in -the hands of the middle classes, and was intended to be alike hostile -to the nobles and the mob. - -But the middle class, the most weighty auxiliary that a government can -have, is rarely found capable of directing a government. Vergniaud and -Roland, who were on this occasion its organs, lost week by week their -prestige; the rabble, which forced the palace on the 20th of June, -began day by day to be more convinced of its power. What authority -remained to the representative of a sovereign whose habitation was not -secure and whose person was insulted? - -Amidst such events the Revolution lost in England most of its early -patrons. Fox, Sheridan, and a few of their particular clique, formed -the sole associates of the French embassy; and Dumont, whom I again -quote as a trustworthy witness, describes a scene at Ranelagh which -testifies the general unpopularity in England of every Frenchman having -an official position. - -“At our arrival we perceived a buzzing sound of voices saying, ‘Here -comes the French embassy!’ Regards, evincing curiosity but not amity, -were directed at once towards our battalion, for we were eight or -ten, and we soon ascertained that we should not want space for our -promenade, every one retreated to the right and left at our approach, -as if they were afraid that there was contagion in our very atmosphere.” - -M. de Talleyrand, seeing that all attempt to negotiate under such -circumstances was vain, returned to Paris just previous to the 10th -August, and was there when the wavering and unfortunate Louis XVI. lost -his crown by a combination between the Girondins and the Jacobins: the -first wishing to have the appearance of a victory, the latter aiming -at the reality. M. de Talleyrand had been the object of attack when -the united Republicans were mustering their forces for the combat, -and he felt himself by no means secure after their triumph. The -popular movement had now in truth swept over all the ideas and all the -individuals it had commenced with; its next excesses were likely to be -still more terrible than the last, and the wary diplomatist thought -that the best thing he could do was to get back to England as soon as -possible. - - -III. - -He got his passport from Danton, then in the provisional government, -and whom he knew as an early partisan of the Duc d’Orléans; and he -used, when last in London, to tell a story as to the manner in which -he obtained it by a timely smile at a joke, which the jocular and -truculent tribune had just passed on another petitioner. But I shall -have presently to allude further to this passport. The bearer of it but -just escaped in time. - -Among the papers found in the famous iron cupboard, discovered at the -Tuileries, was the following letter from M. de Laporte, the intendant -of the King’s household, to whom I have already alluded as having -communicated the wishes of the King as to M. de Talleyrand’s first -mission, and dated the 22nd of April, 1791: - - “SIRE, - - “J’adresse à Votre Majesté une lettre écrite avant-hier, et que - je n’ai reçue qu’hier après-midi; elle est de l’évêque d’Autun - qui paraît désirer servir Votre Majesté. Il m’a fait dire - qu’elle pouvait faire l’essai de son zèle, et de son crédit, et - lui désigner les points où elle désirait l’employer.”[32] - -The original communication, however, here alluded to, was not -discovered: and M. de Talleyrand himself boldly denied that it had -ever been written. It is possible that he knew it was destroyed (it -is said that he purchased it from Danton), but at all events, various -concomitant circumstances seemed to prove that he had been more in the -interest and confidence of the Court than he could now safely avow; and -the Convention issuing and maintaining a decree of accusation against -him, he was unable to return to France on the 8th April, 1793, which he -ought to have done in order not to be comprised in the general list of -_émigrés_, and was thus forced to remain in England. - -The first thing he had done on arriving there was to address the -following letter to Lord Grenville:-- - - “18th September, Kensington Square.[33] - - “MY LORD, - - “I have the honour of informing you that I arrived in England - two days ago. The relations which I had the advantage of having - with you, during my stay in London, make this a duty to me. - - “I should reproach myself for not promptly performing it, and - for not offering my first homage to the minister whose mind has - shown itself on a level with the great events of the present - times, and who has always manifested views so pure, and a love - of liberty so enlightened. - - “On my first voyages, the King had intrusted me with a mission - to which I attached the greatest value. I wished to hasten the - moment of the prosperity of France, and consequently connect - her, if possible, with England. - - “I hardly, indeed, dared to hope for such a blessing in our - circumstances, but I could not resolve not to make exertions - for attaining it. - - “The assurance you vouchsafed to give us of the neutrality of - your government at the epoch of the war, appeared to me most - auspicious. - - “Since that moment, everything has cruelly changed amongst us; - and although nothing can ever unrivet my heart or my wishes - from France, and though I live in the hope of returning thither - as soon as the laws shall have resumed their reign, I must tell - you, my Lord, and I am desirous that you should know, that I - have at this time _absolutely no kind of mission in England_, - that I have come here solely for the purpose of seeking repose, - and the enjoyment of liberty in the midst of its true friends. - - “If, however, my Lord Grenville should wish to know what France - is at this moment, what are the different parties that disturb - her, and what is the new provisional executive power, and - lastly, what is permitted to conjecture of the terrible and - frightful events of which I have almost been an eye-witness, I - shall be happy to give such information, and to avail myself - of the occasion to renew the expression of the respectful - sentiments with which I am, my Lord, your most humble and - obedient servant, - - “TALLEYRAND-PÉRIGORD.” - -There is no trace of Lord Grenville’s having taken any notice of this -communication. - -Nothing, however, was done for some time to disturb the fugitive’s -residence amongst us. - -M. de Chauvelin was sent away by the British government after the -execution of Louis XVI. on the 24th of January, 1793, and it was not -till the 28th of January, 1794 that M. de Talleyrand received an -order, under the powers conferred by the Alien Bill, to quit England. -He wrote a letter, dated 30th, to Lord Grenville, in which he begs to -be allowed to justify himself from any false accusation, declares that -if his thoughts have been often turned to France, it has only been -to deplore its disasters, repeats that he has no correspondence with -the French government, represents the calamitous condition he should -be reduced to if driven from our shores, and finally appeals to the -British minister’s humanity as well as justice. - - -IV. - -M. DE TALLEYRAND’S DECLARATION.[34] - -“My respect for the King’s Council, and my confidence in its justice, -induce me to lay before it a personal declaration more detailed than -that which, as a stranger, I am bound to lay before a magistrate. - -“I came to London towards the end of January, 1792, intrusted by the -French government with a mission to the government of England. The -object of this mission, at a moment when all Europe seemed to declare -itself against France, was to induce the government of England not -to renounce the sentiments of friendship and good neighbourhood of -which it had given constant proofs towards France during the course of -the Revolution. The King, especially, whose most ardent wishes were -the preservation of a peace which seemed to him as useful to Europe -in general as to France particularly, attached great value to the -neutrality, and to the friendship of England, and he had ordered M. de -Montmorin, who retained his confidence, and M. de Laporte, to acquaint -me with his wishes on this subject. I was, moreover, instructed by -the King’s ministers to make to the government of England proposals -referring to the commercial interests of both nations. The constitution -had not allowed the King, while honouring me with his commands, to -invest me with a public capacity. This want of an official title -was held by my Lord Grenville to be an obstacle to any political -conference. I demanded, in consequence, my recall, and I returned to -France. A minister plenipotentiary was sent some time after; the King -commanded me to assist in the negotiations, and informed his Britannic -Majesty of this by a private letter. I remained attached to the duty -the King had imposed upon me until the epoch of the 10th of August, -1792. At that time I was in Paris, where I had been called by the -minister of foreign affairs. After having been for more than a month -without being able to obtain a passport, and having remained exposed -during all this time, both as an administrator of the department -of Paris, and as a member of the Constituent Assembly, to all the -dangers which can threaten life and liberty, I was at length able to -leave the French capital about the middle of September, and I have -reached England to enjoy peace and personal safety under the shelter -of a constitution protecting liberty and property. There I have been -living, as I always have done, a stranger to all discussions and all -interests of party, and having nothing to fear before just men from the -publicity of any of my political opinions, or from the knowledge of any -of my actions. Besides the motives of safety and liberty which brought -me back to England, there existed another reason, doubtless a very -legitimate one, which was some personal business, and the early sale of -a rather considerable library which I possessed in Paris, and which I -had brought over to London. - -“I must add, that having become in some measure a stranger to France, -where I have maintained no other relations than those connected with my -personal affairs, and an ancient friendship, I cannot approach my own -country save by those ardent wishes which I form for the revival of its -liberty and of its happiness. - -“I thought that in circumstances where ill-will may avail itself -of various prejudices in order to turn them to the profit of those -enmities due to the first periods of our revolution, it was carrying -out the views of the King’s Council, to offer it a precise exposition -of the motives for my stay in England, and an assured and irrevocable -guarantee of my respect for its constitution and its laws. - - “TALLEYRAND. - - “January 1, 1793.” - - -V. - -Nothing can be more clear and precise than this declaration, but it -was ineffectual, and its writer now sailed for the United States, -carrying with him letters of recommendation from different members of -the Opposition, and, amongst others, from the Marquis of Lansdowne, -with whose intimacy, as I have said, he had been especially honoured. -Washington replied: - - “30th August, 1794. - - “MY LORD, - - “I had the pleasure to receive the introduction from your - Lordship delivered to me by M. de Talleyrand-Périgord. I regret - very much that considerations of a political nature, and which - you will easily understand, have not permitted me as yet to - testify all the esteem I entertain for his personal character - and your recommendation. - - “I hear that the general reception he has met with is such as - to console him, as far as the state of our society will permit, - for what he abandoned on quitting Europe. Time will naturally - be favourable to him wherever he may be, and one must believe - that it will elevate a man of his talents and merit above the - transitory disadvantages which result from differences as to - politics in revolutionary times. - - “WASHINGTON.” - - -VI. - -It will be seen from the foregoing communication that M. de Talleyrand -was spoken of with some respect, and that his reception in the United -States had been rather flattering than otherwise. But the French name -generally had lost its popularity; for Lafayette was an exile in the -prisons of Olmütz, and the bloodthirsty violence of the Convention and -the intrigues of its agents were in nowise congenial with American -feelings. The moment, however, was one of considerable excitement; -the able men who had hitherto formed round their venerable president -a united government were splitting up into opposing parties; the -treaty with England was under dispute; and M. de Talleyrand, intimate -with Jefferson, was active, it is said, in adding to the prevailing -agitation, and endeavouring to thwart the policy of the government -which had lately banished him from its shores. His endeavours, however, -were unsuccessful; and becoming heartily wearied with his new place -of exile, he employed what capital he had been able to save from his -varied career in fitting out a ship, in which, accompanied by M. de -Beaumetz, like himself a former member of the National Assembly, he was -about to sail for the East Indies. - -But during the years that had elapsed since his quitting Paris, events -which had been rushing on with a demoniacal rapidity through almost -every horror and every crime (each phase in this terrible history being -marked by the murder of one set of assassins and the momentary rule of -another), had arrived at a new crisis. - -The Gironde, whom I left trembling and triumphant on the 10th of -August, had been soon after strangled in the giant grasp of Danton. -Danton, too indolent and self-confident to be a match for his more -cool and ambitious coadjutor, had bent his lofty head beneath the -guillotine, to which he had delivered so many victims; and, finally, -Robespierre himself had just perished by the hands of men whom fear -had rendered bold, and experience brought in some degree to reason, -inasmuch as that they at last felt the necessity of re-establishing -some of those laws by which alone society can be preserved. - -M. de Talleyrand on learning these occurrences determined on abandoning -his commercial enterprises and striving once more for power and fortune -amidst the shifting scenes of public affairs. - -And here, as often, Fortune favoured him; for the vessel in which he -was about to embark, sailing with his friend, was never afterwards -seen or heard of. All his efforts were now bent on returning to his -native country, where he had many active in his behalf. Amongst the -most influential of these was a remarkable woman, of whose talents we -have but a faint idea from her works, which--though bearing witness -to an ardent imagination and a powerful intellect--hardly give -evidence of that natural and startling eloquence which sparkled in her -conversation. The daughter of Necker, of whom I speak, just awakening -from the horrors of a nightmare that had absorbed almost every -sentiment but fear, was at this period the centre of a circle, in which -figured the most captivating women and the ablest men, rushing with a -kind of wild joy back to those charms of society which of late years -had been banished from all places, except perhaps the prisons, wherein -alone, during what has been emphatically called the “Reign of Terror,” -any records of the national gaiety seem to have been preserved. - -Amongst the intimates at Madame de Staël’s house was the surviving -Chénier (Joseph-Marie), who on the 18th of Fructidor addressed the -Convention, after the return of M. de Montesquieu had just been -allowed, in the following characteristic terms: - -“I have a similar permission to demand for one of the most -distinguished members of the Constituent Assembly--M. de -Talleyrand-Périgord, the famous Bishop of Autun. Our different -ministers of Paris bear witness to his services. I have in my hands a -_memoir of which the duplicate exists in the papers of Danton_; the -date of this memoir is 25th of November, 1792, and it proves that M. de -Talleyrand was actually occupied in the affairs of the Republic when -he was proscribed by it. Thus, persecuted by Marat and Robespierre, he -was also banished by Pitt from England; but the place of exile that he -chose was the country of Franklin, where, in contemplating the imposing -spectacle of a free people, he might await the time when France should -have judges and not murderers; a Republic, and not anarchy called laws!” - -How are we to reconcile this declaration with M. de Talleyrand’s solemn -protestations to Lord Grenville? - -How could M. de Talleyrand have been writing memoirs to Danton and yet -have come over to England, “solely for the purpose of seeking repose?” - -That the passport to which we have drawn attention bore out M. -Chénier’s affirmation _allant à Londres par nos ordres_--“going to -London by our orders”--is certain, for M. de Talleyrand afterwards -confirmed this fact in a pamphlet which we shall have by-and-by to -notice. But of the memoir we can learn nothing further. - -The friends of M. de Talleyrand say that probably it never existed, or -that, if it did, it could only be a paper of no importance, and not -such a one as the English government would have objected to. They add -that the form given to the passport was the only one Danton could have -ventured to give without danger from the provisional council; that the -English government must have been acquainted with it; and that M. de -Talleyrand merely availed himself of it, and pretended that it placed -him in the position of a French agent, when this was necessary to -procure his return to France or to defend himself against the charge of -emigration. - -I must leave it to his autobiography to clear up whatever is obscure in -this transaction; but at present it seems to justify the French lady, -who, when the conversation once turned on the agreeable qualities of -the Abbé de Périgord, acknowledged it would be difficult to refuse him -her favours, but that it would be impossible to give him her confidence. - - -VII. - -At all events, Chénier’s pleading was successful. The permission to -return was granted; and, accordingly, M. de Talleyrand retraversed the -Atlantic, and, having been driven on the English coast by stress of -weather, arrived in the month of July, 1795, at Hamburg, then the place -of refuge for almost all _émigrés_, especially Orleanists, as well as -of Irish malcontents: Madame de Genlis, Madame de Flahaut, Lord Edward -FitzGerald, &c. - -The condition of Europe may be briefly described at this time by -saying that the French arms had been generally successful. Belgium -was taken; the expedition under the Duke of York beaten and repulsed; -Holland had become an allied and submissive Republic; on most of the -towns of the Rhine floated the tricolour flag; Spain had sued for and -obtained peace; Prussia was neutral. The expedition to Quiberon had -been a complete failure; and although the French generals, Pichegru and -Jourdan, began to experience some reverses, the Directory was powerful -enough, both abroad and at home, to justify the support of prudent -adherents. - -M. de Talleyrand consequently saw no objection to serving it. But -before appearing at Paris, he judged it well to stay a short time at -Berlin, which, being then the central point of observation, would make -his arrival in France more interesting. - -After this brief preparation, he appeared in the French capital, and -found his name one of the most popular in the drawing-rooms (he never -had the popularity of the streets), in that capricious city. The ladies -formerly in fashion spoke of his wit and address from memory; those of -more recent vogue, from curiosity; the great mass of the Convention -were well disposed to have a “_grand seigneur_” in their suite; the -“_grands seigneurs_” who still remained in France, to have one of their -own body in power; all the political leaders recognised his ability, -and were anxious to know to what particular section he would attach -himself. Even among the “_savants_” he had a party; for he had been -named, though absent, member of the Institute, which had recently been -formed on the basis that he had laid down for it. Above all things, -he was well known as a liberal, and undefiled by the bloody orgies of -freedom. Under such circumstances, he again appeared on the stage of -pleasure and affairs. - - -VIII. - -The first movement of all parties after the death of Robespierre had -been, as I have said, against the continuance of the murderous system -connected with his name; but it was difficult to combine into any one -government or policy the various parties that were triumphant; that -is, the violent Democrats, who had risen against their chief;--the -more moderate Republicans, who had been rather spectators than actors -during the domination of the Convention;--and the Constitutionalists -of the National and Legislative Assemblies. The reaction once begun, -extended by degrees, until it provoked conflicts between extremes; and -it was only after a series of struggles, now against the Jacobins and -now against the disguised Royalists, that a sort of middle party formed -the Constitution of year III., which was founded on the principle of -universal tolerance; assuring, however, to the Conventionalists a -supremacy, by exacting that two-thirds of the new assemblies should be -chosen from amongst them. These new assemblies were of two kinds, both -elected: the one called “the ancients,” a sort of senate, which had the -power of refusing laws; the second, the Five Hundred, which had the -power of initiating laws. The executive was entrusted to a Directory, -which, in order to guard against a despot, consisted of five members: -Carnot, with whose republican severity M. de Talleyrand had little -sympathy; Laréveillère-Lepaux, whose religious reveries he had turned -into ridicule by christening the “Théophilantropes” (a sect of deists -whom Laréveillère patronised) _Les filoux en troupe_; Letourneur, an -engineer officer, who had little or no influence; Rewbell, a lawyer, -and a man of character and ability, not ill-disposed to him; and Barras. - -This last man, at the time I am speaking of the most powerful member -of the Directory, was the sort of person who frequently rises to a -greater height in civil commotions than any apparent merit seems to -warrant. Clever, without great ability; intriguing, without great -address; bold and resolute on any critical occasions, but incapable -of any sustained energy; of gentle birth, though not of any great -historical family,--he had acquired his influence by two or three acts -of courage and decision; and was forgiven the crime of being a noble, -in consideration of the virtue of being a regicide. Having been chosen -by his colleagues, as the man best acquainted with and accustomed to -the world, to represent the government with society,--he sustained this -position by easy manners and a sort of court with which he contrived -to surround himself; a court containing all the fragments of the old -society that were yet to be found mingled with affairs. - -In the south of Europe, and in the East, many such adventurers have -risen to great fortunes and retained them. In the north, and (strange -to say) especially among the changing and brilliant people of France, -more solid qualities, and a more stern and equable character, seem -essentially necessary for command. Richelieu, Mazarin, Louis XI., -Louis XIV., even Robespierre, differing in everything else, were all -remarkable for a kind of resolute, every-day energy, for a spirit of -order and system which the voluptuary of the Luxembourg wanted. His -drawing-room, however, was a theatre where the accomplished gentleman -of former times was still able to shine, and his prejudices, though -he affected democratic principles in order to shield himself from the -charge of being born an aristocrat, were all in favour of the ex-noble. -To Barras, therefore, M. de Talleyrand attached himself. - - -IX. - -The society of Paris was never more “_piquante_,” if I may borrow an -expression from the language of the country of which I am speaking, -than at this moment. Nobody was rich. Pomp and ceremony were banished; -few private houses were open: a great desire for amusement existed; -there were no pretensions to rank, for who would have ventured to boast -of his birth? There was no drawing into sets or _cliques_, for such -would still have been considered as conspiracies. People lived together -in public fêtes, in public gardens, at theatres, at subscription-balls, -like those of Marbeuf, where the grocer’s wife and the monseigneur’s -danced in the same quadrille; each being simply qualified by the title -of “_citoyenne_.” The only real distinction was that of manners. An -active, artful, popular man of the world, amidst such a confused -assemblage of all orders, bent on being amused, had full play for his -social and political qualities. But this was not all; with the taste -for gaiety had also returned the taste for letters. Here, again, M. -de Talleyrand found means to excite attention. I have said that, -during his absence from France he had been elected a member of the -National Institute, which owed its origin, as I have noticed, to the -propositions he had laid before the National Assembly just previous -to its dissolution. He had also been chosen its secretary; and it was -in this capacity that he now addressed to the moral and scientific -class, to which he belonged, two memoirs: the one on the commercial -relations between England and the United States, and the other on -colonies generally. There are few writings of this kind that contain -so many just ideas in so small a compass. In the first, the author -gives a general description of the state of American society, the -calm character, the various and peculiar habits, the Saxon laws, and -religious feelings of that rising community. He then shows, what was at -that time little understood, that the mother country had gained more -than she had lost by the separation; and that the wants of Americans -connected them with English interests, while their language, education, -history, and laws, gave them feelings, which, if properly cultivated, -would be--English. - -The memoir on colonisation, however, is even superior to the preceding -one; it is in this memoir on colonisation that M. de Talleyrand -points out--for he even then perceived what has since been gradually -taking place--the impossibility of long continuing slave labour or -of maintaining those colonies which required it. He foresaw that -such colonies existed in the face of sentiments which must, whether -rightly or wrongly, in a few years sweep them away. He looked out for -other settlements to supply their place; and Egypt and the African -coast are the spots to which, with a singular prescience, he directed -the attention of his country; whose inhabitants he describes, from -their sense of fatigue, from their desire of excitement, and in many -instances, from their disappointment and discontent, to be peculiarly -in want of new regions of rest, of enterprise, and of change. - -“The art of putting the right men in the right places” (the phrase is -not, I may observe _en passant_, of to-day’s invention), he observes -profoundly, “is perhaps the first in the science of government; -but,” he adds, “the art of finding a satisfactory position for the -discontented is the most difficult. - -“To present distant scenes to their imaginations, views agreeable -to their thoughts and desires, is,” he says, “I think, one of the -solutions of this social problem.”[35] - -In three weeks after the reading of this memoir, M. de Talleyrand -accepted the office of minister of foreign affairs. - - -X. - -The immediate cause of his being named to replace Charles Delacroix in -this post, used to be thus related by himself:--“I had gone to dine at -a friend’s on the banks of the Seine, with Madame de Staël, Barras, -and a small party which frequently met. A young friend of Barras, who -was with us, went out to bathe before dinner, and was drowned. The -director, tenderly attached to him, was in the greatest affliction. -I consoled him (I was used to that sort of thing in early life), and -accompanied him in his carriage back to Paris. The ministry of foreign -affairs immediately after this became vacant; Barras knew I wanted it, -and through his interest I procured it.” - -But this was not the sole cause of his selection. The state of affairs -was at this time critical; the reaction, produced by the horrors of -the democrats, became stronger and stronger under a government of -indulgence. - -In proportion as the ordinary relations of society recommenced, the -feeling against those who had disturbed and for a time destroyed them, -became more and more bitter. At last the hatred of the Robespierreans -verged towards an inclination for the Royalists; and Pichegru, the -president of the Assembly of the Five Hundred, and a general at that -time in great repute, was already in correspondence with Louis XVIII. - -The Directory itself was divided. Carnot, an impracticable man of -genius and a violent Republican, sided with the opposition from -personal dislike to his colleagues and from a belief that any new -convulsion would end by the triumph of his own principles. He carried -with him Barthélemy, the successor to Letourneur, who had lost his -place in the Directory by the ballot, which was periodically to -eliminate it. Rewbell and Laréveillère-Lepaux ranged themselves with -Barras, who, satisfied with his position, and having to keep it against -the two extreme parties, was glad to get into the ministry, as attached -to him, a man of well-known ability and resolution. - -Besides, the negotiation with Great Britain at Lille, which not -unnaturally followed the defeat of all her continental allies, -suggested the appointment of a more distinguished diplomatist than M. -Delacroix, who presided at that time over the department to which M. de -Talleyrand was appointed. - -The new minister soon justified the choice that had been made of him. -His eye took in at once the situation in which Barras found himself,--a -situation that singularly resembled one in our own times. The majority -of the executive was on one side, and the majority of the legislative -bodies on the other. - -The question was agitated by the Assembly as to whether it should not -take the first step, and, without regard for the constitution, obtain -possession by any means of the executive power. General Pichegru -hesitated, as did General Changarnier after him. - -Talleyrand advised Barras not to hesitate. He did not; and, taking -the command of the troops in virtue of his office, seized the chief -men amongst his opponents, to whatever party they belonged. Carnot, -Barthélemy, and Pichegru were amongst the number, and, though Carnot -escaped by flight, M. de Talleyrand equally got rid of an enemy, and -the ardent Republicans lost a leader. - - -XI. - -The worst effect of this _coup-d’état_ was the interruption of the -negotiations at Lille, and of the arrangements which Monsieur Maret was -on the point of concluding, which Talleyrand had himself favoured, but -which were impossible to a government that had now to seek popularity -as a protection to usurpation. - -The idea of peace with England being thus abandoned, M. de Talleyrand -addressed a circular to his agents, which, considering the time at -which it was written and the position which its writer held at that -moment, is a model of tact and ability. - -He describes England as the sole enemy of France. He dates her power -and prestige from the times of Cromwell and the spirit and energy which -liberty inspires. He bases the power and prestige which France ought -then to hold on that same liberty, and invokes the victories which she -had just gained. He describes in a way that suited his purpose the -manner in which Great Britain had acquired her influence, and accuses -her of having abused it. - -He shows to his agents the immense importance of an intelligent -diplomacy. He warns them against shocking the habits and ideas of the -nations to which they are sent; he tells them to be active without -being agitators. He instils into them the conviction of the greatness -of France and the necessity of making that greatness acknowledged and -sympathised with. - -He counsels them to avoid little tricks, and to evince that confidence -in the strength and continuance of the Republic, which would inspire -such confidence in others. - -He points out how all the misfortunes and changes in the government -of France had been brought about by the feeble and apathetic position -which she had held abroad during the reign of the later princes of the -House of Bourbon; and, finally, he assures them of his support, and -adds that he appreciates highly the services which their talents may -render to their country. - -It is in this manner that great ministers form able agents. - -In the meantime the treaty of Campo Formio had established peace in -Italy and Germany on conditions advantageous to France, though, by the -cession of Venice to Austria, she abdicated the cause for which she had -hitherto pretended to fight. - -Bonaparte, to whom this peace was due, now visited Paris, and saw much -of M. de Talleyrand, who courted him with assiduity, as if foreseeing -his approaching destiny. But the time for a closer alliance was not yet -arrived: Napoleon, indeed, was not himself prepared for the serious -meditation of the design which he subsequently executed. Vague ideas -of conquest and greatness floated before his eyes, and the gigantic -empires that courage and genius have frequently founded in the East, -were probably more familiar with his thoughts than any tyranny to be -established in his own country (May, 1798). He set out for Egypt, -then, where he thought of realising his splendid dreams, and where the -Directory, following a traditional policy not yet abandoned, thought of -striking a desperate blow against the ancient enemy and rival with whom -alone she had now to maintain a conflict. With him seemed to depart -the fortunes of his country. A new European coalition broke out with -the murder of the French plenipotentiaries at Rastadt, and divisions -of all kinds manifested themselves in France. The victories of the -allies on the Upper Rhine and in Italy increased these divisions, -and added to the strength of the democratic party, to which the -overthrow of Pichegru and his associates had already--contrary to -the intention of Barras, who, as I have said, had wished to maintain -a middle course--given an increased influence. The loss of Rewbell, -whose energy the Democrats dreaded, and whose seat in the Directory -became legitimately vacant, gave strength to their desires, the more -especially as Sieyès, who replaced Rewbell, entered the executive with -his usual mania of propounding some new constitution. - -M. de Talleyrand, attacked as a noble and an _émigré_, resigned -his department, and published a defence of his conduct, which is -remarkable, and of which I venture to give, in an abbreviated and free -translation, some of the most salient points:-- - -“… I am accused of creating the league of kings against our Republic! -I! If I have been known for one thing more than another, it has been -for my constant desire for an honourable peace; the great result -that will alone give solidity to our institutions! So it is I, then, -who seek to augment our enemies, exasperate our friends, break our -treaties, indispose neutrals, and menace other states with principles -they do not wish to accept--and who make this accusation? They who are -always stirring up discord, invoking the horrors of war; they, whose -aim it is to produce revolutions throughout the world, who address -to every power by turn the most injurious, absurd, and impolitic -reproaches; who employ the press to circulate the assertion that -monarchies and republics are natural enemies; and who left to me the -task of calming the governments whom they kept in a state of constant -disquietude and alarm. - -… - -“It is true that Austria, after the treaty of Campo Formio, though that -treaty was favourable to her, began new combinations and alliances -against us--and that England and Russia engaged her in their designs. -If I had been ignorant of their intrigues or hostile preparations, -if I had not informed the government of them, then, indeed, I might -justly be accused. But, not only do I defy any one to show that I ever -neglected my duty for a single day, it so happens that five months -before the entry of the Russians into Italy, _I procured a copy of the -combined plans of Russia and Austria_, and delivered them to General -Joubert, who has frequently declared that they were of the utmost -utility in his operations. - -… - -“But I am a Constitutionalist of 1791 (a title I glory in), and, -consequently, I offer no guarantee to the Republic. - -“If it were not true that a patriot of 1789, who has not hesitated -to take his oath to the Republic, and frequently repeated it, has no -favour to expect from a French government that is not republican;--it -is certain either that the Republic will establish itself, or that it -will perish in a general confusion, or that it will be again submitted -to a royalty furious and revengeful. From the Confusionists and the -Royalists it appears to me that I have little to expect. Is this no -guarantee? - -“But--I am an _émigré_! an _émigré_! When the first republican -authority--the National Convention--declared with unanimity, at the -period of its greatest independence and its greatest force, that my -name should be effaced from the list of _émigrés_, I was sent to -London on the 7th of September, 1792, by the executive government. My -passport, delivered to me by the provisional council, is signed by its -six members, Lebrun, Servan, Danton, Clavière, Roland, Monge. It was in -these terms: - -“‘Laissez passer Ch. Maurice Talleyrand, allant à Londres _par nos -ordres_.’ - -[M. de Talleyrand here repeats what was said by Chénier.] - -“Thus I was authorised to quit France, and to remain out of it until -the orders I received were revoked, which they never were. But not -wishing to prolong my absence, I asked, the instant that the Convention -recovered the liberty which had been for a time suppressed, to return -to my native land, or to be judged if I had committed any offence that -merited exile. My request was granted. I left France then by orders -which I received from the confidence of the French government. I -re-entered it directly it was possible for me to do so with the consent -of the French government. What trace is there here of emigration? - -… - -“Well, then, it was I ‘who made Malmesbury, who had been sent about -his business by Charles Delacroix, return--not, it is true, to Paris, -but--to Lille, the centre of our military Boulevards.’ - -“What is the truth? On the 13th Prairial, year V., Lord Grenville -proposed to enter into negotiation; on the 16th the proposal was -accepted; on the 25th Charles Delacroix sent passports to England, and -fixed on Lille as the place of negotiation. - -“On the 29th Lord Grenville accepts Lille as the place of negotiation, -and announces the choice of Lord Malmesbury as the English negotiator. -On the 2nd Messidor, the Directory sanctions this arrangement. On the -28th the conferences commence at Lille, and it was not till the 28th I -was named minister. - -… - -“I am attacked for all the acts of the ex-Directors. My accusers know -that, if my opinion differed from theirs, I should not have charged -them with errors when they were in place, and still less should I do so -now, when they are stripped of power, and that all I desire to remember -is their kindness and confidence. - -“It is for this reason that in my report to the legislative body I only -glanced rapidly over the fact that all that was to be decided relative -to Italy and Switzerland, during my ministry, was decided without my -knowledge and concurrence. I could have added that, to the changes -operated in the Cisalpine Republic, I was entirely a stranger; that, -when the citizen Rivaud was sent to that Republic as ambassador, I was -asked for letters of credence in blank, and that I only learnt of his -mission after it had been in activity. But my enemies do not pause here. - -“Ignorance and hatred seem to dispute as to which should accumulate the -most falsehoods and absurdities against my reputation. - -“I am reproached for not having invaded Hanover: but if I had advocated -carrying the war into that country in spite of the neutral line which -protects it, how much more just and more violent would have been the -attacks on me for having violated that neutrality, and thereby roused -Prussia against us! - -“Then it is said I should have assailed Portugal! And if I had done so -and been opposed by Spain, and thus lost an alliance so useful to us, -what reproaches should I not have encountered! - -“But I did not sufficiently encourage letters of marque against -England. Five hundred and forty-five privateers fell into the hands of -the English, from the commencement of the war till the year VI. of the -Republic. The number of prisoners in England amounts to thirty-five -thousand; these cost fifteen millions to support on an enemy’s -territory, and it is principally owing to letters of marque that we owe -this result. - -“I will say no more; but surely I have said enough to inspire the most -discouraging reflections as to that moral disorganization--as to that -aberration of mind--as to that overthrow of all reasonable ideas--as to -that want of good faith, of the love of truth, of justice, of esteem -for oneself and others--which are the distinguishing characteristics -of those publications which it is difficult to leave unanswered, and -humiliating to reply to.”[36] - -We find, from the above, that the ex-minister did not scruple to -make his defence an attack, and to treat with sarcasm and disdain -the party by which he had been ejected; but at the same time that he -denounces the follies of the over-zealous Republicans, he declares -himself unequivocally for a republic: and justifying what he had done, -ridiculing what he had been condemned for not doing, he throws with -some address the blame of much that had been done against his opinion -on those Directors still in power. - -What he says as to the negotiations at Lille shows sufficiently the -difficulties, after the 18th of Fructidor, of any peace with England; -and a passage that I have quoted, and to which I had previously -alluded, bears out what had been said by Chénier as to the famous -passport. - -In these “Eclaircissements,” however, the ex-minister aimed more at -putting himself in a good position for future events, than at referring -to past ones. - -He would hardly, indeed, have fixed his signature to so bold a -publication if his enemies had been firm in their places: but already -the Directory was tottering to its fall. - - -XII. - -The great evil of any constitution, formed for a particular time and -not the result of continual adaptation to the wants of various epochs, -is that it is altogether of one character and is almost immediately out -of date. The constitution of the Directory, framed after a period of -great popular violence and individual despotism, was framed upon the -principle of so nicely checking every action in the State, that there -should be no honest means for any individual gaining great power or -distinction. But when the influence of individuals in a government is -over-zealously kept down, the influence of government collapses, and -becomes unequal to restrain the agitation of a society more ardent and -ambitious than itself. - -Thus, during four years, the Constitution of the year III. was -preserved in name by a series of actual infringements of it. Now, the -Directory checked the councils by transporting the opposition; now, the -opposition put down the Directory by compelling an unpopular director -to resign his office; and now again, the absence of all laws against -the license of the press was compensated for by declaring hostile -journalists enemies of the State, and punishing a clever article as an -insurrection. - -Nor was this all: where civil ability can create no great career -a civilian can excite no great enthusiasm. The persons in civil -employment had their prestige limited by the same contrivances that -limited their power; the nation was fatigued with talkers, for talking -had no result: a general alone could strike its imagination, for a -general alone was in the situation to do anything remarkable. Each -party saw this. The patriots or democrats, represented in the Directory -by Laréveillère and Gohier (who had become a Director instead of -Treillard); Barras, of no particular opinion, who might be said to -represent those generally who were intriguing for place; and Sieyès, -the most capable of the executive, at the head of a moderate section, -still for maintaining the Republic and establishing order, though -under some new form. Sieyès had with him a majority in the Council of -Ancients, a powerful minority in the Council of the Five Hundred, and -some of the most eminent and capable men in France, amongst whom was M. -de Talleyrand. - -He sought then a General like the rest, but the choice was not so easy -to make. Hoche was no more; Joubert had just perished; Moreau was -irresolute; Massena, though crowned by the victory of Zurich, too much -of the mere soldier; Augereau, a Jacobin; Bernadotte, unreliable. At -this moment (on the 9th October, 1799), Bonaparte landed from Egypt. -He broke the quarantine laws, he had deserted his army, but the country -felt that he was wanted; and through his progress to Paris, as well as -on his arrival there, he was hailed by acclamations. - -His object at this time, if he had any distinct one, was the Directory, -for which, however, he wanted a dispensation as to age. But he found -that the majority of the Directory would not hear of this dispensation. -Something else was to be tried, and that something else could only be -combined with Barras or Sieyès. Now Barras, Bonaparte hated: for Barras -had been his protector, without having been his friend. In regard to -Sieyès, M. Thiers has said, not untruly, that two superior Frenchmen, -until they have had the opportunity of flattering one another, are -natural enemies. Moreover, Bonaparte and Sieyès had met at Gohier’s -without exchanging a syllable, and had separated, disliking each other -more than ever. M. de Talleyrand undertook to reconcile these two -men, whose rivalry had to be conquered by their interests,--and he -succeeded. But, with Sieyès, a total subversion of the existing state -of things was a matter of course, because the only ambition he ever -fostered was that of inventing institutions, which he did with a rare -intelligence as to the combination of ideas, forgetting that societies -have something in them besides ideas. - -A revolution therefore was decided upon; it was to be brought about by -the Ancients, of whom Sieyès was sure, and who were to declare that -the chambers were in danger at Paris, and should be assembled at St. -Cloud; the safety of these assemblies was then to be confided to the -guardianship of Bonaparte; and the dissolution of the Directory by the -resignation of a majority of its members was to follow. After this, -it was supposed that the majority of the Five Hundred, overawed by a -large military force, opposed by the other branch of the Legislature, -and having no government to support it, would, in some way or other, -be overcome. The first two measures accordingly were taken on the 18th -Brumaire, but the third remained. Sieyès and Ducos, who acted together -and who resigned, were balanced by Gohier and Moulins, who would not -give in their resignation; while Barras had the casting vote; and it -was M. de Talleyrand again, who, in conjunction with Admiral Bruix, -was charged with the task of coaxing this _once_ important man into -accepting insignificance and retreat. In this task he succeeded, -and the vanquished director, conquered as much, perhaps, by his own -indolence, as by his politic friend’s arguments, stepped out of the -bath, reposing in which his two visitors had found him, into the -carriage which bore him from the Luxembourg, and thus the Directory -being no longer in existence, a charge of grenadiers in the Orangery of -St. Cloud settled the affair on the day following. - - -XIII. - -In glancing over the narrative of these events, we shall see that, -if a similar result could have been otherwise arrived at (which is -doubtful), it certainly could not have been arrived at in the same -peaceful and easy way, but for the assistance of M. de Talleyrand. -The legal part of the recent change was effected by Sieyès, whom he -had united with Bonaparte; and accomplished through Barras, whose -abdication he also procured. The time for rewarding these services was -come, and when Napoleon became first consul, M. de Talleyrand was made -minister of foreign affairs. - -In following him through the period which intervened between the -10th of August, 1792, and the 18th Brumaire, we find him a fugitive -to England under doubtful auspices, an exile in America dabbling in -politics, projecting commercial adventures, and, above all, waiting on -events which proved fortunate to him. - -Having quitted France as the partisan of a constitutional monarchy, -he returns to it when the feverish passions and opinions which had so -long convulsed it were settled down under a republic--too strong to be -overturned by Royalists--too weak to promise a long existence. - -He takes office under the government which he finds, a government that, -compared with its immediate predecessors, offered in a remarkable -manner the security of property and life. - -He sides, amidst the conflicts which still continue, with those who -are for a middle course, between bringing back the Bourbons with all -their prejudices, or re-establishing the Robespierreans with all -their horrors. In these political struggles he exhibits moderation -and resolution: in the department which he fills, he shows tact and -capacity. His two memoirs, read before the Institute, are remarkable -for the elegance of their style and the comprehensiveness of their -views.[37] Defending himself against the two parties who assailed -him--the one for being too much, the other for being too little, of -a republican--he uses language which is at once bold, dignified, and -moderate, and the only question that can arise is as to whether it was -sincere. - -Finally, he throws a government--which is at once feeble, profligate, -divided, and conscious of its own incapacity,--into the hands of a man -of great genius, by whom he expected to be rewarded, and who, upon the -whole, seemed the one most capable of steadying the course, promoting -the prosperity, and elevating the destiny of his country. - - - - -PART IV. - -FIRST CONSULATE. - - Talleyrand supports the extension of the First Consul’s - power, based on a principle of toleration and oblivion of the - past.--Napoleon attempts peace with England; fails.--Battle of - Marengo.--Treaty of Lunéville and peace of Amiens.--Society at - Paris during the peace.--Rupture.--M. de Talleyrand supports - Consulate for life, Legion of Honour, and Concordat.--Gets - permission from the Pope to wear the secular costume and - to administer civil affairs.--Marries.--Execution of Duc - d’Enghien.--New coalition.--Battle of Austerlitz.--Treaty - of Presburg.--Fox comes into power; attempts a peace - unsuccessfully.--Prussia declares against France, and is - vanquished at Jena.--Peace of Tilsit.--M. de Talleyrand - resigns Ministry of Foreign Affairs.--Differences about - policy in Spain.--Talleyrand and Fouché now at the head of - a quiet opposition.--Russian campaign; idea of employing - M. de Talleyrand.--Napoleon’s defeats commence.--Offers M. - de Talleyrand the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after the - battle of Leipsic, but on unacceptable conditions.--In - the continued series of disasters that ensue, Talleyrand - always advises peace.--Tries to persuade Marie-Louise not - to quit Paris.--Doubtful then between a regency with her - and the Bourbons.--When, however, her departure suspends - the constituted authority, and the Emperor of Russia takes - up his residence at the Hôtel Talleyrand, and asks M. de - Talleyrand what government should be established, he says that - of the Bourbons.--Efforts to obtain a Constitution with the - Restoration.--Napoleon arrives at Fontainebleau.--Negotiates, - but finally abandons the French throne, and accepts the island - of Elba, under the title of Emperor, as a retreat. - - -I. - -One of M. de Talleyrand’s striking phrases (a phrase I have already -quoted) was that the great Revolution “_avait désossé la France_”--“had -disboned France!” There had ceased, in fact, to be any great principles -in that country, holding affairs together, and keeping them in form -and order. He said, then, “What principles cannot do, a man must. When -society cannot create a government, a government must create society.” -It was with this idea that he was willing to centre in Napoleon all -the power which that wonderful man’s commanding genius required. But -he wanted, in return, two things: one, that he should himself profit -by the power he aided in establishing; the other, that that power -should be exercised, on the whole, for the benefit of the French -nation. Relying, for the moment, on the fulfilment of these conditions, -he delivered himself up to a dictatorship which should quietly and -gradually absorb all the used-up opinions and institutions. - -Sieyès, who, with a more profound, had a less sagacious intellect, -imagined that after he, a man of letters, had handed over the State to -a daring, unscrupulous man of the world, he could govern that man. But -M. de Talleyrand rather despised and underrated Sieyès, whom he looked -on as a tailor who was always making coats that never fitted--a skilful -combiner of theories, but without any tact as to their application; -and when some one, _à propos_ of the new constitution, which Sieyès -had undertaken to frame, said, “Après tout ce Sieyès a un esprit _bien -profond_,” he replied, “Profond! Hem! Vous voulez dire peut-être -_creux_.”[38] - -Bonaparte’s conduct justified this witticism; for when the first -project of the constitution alluded to was presented to him, he treated -it with ridicule, in the well-known phrase: “A man must have little -honour or intellect who would consent to be a pig, put up in a stye to -fatten on so many millions a year.” - -The hero of the 18th Brumaire was not, in truth, a man who would accept -the robes without the reality of power; and having taken out of the -plan proposed for his acceptance what suited his views, and discarded -the rest, he endowed himself with as much authority as he thought would -be tolerated; for though France was wearied with perpetual changes and -convulsions, she was not at that time prepared to end them by a new -sovereignty. - -One of the causes, indeed, which facilitated Napoleon’s early steps -towards the great object of his ambition, was the general incredulity -as to the possibility of his attaining it. - -M. de Talleyrand himself did not, in all probability, imagine that -he was making a military empire, when he was aiming at concentrating -authority in the hands of the chief of the Republic; but he thought -that the first care was to steady a community which had so long lost -its balance; and on one occasion, shortly after the formation of the -new government, and when the part which the first consul was to play -was not yet altogether decided, he is said by a contemporary[39] to -have held, at a private interview with the first consul, the following -language:[40]-- - -“Citizen consul, you have entrusted to me the ministry of foreign -affairs, and I will justify your confidence; but I think I must declare -to you that henceforth I will communicate with you alone. This is no -vain presumption on my part. I say that, in the interest of France--in -order that it may be well governed--in order that there may be unity -of action in its conduct--you must be the first consul; and the first -consul must have in his hands all the political part of the government; -_i.e._, the ministry of the interior and of the police, for internal -affairs; and my ministry for foreign; and also the two great ministries -of execution, the war and the marine. It would be proper that these -five departments should communicate with you alone. The administrations -of justice and finance are, no doubt, connected with the policy of -the State by many ties, but these ties are less inseparable from that -policy than the departments I have mentioned. If you will allow me -to say so, then, general, I would add that it would be convenient to -give to the second consul, a very clever jurisconsult, the department -of justice; and to the third consul, also very able as a financier, -the direction of the finances. These matters will occupy and amuse -them. And you, general, having at your disposal all the mainsprings of -government, will be able to give it that fitting direction for arriving -at the noble aim which you have in view--the regeneration of France.” - - -II. - -The minister of foreign affairs, in advising a willing listener thus -to take possession of all important affairs, merely echoed, it must be -allowed, a general sentiment; for all the different parties then in -presence saw the new dictator through glasses coloured by their own -particular illusions. The Royalists imagined that General Bonaparte -would turn out a General Monk; the moderate Republicans, a General -Washington! M. de Talleyrand knew that Bonaparte was neither a Monk -nor a Washington; and that he would neither hand over the power he -had acquired to the exiled dynasty, nor lay it down at the feet of -the French people. He was aware, on the contrary, that he would keep -it as long as he could keep it; and he wished him to keep it with -a system which should have at its head the men of the Revolution, -without excluding men of the ancient _régime_ who would accept the -principles that the Revolution had founded. This was precisely, at that -moment, the view of Napoleon himself; and the appointment of Fouché, a -regicide, as minister of police, and the permission for the Royalist -_émigrés_ and the proscribed priests to return to France, gave the -exact expression of the policy that was thenceforth to be pursued. - -But none knew better than the first consul that it was necessary, -having gained power by war, to show that he wished to consolidate it by -peace. He addressed, therefore, his famous letter to George III.,[41] -on the effect of which he counted little, and his minister of foreign -affairs less. But it was always something in the eyes of his nation -to have evinced his own inclination for an interval of repose, and to -have placed himself on a level with kings when he spoke to them as the -popular chief of the French people. - -The refusal of England to treat was the signal of a new coalition, and -the renewal of a general war; at the commencement of which Bonaparte, -by a stroke of genius, defeated the Austrians in Italy when they were -marching as they conceived without opposition into France. - -But although the hopes of the cabinet of Vienna were struck down at -the battle of Marengo, it did not yet submit to despair, even when the -Emperor Paul, flattered by the attentions of the first consul (who -had returned him his prisoners newly clothed), had withdrawn from the -coalition. The policy of France, under these circumstances, was to -create divisions amongst the remaining allies (Austria and England) -by opening negotiations with each. This was tried by M. de Talleyrand -with the cabinet of Vienna, through the means of the Comte St. Julien, -who (sent to settle some particulars relative to the convention which -took place after the Italian war) actually signed a treaty which his -government disowned; and with that of St. James, through the means of -an agent employed in the exchange of prisoners, but whose attempts as a -negotiator also failed. The success of Moreau, in Germany, however, at -last obtained the treaty of Lunéville; and shortly afterwards M. Otto -concluded in London the preliminaries of a similar treaty, which was -received with equal joy by the French and English nations. - -The skill with which these affairs were conducted was generally -acknowledged; but M. de Talleyrand had nevertheless to undergo the -mortification of seeing Joseph Bonaparte named the negotiator with Lord -Cornwallis instead of himself. He accepted, however, this arrangement -with a good grace, for he had this great advantage over most men,--his -vanity submitted itself easily to his interest or his ambition; and -seeing the impolicy of a rivalry with the first consul’s eldest -brother, he saw also that, having already obtained the signature of -the preliminaries of a treaty, he should have with the public all the -merits of that treaty if it took place, and Joseph Bonaparte all the -blame, if any failure in the further negotiations occurred. - -In the meantime, the seas were opened at once to France, and the -English government, having made this immediate concession, was almost -bound to give way in any subsequent discussions; for to have yielded -what France most desired in order to obtain peace, and then not to have -obtained it, would have been ridiculous. Thus, a definitive treaty was -shortly afterwards signed at Amiens, and Paris re-opened its gates to -the excited curiosity of the English traveller. - - -III. - -During this period M. de Talleyrand’s house became necessarily one of -the great resorts of foreign visitors. He lived in the Hôtel Galifet, -then the official residence of the minister of foreign affairs, a -large hotel in the Rue St. Dominique (Faubourg St. Germain), which had -been built by a rich colonist of St. Domingo, who gave no other order -to his architect than to erect an hotel with ninety-nine columns--a -monument of the skill of the builder, and of the singularity of the -proprietor--which yet remains. - -The principal _habitués_ of the ministry were M. de Montrond, Duc de -Laval, M. de Saint-Foix, General Duroc, Colonel Beauharnais, afterwards -Prince Eugène, Fox, Erskine, &c., &c. - -Some few yet remember the easy nonchalance with which, reclining on his -sofa by the side of the fire, the minister of foreign affairs welcomed -those whom he wished to make at home, the extreme and formal civility -which marked his reception of his colleagues and the senators with whom -he was not intimate, and the careless and pleasing familiarity that he -used towards the favourite officers of the first consul, and the ladies -and diplomatists to whom he was partial. - -The enmity which for the last few years had been so violent between -the French and English people was beginning to subside amidst their -intercourse; but, unhappily for them and for the world, the peace, or -rather truce, which they had concluded could only be maintained by -acknowledging a galling inferiority to the French ruler, who, it was -evident, regarded our retirement from the contest we had long waged -without dishonour as a means for relieving St. Domingo, confirming his -dominion over Italy, and invading Switzerland, circumstances which -rendered it justifiable for England to retain Malta, even though she -had foolishly and inconsiderately engaged to resign it. - -I need hardly observe that the conduct of Napoleon throughout the whole -of this affair was overbearing; but that of his minister of foreign -affairs was the reverse; and I should add that that minister had the -credit of having obtained, just as Lord Whitworth was departing, the -first consul’s permission to propose an arrangement which would have -left us Malta for such a compensation as, under all the circumstances, -might perhaps have been accepted. But this compromise being haughtily -rejected, war somewhat abruptly recommenced. - -The respite, however, thus secured, had served Napoleon’s purposes, and -enabled him, by the popularity it brought, to lay the first stones of -the Empire,--in the Legion of Honour, out of which grew the nobility of -the Empire;--in the consulship for life, which was a step towards the -hereditary rank he soon assumed; and in the Concordat, which preluded -his coronation by the Pope. - -It is not to be presumed that these great innovations on the -principles which had so long been dominant took place without a -struggle. All the ardent republicans combated them as a matter of -course, designating the tyrant who proposed them as a second Cæsar, who -evoked the patriotism of a second Brutus. But a more serious party also -attacked them in the legislative bodies, nor was it without an illegal -act of authority that this party was vanquished. - -The measures in question were not in fact popular, and the Concordat at -one time seemed not unlikely to provoke an insurrection in the army. - -M. de Talleyrand, nevertheless, supported these measures warmly; and, -with the aid of Cambacérès, softened and conciliated many of their -opponents. - -“We have,” he constantly repeated, “to consolidate a government and -reorganize a society. Governments are only consolidated by a continued -policy, and it is not only necessary that this policy should be -continued,--people should have the conviction that it will be so. - -“I look upon the consulship for life as the only means of inspiring -this conviction.” - -So again, he said, with respect to the Legion of Honour and the -Concordat, “In reorganizing any human society, you must give it those -elements which you find in every human society. - -“Where did you ever see one flourish without honours or religion? The -present age has created a great many new things, but it has not created -a new mankind; and if you mean to legislate practically for men, you -must treat men as what they always have been and always are.” - -For the Concordat he had a peculiar reason to plead; no one gained so -much by it: for he now legitimately entered into civil life on the -authority of his spiritual master, and by a brief which I here cite:-- - - “_To our very dear son, Charles Maurice Talleyrand._[42] - - “We were touched with joy at learning your ardent desire - to be reconciled with us and the Catholic Church: loosening - then on your account the bowels of our fatherly charity, we - discharge you by the plenitude of our power from the effect of - all excommunications. We impose on you, as the consequence of - your reconciliation with us and the Church, the distribution - of alms, more especially for the poor of the church of Autun, - which you formerly governed: we grant you, moreover, the - liberty to wear the secular costume and to administer all civil - affairs, whether in the office you now fill, or in others to - which your government may call you.” - - This brief was taken by M. de Talleyrand as a permission to - become a layman, and even to take a wife. The lady he married, - born in the East Indies, divorced from a M. Grand, and - mentioned, in connection with a scandalous story, in the life - of Sir Philip Francis, was as remarkable for being a beauty as - for not being a wit. Every one has heard the story (whether - true or invented) of her asking Sir George Robinson after his - man “Friday.” But M. de Talleyrand vindicated his choice, - saying, “A clever wife often compromises her husband; a stupid - one only compromises herself.” - - -IV. - -It was shortly after the renewal of hostilities that the event occurred -which has given rise to the most controversy concerning Napoleon, -and to the bitterest attacks upon M. de Talleyrand. I speak of the -execution of the Duc d’Enghien. Many details attending this transaction -are still in dispute; but the broad outline of it is as follows:-- - -The pure Republicans (as they were then called) had, on the one hand, -at this period become desperate; on the other hand, the latitude that -had for a time been allowed to the Royalists, had given that party -courage. The renewal of an European war increased this courage. The -power and prestige of the marvellous person at the head of the consular -government had made both parties consider that nothing was possible to -them as long as he lived. - -A variety of attempts had consequently been made against his life. The -popular belief--that of Bonaparte himself--was that these attempts -proceeded mainly from the _émigrés_, aided by the money of England, -a belief which the foolish correspondence of the British minister at -Munich, Mr. Drake, with a pretended _émigré_--in fact, however, an -agent of the French government (Mahée),--might unfortunately have -encouraged. - -George Cadoudal, the daring leader of the Chouans, who had already -been implicated in plots of this kind, was known to be in Paris and -engaged in some new enterprise, with which Pichegru, certainly--Moreau, -apparently--was connected. But in the reports of the police it was also -stated that the conspirators awaited the arrival at Paris of a prince -of the house of Bourbon. - -The Duc d’Enghien, then residing at Ettenheim, in the Duchy of Baden, -seemed the most likely of the Bourbon princes to be the one alluded to: -and spies were sent to watch his movements. - -The reports of such agents are rarely correct in the really important -particulars. But they were particularly unfortunate in this instance, -for they mistook, owing to the German pronunciation, a Marquis de -Thumery, staying with the Bourbon Prince, for Dumouriez: and the -presence of that general on the Rhenan frontier, and with a Condé, -strongly corroborated all other suspicions. - -A council was summoned, composed of the three consuls,--Bonaparte, -Cambacérès, Lebrun,--the minister of justice and police, Régnier,--and -Talleyrand, minister of foreign affairs.[43] - -At this council (10th March 1804) it was discussed whether it would -not be advisable to seize the Duc d’Enghien, though out of France, -and bring him to Paris; and the result was the immediate expedition of -a small force, under Colonel Caulaincourt, which seized the prince on -the Baden territory (15th March); M. de Talleyrand, in a letter to the -Grand Duke, explaining and justifying the outrage. Having been kept two -days at Strasburg, the royal victim was sent from that city, on the -18th, in a post chariot, arrived on the 20th at the gates of Paris at -eleven in the morning; was kept there till four in the afternoon; was -then conducted by the boulevards to Vincennes, which he reached at nine -o’clock in the evening; and was shot at six o’clock on the following -morning, having been condemned by a military commission--composed -of a general of brigade (General Hullin), six colonels, and two -captains--according to a decree of the governor of Paris (Murat) of -that day (20th March), which decree (dictated by Napoleon) ordered the -unfortunate captive to be tried on the charge of having borne arms -against the Republic: of having been and being in the pay of England, -and of having been engaged in plots, conducted by the English in and -out of France, against the French government. The concluding order was, -that, if found guilty, he should be at once executed. - -The whole of this proceeding is atrocious. A prince of the -dethroned family is arrested in a neutral state, without a shadow -of legality;[44] he is brought to Paris and tried for his life on -accusations which, considering his birth and position, no generous -enemy could have considered crimes; he is found guilty without a -witness being called, without a proof of the charges against him being -adduced, and without a person to defend him being allowed.[45] - -This trial takes place at midnight, in a dungeon; and the prisoner is -shot, before the break of day, in a ditch! - -It is natural enough that all persons connected with such a transaction -should have endeavoured to escape from its ignominy. General Hullin -has charged Savary (afterwards Duc de Rovigo), who, as commander of -the gendarmerie, was present at the execution, with having hurried -the trial, and prevented an appeal to Napoleon, which the condemned -prince demanded. The Duc de Rovigo denies with much plausibility these -particulars, and indeed, all concern in the affair beyond his mere -presence, and the strict fulfilment of the orders he had received; -and accuses M. de Talleyrand--against whom it must be observed -he had on other accounts a special grudge--of having led to the -prince’s seizure by a report read at the Council on the 10th March; -of having intercepted a letter written to the first consul by the -illustrious captive at Strasburg, and of having hastened and provoked -the execution, of which he offers no other proof than that he met -Talleyrand, at five o’clock, coming out of Murat’s, who was then, as -I have said, governor of Paris, and who had just given orders for the -formation of the military commission. It must be observed also, that, -for the report of what passed in the council, M. de Rovigo only quotes -a conversation which he had some years afterwards with Cambacérès, who -was anxious to prove that he himself had opposed the violation of the -German territory. - -As to the supposed letter written by the Duc d’Enghien, the persons -about the Duc declared that he never wrote a letter at Strasburg; -and in the prince’s diary, which speaks of a letter to the Princesse -de Rohan, there is no mention of a letter to the first consul. With -respect to another letter, written, the Duc de Rovigo seems to suppose, -by M. Massias, French minister at Baden, there is no trace of it in -the French archives; whilst the mere fact of M. de Talleyrand having -been at Murat’s proves nothing (if it be true that he was there) beyond -the visit. Indeed, as Murat himself blamed the execution, and did what -he could to avert it (see Thiers’ _Consulate and Empire_, vol. v. p. -4), there is some probability that, if M. de Talleyrand sought Murat, -it was with a view of seeing what could be done to save the prince, and -not with the view of destroying him. On the other hand, Bourrienne, who -had opportunities of knowing the truth, asserts that M. de Talleyrand, -so far from favouring this murder, warned the Duc d’Enghien, through -the Princesse de Rohan, of the danger in which he stood. - -The Duc Dalberg, minister of Baden at Paris in 1804, also speaks of M. -de Talleyrand as opposed to all that was done in this affair.[46] - -Louis XVIII., to whom M. de Talleyrand wrote when the Duc de Rovigo’s -statement appeared, ordered that personage to appear no more at his -court. Fouché declared the act to be entirely that of the first consul; -and lastly, Napoleon himself always maintained that the act was his -own, and justified it. - -For myself, after weighing all the evidence that has come before me -(none of it, I must admit, quite conclusive), my persuasion is that the -first consul had determined either to put the prince in his power to -death, or to humiliate him by a pardon granted at his request; and it -seems to me not improbable that he hesitated, though rather disposed, -perhaps, to punish than to spare, till all was over. - -For this supposition there is the declaration of his brother Joseph, -who says that a pardon had been promised to Josephine; of Madame de -Rémusat, who, playing at chess that evening with Napoleon, states that -he was muttering all the night to himself lines from the great French -poets in favour of clemency; and, lastly, there is an order given to -M. Real, minister of police, who was charged to see the Duc d’Enghien, -and to report to Bonaparte the result of the interview, which evidently -implied that no execution was intended till the minister’s report had -reached the terrible disposer of life or death, who might then finally -take his resolve. - -But the opportunity of coming to a decision, after receiving the report -of the minister of police, never occurred. By one of those unforeseen -accidents which sometimes frustrate intentions, M. Real, to whose house -the written instructions I have been speaking of were carried by Savary -himself, had gone to bed with the injunction not to be disturbed, -and did not wake till the prince was no more:--so that Napoleon had -not the chance of clemency, which he undoubtedly expected, presented -to him. At all events, whatever may have been the intentions of this -extraordinary man, whose policy was generally guided by calculations -in which human life was considered of small importance, I believe, -as far as regards the person I am principally occupied with: first, -that M. de Talleyrand did read at the Council on the 10th of March a -memoir containing the information that had reached his office, and -which he was naturally obliged to report; secondly, that when M. de -Cambacérès spoke against the original arrest, M. de Talleyrand remained -silent, which may be accounted for either by a wish not to compromise -himself, or, as persons well acquainted with Napoleon have assured me, -by a knowledge that this was the best way to give efficacy to M. de -Cambacérès’ arguments; thirdly, that when M. de Talleyrand wrote to the -Grand Duke of Baden, excusing the intended violation of his territory, -he did endeavour to convey such a warning to the Duc d’Enghien as would -prevent his being captured; finally, that when the Duc was brought up -to Vincennes he gave no advice (which he thought would be useless) to -Bonaparte, but approved of the efforts made by Josephine and Joseph, -who were the best mediators in the prince’s behalf, and that, being -also aware of the instructions sent to M. Real, he did not think the -execution probable. - -As to taking an active part in this tragedy, such conduct would not be -in harmony with his character; nor have the accusations, to which his -position not unnaturally exposed him, been supported by any trustworthy -testimony. To have lent himself, however, even in appearance, to so -dark a deed, and to have remained an instrument in Napoleon’s hands -after its committal, evinces a far stronger sense of the benefits -attached to office, than of the obloquy attached to injustice. - -This, it is said, he did not deny; and, when a friend advised him to -resign, is reported to have replied: “If Bonaparte has been guilty, -as you say, of a crime, that is no reason why I should be guilty of a -folly.” - -The execution of the Duc d’Enghien took place during the night of the -20th March. On the 7th of April, Pichegru, who had been arrested, -was found strangled in his room, as some thought, by the police--as -the government declared, by his own hands; George Cadoudal, who had -also been captured, suffered on the scaffold; and Moreau, after -being brought before a tribunal which condemned him to two years’ -imprisonment, had this absurd sentence commuted into exile. Bonaparte -having thus struck terror into the partisans of the ancient dynasty, -and having rid himself of his most powerful military rival, placed -on his head, amidst the servile approbation of the Legislature and -the apparent acquiescence of the nation, a crown which was solemnly -consecrated by Pius VII. (2nd December, 1804). - - -V. - -The assumption of the imperial title was an epoch in the struggle -which had for some time been going on between the two statesmen who -contributed the most, first, to raise the power of Napoleon, and -finally to overthrow it. Talleyrand and Fouché are these two statesmen; -and they may be taken as the representatives of the classes whose -adhesion marked Bonaparte’s force, and whose defection marked his -decline. The one, a great nobleman, an enlightened member of the -Constituent Assembly, a liberal, such as the fashion, the theories, -and the abuses of the old _régime_ had created him. The other a -plebeian and conventionalist of the mountain, a democrat and regicide -by circumstances, position, and the fury of the time. From the 18th -Brumaire they both attached themselves to the first consul’s fortunes. -Cool, unprejudiced, without hatred, without partialities, each, -notwithstanding, had the feelings of his _caste_; and, in moderating -the passion and influencing the views of Napoleon, the one never -forgot that he was born in the aristocracy, the other that he was the -offspring of the people. - -Fouché, then, was for employing the republican forms, and entrusting -authority exclusively to what may be called new men. Talleyrand was -rather for returning to the fashions of a monarchy, ridiculed, to -use his own expression, the “_parvenus_” who had never walked on a -“parquet,”[47] and endeavoured to introduce into the employment of the -State the aspirants whose principles were liberal, but whose names were -ancient and historical. - -The Empire which was the natural consequence of the tendency which -Talleyrand had favoured and Fouché opposed, nevertheless united and -wanted these two politicians; for while it sanctioned the advantages -and titles of the old nobility, it established on a firm and equal -basis a new nobility, and brought both to a central point, under the -rule of a man of genius. - -Fouché, once the Empire decided upon, renounced all further attempts to -limit Napoleon’s will, and only sought to regain his favour. - -Talleyrand, conceiving that all the hopes of the enlightened men of -his youth who had sought to obtain a constitutional monarchy were -at that moment visionary, abandoned them for a new order of things, -which, while it pressed upon the energy and intellect of the individual -Frenchman, gave a concentrated expression to the energy and intellect -of the French nation, and made it ready to accept a glorious tyranny -without enthusiasm, but without dissatisfaction. Nor was the French -nation wholly wrong. - -A great deluge had swept just recently over all that previous centuries -had established; society was still on a narrow and shaking plank which -required widening, strengthening, but, above all, fixing over the -still turbulent and agitated waters. Everything of ancient manners, -of those habits of thought, without which no community of men can -march long or steadily together, was gone. No received notions on -essential subjects anywhere existed; and a nation which has no such -notions cannot have that sort of public morality which is, to the -position and respectability of a state, what private morality is to -the respectability and position of an individual. The first essential -to a community is order, for under order received notions establish -themselves. Order combined with liberty is the highest degree of -order. But order without liberty is preferable to disorder and -license. Now, Napoleon’s internal government, with all its faults, -was the personification of order, as that of the convention had been -of disorder; and what was the consequence? a spirit of freedom grew -up amidst the despotism of the latter, as a submission to tyranny had -been engendered under the wild violence of the former. The phrase, that -Bonaparte “_refaisait le lit des Bourbons_,”[48] was a criticism on his -own policy, but it might be an eulogium on that of his followers. - - -VI. - -In the meantime a change of forms and titles at Paris was the sign of -a similar change throughout Europe. Republics became kingdoms: the -Emperor’s family, sovereigns: his marshals and favourites, princes and -grand dignitaries of the Empire. Those who had shared the conqueror’s -fortunes had a share allotted to them in his conquests, and for a -moment the theory of the nineteenth century brought back the realities -of the middle ages. Yet, and notwithstanding these signs and tokens -of ambition, had it not been for the rupture with England and the -cruel deed at Vincennes, Napoleon’s new dignity, that gave a splendid -decoration to his new power and an apparent close to his adventurous -career, would probably have induced the continent, without absolutely -prostrating itself at his feet, to have acknowledged and submitted -to his superiority. But the fortitude with which England had braved -his menaces, and the act which had sullied his renown, produced a new -coalition, and led to a treaty between England and Russia and Austria, -the one signed on 11th of April, and the other the 9th of August, -1805. So formidable a combination served to disturb Bonaparte from the -project of an invasion, with which he was then threatening our shores. -But his star, though somewhat clouded, was still in the ascendant. The -battle of Austerlitz sanctioned the title of Imperator, as the battle -of Marengo had done that of Consul. - -M. Mignet has given us a curious instance, extracted from the French -archives, of the comprehensive views of the minister of foreign affairs -at this period.[49] Immediately after the victory of Ulm, M. de -Talleyrand wrote to Napoleon in something like these terms: - -“While your Majesty is gaining the victories which will lead to -a glorious peace, I am considering how that peace can best be -established. There are four great States in Europe--France, Russia, -England, and Austria. England and France, from their juxtaposition, -their spirit, and consequent rivality, may be considered natural -enemies; that is to say, no great war will take place in Europe -without these powers coming into collision. In such case, Russia -cannot cordially be with France as long as she retains her projects -over the Ottoman empire, which it would be madness in us to encourage. -Austria, on the other hand, is sure to side with England as long as -her frontiers join ours, and her natural objects of ambition are the -same. A great policy, therefore, would be to deprive Russia of her -Turkish dreams, and Austria of the possessions neighbouring to those -states which we protect, and which, in fact, are ours. I would take -from Austria, then, Suabia, in Southern Germany, the Tyrol, adjoining -Switzerland; and I would make Venice an independent Republic, and thus -a barrier to both parties in Italy. To this plan, however, Austria -herself must consent with satisfaction, or it cannot be permanent; -and I would obtain that consent by giving her, in exchange for what -we take, Wallachia, Moldavia, Bessarabia, and the northern portion of -Bulgaria. By this plan, your Majesty will remark, the Germans are for -ever shut out of Italy, Austria made the rival of Russia and guardian -of the Ottoman empire, and the Russians excluded from Europe, and thus -directed upon the kingdoms of Central Asia, where they will naturally -come into conflict with the rulers of Hindostan.” - -“This project,” says M. Mignet, “being conceived at a time when nothing -was impossible, might, after the battle of Austerlitz, have been -accomplished, and would doubtless have given another destiny to Europe, -and established the grandeur of France on solid foundations.” - -Napoleon, however, was not inclined to adopt so great a plan on the -suggestion of another; nor, indeed, is it impossible but that the -secret instinct of his peculiar genius, which was for war, opposed -itself to a permanent system of tranquillity. He advanced, then, in -the false policy which ultimately proved his ruin; neither gaining the -affection nor utterly destroying the power of the vanquished: and the -cabinet of Vienna, subdued in Italy, humbled, by the confederation -of the Rhine and the elevation of the secondary states, in Germany, -but with its power not annihilated, and its goodwill not conciliated, -signed the treaty of Presburg. This treaty, which severed the relations -between the Russian and Austrian empires, and a change which now took -place in the British councils, afforded another chance of giving to the -new empire a peaceful and durable existence. - - -VII. - -Mr. Fox had succeeded to Mr. Pitt, and Mr. Fox was an advocate of peace -and an admirer of the warrior who guided the destinies of France. He -was also a personal friend of M. de Talleyrand. The Emperor Alexander -shared in some degree Mr. Fox’s admiration. The hopes which he had -founded on an alliance with Austria were now, moreover, at an end, and -no one at that time relied on the shuffling, grasping, and timid policy -of Prussia. Both the Russian and English cabinets were willing then to -treat. M. d’Oubril was sent to Paris by the cabinet of St. Petersburg, -and negotiations begun through Lord Yarmouth, the late Marquis of -Hertford (then a “_détenu_”[50]), between the cabinets of St. James and -the Tuileries. - -M. de Talleyrand, in these double negotiations, succeeded in getting -the Russian negotiator to sign a separate treaty, which, however, the -Russian government disavowed; and acquired such an influence over Lord -Yarmouth, that the English government deemed it necessary to replace -him by Lord Lauderdale, who was empowered to negotiate for the two -allied governments. It is but just to observe that M. de Talleyrand, -though thwarted by a variety of intrigues, laboured with the utmost -assiduity in favour of a peaceful termination of this negotiation; for -he already saw, and at this time almost alone saw, that without peace -all was yet a problem, and that, to use the words of a contemporary, “a -succession of battles was a series of figures, of which the first might -be ‘A,’ and the last ‘zero.’”[51] - -The position of Malta and Sicily, both at this time in our hands, -the natural reluctance that we felt at resigning them without solid -guarantees for European tranquillity; and the impossibility of getting -such guarantees from the pride and ambition of an aspirant to universal -empire, were nevertheless difficulties too great for diplomacy to -overcome; and when Prussia, which had lost the golden opportunity -of fighting France with Austria by her side, had become so involved -by secret engagements with Russia and by public engagements with -France--and so restless in the dishonourable and dangerous position -in which she found herself, as to be determined on the desperate -experiment of escaping from her diplomacy by her arms, another great -European struggle commenced. - -Throughout the new campaigns to which this new coalition led--campaigns -beginning with the victory of Jena and closing with the peace of -Tilsit--M. de Talleyrand accompanied his imperial master; and though -he could hardly be said to exercise a predominant influence over those -events, which a more violent character and a more military genius -decided, his calmness and good sense (qualities rarely, if ever, -abdicated by him) produced a moderating effect upon the imperious -warrior, that tended generally to consolidate his successes. The sort -of cool way in which he brought to ground many of this extraordinary -man’s flights, testing them by their practical results, is well enough -displayed in a reply which he made to Savary, who, after the battle of -Friedland, said, “If peace is not signed in a fortnight, Napoleon will -cross the Niemen.” - -“Et à quoi bon,” replied M. de Talleyrand, “passer le Niemen?”[52] “Why -pass the Niemen?” - -The Niemen, then, partly owing to M. de Talleyrand’s counsels, was for -this once not passed; and, at last, France, pretending to sacrifice -Turkey, and Russia abandoning England, the two combatants signed a -treaty, which anticipated that the domination of Europe was for the -future to be shared between them. - - -VIII. - -At this period M. de Talleyrand, who had been more struck in the -recent war by the temerity than by the triumph of the conqueror, -thought that Napoleon’s military and his own diplomatic career should -cease. Fortune, indeed, had carried both the one and the other to the -highest point, which, according to their separate characters and the -circumstances of the times, they were likely to attain. To Napoleon’s -marvellous successes seemed now to belong a supernatural prestige, -which the slightest misfortune was capable of destroying, and which -a new victory could hardly augment. So also the reputation of M. de -Talleyrand was at its height, and many were disposed to consider him -as great a master in the science of politics as his sovereign was in -that of war. He had acquired, moreover, immense wealth, as it is said, -by extorted gifts from the Powers with which he had been treating, -and more especially from the small princes of Germany, whom in the -general division of their territory he could either save or destroy, -and also by successful speculations on the stock exchange:[53]--means -of acquiring riches highly discreditable to his character, but thought -lightly of in a country that teaches the philosophy of indulgence, -and had recently seen wealth so rudely scrambled for, that the “_Res -si possis recte_” had become as much a French as ever it was a -Roman proverb. His health, moreover, was broken, and unequal to the -constant attendance on the Emperor’s person, which had become almost -inseparable from his office; while the elevation of Berthier to the -rank of vice-constable established a precedency exceedingly galling -to his pride. Under these circumstances, he solicited and obtained -permission to retire, and already Prince de Benevent received the title -of “vice-grand electeur,” raising him to the rank of one of the great -dignitaries of the Empire; a position which it appears--so small are -even the greatest of us--he desired. - -This change in his situation, however, was by no means as yet what it -has sometimes been represented--a “disgrace.” He still retained great -influence in the Emperor’s councils, was consulted on all matters -relative to foreign affairs, and even appointed with M. de Champagny, -his successor, to conduct the negotiations with the court of Spain, -which, owing to the invasion of Portugal and the quarrels which had -already broken out in the family of Charles IV., were beginning to -assume a peculiar character.[54] - -It has been said, indeed, on the one side, that M. de Talleyrand was -opposed to any interference with Spain; and, on the other, that it -was actually he who first counselled Bonaparte’s proceedings in that -country. It is probable that he did so far compromise himself in this -matter as to advise an arrangement which would have given the territory -north of the Ebro to France, and yielded Portugal as a compensation to -the Spanish monarch. It is not impossible, moreover, that he knew as -early as 1805--for Joseph Bonaparte was then told to learn the Spanish -language--that Napoleon had vague dreams of replacing the Bourbon by -the Bonaparte dynasty in the Peninsula. But when the French armies, -without notice, took possession of Burgos and Barcelona; when an -insurrection deposed Charles IV., and the Emperor was about to adopt -the policy, not of peaceably aggrandizing France and strengthening -Spain against Great Britain, but of kidnapping the Spanish princes and -obtaining by a sort of trick the Spanish crown, he was resolutely and -bitterly opposed to it, saying: “_On s’empare des couronnes, mais on -ne les escamote pas_” (“one takes a crown from a sovereign’s head, but -one does not pick his pocket of it”). “Besides, Spain is a farm which -it is better to allow another to cultivate for you, than to cultivate -yourself.” - -Comte de Beugnot, in his memoirs recently published, speaks thus of -these transactions:[55] - -“The Prince de Benevent was acquainted, in all its details, with what -had passed (at Bayonne). He appeared indignant. ‘Victories,’ he said, -‘do not suffice to efface such things as these, because there is -something in them which it is impossible to describe, that is vile, -deceitful, cheating! I cannot tell what will happen, but you will see -that no one will pardon him (the Emperor) for this.’ The Duc Decrès, -indeed,” M. de Beugnot continues, “has told me more than once that the -Emperor had in his presence reproached M. de Talleyrand for having -counselled what took place at Bayonne, without M. de Talleyrand -seeking to excuse himself. This has always astonished me. It is -sufficient to have known M. de Talleyrand to be sure that, if he had -been favourable to dispossessing the princes of the House of Bourbon of -the Spanish throne, he would not have resorted to the means that were -employed. Besides, when he spoke to me, it was with a sort of passion -that he never displayed but on subjects which strongly excited him.” - -There can be no doubt, indeed, that what took place as to Spain was a -subject of great difference between M. de Talleyrand and Napoleon. M. -de Talleyrand would never afterwards during the reign of Louis XVIII. -have publicly affirmed this, surrounded as he was by contemporaries and -enemies, if it had not been true. Moreover, the general voice of the -time, which is more in such cases to be trusted than any individual -testimony, loudly proclaimed it; and as to not answering Napoleon when -he was pouring forth in violent and insulting language the accusations -which he sometimes levelled at those who displeased him, it is well -known that M. de Talleyrand never replied to such attacks but by an -impassible face and a dignified silence. - - -IX. - -Nor were the affairs of the Peninsula the only ones on which M. de -Talleyrand and the Emperor at this time disagreed. The French troops -entered Rome and Spain (for Napoleon was now for despoiling the Pope as -a prince, after courting him as a Pontiff) about the same epoch; and -the Prince of Benevent was as opposed to one violence as to the other. - -It was not, however, out of this affair, or that affair in particular, -that the enmity between the emperor and his former minister--an enmity -so important in the history of both--took its rise. - -M. de Talleyrand, the Empire once established and fortunate, had -attached himself to it with a sort of enthusiasm. The poesy of victory, -and the eloquence of an exalted imagination, subdued for a time the -usual nonchalance and moderation of his character. He entered into all -Napoleon’s plans for reconstituting “An Empire of the Francs,” and -reviving the system of fiefs and feudal dignitaries; by which it is, -however, true, that the followers and favourites of the conqueror had -nothing to lose. “Any other system,” he said, “but a military one, is -in our circumstances at present impossible. I am, then, for making -that system splendid, and compensating France for her liberty by her -grandeur.” - -The principality he enjoyed, though it by no means satisfied him, was -a link between him and the policy under which he held it. He wished -to keep it, and to safeguard the prosperity of a man, whose adversity -would cause him to lose it. But he had a strong instinct for the -practical; all governments, according to his theory, might be made -good, except an impossible one. A government depending on constant -success in difficult undertakings, at home and abroad, was, according -to his notions, impossible. This idea, after the Peace of Tilsit, more -or less haunted him. It made him, in spite of himself, bitter against -his chief--bitter at first, more because he liked him than because he -disliked him. He would still have aided to save the Empire, but he was -irritated because he thought he saw the Empire drifting into a system -which would not admit of its being saved. A sentiment of this kind, -however, is as little likely to be pardoned by one who is accustomed to -consider that his will must be law, as a sentiment of a more hostile -nature. - -Napoleon began little by little to hate the man for whom he had felt -at one time a predilection, and if he disliked any one, he did that -which it is most dangerous to do, and most useless; that is, he -wounded his pride without diminishing his importance. It is true that -M. de Talleyrand never gave any visible sign of being irritated. -But few, whatever the philosophy with which they forgive an injury, -pardon a humiliation; and thus, stronger and stronger grew by degrees -that mutual dissatisfaction which the one vented at times in furious -reproaches, and the other disguised under a studiously respectful -indifference. - - -X. - -This carelessness as to the feelings of those whom it would have been -wiser not to offend, was one of the most fatal errors of the conqueror, -who could not learn to subdue his own passions: but he had become -at this time equally indifferent to the hatred and affection of his -adherents; and, under the ordinary conviction of persons over-satisfied -with themselves, fancied that everything depended on his own merits, -and nothing on the merits of his agents. The victory of Wagram, and -the marriage with Marie Louise, commenced, indeed, a new era in his -history. Fouché was dismissed, though not without meriting a reprimand -for his intrigues; and Talleyrand fell into unequivocal disgrace, in -some degree provoked by his witticisms; whilst round these two men -gathered a quiet and observant opposition, descending with the clever -adventurer to the lowest classes, and ascending with the dissatisfied -noble to the highest. - -The scion of the princely house of Périgord was, indeed, from his -birth, quite as much as from his position in the Empire, at the head -of the discontented of the aristocracy; M. de Talleyrand’s house then -(the only place, perhaps, open to all persons, where the government -of the day was treated without reserve) became a sort of “rendezvous” -for a circle which replied to a victory by a _bon mot_, and confronted -the borrowed ceremonies of a new court by the natural graces and -acknowledged fashions of an old one. All who remember society at this -time, will remember that the ex-minister was the sole person who had a -sort of existence and reputation, separate and distinct from the chief -of the State, whose policy he now affected to consider, and probably -did consider, as verging towards the passion of a desperate gambler, -who would continue to tempt Fortune until she grew wearied and deserted -him. - -Nor did the Austrian alliance, which the Emperor had lately formed, -meet with M. de Talleyrand’s approval, although he had at one period -advised it, and been also mixed up in the question of a marriage with -the imperial family of Russia. This change might have proceeded from -his now seeing that such an union as he had at one time favoured, in -the hope that it would calm the restless energy of Napoleon, would -only stimulate his ambition: or it might have been because, having had -nothing to do with the resolutions adopted at Vienna, he had gained -nothing by them. At all events, what he said with apparent sincerity, -was--“Nothing is ever got by a policy which you merely carry out by -halves.” “If the Emperor wants an alliance with Austria, he should -satisfy Austria: does he think that the House of Hapsburg considers it -an honour to ally itself with the House of Bonaparte? What the Emperor -of Austria desires, is to have his provinces restored, and his empire -raised and revived: if the government of France does not do this, -it disappoints him; and the worst enemies we can have are those we -disappoint.” - -These sentiments, however, found as yet no echo out of the circle of a -few independent and enlightened politicians. - -I remember two of these--both high in the service of the Empire--M. de -Barante and M. Molé, referring in my hearing to a conversation they had -had at the period I am speaking of, and one saying to the other, “Do -you call to mind how we both regarded what was passing before us as a -magnificent scene in an opera, which, whilst it satisfied the eye with -its splendour, did not fill the mind with a sense of its reality?” - -But the masses were still dazzled by the splendid achievements of a -man who, of all others, in ancient or modern history, would have been -the greatest if he had joined the instincts of humanity with those of -genius: but now each day that passed added to the fatal disposition -which separated his future from his past; each hour he became more -haughty and self-confident, and more inclined to an isolated career, -which neither tolerated counsel nor clung to affection. Josephine, the -wife of his youth--Pauline, his favourite sister--Louis, his youngest -brother--Massena, his ablest general--were added to the list on which -his two ablest ministers were inscribed. He had no longer even the -idea of conciliating mankind to his arbitrary authority. His mighty -intellect, subdued by his still mightier ambition, submitted itself -to adopt a system of despotism and oppression which interfered not -only with the political opinions, but with the daily wants, of all his -subjects and all his allies. - -War with him had become an effort to exterminate those who still -opposed him, by oppressing those who had hitherto aided him. Thus, -he had seized the Roman pontiff, kidnapped the Spanish king, taken -violent possession of the Hanseatic towns and the North of Germany; and -even those countries which were free from his armies, were bound, as -he contended, to obey his decrees. In this state of things commenced -the last and fatal struggle between the two potentates, who a short -time before had projected partitioning the empire of the world as -friendly confederates, and were now prepared to contend for it as -deadly foes. Nor was the justice of M. de Talleyrand’s views ever more -conspicuous! The destruction of Prussia, by making Russia and France -neighbours, had in itself tended to make them enemies. Moreover, the -proud and offended, but dissimulating Czar, though redoubling his -courtesy towards the court of France after the choice of an Austrian -archduchess, lest he might be supposed hurt by the rejection of a -marriage with a princess of his own family, had begun to feel that, -with the rest of continental Europe subdued and Austria apparently -gained, he was alone in his independence; and to fret under the rein, -which his imperious rider pulled, with superb indifference, somewhat -too tightly. - -Besides, though invested with unbounded authority over his people by -law and custom, there was the example of his father to teach him that -he could not wholly disregard their interests or wishes; yet this was -what the Emperor of the French exacted from him. His subjects were not -to sell their produce to the only purchaser who was ready and desirous -to buy it;--and being thus harshly and foolishly placed between -revolution and war, Alexander chose the latter. - - -XI. - -On the other hand, Napoleon, in determining on a conflict of which -he did not disguise from himself the importance, awoke for a moment -to his former sense of the necessity of using able men in great -affairs, and was disposed, notwithstanding his disagreements with M. -de Talleyrand, to send him to Warsaw to organise a kingdom of Poland; -nor was it surprising that, confident in the sagacity and tact of the -agent he thought of employing, he was also satisfied that, in the -event of that agent’s accepting employment, he might count perfectly -on his fidelity; for throughout M. de Talleyrand’s long career and -frequent changes there is not any instance of his having betrayed -any one from whom he accepted a trust. The difficulty of reconciling -the Prince de Benevent’s position with that of the Duc de Bassano, -who accompanied the Emperor on this campaign as minister of foreign -affairs, prevented, it is said, the projected arrangement. But neither -during this transient gleam of returning favour, nor after it, did -M. de Talleyrand’s opinion against the chances which Napoleon was -unnecessarily (as he thought) running, ever vary; neither were they -disguised. He insisted principally on the chance of war, which often -decides against the ablest general and the most skilful combinations; -on the great loss which would result from a defeat, and the small gain -that would follow a victory. The whole of Europe that the reckless -general left behind him was, he knew, kept down merely by fear and -constraint, and though ready to assist an advancing army, certain -to fall on a retreating one. Besides, supposing defeat was almost -impossible, what had France to gain by success? - -Alexander might reiterate his promise of preventing all commercial -interchange between Great Britain and his dominions; but would he be -able to keep that promise? He could not. The mind of Napoleon, however, -had now been trained by Fortune to consider wars mere military parades, -shortly after the commencement of which he entered the capital of his -conquered enemy and returned to Paris to be greeted by enthusiastic -acclamations at the theatre. He required this sort of excitement, and -like most men similarly influenced, convinced himself that what was -pleasing to his vanity was demanded by his interests. - -There were three epochs, indeed, in Napoleon’s career: the first, when -he fought for glory abroad to gain empire at home; the second, when, -being master of the government of France, he fought to extend the -limits of France, and to make himself the most powerful individual in -his nation, and his nation the most powerful nation in the world; the -third, when France being but a secondary consideration, his ambition -was bent on becoming master of the universe, and acquiring a dominion -of which France would be almost an insignificant portion. - -It is necessary to bear this in mind, since it explains Napoleon’s -Russian campaign; it explains the difficulties he raised against -withdrawing his troops from Germany after that campaign had ended in -defeat; and his constant dislike to accept any conditions that put a -positive extinguisher on his gigantic projects. To support his own -confidence in such projects he persuaded himself that a charm attached -to his existence, that supernatural means would arrive to him when -natural means failed. He did not, however, neglect on this occasion the -natural means. - -When Fouché expressed his apprehensions at so vast an enterprise, the -soldier’s answer is said to have been, “I wanted 800,000 men, and I -have them.”[56] But France had begun to be at this period wearied even -with his successes; and the affair of Mallet, which happened just -previously to the arrival of the bad intelligence from Russia, showed -pretty clearly that her Emperor’s fall or defeat left an open space for -any new system that circumstances might favour or impose. - -No sooner, then, had the news that Moscow was burnt reached Paris than -M. de Talleyrand considered the Bonapartist cause as lost. Not that -Bonaparte might not yet have saved himself by prudence, but he was not -prudent; not but that the French government might not yet have brought -as many men in uniform into the field as the allies, but that nations -fought on one side, and merely soldiers on the other. - -The sagacious statesman, therefore, who now began again to be -consulted, advised a conclusion of the war, promptly, at once, and on -almost all conditions. So, again, when the defection of the Prussians -was known, and Napoleon summoned a council to determine what should be -done under such circumstances, he said: “Negotiate: you have now in -your hands effects which you can give away; to-morrow they may be gone, -and then the power to negotiate advantageously will be gone also.”[57] - -During the armistice at Prague (June, 1813), when the prestige of two -or three recent victories coloured the negotiations, and France might -have had Holland, Italy, and her natural frontiers, both Talleyrand and -Fouché, who was also asked for his advice, repeated constantly, “The -Emperor has but one thing to do--to make peace; and the more quickly he -makes it, the better he will make it.” So also, when M. de St. Aignan, -after the battle of Leipsic, brought propositions from Frankfort, which -might even yet have given France her frontier of the Rhine (November), -M. de Talleyrand urged their acceptance with the least delay, and told -the Emperor that a bad peace was better than the continuation of a war -that could not end favourably.[58] - -Napoleon himself at this time wavered, and with a momentary doubt as -to his own judgment, and a remembrance very possibly of happier times, -offered the portfolio of foreign affairs to his ancient minister, but -on the condition that he should lay down the rank and emoluments of -vice-grand-elector. - -The object of the Emperor was thus to make M. de Talleyrand entirely -dependent on his place; but M. de Talleyrand, who would have accepted -the office, refused the condition, saying, “If the Emperor trusts me, -he should not degrade me; and if he does not trust me, he should not -employ me; the times are too difficult for half measures.” - - -XII. - -The state of affairs at this period was assuredly most critical. In -looking towards Spain, there was to be seen an English army, crowned -by victory, and about to descend from the Pyrenees. In looking -towards Germany, there was a whole population, whom former defeat had -exasperated, and recent success encouraged, burning to cross the Rhine -in search of the trophies of which an enemy still boasted. In Italy, a -defection in the Emperor’s family was about to display the full extent -of his misfortunes. In Holland, the colours of the exiled family (the -House of Orange) were displayed with rapture amidst shouts for national -independence; even the King of Denmark had left the French alliance; -while in France a people unanimated by liberty, an army decimated by -defeat, generals that had lost their hopes, and arsenals which were -empty, were the sole resources with which its ruler had to encounter -all Europe in arms. - -The refusal of M. de Talleyrand, then, to accept office at such a -time, unless with all the confidence and splendour that could give -it authority, was natural enough; but it is also not surprising that -the sovereign who had made that offer should have been irritated by -its rejection, whilst many urged that the vice-grand-elector, if -not employed, should be arrested. All proof, however, of treason -was wanting; and the chief of the Empire justly dreaded the effect -which, both at home and abroad, any violent act might produce; for it -was far more difficult, than many have supposed, for him to strike, -when his power was once on the decline, any strong blow against an -eminent functionary. His government was a government of functionaries, -throughout whom there reigned a sort of fraternity that could not -safely be braved. - -This stern man had, moreover,--and this was one of the most remarkable -and amiable portions of his character--a sort of tenderness, which he -never overcame, for those who had once been attached to his person, or -had done eminent service to his authority.[59] He resolved, then, not -to take any violent measure against M. de Talleyrand; but though he -could restrain his anger from acts, he could not from expressions. - -A variety of scenes was the consequence. Savary relates one which -happened in his presence and that of the arch-chancellor. I have also -read of one in which Napoleon, having said that if he thought his own -death likely he would take care that the vice-grand-elector should -not survive him, was answered by M. de Talleyrand rejoining, quietly -and respectfully, that he did not require that reason for desiring -that his Majesty’s life might be long preserved. M. Molé recounted -to me another, in the following terms: “At the end of the Council -of State, which took place just before the Emperor started for the -campaign of 1814, he burst out into some violent exclamations of his -being surrounded by treachery and traitors; and then turning to M. -de Talleyrand, abused him for ten minutes in the most violent and -outrageous manner. Talleyrand was standing by the fire all this time, -guarding himself from the heat of the flame by his hat; he never moved -a limb or a feature; any one who had seen him would have supposed that -he was the last man in the room to whom the Emperor could be speaking; -and finally, when Napoleon, slamming the door violently, departed, -Talleyrand quietly took the arm of M. Mollien, and limped with apparent -unconsciousness downstairs. But on getting home, he wrote a dignified -letter to the Emperor, saying, that if he retained his present dignity, -he should be by right one of the regency, and that as he could not -think of holding such a charge after the opinion his Majesty had -expressed of him, he begged to resign his post, and to be allowed to -retire into the country. He was informed, however, that his resignation -would not be accepted, and that he might stay where he was.” - -It is to be presumed that insults like that I have been relating went -a great way towards alienating and disgusting the person they were -meant to humiliate; but though at the head of a considerable party -which were dissatisfied, M. de Talleyrand did little more than watch -the proceedings of 1814, and endeavour to make the fall of Napoleon, -should it take place, as little injurious to France and to himself as -possible.[60] - -During the conferences at Chatillon, he told those whom the Emperor -most trusted, that he would be lost if he did not take peace on any -terms; when, however, towards the end of these conferences, peace -seemed impossible with Napoleon, he permitted the Duc Dalberg to send -M. de Vitrolles to the allied camp with the information, that, if -the allies did not make war against France, but simply against its -present ruler, they would find friends in Paris ready to help them. -M. de Vitrolles carried a slip of paper from the Duc in his boot as -his credentials, and was allowed to name M. de Talleyrand; but he -had nothing from that personage himself which could compromise him -irrevocably with this mission. - -M. de Talleyrand saw, nevertheless, at that moment, that a new chief -must, as a matter of course, be given to France, and he wished to be -the person to decide who that chief should be, and under what sort of -institutions the government should be assigned to him. - -Still, his communications with the Bourbons were, I believe, merely -indirect. Many of their partisans were his relatives and friends. He -said obliging things of Louis XVIII. to them, and he received obliging -messages in return: but he did not positively adopt their cause; in -fact, it seems doubtful whether he did not for a certain time hesitate -between the ancient race, and the King of Rome with a council of -regency, in which he was to have had a place. At all events, he kept -the minister of police, according to Savary’s own account, alive to -the Royalist movements in the south. It may even be said that he did -not desert the Bonaparte dynasty till it deserted itself: for at the -Council, assembled when the allies were approaching Paris to determine -whether the Empress should remain in the capital or quit it, he advised -her stay in the strongest manner, saying it was the best, if not the -only, means of preserving the dynasty, and he did not cease urging this -opinion until Joseph Bonaparte produced a letter from his brother, -stating that in such a case as that under consideration Marie-Louise -should retire into the provinces. It was then that, on leaving the -council chamber, he said to Savary:[61] - -“Here, then, is the end of all this. Is not that also your opinion? we -lose the rubber with a fair game. Just see where the stupidity of a few -ignorant men, who perseveringly work on the influence acquired by daily -intercourse, ends by carrying one. In truth, the Emperor is much to be -pitied, and yet nobody will pity him; for his obstinacy in holding to -those who surround him, has no reasonable motive; it is only a weakness -which cannot be conceived in such a man. What a fall in history! To -give his name to adventures, instead of giving it to his age! When I -think of this I cannot help being grieved. And now what is to be done? -It does not suit every one to be crushed under the ruins of the edifice -that is to be overthrown. Well, we shall see what will happen! - -“The Emperor, instead of abusing me, would have done better in -estimating at their first value those who set him against me. He -should have seen that friends of that kind are to be more dreaded than -enemies. What would he say to another who let himself be reduced to the -state in which he is now?” - - -XIII. - -The observation that it did not suit every one to be overwhelmed under -the ruins of the government about to fall, applied, as it was intended -to do by M. de Talleyrand, to himself. The part, however, he had to -play was still a difficult one; desirous to remain in Paris in order -to treat with the allies, he was ordered, as a member of the regency, -to Blois. Nor was it merely because he feared that Napoleon might yet -conquer, and punish his disobedience, that he disliked to resist his -command; there is a sense of decency in public men which sometimes -supplies the place of principle, and the vice-grand-elector wished to -avoid the appearance of deserting the cause which notwithstanding he -had resolved to abandon. - -The expedient he adopted was a singular and characteristic one. His -state carriage was ordered and packed for the journey: he set out in it -with great pomp and ceremony, and found, according to an arrangement -previously made with Madame de Rémusat, her husband at the head of -a body of the National Guard at the barrier, who stopped him, and, -declaring he should remain in the capital, conducted him back to his -hotel, in the Rue St. Florentin, in which he had soon the honour of -receiving the Emperor Alexander. - -The success of the campaign had been so rapid, the march to Paris so -bold, the name of Napoleon and the valour of the French army were still -so formidable, that the Emperor of the Russias was almost surprised at -the situation in which he found himself, and desirous to escape from it -by any peace that could be made safely, quickly, and with some chance -of duration. Beyond this, he had no fixed idea. The re-establishment -of the Bourbons, to which the English Government inclined, seemed to -him in some respects dangerous, as well on account of the long absence -of these princes from France, as from their individual character and -the prejudices of their personal adherents. To a treaty with Napoleon -he had also reasonable objection. Some intermediate plan was the one -perhaps most present to his mind; a regency with Marie-Louise,--a -substitution of Bernadotte for Bonaparte; but all plans of this sort -were vague, and to be tested by the principle of establishing things in -the manner most satisfactory to Europe, and least hateful to France. - -Universal opinion pointed out M. de Talleyrand as the person not only -most able to form, but most able to carry out at once whatever plan -was best suited to the emergency. This is why, on arriving at Paris, -the Emperor took up his abode at M. de Talleyrand’s house, Rue St. -Florentin, where he held, under the auspices of his host, a sort of -meeting or council which determined the destiny of France. - - -XIV. - -Among various relations concerning this council is that of M. -Bourrienne, and if we are to believe this witness of the proceedings he -recounts, M. de Talleyrand thus answered the Emperor’s suggestion as to -the crown prince of Sweden, and pronounced on the various pretensions -that had been successively brought forward: - -“Sire, you may depend upon it, there are but two things possible, -Bonaparte or Louis XVIII. I say Bonaparte; but here the choice will not -depend wholly on your Majesty, for you are not alone. If we are to have -a soldier, however, let it be Napoleon; he is the first in the world. -I repeat it, sire: Bonaparte or Louis XVIII.; each represents a party, -any other merely an intrigue.” - -It was a positive opinion thus forcibly expressed that, according to -all accounts, decided the conqueror, who is said to have declared -subsequently: - -“When I arrived at Paris, I had no plan. I referred everything to -Talleyrand; he had the family of Napoleon in one hand, and that of the -Bourbons in the other; I took what he gave me.” - -The resolution not to treat with Napoleon or his family being thus -taken, M. de Talleyrand engaged the Emperor of Russia to make it known -by a proclamation placarded on the walls of Paris, and the public read -in every street that “Les souverains alliés ne traiteront plus ni avec -Napoléon Bonaparte ni avec aucun membre de sa famille.” - -But this was not all. M. de Talleyrand did not wish to escape from -the despotism of Napoleon to fall under that of Louis XVIII. He -counted little on royal gratitude, and it was as necessary for his -own security, as for that of his country, that the passions of the -emigration and the pride of the House of Bourbon should be kept -in check by a constitution. Hence, at his instigation, the famous -proclamation I refer to contained the following sentence: “Ils -reconnaîtront et garantiront la constitution que la nation française se -donnera, et invitent par conséquent le Sénat à désigner un gouvernement -provisoire qui puisse pourvoir aux besoins de l’administration; il -préparera la constitution qui conviendra au peuple français. Alexandre. -31 mars 1814.” - -In this manner the allies recognised the Senate as the representative -of the French nation, and, as M. de Talleyrand had a predominant -influence with the Senate, his victory seemed secure. - -This was on the 31st March. But on the 30th, late towards the night, -and as Marmont and Mortier, having defended the heights of Paris -valiantly during the day, were quitting that city in virtue of a -capitulation they had been compelled by the circumstances in which -they found themselves to sign, Napoleon, who had taken the advance -of his army, arrived at the environs of his capital, and learnt from -General Belliard, who was leaving it, what had occurred. With the view -of collecting his troops, still on their march, at Fontainebleau, and -gaining time for this purpose, he sent Caulincourt, who had represented -him at Chatillon, to the sovereigns, who were then masters of the -situation, with orders to enter into feigned negotiations with them, on -almost any terms. - -Now, though the Czar and the King of Prussia had pretty well resolved -to have nothing further to do with Napoleon, and had stated that -resolution in a pretty decided manner, there was disquietude in the -neighbourhood of the great captain, who could rely on a military -force, amounting, it was said, to 50,000, exclusive of the forces -of Marmont and Mortier. The armies of Augereau and Soult also still -existed at no immense distance. The lower class in Paris, who had more -national sentiments and less personal interests in jeopardy than the -upper, were, as it had been remarked in the passage of the Russian and -Prussian troops through Paris, moody and discontented; a shadow of -the former terror of Napoleon’s power still remained on the minds of -many who had so long bowed to his will, and were only half disposed to -overthrow his authority. Negotiations, as Caulincourt’s presence at -Paris proved, would be attempted. - -There was no time, then, to be lost. On the 1st April, M. de Talleyrand -assembled the Senate under his presidence (for, as vice-president and -grand dignitary of the Empire, this function legitimately belonged to -him). That body, surprised at its own power, and placing it readily -in its president’s hands, who (alluding to Marie-Louise’s retreat) -called on them to come to the aid of a state without any constituted -authority, named, “_séance tenante_,” “a provisional government,” -consisting, with M. de Talleyrand at its head, of five members. These -persons had all played an honourable and distinguished part under the -Empire or in the National Assembly, but the only one representing -Legitimist opinions was the Abbé Montesquieu. - -At the same time the Senate, entirely partaking M. de Talleyrand’s -ideas as to a constitution, engaged itself to form one within a few -days. - -Nothing, however, was as yet said of the intended exclusion of Napoleon -and his family, nor of the approaching reign of the Bourbons. - -Many of the partisans of the latter were as much astonished as vexed at -this omission. - -Still entertaining ideas which they had carried into a long exile, -they could not even conceive what France, or the French Senate, or the -allies, had to do with the disposal of the French government. Was not -Louis XVIII. the next in blood to Louis XVI.? Could there be a doubt -that he was the only possible king, the unholy and audacious usurper -having been defeated? - -Did not the Comte d’Artois, said the ladies of the Faubourg St. -Germain, long to embrace his early associate, the Bishop of Autun? - -M. de Talleyrand, with a smile slightly cynical, acknowledged the -extreme happiness that this embrace would give him; but begged, half -mysteriously, that it might be deferred for the present. He did not, -however, think it expedient that the Senate should delay any longer -confirming the act of the coalition as to Napoleon’s deposition; and -that assembly (exposing, as the motives of its conduct, a thousand -grievances which it had been its previous duty to prevent), declared, -as the Emperor Alexander had already declared, that neither Napoleon -nor his family should reign in France, and relieved the nation from its -oath of allegiance. - -It named also a ministry composed of men suited for the occasion, and -thus assumed provisionally all the attributes of government. - -In the meantime the deposed Emperor, still at Fontainebleau, with an -energy which misfortune had not abated, was counting his gathering -forces, studying the position of his foes, and forming the plan for a -final and desperate effort, which consisted in defeating one of the -three divisions of the enemy, which was on the left bank of the Seine, -and following it in its flight into the streets of Paris, where, amidst -the general confusion, he felt certain of an easy victory, even if -amongst the blazing ruins of the imperial city. - -With him losses that led to success were not calculated: and though -he would have preferred victory on other terms, he was perfectly -willing to take it as he could get it. At least, this was said; and the -intention attributed to him, and which he did not deny, having being -promulgated before it was executed, shattered the remaining fidelity -of his superior officers. He could not understand their timorous -scruples; nor they his desperate resolves. An altercation ensued, and, -rendered bold by despair, the marshals ventured to urge his abdication -in favour of his son. He foresaw the futility of this proposition, -but was nevertheless induced to accede to it, partly in order to show -the idleness of the hopes which his unwelcome counsellors affected to -cherish, partly in order to get rid of their presence, and thus to find -himself free, as he thought, to execute his original projects, should -he determine on doing so. - -Ney, Macdonald, together with Caulincourt, who had rejoined the -Emperor on the 2nd of April, and communicated the inefficacy of his -previous mission, were sent then to the allied sovereigns; they were -to enumerate their remaining forces, protest as to their unwavering -fidelity to that family, the fortunes of which they had so long -followed--declare resolutely against the legitimate princes, whom they -considered strangers to their epoch; and state, with firmness, their -resolve to conquer or perish by the side of their ancient master, if -this, the last proposal they could make in his name, were rejected. - -They carried with them Marmont, at the head of the important division -of Bonaparte’s army stationed on the Essonne, and commanding the -position of Fontainebleau. This general, though the one most favoured -by Napoleon, had nevertheless already entered into a capitulation with -the Austrian general; but, urged by his brother marshals, to whom he -confessed his treason, to retract his engagements, he did so; and -ordering those officers under his command, and who had been acquainted -with his designs, to remain quiet till his return, accompanied Ney -and Macdonald to Paris. The haughty hearing, the bold and vehement -language, of men accustomed to command and conquer, and representing -an army which had marched victoriously from Paris to Moscow, made an -impression on the somewhat flexible Alexander. He did not accord nor -deny their petition, and granted them another interview on the morrow, -at which the King of Prussia was to be present. This one took place on -the 5th of April, at two in the morning, with himself alone. - -The struggle was yet undecided; for the Emperor of Russia was never -very favourable, as I have said, to the Legitimists, and quite alive to -the consideration of settling matters quietly with Bonaparte, who had -arms in his hands, rather than with the Bourbons, who had not. M. de -Talleyrand had again to exert himself, and with his easy, respectful, -but self-confident manner, to point out the feebleness and dishonour -of which (though acting under feelings of the noblest generosity) the -Czar would be accused, if, after having compromised himself and his -allies by what he had been doing during the last few days, he was at -last to undo it. He added, as it is said, that he did not, in holding -this language, consult his own interests, for it was probable that he -should have a more durable position under the regency of Marie-Louise, -if such a regency could be durable, than under that of the emigration, -which, it was much to be feared, from what was then passing (he wished -to call the Emperor’s attention to the efforts which this party was at -that very moment making against the publication of a constitution), -would, ere long, become more powerful and more forgetful than could -be desired. “Pardon my observations, sire,” he continued--“others are -uneasy, but I am not--for I know full well that a sovereign at the -head of a valorous army is not likely to admit the dictation of a few -officers of a hostile force, more particularly when they represent the -very principle of constant war which the French nation repudiates, and -which has armed the allies.” - -Both the Emperor Alexander (whose transitory emotion soon passed away) -and the King of Prussia received the marshals on the following day, -under the impressions that M. de Talleyrand’s remarks and their own -considerate judgment produced; and the refusal to treat on any basis -that gave the government of France to Napoleon or his family, was -clearly but courteously pronounced. The marshals were persisting in -their representations, when a Russian officer, who had just entered the -room, whispered something into Alexander’s ear: it was the intelligence -that the division of Marshal Marmont had quitted its post; an accident -produced by the officers, to whom he had confided his troops, having -fancied that their intended treachery was discovered, and would be -punished, unless immediately consummated. After such a defection, the -moral power of the deputation, which could no longer speak in the -name of the army, was gone; and all it attempted to procure was an -honourable provision for the Emperor and the Empress, if the former -tendered an immediate abdication. The advice of his generals, who -accepted these poor conditions, left their commander no alternative but -submission, for his government was a military machine, of which the -main instrument now broke in his hands. - -On the 6th, the Senate framed a constitution, which, on the 8th, was -published, creating a constitutional monarchy, with two chambers, and -conferring the throne of France on Louis XVIII. if he accepted that -constitution. On the 11th was signed a treaty by which Marie-Louise -and her son received the principality of Parma, and Napoleon the -sovereignty of Elba, a small island on the coast of Italy, where it -was presumed that a man, still in the prime of life, and with the most -restless spirit that ever beat in human bosom, would remain quiet and -contented in the sight of empires he had won and lost. - - - - -PART V. - -FROM THE FALL OF THE EMPEROR NAPOLEON, IN 1814, TO THE END OF M. DE -TALLEYRAND’S ADMINISTRATION, IN SEPTEMBER, 1815. - - Comte d’Artois, Lieutenant-General of France.--Treaty of the - 23rd of April for the evacuation of France.--Louis XVIII., - contrary to M. de Talleyrand’s advice, refuses to accept the - crown with a constitution as the gift of the nation; but, - agreeing to the first as a right, grants the second.--Forms his - government of discordant materials, naming M. de Talleyrand, - of whom his distrust and jealousy soon appear, Minister of - Foreign Affairs.--Reactionary spirit of the Émigré party - and Comte d’Artois.--Treaty of Paris.--M. de Talleyrand - then goes to Vienna, and, in the course of negotiations - there, contrives to make a separate treaty with Austria - and Great Britain, and thus to break up solidarity of the - alliance against France.--Bonaparte escapes from Elba.--New - treaty against Napoleon; not clear as to its intentions, but - appearing as renewal of Treaty of Paris.--Bourbons go to - Ghent.--Bonaparte installed at the Tuileries.--M. de Talleyrand - goes to Carlsbad.--Prince Metternich intrigues with Fouché for - Napoleon’s deposition in favour of the regency of his wife; - does not succeed.--The Allies again take up Louis XVIII.--M. de - Talleyrand goes to Ghent.--At first ill received.--Lectures the - Bourbons.--Is again made Minister.--Opposed by Royalist party - and the Emperor of Russia; feebly supported by us; abandoned by - Louis XVIII.--Resigns. - - -I. - -Such for the moment was the end of the long struggle which M. de -Talleyrand had maintained with a man superior to all others in the -power of his faculties; but who, owing to certain faults, which were -perhaps inseparable from the haughty and imaginative nature of those -faculties, was finally vanquished by the patience, moderation, and tact -of an adversary of far inferior genius, whose hostility he had, by a -singular instinct, dreaded, and, by an unaccountable carelessness, -provoked. - -I have said that when M. de Talleyrand first attached himself to -the destinies of Napoleon, he expected from him--first, his own -advancement; secondly, the advancement of French interests. - -He followed Napoleon, then, obsequiously up to the period at which he -foresaw clearly that the policy of that personage was beginning to be -such as would neither profit an intelligent adherent nor establish a -durable empire. - -It cannot be said, however, that in separating himself from this -policy, after the treaty of Tilsit, he left his sovereign in a moment -of adversity. France never appeared to people in general so great, nor -its ruler so stable, as at that epoch. It was not at the moment of any -evident decline in either, but at a moment when to a keen observer -there was visible a tendency which if pursued would, a little sooner -or a little later, plunge both into inextricable calamities, that the -Prince de Benevent detached himself quietly from the chariot that bore -the great soldier’s fortunes. - -Even then he did little more than express with moderation the -convictions he felt; and indeed his opposition when most provoked -was never against the individual whom he had served, but against the -system that individual was blindly pursuing. As the horizon grew -darker, he neither shrank from giving his advice, which events proved -invariably to be just, nor refused his services, if they were allowed -the necessary means of being useful. His infidelity up to the last -consisted in giving counsel that was rejected, and taking measures with -much reserve for preserving himself and his country in some degree from -the fate that was preparing for its ruler. Nor was it until Napoleon -and the nation became two distinct things, and it appeared necessary to -destroy the one in order to save the other, that it can be said that M. -de Talleyrand conspired against the man, who, it must be added, never -asked for heartfelt devotion in exacting blind obedience. - -There was nothing on earth, in fact, which Napoleon himself would not -have sacrificed, and did not unscrupulously sacrifice, to promote -his own objects. He said, and I believe thought, that these were the -happiness and glory of France. Behind his selfishness there was, all -must admit, a great and noble idea; but those who felt sure that he -was mistaken were not bound to subject their notions of patriotism to -his: M. de Talleyrand had not been his creature, nor raised up from -the dust by him. He had been a distinguished and eminent man before -General Bonaparte’s career had commenced, and it is hardly fair to -talk of his treachery to a man, who had of late years wearied him with -affronts,--when the most intimate of that man’s favourites (Marshal -Berthier) told Louis XVIII. at the commencement of the Restoration, -“that France had groaned for twenty-five years under the weight of -misfortunes that only disappeared at the sight of its legitimate -sovereign.” - -The principal if not the only question at issue concerning M. de -Talleyrand in these affairs is, Whether the advice to place Louis -XVIII. on the French throne was good or bad advice? What other -candidates were there? Bonaparte vanquished was out of the question. -He had not only become odious to M. de Talleyrand; he was equally so -to all Europe and to all France,--the broken fragments of his army -excepted. - -There was something to say in favour of a regency with Marie-Louise; -but her husband himself declared at Fontainebleau that she was -incapable of acting for herself. If Napoleon was in a situation to -direct her, the government was evidently still Napoleon’s. If she -was placed in the hands of the marshals, the exchange was that of a -military empire with order and a redoubtable chief, for a military -empire with confusion and without a chief; Marie-Louise was, moreover, -out of Paris. - -Had she remained at Paris, had Bonaparte perished on the field of -battle, or been placed anywhere in secure guardianship, the daughter of -the Emperor of Austria, assisted and controlled by four or five men of -eminence, moderation, and capacity, whom the allies could have joined -to her, might have been a possibility more compatible perhaps with the -epoch than the half-forgotten inheritor of the crown of Louis XVI.; but -when the choice was to be made, this combination had gone by. - -Then there was the House of Orleans. But this younger branch of the -Bourbon family was personally almost as unknown to France as the elder -one. The name that connected it with the Revolution was not popular, -on the other hand, even with the revolutionists. A mere soldier put -on Napoleon’s throne by foreigners was an evident humiliation to the -French people. Louis XVIII., therefore, really seems the only person at -the moment who could carry with him to the vacant place any dignity, -and represent there, as M. de Talleyrand said, any principle. - -This prince in early life had been supposed favourable to -constitutional government. His residence of late years had been in a -constitutional country. He had never been remarkable for the strength -of his personal attachments, and he had, moreover, in his character, or -at least in his manner, a certain authority, which rendered it probable -that he would keep in order the more zealous of his partisans. - -Thus, it seemed likely that he would frankly accept such a government -as England possessed and France had desired in 1789, to the opinions -of which period the more thinking portions of the French nation still -looked back with respect. - -Risks had to be run, whatever resolution might be taken; but risks in -critical times have always to be run, and a man of action can only -choose the least dangerous. - - -II. - -At all events, having deliberately adopted the legitimate monarchy -with a constitution, there can be no doubt as to M. de Talleyrand -having followed up this idea, amidst immense difficulties, with great -boldness and dexterity. The task, however, so far as it depended on -his skill, tact, and activity, was now nearly over; and its ultimate -success was about to be confided to those who were to reap the fruits -of his efforts. It will have been seen, by what I have said of the -constitution voted by the Senate, that Louis XVIII. was named King -conditionally on his accepting a constitution; a clause against which -the Royalists had revolted. - -The Comte d’Artois, at that time out of Paris and in no recognised -position, insisted on appearing in the capital; and, Napoleon having -abdicated on the 11th, he executed his intention on the 12th, assuming -the title of “Lieutenant-general of the Kingdom,” a title which he -pretended to have received from his brother, but which his brother, it -appears, had never given him. - -Nothing could be more awkward than the position thus created: Louis -XVIII. was not yet sovereign by any national act; and yet the Comte -d’Artois pretended that he was invested with royal authority by Louis -XVIII. - -To establish as a right the Bourbon monarchy, was by no means the -intention of those who had called back the Bourbon family; and yet they -had so compromised themselves to the Bourbon cause, that it was no easy -matter to recede from the ground they stood upon. The resolution to be -taken had to be immediate. Should the existing authorities assist at -the Comte d’Artois’ entry or not? M. de Talleyrand and the provisional -government did assist, for their abstinence would have been a scandal; -the Senate did not assist, for its presence would have stultified its -previous decisions. - -I am led to insert an animated account of this entry, not only because -it is painted with the colouring of an eye-witness; but because it -gives an amusing description of the concoction of a celebrated _bon -mot_, which was not without its effect on the early popularity of the -prince to whom it was attributed.[62] - -“Next morning (12th of April), we marched out to meet the prince. It -was one of those lovely days of early spring which are so delightful -in the climate of Paris. The sun was shining with all its splendour, -and on every side the tender buds were sprouting under the influence -of its subdued and genial warmth. There were flowers already half -blown, and the soft green was just beginning to peep from the trees, -while the spring notes of birds, the joyous expression of every face, -our march enlivened by the dear old tune of good King Henry, all served -to mark out this day as a festival of Hope. There was little order in -our ranks, but many shed tears. As soon as _Monsieur_ was in sight, -M. de Talleyrand advanced to welcome him, and, leaning against the -prince’s horse with that indolent grace, which the weakness of his legs -excused, he paid him a short compliment, remarkable for its delicacy -and good taste. Feeling that Frenchmen were pressing him on all sides, -the prince was too affected to make him a reply, but said with a voice -stifled by sobs, ‘Monsieur de Talleyrand, gentlemen.--Thank you--I am -too happy--Let us proceed, let us proceed--I am too happy!’ - -“Since then, we have heard the same prince reply to speeches with -presence of mind and effect: but, to those who saw and heard him the -day of his entry into Paris, he has never been so eloquent as on that -occasion. We now proceeded in the direction of Notre-Dame, according -to the old custom of going, after every joyful event, to the most -venerable church of Paris, in order to offer solemnly to God the -grateful homage of the French nation. The procession was principally -composed of National Guards, but it also contained Russian, Prussian, -Austrian, Spanish, and Portuguese officers, and the prince at their -head appeared like an angel of peace descended into the midst of -the great European family. From the Barrière de Bondy to the Parvis -Notre-Dame, faces beaming with joy were seen at every window. The -streets were crowded with people who pressed round the prince with -shouts of applause. It was difficult for him to advance in the midst -of such general enthusiasm, but when some one attempted to clear the -way by removing this pleasing impediment, he exclaimed, ‘Never mind, -sir, never mind, we have plenty of time before us.’ Thus was the prince -borne along to Notre-Dame, if I may be allowed the expression, on the -hearts of Frenchmen. After entering the sanctuary, when he cast himself -down before the altar, which had received during so many centuries the -prayers of his fathers, a vivid ray of light fell upon his countenance, -and made it appear almost heavenly. He prayed fervently, and we all -did the same. The tears trickled down our cheeks, and they escaped -from the eyes even of the foreigners. Oh! how sincerely, how fervently -was each verse of the hymn of gratitude upraised to Heaven! When the -ceremony was concluded, several of the prince’s old servants, who had -bewailed his absence during thirty years, came to embrace his knees, -and he raised them up with that heart-sprung grace so touching and so -natural to him. The return from Notre-Dame to the Tuileries was no less -animated and happy; and when he had reached the court of the palace, -the prince dismounted, and turning to the National Guard, addressed -them in a speech perfectly suited to the occasion. He shook hands with -several of the officers and men, begging them to remember this happy -day, and protesting that he himself would never forget it. I ordered -the palace doors to be opened for the prince, and had the honour of -showing him into the wing which he was to inhabit. - -“I asked him to give me his orders for the rest of the day, and to -tell me the hour at which I should present myself the next morning. He -seemed to hesitate whether he would dismiss or retain me. I thought -I could perceive that this arose from kindly feeling, so I told him -that I should be afraid of troubling him an instant longer, as he must -be fatigued, and it was to me that he replied, ‘How can I possibly be -fatigued? This is the only happy day I have enjoyed for thirty years. -Ah! sir, what a delightful day! Say that I am pleased and satisfied -with everybody. These are my orders for to-day. To-morrow morning, at -nine o’clock.’ - -“After leaving the prince, I resumed my usual occupation, and quitted -it at about eleven o’clock in the evening, to go to M. de Talleyrand’s. -I found him discussing the events of the past day with MM. Pasquier, -Dupont de Némours, and Anglès. They all agreed that it had been a -complete success. M. de Talleyrand reminded us that an article would -have to be written for the _Moniteur_. Dupont offered to do it. ‘No, -no,’ replied M. de Talleyrand, ‘you would make it too poetical; I know -you well: Beugnot will do for that; I dare say that he will step into -the library, and knock us off an article in a moment.’ - -“I sat down to my work, which was not very difficult: but when the -prince’s answer to M. de Talleyrand had to be mentioned, I did not -know what to do. A few words, springing from a deep emotion, make -effect by the manner in which they are spoken, and by the presence -of the objects which have suggested them; but, when they have to be -reproduced on paper, stripped of these accompaniments, they remain -cold, and it is very lucky if they are not ridiculous. I returned to -M. de Talleyrand, and informed him of the difficulty. ‘Let us see,’ he -answered, ‘what _Monsieur_ _did_ say; I did not catch much; he appeared -to me to be affected, and very anxious to continue his journey; but, -if what he said does not suit you, invent an answer for him.’ ‘But -how can I make a speech that _Monsieur_ never pronounced?’ ‘There is -no difficulty about that; make it good, suitable to the person and to -the occasion, and I promise you that _Monsieur_ will accept it, and -so well, that in two days he will believe he made it himself; and he -_will_ have made it himself; you will no longer have had anything to -do with it.’ Capital! I returned and attempted my first version, and -brought it to be approved. ‘That won’t do,’ said M. de Talleyrand, -‘_Monsieur_ never makes antitheses, nor does he use the slightest -rhetorical flourish. Be brief, be plain, and say what is best suited to -the speaker and to his audience: that’s all.’ ‘It seems to me,’ replied -M. Pasquier, ‘that what is troubling a good many minds, is the fear -of changes, which would be brought about by the return of the princes -of the house of Bourbon; that point would perhaps have to be touched, -but delicately.’ ‘Good! and I also recommend it to you,’ said M. de -Talleyrand. I attempt a new version, and am sent back a second time, -for having made it too long and too elaborate. At last I am delivered -of the one inserted in the _Moniteur_, in which I make the prince say, -‘No more discord; Peace and France; at last I revisit my native land; -nothing is changed, except it be that there is one Frenchman the more.’ -‘This time I give in!’ exclaimed the great censor. ‘_That_ is what -_Monsieur_ said, and I answer for it having been pronounced by him; you -need not trouble yourself any longer.’ And in fact the speech turned -out a regular success: the newspapers took it up as a lucky hit; it was -also repeated as an engagement taken by the prince; and the expression, -‘_One Frenchman more!_’ became the necessary password of the harangues, -which began to pour in from all quarters. The prince did not disdain -commenting upon it in his answers: and M. de Talleyrand’s prophecy was -fully accomplished.” - - -III. - -The just described spectacle was gay, but its gaiety was merely -superficial. Deeper seated was the danger I have referred to. The -Senate had neither gone to meet the Comte d’Artois nor attended the _Te -Deum_. It might be said that the members of the provisional government -had done so; but the absence of the Senate was, notwithstanding, -remarked. It was determined not to leave things uncertain, and to have -a clear understanding as to whether the Comte d’Artois meant to despise -the national authorities, or to submit to them. This question had to be -brought to issue with the least possible delay. - -The 13th and 14th of April were spent in negotiations. Napoleon was -still in France. Two armies had not yet given in their adhesion to the -new order of things. - -The allies had solemnly declared that the French government should be -one chosen by the Senate, and not one chosen by Louis XVIII. - -It took, nevertheless, all M. de Talleyrand’s tact and patience to get -the Comte d’Artois and the zealots of his party to act with ordinary -prudence. An arrangement was at last arrived at in this manner: - -The Senate, professing to know that constitutional principles animated -the heart of the Comte d’Artois, offered him the Lieutenant-generalship -of France. - -The Comte d’Artois accepted the post, saying that though he could not -take upon himself to sanction the constitution of the Senate, with -which he was acquainted, but which had to be considered by the King, -he nevertheless felt sure that he could safely affirm that his Majesty -would accept the principal features in it.[63] - -The government was thus installed until the arrival of Louis XVIII.; -and on the 23rd, M. de Talleyrand signed, under his royal highness’s -authority, the treaty which obliged the foreign armies to quit France, -and the French troops to quit the fortresses out of France which they -still held. - - -IV. - -The most urgent foreign question was thus settled; but the permanent -condition of internal affairs, though the temporary arrangement I have -been describing established something like a principle in favour of a -constitution, still depended on the arrangements that might finally be -made with Louis XVIII. - -M. de Talleyrand, exceedingly anxious on this subject, had sent M. -de Liancourt to the King, in the hope that his Majesty would listen -and speak to his messenger confidentially. It was true that M. de -Talleyrand was warned that the Duc de Liancourt, who had belonged -to the Revolution, would not be well received by the monarch of the -Restoration, if a certain nobleman, M. de Blacas, was by his side. But -the Prince de Benevent treated this idea _du haut de sa grandeur_. - -What! the sovereign who owed him (M. de Talleyrand) his throne; who -was at once indolent and ambitious; who knew nothing of the country -in which he was to appear, a country in which he had no partisans who -could guide him by their counsels or aid him by their influence, and -in which were still the sovereigns with whom M. de Talleyrand had -been the confederate--would decline to receive a man of the first -respectability and the highest birth, universally beloved, because he -had taken the same part that M. de Talleyrand himself had taken in -the public affairs of former times, and this when the new sovereignty -was to be founded on all parties and opinions, and have, moreover, a -constitution for its basis; the thing was impossible. M. de Talleyrand -replied to the person who gave him this warning-- - -“The King, you say, will look back on the past, but Nature has placed -the eyes of men in the front of their heads, in order that they may -look forward.” - -Undoubtedly, the warning referred to seemed absurd, but it was -correctly given. M. de Liancourt saw “the certain M. de Blacas,” but -came back without having seen Louis XVIII.[64] - -In sending the particular person he had selected to Louis XVIII., M. -de Talleyrand had the idea of engaging the King at once with the party -to which that person belonged, viz., the moderate men of the early -Revolution: men who were, by opinion, in favour of constitutional -monarchy, but who had been so mixed up with persons of all parties and -opinions, as to know all and have friends amongst all. In such a party -he saw a centre at which divergent lines might meet--a backbone, to -which might be attached the scattered members of the great and varied -society out of which a new government had to be constructed. The -project was not a bad one, and it is probable that during the first -days of an uncertain triumph it would have succeeded. - -But the unexpected popularity of his family, the general acceptance -of the “white cockade,” the reports of his brother and the ardent -Royalists, which did not fail to reach him with suitable exaggerations, -and the positive abdication of Napoleon, created a new phase in Louis’s -affairs, and hesitating what to do, he determined on doing nothing till -he arrived in France. - -This was sufficient to show M. de Talleyrand, who did not subsequently -forget M. de Blacas, that there would be a court circle in the new -reign from which he should be excluded; that the King neither meant -to confide in him nor to offend him; that a system was not to be -formed; that if he did not break with the sovereign on whose head he -had a few days previously placed a crown, he must compromise with that -sovereign’s prejudices and favourites. There were not as yet sufficient -motives for a rupture. Circumstances would shortly develop themselves, -and give many opportunities for a decided course. In the meantime a -policy of principle was to be sacrificed to a policy of dexterity. - -Had he been consulted, he would certainly not have counselled Louis -XVIII., who made a sort of triumphal entry into London on the 20th, -to have said he owed his crown to the Prince Regent; putting aside -the Emperor Alexander, who was still in Paris, and the Senate and the -Assembly, which were the only constituted organs at that time of the -nation’s wishes, and the only authority which the French army and the -French people would so easily have obeyed. But he met his Majesty at -Compiègne, where Louis had determined to stay three or four days before -entering Paris and fixing his ultimate resolves. The meeting would have -been curious to witness. - -Both personages were perfect actors in their way, and each with a -pretension to superiority, was determined not to be subalternised -by the other. Louis had acted the part of king for some years with -the more care and punctiliousness because he was only king in name. -Talleyrand had been accustomed from his youth to the highest positions -in society; in later years he had been admitted into the intimacy of -sovereigns, and been treated by them, if not on a footing of equality, -with the highest respect; and he had just disposed of the fortunes -of France. The descendant of kings meant to impose the sovereign on -his powerful subject at once, with the airs of royalty, for which -he was famous. The bishop, noble, and diplomatist was prepared to -encounter these airs with the respectful well-bred nonchalance of a -man of the world, who knew his own value; and the natural but not -obsequious deference of a great minister to a constitutional monarch. -It is probable that neither said what he intended to say, or what -contemporaries have said for them; but it is reported that Louis -gave M. de Talleyrand to understand that, in remaining tranquil and -contented until Providence had placed the crown on his head, he had -played the proper part of the prince and the philosopher, acting with -far more dignity and wisdom than the bustling men of action who had -been occupied during this time with their own advancement. - -On the other hand, when his Majesty, wishing perhaps to efface the -impression of observations that were not altogether complimentary, -spoke in admiration of M. de Talleyrand’s abilities, and asked him -how he had contrived, first to overturn the Directory, and finally -Bonaparte, M. de Talleyrand has the credit of having replied with a -sort of naïveté which, when it suited him, he could well assume: - -“Really, sire, I have done nothing for this: there is something -inexplicable about me which brings ill luck on the governments that -neglect me.”[65] - -Finally, as to essentials, the King appears, without entering much into -details, to have given M. de Talleyrand to understand that France would -have a constitution, and M. de Talleyrand the administration of foreign -affairs. - -This was all that M. de Talleyrand now expected. - -Nevertheless he tried, on a subsequent occasion, to persuade the -legitimate monarch that his throne would acquire increased solidity by -being accepted as the spontaneous gift of the nation. - -A really great man in Louis’s place would probably have provoked a -vote by universal suffrage; the mere fact of appealing to such a vote -would have attained a universal assent, springing from a universal -enthusiasm; and, in fact, such a vote for a king who had legitimacy -in his favour would at the same time have renewed the vigour of the -legitimist principle. - -A very prudent man would not have run this risk; he would have made -the most of the vote of the Senate, since it was given, and taken for -granted that it was a vote in favour of his race as well as of himself. - -A vain and proud man, however, could not so easily divest himself of a -peculiar quality which only he possessed. Any man might be chosen king -of the French, but Louis XVIII. alone could be the legitimate King of -France. This hereditary right to the throne was a personal property. -He had claimed it in exile: he was resolved to assert it in power, -and when M. de Talleyrand was for continuing the argument, he cut him -short, according to contemporaneous authorities, by observing with a -courteous but somewhat cynical smile: - -“You wish me to accept a constitution from you, and you don’t wish to -accept a constitution from me. This is very natural; mais, mon cher M. -de Talleyrand, alors moi je serai debout, et vous assis.”[66] - - -V. - -The observation just quoted admitted of no reply. Still Louis had -the good sense to see that he could not enter Paris without some -explanations, and the promise, more or less explicitly given, of a -representative government. Unlike the Comte d’Artois, he felt no sort -of difficulty about giving this promise, and was even willing to -concert with his minister as to the most popular manner in which he -could give the guarantees he intended to offer without abandoning the -point on which he resolved to insist. - -The first thing, however, to provide for, was a meeting between the -sovereign who had taken the crown as a right, and the Senate who had -offered it on conditions. - -This meeting took place on the 1st of May, at Saint-Ouen, a small -village near Paris, where the King invited the Senate to meet him. -M. de Talleyrand, on presenting this body, pronounced a speech, -composed with much art, and spoke for both parties. He said that -the nation, enlightened by experience, rushed forward to salute the -sovereign returning to the throne of his ancestors; that the Senate, -participating in the sentiments of the nation, did the same; that, -on the other hand, the monarch, guided by his wisdom, was about to -give France institutions in conformity with its intelligence, and the -ideas of the epoch: that a constitutional “Charter” (a title the King -had selected) would unite every interest to that of the throne, and -fortify the royal will by the concurrence of all wills; that no one -knew better than his Majesty the value of institutions for a long time -tried happily by a neighbouring people, and furnishing aid and not -opposition to all kings who loved the laws, and were the fathers of -their people. - -A few words from the King, confirming what M. de Talleyrand had said, -left nothing to be desired; and on the 3rd of May was published the -famous declaration of Saint-Ouen, which, after stating that much that -was good in the constitution proposed by the Senate on the 6th of -April would be preserved, added that some articles in it bore signs, -notwithstanding, of the haste with which they had necessarily been -written, and must consequently be reformed; but that his Majesty had -the full intention to give to France a constitution that should contain -all the liberties that Frenchmen could desire, and that the project of -such a constitution would ere long be presented to the chambers. - -Louis XVIII., thus preceded, entered Paris amidst a tolerable degree of -enthusiasm, and, seating himself in the palace of his ancestors, began -to prepare his existence there. - -His first thought was to reconstitute his household, and, in doing -this, M. de Talleyrand-Périgord was named grand aumonier. The new -ministry was next to be formed, and M. de Talleyrand figured as -minister of foreign affairs; and was honoured with the title of prince, -though he could no longer add to it--of Benevent. - -The other persons named in the new ministry, and who afterwards -attracted notice, were the Abbé de Montesquieu, minister of the -interior, a gentleman of learning and talent, but wholly unused to -affairs, and a Royalist as much from prejudice as from principle (M. -Guizot, by the way, commenced his career under M. de Montesquieu); and -the Abbé Louis, minister of finance, whose financial abilities were -universally acknowledged. - -But the most important minister for the moment was the minister of the -household, “that certain M. de Blacas,” of whose influence over Louis -XVIII. M. de Talleyrand had been early informed. - -M. de Blacas was one of those gentlemen of the second order of -nobility, who often produce on the vulgar a stronger effect as a grand -seigneur than nobles of the first class, because they add a little -acting to the natural dignity usually attendant upon persons who have -been treated from their infancy with distinction. He was middle-aged, -good-looking, courteous, a good scholar, a great collector of medals, -very vain of his court favour, which was based on his long knowledge of -all the moral and physical weaknesses of his master, and with an entire -confidence in the indestructibility of an edifice which he had seen, -notwithstanding, raised on the ruins of its own foundation. - -He had, also, such a confidence in his own capacity that he conceived -it impossible for any one but an egregious fool, or a malignant -personal enemy, to doubt it. - -He concentrated in his hands the King’s resolutions on all affairs, -except foreign affairs, which M. de Talleyrand managed directly with -his Majesty. - -A government was thus formed, and the first duty of that government was -to make a treaty of peace with the victorious powers. M. de Talleyrand -had, necessarily, the conduct of this negotiation. There were two -questions at issue: the one, the arrangements between the European -potentates who had to give possessors to the territories they had taken -from France; and the other, the arrangements to be made between France -and these potentates. - -Some persons thought it would be possible to deal with the two -questions together, and that France could be admitted into a congress -where the special questions of France with Europe, and the questions -that had to be decided by the European sovereigns between themselves, -could be settled simultaneously.[67] - -But a little consideration will, I think, show that the questions -between France and Europe, and the questions between the different -States of Europe, which had been in hostility with France, were -perfectly distinct. - -It would also have been absurd, and consequently impossible, for France -to have exacted, that all the matters that had to be arranged as -resulting from the late war with France, should be treated in France. - -The capital of France was the proper place for treating as to French -interests. - -The capital of one of the allies was the place where the affairs -between the allies were naturally to be discussed. Paris was chosen in -the first case, Vienna in the second. - -The allies, however, had undoubtedly placed themselves in a false -position towards the French nation, and this was felt when a peace with -it had to be concluded. - -They had declared that they separated Napoleon from France, that they -only made war against the French ruler, and that they would give the -country better conditions than they would give the Emperor. M. de -Talleyrand, therefore, came forward, saying, “Well, you were going to -give Napoleon the old limits of the French monarchy, what will you give -France?” - -The allies replied, as it was certain they would reply, that the -promises alluded to were vague, they could not dispose of the property -of others; that France had nothing legitimate but that which she held -before a predatory succession of conquests; that the allies held, it -was true, the conquered territories recovered from the French, but -that they could not give them back to wrongful acquirers; that the -general understanding was, that France should have its ancient limits, -and that when the allies had agreed on the 23rd of April to withdraw -their troops from the French territory, it had been understood that -this was the territory of ancient France. Anything more was out of the -question. M. de Talleyrand, however, obtained the frontier of 1792, and -not that of 1790, and in rounding that frontier, added some fortresses -and inhabitants to the kingdom of Louis XVI. Moreover, Paris remained -the mistress, and was permitted to boast of remaining the mistress, of -all the works of art ravished from other nations, being thus, in fact, -constituted the artistic capital of the world. - -Such a limited result, however, did not satisfy the French people with -peace when the horrors of war were over; and we find in various works -concerning these times comments on the inconceivable _légèreté_ of M. -de Talleyrand, in not procuring more advantageous conditions. - -I confess that I think that Europe should never have made compromising -promises; and that she should have fulfilled generously whatever -promises she had made; but upon the whole France, which in her -conquests had despoiled every power, ought to have been satisfied when, -in the returning tide of victory, those powers left her what she had -originally possessed. - -Poor M. de Talleyrand! he carried off all the absurd reproaches he had -to encounter with a dignified indifference: even the accusation which -was now made against him, of having signed the treaty of April, in -which the provisional government, not being able to hold the fortresses -still occupied by French troops out of France, with a foreign army -demanding them in the heart of Paris, resigned them on the condition -that France itself should be evacuated. “You seem to have been in a -great hurry, M. de Talleyrand,” said the Duc de Berry, “to sign that -unhappy treaty.” “Alas, yes, monseigneur; I was in a great hurry. There -are senators who say I was in a great hurry to get the crown offered to -your Royal house; a crown which it might otherwise not have got. You -observe, monseigneur, that I was in a great hurry to give up fortresses -which we could not possibly have kept. Alas, yes, monseigneur, I was in -a great hurry. But do you know, monseigneur, what would have happened -if I had waited to propose Louis XVIII. to the allies, and had refused -to sign the treaty of the 23rd of April with them? No; you don’t know -what would have happened! No more do I. But at all events you may rest -assured, we should not now be disputing as to an act of the prince, -your father.” - -Again, when a little after this the son of Charles X. was boasting of -what France would do when she got the three hundred thousand troops -that had been locked up in Germany, Talleyrand, who had been seated -at some little distance and apparently not listening, got up, and -approaching slowly the Duc de Berry, said, with half-shut eyes and a -doubtful look of inquiry, “And do you really think, monseigneur, that -these three hundred thousand men can be of any use to us?” “Of use to -us! to be sure they will.” “Hem!” said M. de Talleyrand, _fixing_ the -Duc, “you really think so, monseigneur? I did not know; for we shall -get them from that unfortunate treaty of the 23rd of April!” - -The best of it was that Charles X. had thought this treaty the great -act of his life, until his son said it was a great mistake; and he did -not know then whether he should defend it in his own glorification, or -throw all the blame of it on M. de Talleyrand. - - -VI. - -The next link in the chain of events,--a final treaty of peace between -France and Europe having been concluded (on the 30th of May),--was the -promulgation of the long-promised constitution; for the sovereigns who -were still in Paris, and with whom the Restoration had commenced, were -anxious to leave it; and they said that they could not do so until the -promises they had made to the French nation were fulfilled. - -The 4th of June, therefore, was fixed for this national act. - -The King had promised, as it has been seen, that the frame of a -constitution should be submitted to the Senate and the legislative body. - -He appointed the Abbé Montesquieu, whom we have already named, and a -M. Ferrand, a person of some consideration with the Royalist party, to -sketch the outline of this great work, assisted by M. de Beugnot, an -accomplished gentleman, not very particular in his principles, but very -adroit in his phraseology; when done, such sketch was submitted to and -approved by the King, and passed on to two commissions, one chosen from -the Senate and the other from the legislative body, the king reserving -to himself the right of settling disputed points. - -The result was generally satisfactory, for though the constitution -was so framed as to give it the air of being a grant from the -royal authority, it contained the most essential principles of a -representative government, namely:-- - -Equality before the law, and in the distribution of taxation,--the -admissibility of all to public employments,--the inviolability of -the monarch,--the responsibility of ministers,--the freedom of -religion,--the necessity of annual budgets;--and, finally, the -permission to express in print and by publication all opinions--such -permission being controlled by laws, which were to repress or punish -its abuse. - -There was to be a lower chamber with the qualification for the electors -of the payment of three hundred francs, direct taxes; and, for the -eligible, of one thousand francs. - -The upper chamber was not then made hereditary, though the King might -give an hereditary peerage. A great portion of the Senate, the dukes -and peers before the Revolution, and other persons of distinction, -formed the house of peers. The legislative body was to act as the -lower chamber until the time for which the members had been chosen was -expired. The senators, not carried on into the peerage, were given as a -pension the payment that formerly attached to their function. - -The King bargained that the new constitution should be called “La -Charte Constitutionnelle;” “Charte” being an old word that the kings -had formerly employed, and that it should be dated in _the nineteenth_ -year of his reign. - -The preamble also stated that “the King, in entire possession of his -full rights over this beautiful kingdom, only desires to exercise the -authority he holds from God and his ancestors, in determining the -bounds of his own power.” A phrase which somewhat resembles one of -Bolingbroke’s, who says: “The infinite power of God is limited by His -infinite wisdom.” - -It cannot be affirmed that M. de Talleyrand had anything to do with -the framing of “the Charter,” since Louis XVIII.’s instruction to the -commissioners was to keep everything secret from M. de Talleyrand; -but it was the sort of constitution he had insisted upon: and thus -the Restoration was accomplished according to the plan which he had -undertaken to give to it, when he obtained the decrees which deposed -the Bonapartes and recalled the Bourbons. - - -VII. - -I have said that when M. de Talleyrand created the government of Louis -XVIII., he wanted to give it a backbone, consisting of a party of able, -practical, and popular men of moderate opinions. But Louis XVIII., as -a principle, distrusted all men in proportion to their popularity and -ability, his ministers especially. M. de Talleyrand, therefore, was, -in his eyes, a person who should be constantly watched, and constantly -suspected. Louis XVIII. had also in horror the idea of his cabinet -being a ministry, _i.e._, a compact body agreeing together. His notion -as to driving was that horses who were always kicking at each other, -were less likely to kick at the carriage; furthermore, he considered -that everything which was not as it had been thirty years back was -really wrong, though he did not mean to take the trouble of changing -it, and that all this new set of persons he had to deal with were -_coquins_--not a gentleman amongst them. That it was proper manners, -since they existed, to treat them courteously, and proper policy, since -they had a certain power in their hands, to temporise with them; but -in his heart of hearts he looked upon them as yahoos, who had got into -the stalls of horses, and were to be kicked out directly the horses, -strengthened by plentiful feeds of corn, were up to the enterprise. In -the meantime nothing was to be risked, so that he sat himself down as -comfortably as he could in his arm-chair, received all visitors with an -air which an actor, about to play Louis XIV., might have done well to -study; wrote pretty billets, said sharp and acute things, and felt that -he was every inch--a king. - -Such was the sovereign of France; but there was also another -demi-sovereign, who was to be found in the Pavillon Marsan, inhabited -by the Comte d’Artois. - -I esteem that prince, whom it has been the fashion to decry, more in -some respects than I do his brother; for though he had not a superior -intelligence, he had a heart. He really wished well to his country: he -would have laid down his life for it, at least he thought he would: -his intentions were excellent; but he relied on his old notions and -education for the means of carrying them out. - -Louis XVIII. was more cultivated, more cynical, more false: he loved -France vaguely, as connected with his own pride and the pride of his -race: he thought ill of the world, but was disposed to extract the most -he could from it towards his own comfort, dignity, and prosperity. This -character was not amiable, but its coldness and hardness rendered its -possessor more secure against being duped, though not against being -flattered. - -The Comte d’Artois was both flattered and duped; but it was by -addressing themselves to his better qualities that his flatterers -duped him. They depicted the French people as eminently and naturally -loyal: full of sympathy and respect for the descendants of Henry IV. -and Louis XIV. “Poor children! they had been led away by having bad -men placed over them in the different functions of the State: all that -was necessary was to place good men, loyal men, men who had served the -royal family even in exile--men, in short, who could be relied upon, -in the public employments. The church, too--that great instrument -of government, and that great source of comfort and contentment to -men--that guardian of the mind which prevents its emotions from -wandering into the regions of false theories and hopes--had been -treated with contempt and indifference. The church and the throne -were required to aid each other--the Bourbons had to bring them into -harmony. On these conditions, and on these conditions alone--conditions -(so said all whom the Comte d’Artois consulted) so clear, so simple, so -pious, and so just--the safety and prosperity of the monarchy depended.” - -The whole mistake consisted in considering the French a people that -they were not, and ignoring what they were, and in fancying that a few -prefects and priests could suddenly convert a whole generation from -one set of ideas to another. But the Comte d’Artois’ doctrines were -pleasing to Louis XVIII., though he did not quite believe in them, and -still more pleasing to all the friends or favourites who enjoyed his -intimacy. - -Thus, though they had not the support of his convictions, they -influenced his conduct; which, however, never being altogether what -Monsieur and his party required, was always watched by them with -suspicion, and frequently opposed with obstinacy. - -Where, then, could M. de Talleyrand turn for aid to maintain the -government at the head of which he figured? To the King? he had not -his confidence. To his colleagues? they did not confide in each other. -To the Comte d’Artois? he was in opposition to his brother. To the -Royalists? they wanted absolute possession of power. The Imperialists -and Republicans were out of the question. Moreover, he was not a man -who could create, stimulate, command. To understand a situation and to -bring to bear not unwilling assistants on its immediate solution, to -collect the scattered influences about him, and direct them to a point -at which it was their own interest to arrive; this was his peculiar -talent. But to sustain a long and protracted conflict, to overawe and -govern opposing parties; this was beyond the colder temperament of his -faculties. - -His only parliamentary effort then was an exposition in the chamber of -peers of the state of the finances, which exposition was as clear and -able as his financial statements always were. For the rest, he trusted -partly to chance, partly to the ordinary and natural workings of a -constitutional system, which was sure in time to produce parties with -opinions, and even ministers, who, in their common defence, would be -obliged to adopt a common policy and line of conduct. Thus, shrugging -up his shoulders at M. de Fontanes’ declaration that he could not feel -free where the press was so, and smiling at Madame de Simiane’s notions -as to a minister, who, according to her and the ladies of the Faubourg -St. Germain, should be a grand seigneur, with perfect manners and a -great name, who had hard-working men with spectacles under them, called -_bouleux_,[68] to do their business--he hastened his preparations -for joining the congress at Vienna, which was to have commenced its -sittings two months after the treaty of Paris, that is, on the 30th of -July, but which had not met in the middle of September. - - -VIII. - -I have said that the congress was to commence on the 30th of July, but -it was not till the 25th of September that the Emperor of Russia, the -King of Prussia, and the other kings and ministers of the different -courts who were expected there, began to assemble. M. de Metternich, -Lord Castlereagh, afterwards succeeded by the Duke of Wellington, the -Prince Hardenberg, the Count Nesselrode, though only as second to -the Emperor Alexander himself, who was his own negotiator, were the -principal persons with whom M. de Talleyrand was associated. - -His task was not an easy one. His sovereign owed his crown to those -whose interests had now to be decided; he might himself be considered -under obligations to them. It required a strong sense of a high -position not to sink into a subordinate one. M. de Talleyrand had this, -and sat himself down at Vienna with the air of being the ambassador of -the greatest king in the world. - -He was accompanied by persons with names more or less distinguished. -The Duc Dalberg, the Comte Alexis de Noailles, M. de la Bernadière, and -M. de Latour du Pin. - -The first, M. de Talleyrand said, would let out secrets which he wished -to be known; the second would report all he saw to the Comte d’Artois, -and thus save that prince the trouble of having any one else to do so. -As to M. de la Bernadière, he would keep the Chancellerie going, and M. -de Latour du Pin would sign the passports. - -The ideas he himself took under these circumstances to Vienna were,--to -get France admitted into the congress on the same footing as other -powers; to break up in some way or other the compactness of the -confederation recently formed against her, and to procure friends from -the body which was now a united enemy; to procure the expulsion of -Murat from the throne of Naples, and lastly, to remove the Emperor of -Elba to a more distant location (Bermuda, or the Azores, were spoken -of). - -The dissolution of the alliance was the independence of France, however -brought about. As for the expulsion of Murat from Naples, or the -removal of Napoleon from Elba, these, no doubt, were great objects -to the Bourbons in France; but it is possible that there were other -grounds also which induced M. de Talleyrand to pursue them. - -If Murat were removed from Naples, and Napoleon were in some place of -security, and the elder branch of the Bourbons compromised itself in -France, two other governments, according to circumstances, were still -on the cards. The regency with Napoleon’s son, or a limited monarchy -with the Duc d’Orléans. - -M. de Talleyrand had seen enough before he went to Vienna, and probably -heard enough since he had been there, to make him doubtful of the -success of his first experiment: but his position was such that in any -combination in France that had not the late Emperor Napoleon at its -head, he would still be the person to whom a large party in and out of -his own country would look for the solution of the difficulty which the -downfall of Louis XVIII. would provoke. - -The basis of the congress of Vienna was necessarily that furnished by -the engagements which had already taken place between the allies at -Breslau, Töplitz, Chaumont, and Paris; engagements which concerned the -reconstruction of Prussia according to its proportions in 1806, the -dissolution of the Confederation of the Rhine; the re-establishment of -the House of Brunswick in Hanover; and arrangements, to which I shall -presently allude, concerning the future position of the Grand Duchy of -Warsaw. - -As all that was to be distributed was a common spoil in the hands of -the allies, they suggested that a committee of four, representing -England, Austria, Prussia, and Russia, should first agree amongst -themselves as to the partition; and that an understanding having been -established between these--the principal parties--this understanding -should be communicated to the others; to France and Spain in -particular;--whose objections would be heard. - -Such an arrangement excluded France from any active part in the first -decisions, which would evidently be sustained when the four allies had -agreed upon them. - -The tact and talent of M. de Talleyrand were displayed in getting this -sentence reversed. - -Taking advantage of the treaty of peace which France had already -signed, he contended that there were no longer _allies_, but simply -powers who were called upon, after a war which had created a new order -of things in Europe, to consider and decide in what manner this new -order of things could best be established for the common good, and -with the best regard to the old rights existing before 1792, and the -new rights which certain states had legitimately acquired in the long -struggle which, with more or less continuity, had existed since that -epoch. - -With some difficulty he at last made these ideas prevail, and the -committee of four was changed into a committee of eight, comprising -all the signatories to the treaty of Paris: Austria, England, Russia, -Prussia, France, Spain, Portugal, and Sweden. - -This first point gained, the second,--viz., a division amongst the -allies, was to be brought about. Any precipitate effort to do this -would have prevented its success. M. de Talleyrand waited to work for -it himself until rival interests began to work with him. - -Now Austria’s great pre-occupation was to regain her old position -in Italy, without diminishing the importance of that to which she -pretended in Germany. - -The views of Russia, or rather of the Emperor Alexander, were more -complicated, and formed with a certain greatness of mind and generosity -of sentiment, though always with that craft which mingled with the -imperial chivalry. - -I have just said that I should speak of the arrangements respecting the -Duchy of Warsaw, which were contemplated during the war in the event of -the allies being successful. It had been settled that this duchy--once -delivered from the pretensions of Napoleon--should be divided between -the three military powers, Austria, Prussia, and Russia. - -But the Emperor of Russia now took a higher tone. The annihilation of -Poland, he said, had been a disgrace to Europe: he proposed to himself -the task of collecting its scattered members, and reconstituting it -with its own laws, religion, and constitution. It would be a pleasure -to him to add to what he could otherwise re-assemble, the ancient -Polish provinces under his dominion. Poland should live again with the -Czar of Russia for its king. I doubt whether the Emperor Alexander did -not over-rate the gratitude he expected to awaken, and under-rate the -feeling existing among the Poles, not merely as to nationality, but as -to national independence. - -But his notion most assuredly was, that he should thus create as -an _avant-garde_ into Europe a powerful kingdom, capable of rapid -improvement, and combining with a complete devotion to his family, all -the enthusiasm of a people who again stood up amidst the nations of the -world. - -He argued, moreover, and not without reason, that a kingdom of Poland -thus existing would inevitably ere long draw back to itself all those -portions of alienated territory which were in the hands of the other -co-partitioning powers, and that thus Russia would ere long dominate -the whole of that kingdom which she had at one time condescended to -divide. - -This project was of course easily seen through in Prussia as well as in -Austria; but Russia presumed that Austria would be satisfied with her -Italian acquisitions. He saw, however, that Prussia required no common -bribe. The bribe proposed was Saxony, and thus a secret engagement was -entered into between the two northern courts: Russia promising to stand -by Prussia’s claims as to Saxony, and Prussia promising to support -Russia’s plans as to Poland. - -With respect to England, she seemed more especially occupied with -the idea of forming a united kingdom of Holland and Belgium, and -beguiled by the delusion that you could unite by treaties populations -which were disunited by sympathies, fancied she could, by the union -proposed, create a barrier against French ambition where England was -most concerned; and thus save us in future from those dangers by which -we were menaced when the Scheldt was in Napoleon’s possession, and the -British coast was menaced by maritime arsenals, which confronted it -from Brest to Antwerp. - -The conflict which at once commenced had reference to the ambitious -claims of Prussia and Russia. - -The King of Saxony, though an ally of Napoleon, had been faithful to -France, and there was a feeling in the French nation favourable to -him. As to Poland, France, which has always taken a lively interest in -Polish independence as a barrier against Russian aggrandisement, could -not see with satisfaction an arrangement which was to make Poland an -instrument of Russian power. - -Our disposition as to Prussia was at first somewhat undecided. We did -not approve of the destruction of Saxony, still we were not unwilling -to see a strong state established in the north of Germany, if it was -an independent state: and would therefore at first have allowed the -addition of Saxony to the Prussian dominions, if Prussia would have -joined with Great Britain and Austria against the Russian projects -in Poland. Austria, on the other hand, was quite as much against the -Prussian project as the Russian one; but Prince Metternich, being -perfectly aware that Prussia would not separate herself from Russia, -affected to fall into Lord Castlereagh’s views, and agreed to sacrifice -Saxony if Prussia would insist with ourselves on Polish independence. - -Prussia, as Prince Metternich foresaw, refused this; and indeed took -possession of Saxony, as Russia did of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, -assuming towards the other powers an attitude of defiance. - -In the meantime the question of Saxony became popular with the English -parliament and the English court: with the English parliament, which -is always against the oppressor; and with the English court, which -began to think that, when Prussia had once got Saxony, she might take -a fancy to Hanover. Austria gladly perceived this change, and it was -agreed that England and Austria should oppose themselves conjointly and -distinctly to the intentions haughtily manifested by the two northern -courts. - -Thus England, Austria, and France found themselves linked together by -common opinions. Still there were reasons why the first two powers -hesitated as to connecting themselves with the third. - -These reasons were--the connection which M. de Talleyrand desired, -would be a rupture of that league by which the peace of Europe had -been obtained; it was uncertain whether France could give Austria and -England any practical aid; and also it was doubtful whether she would -not exact more for such aid, if she did give it, than it was worth, -and aim at renewing all the ambitious designs which the overthrow of -Napoleon and the treaty of Paris had set at rest. - -The principal objection wore away as it became more and more evident -that Prussia and Russia had already entered, into separate and -particular engagements, which rendered it not only justifiable but -necessary for England and Austria, if they did not mean to submit -servilely to the results of these engagements, to guard against them by -counter-engagements between themselves. - -With respect to the power of France as an auxiliary, M. de Talleyrand, -by an able exposition of the state of affairs at Vienna, induced the -French government to display its military capacity by raising the -French army from 130,000 to 200,000, and creating the facility for -increasing it to a far more formidable amount--a measure which the -extraordinary recovery of French finances under the able administration -of M. Louis rendered easy, and which produced a considerable moral -effect, both in France and out of it. At the same time the ambassador -of France, in his numerous conversations with Lord Castlereagh and M. -de Metternich, held this language: - -“A government to last must be faithful to its origin. Bonaparte’s was -founded by conquest: he was forced to continue conquering; that of the -present sovereign of France is based on principle. To this principle it -must adhere; it is the principle of legitimate right, which conquest, -until confirmed by treaty, cannot effect. We support the King of Saxony -on this principle: we do not want then to be paid for doing so. In -supporting his throne, we guarantee our own. Do you doubt my sincerity? -I will sign any paper you wish to tranquillize all suspicion as to our -ambition.” - -It was in this manner that he led by degrees to the signing of the -secret treaty of 3rd of January, 1815, a treaty by which Austria, -England, and France bound themselves to furnish each 150,000 men, -to support any one of the three powers which might be attacked by -other powers attempting forcibly to alter the equilibrium of Europe -for their own advantage. The names of the powers suspected were not -mentioned, and the compact entered into was essentially of a defensive -character; but it was in sympathy with French feelings; it broke up -the anti-French alliance, and gave to France the two most important -allies she could hope to gain; for England alone had formed the late -coalition, and without her a coalition could not be again formed. - -M. Thiers, who is too prone to consider that all statesmanship consists -in acquiring extensions of territory, objects to everything done by M. -de Talleyrand, and considers that this diplomatist should have waited -quietly, rather favouring Prussia and Russia, and that then these -powers would have offered France Belgium or the frontiers of the Rhine, -in which case Prussia and Russia would, he considers, have been more -advantageous allies to France than England and Austria. - -Now, of all ideas the one that seems the most extravagant to me is -that Prussia, or even Russia, would have reseated France on the Rhine, -or brought her back in any way nearer to Germany. I feel certain that -under no circumstances was this likely. But, at all events, Prussia and -Russia would only have made the strange proposal on which M. Thiers -counts, at the last extremity. - -They would have previously carried their negotiations with their late -allies to the utmost limit; and as we were prepared to make many -concessions, and did indeed finally give up one-third of Saxony to -Prussia, and as much of Poland as she could well digest to Russia, -there is not the slightest probability that, for the remaining -differences, Prussia and Russia would have purchased the aid of France -by a large increase of frontier and a deadly quarrel with Great Britain -and Austria. - -M. de Talleyrand then, in following the policy suggested by M. Thiers, -would, in the first place, have lost the opportunity which he more -wisely seized of separating the great powers; he would also have -ungenerously abandoned Saxony, and at the same time so disgusted -England, that it would afterwards have been impossible to get an -English parliament to vote a sixpence for sustaining the Bourbon cause. -Waterloo would never have been fought; Russia and Prussia could have -done little without English subsidies; and France would have been again -delivered into the hands of Napoleon, whose triumph would have been M. -de Talleyrand’s own ruin; and the ruin of the master he then served. - -As it is not my intention to enter into the general subject of the -treaty of Vienna, which I have always considered alike defective in -principle and policy, I shall not follow the negotiations I have been -alluding to further; though it may be as well, since I have spoken -of Naples, to observe that M. de Talleyrand never obtained Prince -Metternich’s attention to the dethronement of Murat until the Prussian -and Russian questions had been settled by suitable arrangements; for -Prince Metternich was too wise to have Germany and Italy on his back -at once; when, however, these arrangements were completed, and the -brother-in-law of Napoleon had compromised himself by intrigues, which -had been watched but allowed to ripen, the Austrian statesman then gave -the French ambassador a private but positive assurance that the Kingdom -of Naples should shortly be restored to its old possessors. - -As to the question of a change of residence for Napoleon, that was -decided, just as the congress was closing, by Napoleon himself; who, -not ignorant of the plans that were maturing for his removal from a -position wherein nothing but the most absurd want of consideration -could ever have placed him, engaged in that audacious enterprise, the -most glorious, though the most fatal, in his meteor-like career. - - -IX. - -It was in the midst of the gaieties of a ball on the 5th of March,[69] -and just as the congress was about to separate, that from a small group -of sovereigns collected together and betraying the seriousness of their -conversation by the gloom of their countenances, there came forth as a -sort of general murmur:-- - -“Bonaparte has escaped from Elba.” Prince Metternich, it is said, was -the only person who at once divined that the ex-Emperor’s intentions -were to march at once on Paris. The success of so bold an adventure -was, of course, doubtful; but in the hope there might still be time to -influence public opinion, a proclamation, proposed (at the instigation -of the Duke of Wellington) by Austria, and signed 13th March by France -and the four great powers, denounced the Emperor of Elba in language -only applicable to a pirate or a freebooter: a language that Louis -XVIII. had used at Paris on the 6th of March, and might use with some -propriety, but which came far less decorously from princes who had not -very long previously treated this pirate and freebooter as “the king -of kings,” and which was unsuitable to the lips of a sovereign who was -speaking of the husband of his favourite daughter. - -People, however, often cover a hesitation in their decisions by an -extravagance in their attitude. - -The idea of a new war was popular with no one; the different powers, -moreover, represented at Vienna, were no longer on the same cordial -terms of fraternity that had distinguished their relations at Paris; -they felt notwithstanding, that, in the face of a common danger they -must consider as extinguished their several rivalries and animosities, -and show themselves united and determined on the deadly combat, which -alone could, if successful, repair the effects of their imprudence and -save the honour of their arms. - -Shortly after this came the news of that glorious and soul-stirring -march through legions who, when commanded to point their bayonets at -the breast of their old commander as a traitor, wept at his knees -as a father; but this great historical romance rather strengthened -than weakened the resolves that had previously been formed; and the -proclamation of the 13th of March was soon succeeded by the treaty of -the 25th. - -This treaty, to which the four allied powers were the only principal -parties, was a revival of the treaty of Chaumont and the treaty of -Paris. The position of the Bourbons was not clearly defined; for though -Louis XVIII. was invited to be a party to it, the allies, and England -in particular, expressly declared that they did not attempt to impose -a government on France, nor bind themselves to support the claims of -the fugitive monarch. I say “fugitive monarch” because Louis XVIII. -had by this time tested the value of his adherents, and was settling -down quietly at Ghent; Napoleon being as quietly re-established in the -Tuileries. - -The secret of all that had occurred is to be stated in a few words. - -Louis XVIII. had not gained the affections of the French nation; his -predecessor had retained the affections of the French army. There was -little mystery in the intrigues of the Bonapartes. The Queen Hortense -(Comtesse de St. Leu) resided at Paris, and the conversation of her -drawing-room was a constant conspiracy, whilst the correspondence she -received was the confidence of half the capital. Barras and Fouché -both informed M. de Blacas of much that was going on, and offered -to give him more detailed information; but that gentleman’s horizon -was limited, and what he did not see he did not believe. Moreover, -the Royalists conceived that the most Christian king had gained the -consciences of the military by naming an _aumonier_, with the rank of -captain, to each regiment, and had the provinces in his hands, because -he had placed them in those of functionaries who professed hatred to -“the usurper.” “What had they to fear?” Thus, the country which had -been fatigued with the soldier and the drum, was teased by the mass and -the _émigré_. And, in the meantime, the veterans of the great army, -who saw themselves replaced by a guard of young gentlemen with good -names and splendid uniforms; and the beauties of the Empire, who found -themselves out of fashion amongst the great ladies of the legitimate -court, were at the two ends of the electric wire, which had only to be -touched by the little man in the grey great-coat, in order to vibrate -through the heart of every soldier who had ever followed the imperial -eagle, and still kept the tricolour cockade in his writing-desk or his -knapsack. - - -X. - -The conduct of M. de Talleyrand at Vienna had been that which he always -followed to any government that employed him--zealous and faithful. He -had, in short, been an active and able agent, carrying out the policy -which Louis XVIII., with whom he kept up a private correspondence, -thought the best for his dynasty and for France; and he had succeeded -in giving both dignity and influence to a government which in reality -wanted both. He had not during his foreign mission meddled with the -internal policy of the court, nor relaxed in his endeavours to serve it -on account of the faults it committed: but to his intimate friends he -had made no secret of his belief that it was taking a road which would -probably lead to ruin. When it had arrived at that goal the case was -different. He did not separate himself from it--but he did not link -himself indissolubly with it. He showed no hesitation, however, as to -declaring against its opponent. Concentrating himself indeed on the one -idea of getting rid of Napoleon, he repeated constantly to those who -expatiated on the deficiency of the Restoration, “I don’t know what -government may be the best for France, but I do know that Napoleon’s is -the worst.” - -His old master would willingly have softened this animosity; and -Fouché, who was intriguing with all parties, with the intention of -choosing the most powerful, sent M. de Montrond to Vienna to learn -what he could, as to the real intentions of the alliance, and more -especially as to the intentions of M. de Talleyrand, whose services -M. de Montrond was to endeavour, by any assurances he might judge -necessary, to obtain. - -This M. de Montrond was a specialty of his epoch: a type of that -French _roué_ whom Faublas, and more particularly the “_liaisons -dangereuses_,” had produced. He had ruled the world of fashion by his -loves, his duels, and his wit, which was superior to any man’s, for -nearly forty years. He was one of M. de Talleyrand’s pets, as M. de -Talleyrand was one of his admirations. Each spoke ill of the other, for -each said he loved the other for his vices. But no one could speak to -M. de Talleyrand with so much intimacy as M. de Montrond, nor obtain -from him so clear an answer. For they trusted each other, though M. de -Montrond would never have told any one else to trust M. de Talleyrand, -nor M. de Talleyrand told any one else to trust M. de Montrond. - -This latter gentleman, the soul of Queen Hortense’s circle, and at -the same time the friend of the Duc d’Orléans, whom he had known in -Sicily, to which island he had exiled himself in one of Napoleon’s fits -of ill-humour--not, as it was thought, without an object--first tried -to see if any consideration could bring the diplomatist, once known -as Prince de Benevent, to his old allegiance: and, on finding this -impossible, sounded him, it is said, as to his feelings towards the son -of that prince, with whose celebrated society in the Palais Royal his -early remembrances must have been familiar. The answer he obtained was -“that the door was not then open, but, should it ever be open, there -was no necessity for shutting it with vehemence.” - -This lukewarm fidelity was not precisely of the temperature that suited -the loyalty of Ghent, where some people thought that it would not have -been difficult to have induced the allies to have been more positive -and explicit in favour of the legitimate monarch, if his representative -had been more zealous as to his rights and less sensible as to his -errors. The party of the Comte d’Artois, also, instead of repenting of -the excess to which it had carried its principles, and recognizing that -this excess had been the cause of its overthrow--thought, or at least -_said_, as is usual in such cases, that its failure was caused, not -by the policy it had pursued, but by the checks which that policy had -encountered. - - -XI. - -M. de Talleyrand, then, was more or less in disgrace with the -politicians, who were already disputing about the redistribution of the -places that their mistakes had just lost; and, bearing this disgrace -with his usual supercilious negligence, declared that his health -required the waters of Carlsbad, observing that a diplomatist’s first -duty after a congress was to take care of his liver. - -In the meantime the hundred days which concentrated so much of the -past, present, and future, were rushing rapidly on. I know no example -that teaches us more clearly that our intellect is governed by our -character, than that which is to be found in the conduct of Napoleon -during these hundred days. None saw more clearly than himself that -prudence and policy advised that he should either appear before the -French as the great captain who came to free them from a yoke imposed -by the foreigner; and refuse any other title than that of their general -until a peace was established or a victory gained: or that he should -seize the full powers of dictator, and sustain them by his prestige -over the military and the masses, arming and revolutionizing France, -and being himself the representative of that armed revolution. But he -loved the title and decorations of sovereignty, and could not induce -himself to descend from the emperor to the soldier. Neither could he -persuade himself to call to life those elements of force in which he -saw the elements of disorder, nor condescend to be the chief of the -mob even with the title of majesty. He temporised, therefore, for the -moment with those with whom he had the least sympathy, and from whom -he could get the least assistance; I mean the Constitutionalists, -who, representing the middle order and the thinking portion of the -French people, formed a party, that with a regular government, and -at an ordinary time, and under a sovereign they could have trusted, -might have possessed considerable influence, but such a party, with a -government created by the sword, at the moment of a crisis, under a -ruler of whom they were suspicious, could only embarrass Napoleon’s -action, and could not add to his authority. - -The conditions, then, under which this marvellous being fought for the -last time for empire were impossible. He had not in his character the -elements of a revolutionary leader; and he was not allowed to use the -qualities, with which nature had endowed him, of a great captain and -despotic chief. - -His cool head, his incomparable energy, gave something like character -and system to his own military proceedings, but all beyond them was -confusion. A great battle was to be safety or ruin. He fought it, and -was vanquished; but he had fought it with skill and courage against -foreign invaders; and I confess that my heart, though an English one, -beats in sympathy for him, as he quitted the field where he left so -many of his devoted followers, and, prescient of the fate which awaited -him, sought a city which never tolerates the unfortunate. Would for -England’s honour that his destiny had closed on that memorable field, -and that we had not to inscribe on the same page of our history the -captivity of St. Helena and the victory of Waterloo! - - -XII. - -To return to Ghent; the ex-King, irritated and perplexed by the -prolonged absence of his minister, not satisfied with that of the Duc -d’Orléans, who had retired to England, and harassed by the zeal of -Monsieur, had conducted himself, notwithstanding, with dignity and -ability; and, by a sort of representation about his person, a continued -correspondence with France, and a confident attachment on the part of -his adherents, kept up a certain prestige in his favour. - -Nothing, however, had at first been positively decided concerning him, -for M. de Metternich carried on, for a time, a secret negotiation with -Fouché, in which he offered--if that false and wily man could procure -Napoleon’s abdication or deposition--to support the claims of either -the Duc d’Orléans or Marie-Louise: a proposition which, as long as its -success was uncertain, could not but affect considerably the state of -M. de Talleyrand’s liver. - -This negotiation once broken off, Louis’ claims made a great advance, -since the allied sovereigns were strongly persuaded that on entering -France they must have some national party in their favour. - -There were certain indications likewise in France itself, serving to -show men who watched the inclination of the many straws that were then -in the air, that these were being blown back towards the old monarchy; -and when Louis XVIII. saw that the list of Bonaparte’s senators did not -contain the name of M. de Semonville, he considered his return pretty -secure. - -The same conviction arrived about the same time at Carlsbad, where the -distinguished invalid began to think that he ought no longer to delay a -personal account of the services he had rendered at Vienna. - -His arrival at Ghent was not, however, particularly agreeable there, -since he came as the decided enemy of the now celebrated M. de Blacas, -to whom he was determined to attribute nearly all the errors which the -King had committed. - -In fact, M. de Talleyrand’s disgrace was resolved upon; and, as he -was rarely the last to know what concerned himself, when he waited on -Louis XVIII. the day after the battle of Waterloo, it was to request -his gracious permission to continue his cure at Carlsbad; nor was -his Majesty so ill-natured as to reply otherwise than by saying: -“Certainly, M. de Talleyrand; I hear those waters are excellent.” - -Nothing could equal the amiable and contented mien with which M. de -Talleyrand limped from his most Christian Majesty’s presence after -this considerate reply; and, eating an excellent dinner that evening -with the mayor of Mons, he was never known, says one of the guests, -to be more gay, witty, or agreeable;--dilating to one or two of his -intimate friends on the immense pleasure it was to find that he had no -longer to disturb himself about the affairs of a clique which it was -impossible to serve and to please. - -But, as it happened, the Comte d’Artois, who hated M. de Talleyrand -as a liberal, hated M. de Blacas still more as a favourite; and Louis -XVIII. finding that, whatever happened to M. de Talleyrand, M. de -Blacas could not be kept, and that he (the king) must either be the -tool of his brother, or obtain a protector in his minister, preferred, -on the whole, the latter situation. - -The Duke of Wellington, moreover, who, since the secret treaty at -Vienna, considered the French negotiator there as linked with the -policy of England, told Louis that if he wished for the influence of -our government, he must have a man at the head of his own in whom he -could confide. - -M. Guizot, likewise, who, though young in affairs had acquired, even -thus early, much consideration, and who spoke in the name of the -constitutional Legitimists, had already said that, to have the support -of this small but respectable party, a cabinet must be formed with M. -de Talleyrand at its head; and thus, on those second thoughts which -come to us often when we have been a little too hasty and bold in -listening to our first, M. de Talleyrand received the order to join -the King at Cambrai the day after he had been allowed to proceed to -Carlsbad. - -M. de Talleyrand was, however, not only mortified by the treatment he -had received, but foresaw that he had only such treatment eventually to -expect, and was determined to prefer the first recommendation to the -subsequent command. - -There are many, however, anxious that a statesman from whom they expect -favours should not abjure office; and, finally, the man of the first -Restoration, his pride being satisfied by a general appeal to his -patriotism, agreed to appear again as the minister of a second. - -Still, in coming to this determination, M. de Talleyrand adopted -another. He had frequently, it is said, blamed himself for having in -1814 allowed the sovereign, who could not have done without him, to -assume too absolute an authority over him. He did not now expect to be -at the head of the French Government long, but he deemed that his only -chance of remaining there, or of doing any good whilst he was there, -was to show an indifference to office, and a consciousness of power. - -He appeared, then, when summoned to his Majesty’s council, with a -sketch of a proclamation which he called upon the King to sign, and -which was, in fact, a recognition of the errors of his Majesty’s late -reign. - -As the conversation that took place on the reading of this proclamation -is related by a witness, I give it as narrated, the more especially -as it shows the position which M. de Talleyrand assumed, and the cool -self-confidence with which he confronted the indignation of the whole -Bourbon family.[70] - -“The Council assembles: it was composed of MM. de Talleyrand, Dambray, -de Feltre, de Fancourt, Beurnonville, and myself” (M. de Beugnot is -speaking). - -“After a few words from M. de Talleyrand, explanatory of the subject -which was to be brought before the Council, I commenced reading the -proclamation, such as it remained after the corrections made in it; the -King permitted me to read it to the end, and then, though not without -some emotion that his face betrayed, told me to read it once more. - -“Monsieur then spoke, and complained bitterly of the terms in which -the proclamation was drawn up. ‘The King,’ he said, ‘is made to ask -pardon for the faults he committed. He is made to say that he allowed -himself to be carried away by his affections, and that for the future -he will conduct himself differently. Such expressions can only do this -mischief--lower royalty; for in all other respects they say too much or -too little.’ - -“M. de Talleyrand replied: ‘Monsieur will pardon me if I differ from -him; I find these expressions necessary, and appropriately placed. The -King has had faults, his affections have misled him. There is nothing -too much in this paper.’ ‘Is it I?’ said Monsieur, ‘whom it is intended -indirectly to point out?’ ‘Why, yes, since Monsieur has placed the -discussion on that ground, Monsieur has done a great deal of harm.’ -‘The Prince de Talleyrand forgets himself.’ ‘I fear so, but truth -carries me away.’ The Duc de Berry, with the accent of anger painfully -restrained: ‘Nothing but the presence of the King would permit me to -tolerate this treatment of my father before me, and I would like to -know----’ At these words, pronounced in a higher tone than the rest, -the King made a sign to the Duc de Berry, and said, ‘Enough, my nephew; -I am the only person to judge of the propriety of what is said in my -presence, and in my Council. Gentlemen, I neither approve of the terms -of this proclamation, nor of the conversation to which it has given -rise. The framer must retouch his work, not forgetting that when I -speak, it must be with a due sense of my dignity and high position.’ -The Duc de Berry, pointing at me: ‘But it is not he who has strung -all this nonsense together.’ The King: ‘Forbear interrupting, nephew, -if you please. I repeat, gentlemen, that I have listened to this -discussion with much regret. Let us turn to another subject.’” - - -XIII. - -The proclamation with some slight alterations was published, and M. -de Talleyrand finally carried his point, and formed his ministry. It -is difficult to place oneself so completely in the troubled scene of -Paris at this time, amidst the confused society composed of a defeated -army, disappointed Republicans, triumphant Royalists, all uneasy and -agitated in their actual position, and without the possibility of a -common attachment to what was to be their government--it is difficult, -I say, to take into a comprehensive glance the confused and troubled -state of the French capital, disturbed by a thousand plots which might -at any moment concentrate into one--and, therefore, it is difficult to -appreciate the possible necessity of employing an able and dexterous -adventurer, who had pulled many of the cords of the machine which had -now to be brought into harmonious working. Still, I venture to consider -that the Duke of Wellington committed an error in recommending, and -M. de Talleyrand an error in accepting, M. Fouché as a member of the -cabinet about to be formed. - -The late minister of police was, in fact, at this time, an acknowledged -scoundrel; he had gained our favour by betraying his master’s secrets -to our general; he had gained the favour of the extreme Royalists by -concealing their plots, and keeping safe their persons when he was -serving the government they were attempting to overthrow. He had -betrayed the Republicans of France to the Emperor of France, and he had -subsequently betrayed the Emperor of France to the foreigner; and he -had voted for the death of the brother of the monarch who was now to -sit upon the throne. It was impossible for a man of this sort, whatever -his abilities, not to bring ultimate disgrace on the government that -enrolled him in its ranks; and, in fact, by his successive efforts, -first to gain one party, and then to gain the other, by his personal -ambition, by his constant intrigues, and by the general distrust he -inspired, he deprived his colleagues of the consideration of all honest -men, and exposed them consequently to the attacks of all violent -factions. - -But if England committed a fault in approving of the appointment of the -Duc d’Otrante, she committed another fault still more important. - -In designating M. de Talleyrand as the man best calculated to establish -a government in France, and to consolidate an alliance between France -and England, we ought to have been prepared to render the position of -that minister tenable and honourable. Whether rightly or wrongly, we, -in common with the other four powers, had made war, for a second time, -on precisely the same principles on which we had made it for the first; -since we had made it with the same declaration, that our conflict was -with a man, and not with a nation. Our second peace, therefore, ought -to have been in strict conformity with our first, or, rather, our first -treaty of peace should have been maintained. We were dealing with the -same monarch under the same circumstances, and we ought to have done -so, preserving the same conditions. - -If new circumstances of importance,--circumstances we had not -foreseen,--rendered a change of policy necessary, that change should -have been a large one, based on large considerations, and its necessity -should have been clearly explained. - -To take a few strips of territory, and a few pictures and statues, was -the spite of the pigmy, not the anger of the giant. - -Unfortunately, the power which rendered itself conspicuous for its -animosity, was one which had been conspicuous for its valour. The -descendant of all the Capets was insulted by the dirty linen of the -Prussian soldier hung up to dry on the railing of his palace; and the -intention of the Prussian army to blow up the bridge of Jena was only -averted by M. de Talleyrand’s timely precautions. - -The story is recounted in rather an amusing manner by a gentleman I -have frequently cited, and is characteristic of the subject of this -memoir. - -M. de Talleyrand, on hearing what the Prussians were about to do, -and knowing in these occasions no time was to be lost, ordered M. de -Beugnot to find Marshal Blücher wherever he might be, and to use the -strongest language in his vocabulary on the part of the King and his -government in order to induce the marshal to give such peremptory -orders as would prevent the threatened outrage. “Shall I say,” said M. -de Beugnot, “that the King will have himself carried to the bridge, and -be blown up with it?” “Not precisely; people will not believe us quite -so heroic, but say something strong, very strong.” - -Off went M. de Beugnot to discover the marshal, who was easily to be -found in a certain gambling house in the Palais Royal. Though by no -means delighted at being disturbed in his only amusement, the marshal, -on being assured that the name of the bridge was to be altered, gave -the orders for stopping its destruction. - -When M. de Beugnot returned, and gave an account of his mission, M. de -Talleyrand said, good-humouredly, “Well, now I think that we may profit -by your idea of this morning. You remember the King threatened to be -carried to the bridge, and was prepared to be blown up with it. It will -make a good newspaper article.” “I profited,” says Beugnot, “by the -hint.” The anecdote appeared in all the papers, and the King received -the compliments made to him upon it with his accustomed affability and -assurance.[71] - -But this was not all. The violent seizure of the works of art which -France had till then retained, and which might justifiably have been -taken away at the first capture of Paris, was this time an unwarranted -robbery, against which the King and his ministers could only protest -in a manner which seemed offensive to the conquerors and feeble to the -French people. - -The payment of a large indemnity, the maintenance of a large foreign -army, to be supported by France for seven years for the suppression -of its own action and independence, were conditions that no French -minister could sign with dignity, and least of all the minister who had -taken so active a part with the coalition. - -Having assisted at the appointment of a French government which was -friendly to good relations with England, and it being our predominant -interest to be on good terms with the French nation, we should have -firmly resisted the imposition of such disgraceful conditions. - -The natural consequence of our not doing so was that the Emperor -Alexander, who had never forgiven M. de Talleyrand for his conduct -at the recent congress, did not now disguise his personal antipathy -to him, and told Louis XVIII. that he had nothing to expect from the -cabinet of St. Petersburg as long as M. de Talleyrand was at the -head of that of the Tuileries; but that, if his Majesty gave M. de -Talleyrand’s place to M. de Richelieu, he (the Emperor) would then do -what he could to mitigate the severity of the conditions that all the -allies now peremptorily demanded. - - -XIV. - -The Duc de Richelieu, illustrious by his name, and with a character -which did honour to that name, was one of those nobles who, when the -state of France rendered it impossible as they thought to take an -active part in their own country, could not, nevertheless, submit -themselves to the useless inactivity of an _émigré’s_ life in the -suburbs of London. He sought his fortune then in Russia, and found it -in the Emperor Alexander’s favour, at whose desire he undertook the -government of the Crimea, and marked his administration by an immense -progress in the condition of that country. - -The new order of things made him again a Frenchman; but, diffident of -his own powers, he was far from being ambitious of office, and even -declined it at the first Restoration. But the public has frequently a -tendency to give people what it is thought they don’t want, and there -was a pretty general feeling that M. de Richelieu was a man destined to -figure politically in his native land. His air was noble, his manners -were polished and courteous, his honesty and straightforwardness -proverbial, his habits of business regular, his abilities moderate; but -there was that about him which is felt and cannot be defined, and which -points out persons for the first places, if they are to have any places -at all. Every one acknowledged then that if the Duc de Richelieu was to -be a minister, he should be the first minister. - -The King was delighted to get rid of M. de Talleyrand, whose presence -reminded him of an obligation, and whose easy air of superiority was -disagreeable to his pride. But it was deemed prudent to wait the result -of the elections that were then pending. - -They were decidedly unfavourable to the existing administration. A -government, in fact, can only be moderate when it is strong, and the -government of M. de Talleyrand was weak, for the only efficient support -it could have had against the court party, was that of the King’s -favour, and this support it had not got. - -Thus, the Royalists, emboldened by the foreign armies which were, so to -speak, holding a rod over their opponents, acted with the force of a -party which considered it must be victorious,--and carried all before -it. - -For a moment, M. de Talleyrand seemed disposed to resist the coming -reaction, and even obtained the creation of some peers, whom the -King unwillingly consented to name for that purpose. But, exposed to -the violent hostility of the Emperor of Russia, and not having the -active friendship of Great Britain, he saw that the struggle could not -succeed; and, whilst foreseeing and foretelling that his retirement -would be the commencement of a policy that would eventually link France -with the despotic governments of the continent in a war against liberal -opinions, he resigned on the national ground that he could not sign -such a treaty as the allies now proposed; and on the 24th of September -ceased to be prime minister of France. - -Louis XVIII. rewarded his retirement with an annual pension of -one hundred thousand francs, and the high court charge of great -chamberlain, the functions of which, by the way, the ex-minister, who -might be seen coolly and impassively standing behind the King’s chair -on all state occasions, notwithstanding the cold looks of the sovereign -and the sagacious sneers of his courtiers, always scrupulously -fulfilled. - -In their last official interview, his Majesty observed: - -“You see to what circumstances oblige me: I have to thank you for your -zeal, you are without reproach, and may remain unmolested at Paris.”[72] - -This phrase pierced through the usual coolness of the person it was -addressed to. He replied with some vehemence: - -“I have had the happiness of rendering sufficiently important services -to the King, to believe that they are not forgotten. I cannot -understand then what could oblige me to quit Paris. I shall remain -there, and shall be too happy to find that the counsels which the King -receives will not be such as to compromise his dynasty and France.”[73] - -As these remarks were made on either side before the cabinet, and -subsequently repeated, they may be considered authentic. - - - - -PART VI. - -FROM THE RETIREMENT OF M. DE TALLEYRAND TO THE REVOLUTION OF 1830. - - M. de Talleyrand’s retirement from public affairs during - the period which closed with the dethronement of Charles - X.--Appearance in the House of Peers on two occasions, to - protest against the Spanish war and to defend the liberty - of the press.--Reasons for the course he pursued.--Share - in the advent of Louis Philippe.--Accepts the embassy to - London.--Conduct and policy when there.--Retires after - the Quadruple Alliance.--Discourse in the Institute on M. - Reinhard.--Death.--Summary of character. - - -I. - -M. de Talleyrand gave a proof of his sagacity when he foresaw that, -with the violent Royalists entering into power under a minister -named by the Autocrat of the North, a state of things was preparing -that would lead to a war of opinion throughout Europe, and unite the -governments that could not support liberal institutions with that party -in the French nation which repudiated them. He was equally sagacious -in retiring voluntarily from affairs, and doing so on national and not -on party grounds. But at the same time he could not long have remained -at the head of a parliamentary government, even had he been free from -the peculiar difficulty which then surrounded him. To direct affairs -with such a government, in critical times, one must have some of the -passions of those times. M. de Talleyrand, as I have said at the -beginning of this sketch, had no passions. - -He represented the power of reason; but that power, which predominates -at the end of every crisis, has its voice drowned at the commencement. -His administration then was necessarily doomed: but he had at least the -credit of having endeavoured, first to prevent and then to moderate -those acts of vengeance which a minority that obtains the supremacy -always wishes to inflict on an adverse majority: for he furnished -passports and even money (the budget of foreign affairs was charged -with four hundred and fifty-nine thousand francs for this purpose) to -all who felt desirous to quit France--Ney, though he did not profit by -the indulgence, might have done so. The list of proscriptions at first -contained one hundred persons, M. de Talleyrand reduced that number -to fifty-seven.[74] Labédoyère--and this owing entirely to his own -imprudence, in obliging the government either to release him publicly -or to bring him to trial--was the only victim of an administration -which wished to be moderate when every one was violent. - -A most memorable epoch in French history now commenced--the -constitutional education of the French nation. It went through a -variety of vicissitudes. For a time the Royalist reaction, headed by -the Comte d’Artois, prevailed. It was then for a moment stopped by -the jealousy of Louis XVIII., who felt that France was in reality -being governed by his brother, who could ride on horseback. After a -short struggle the conflict between the two princes ceased, and M. de -Villelle with more or less adroitness governed them both. The elder -at last was deprived by death of the sceptre he had ceased to wield -independently, and with the ardent desire he had ever felt to be loved -by his countrymen, Charles X. legitimately commenced his right of -ruling them. But a hesitating policy of conciliation producing after a -short effort but a doubtful result, another policy was resolved upon. -The King would show that he was king, and he selected a ministry ready -to be his soldiers in a battle against popular ideas. The battle was -fought: the King was vanquished. So passed the time from 1815 to 1830. - -Within this epoch of fifteen years, during which it must be said that -France, however agitated and divided, made an immense progress under -the institutions that she owed in no small degree to M. de Talleyrand, -that statesman was little more than a spectator of passing events. -The new patriots, orators, journalists, generals of the day, occupied -public attention, and he ceased to be considered except as one of those -characters of history that have been too interesting in their day to be -consigned quietly to posterity. Moreover, the judgment passed on him -from time to time by contemporaneous writers was usually superficial -and sometimes supercilious. - -As to the deputies whom local influence and the zeal of parties -returned to the lower chamber, they were for the most part unknown to -him by their antecedents, and not worth knowing for their merits. - -In the upper chamber, where men of high rank and intellectual eminence -were certainly to be found, his personal influence was not great; the -sympathies and recollections of that chamber, whether amongst the old -Royalists or most distinguished Bonapartists, were against him. There -was no one consequently to press him to take part in its debates, -nor were there many subjects of discussion sufficiently important to -arouse his indolence, and call forth with dignity the exertions of a -statesman who had played so great a part amidst the great events of -that marvellous period through which his career had run. - -On one memorable occasion, however, he stepped boldly forward to -claim--if affairs took the course which many thought most probable--the -first place in a new system: this was when war, in 1823, was declared -against Spain. - - -II. - -That war was commenced by M. de Châteaubriand, who had always been M. -de Talleyrand’s antipathy, not merely as a war against the Spanish -people, or in support of the Spanish monarch, but as a war which was -to be considered an armed declaration in favour of ultra-monarchical -principles, thus justifying all the previsions with which M. de -Talleyrand had quitted office. A victory was certain to deliver France -into the hands of the ultra-Royalist party; defeat or difficulty -was as certain to give power to more moderate men and more moderate -opinions. In the one case, M. de Talleyrand had nothing to hope; in -the other, it was necessary to fix attention on the fact that he had -predicated misfortune. The struggle in Spain, moreover, depended -greatly on the state of public opinion; and this alone made it -advisable to endeavour to create as strong a belief as possible that -men of weight and consideration looked upon it with apprehension and -disfavour. It was under these circumstances that M. de Talleyrand -expressed the following opinion:[75] - -“Messieurs,” this impressive discourse commences, “il y a aujourd’hui -seize ans qu’appellé par celui qui gouvernait alors le monde à lui -dire mon avis sur une lutte à engager avec le peuple espagnol, j’eus -le malheur de lui déplaire, en lui dévoilant l’avenir, en révélant -tous les dangers qui allaient naître en foule d’une aggression non -moins injuste que téméraire. La disgrâce fut le prix de ma sincérité. -Etrange destinée, que celle qui me ramène après ce long espace de temps -à renouveler auprès du souverain légitime les mêmes efforts, les mêmes -conseils. Le discours de la couronne a fait disparaître les dernières -espérances de amis de la paix, et, menaçant pour l’Espagne, il est, -je dois le dire, alarmant pour la France.… Oui, j’aurai le courage de -dire toute la vérité. Ces mêmes sentiments chevaleresques qui, en 1789, -entraînaient les cœurs généreux, n’ont pu sauver la monarchie légitime, -ils peuvent encore la perdre en 1823.” - -The Spanish war, in spite of these alarming prognostications, was -successful; and courtiers sneered not unnaturally at the statesman -who had denounced it. But if M. de Talleyrand had not shown his usual -foresight, he had not acted contrary to his usual prudence. People, -in deciding on the conduct they should adopt, can only calculate upon -probabilities, and must, after all, as Machiavelli with his worldly -experience observes, “leave much to chance.” This sort of prophecy, -contained in the speech I have just quoted from, had a good deal in its -favour; M. de Châteaubriand himself had, as I once heard from the lips -of a person to whom he spoke confidentially, the most serious doubts -as to the issue of the approaching campaign; though he considered -that its happy termination would firmly establish the Bourbons as -sovereigns in France, and himself as their prime minister: in both of -which conclusions he was wrong, though it seemed likely he would be -right. The contemplated enterprise was, in fact, unpopular; the prince -at its head was without capacity, the generals around him were on ill -terms with each other, the soldiers themselves of doubtful allegiance. -A considerable body of Frenchmen and some French soldiers were in the -enemies’ ranks, and were about, in the name of liberty and Napoleon -II., to make an appeal, from the opposite shore of the Bidassoa, to -their advancing comrades. - -The courage of the nation now attacked had on many occasions been -remarkable; the discipline of its armies had been lately improved; -the policy of England was uncertain; the credit of France was far -from good. These were all fair elements out of which it was by no -means unreasonable to concoct a disastrous presage, which, like many -presages, had a tendency to realise itself. But more especially it -should be observed that the predictions of M. de Talleyrand, if -unfortunate, would do him no harm, and if fortunate, would replace him -on the pinnacle of power. - - -III. - -The ex-minister of Louis XVIII. thus revived the recollections of the -ex-minister of Napoleon le Grand; as already the member of the Chamber -of Peers had vindicated the principles of the veteran of the National -Assembly; for on the 24th of July, 1821, we find him expressing the -same sentiments in favour of the liberty of the press after practical -experience, which at the commencement of his career he had proclaimed -with theoretical anticipations. - -As the question at issue is not yet solved in the country he was -addressing, it may not be without interest to hear what he says:[76] - -“Without the liberty of the press there can be no representative -government; it is one of its essential instruments--its chief -instrument, in fact: every government has its principles, and we cannot -remember too often that frequently those principles which are excellent -for one government are detestable for another. It has been abundantly -demonstrated by several members of this House, both in this and the -preceding session, that without the liberty of the press representative -government does not exist. I will not, then, repeat what you have -already heard or read, and which is no doubt the frequent subject of -your reflections. - -“But there are two points of view in which it appears to me the -question has not been sufficiently treated, and which I resolve into -two propositions: - -“1st. The liberty of the press is a necessity of the time. - -“2nd. A government exposes itself when it obstinately refuses, and that -for a lengthened period, what the time proclaims as necessary. - -“The _mind is never completely stationary_. The discovery of -yesterday is only a means to arrive at a fresh discovery to-morrow. -One is nevertheless justified in affirming that it _appears to act -by impulses, because there are moments when it appears particularly -desirous of bringing forth--of producing; at others, on the contrary, -when, satisfied by its conquests, it appears to rest itself, and is -occupied in putting the treasures it has acquired in order, rather than -in seeking after new ones_. The seventeenth century was one of these -fortunate epochs. The human intellect, dazzled by the immense riches -which the art of printing had put at its disposal, paused to gaze in -admiration on the wondrous sight. Giving itself up entirely to the -enjoyment of letters, science, and art, its glory and happiness became -concentrated in the production of masterpieces. All the great men of -the time of Louis XIV. vied with each other in embellishing a social -order, beyond which they saw nothing, and desired nothing, and which -appeared to them made to last as long as the glory of the great king, -the object alike of their respect and of their enthusiasm. But when -they had exhausted the fertile mine of antiquity, their intelligent -activity found itself almost compelled to search elsewhere, and -discovered nothing new, except in speculative studies that embrace all -the future, and of which the limits are unknown. It was amidst these -dispositions that the eighteenth century dawned--a century so little -resembling the preceding one. To the poetical lessons of Telemachus -succeeded the theories of ‘the _Esprit des Lois_,’ and Port Royal was -replaced by the Encyclopædia. - -“I pray you to observe, gentlemen, that I neither censure nor approve: -I simply relate. - -“In calling to mind all the calamities poured out upon France during -the Revolution, we must not be altogether unjust towards those superior -men that brought it about; and we ought not to forget, that if in -their writings they have not always been able to avoid falling into -error, we owe to them the revelation of some great truths. Above all, -let us not forget that we ought not to make them responsible for the -precipitation with which France rushed practically into a career which -her philosophers merely indicated. Thoughts were turned at once into -action, and one might well say, ‘Woe to him who in his foolish pride -would go beyond the necessities of his epoch! Some abyss or revolution -awaits him.’ But when we simply follow the necessity of an epoch, we -are certain not to go astray. - -“Now, gentlemen, do you wish to know what were in 1789 the real -necessities of that epoch? Turn to the mandates of the different orders -represented in the National Assembly. _All that were then the reflected -wishes of enlightened men are what I call necessities._ The Constituent -Assembly was only their interpreter when it proclaimed liberty of -worship, equality before the law, individual liberty, the right of -jurisdiction (that no one should be deprived of his natural judges), -_the liberty of the press_. - -“It was little in accordance with its epoch when it instituted a single -chamber, when it destroyed the royal sanction, when it tortured the -conscience, &c. &c. And, nevertheless, in spite of its faults, of -which I have only cited a small number--faults followed by such great -calamities--posterity which has begun for it accords to it the glory of -establishing the foundation of our new public rights. - -“_Let us hold, then, for certain, that all that is desired, that -all that is proclaimed good and useful by all the enlightened men -of a country, without variation, during a series of years diversely -occupied, is a necessity of the times._ Such, gentlemen, is the liberty -of the press. I address myself to all those amongst you who are more -particularly my contemporaries--was it not the dear object and wish -of all those excellent men whom we so admired in our youth--the -Malesherbes, the Trudaines--who surely were well worth the statesmen -we have had since? The place which the men I have named occupy in -our memories amply proves that the liberty of the press consolidates -legitimate renown; and if it destroys usurped reputations, where is the -harm? - -“Having proved my first proposition, that the liberty of the press is -in France the necessary result of the state of its society, it remains -for me to establish my second proposition--that a government is in -danger when it obstinately refuses what the state or spirit of its -society requires. - -“The most tranquil societies, and those which ought to be the most -happy, always number amongst them a certain class of men who hope -to acquire by the means of disorder those riches which they do not -possess, and that importance which they ought never to have. Is -it prudent to furnish the enemies of social order with pretexts -for discontent, without which their individual efforts to promote -disturbance would be impotent? - -“Society in its progressive march is destined to experience new wants. -_I can perfectly understand that governments ought not to be in any -hurry to recognise them; but when it has once recognised them_, to take -back what it has given, or, what comes to the same thing, to be always -suspending its exercise, is a temerity of which I more than any one -desire that those who conceived _the convenient_ and _fatal thought_ -may not have to repent. The good faith of a government should never be -compromised. _Now-a-days, it is not easy to deceive for long. There is -some one who has more intelligence than Voltaire; more intelligence -than Bonaparte; more intelligence than each of the Directors--than -each of the ministers, past, present, and to come. That some one is -everybody._ To engage in, or at least to persist in, a struggle against -what according to general belief is a public interest, is a political -fault,--and at this day all political faults are dangerous. - -“When the press is free--when each one knows that his interests are or -will be defended--all wait with patience a justice more or less tardy. -Hope supports, and with reason, for this hope cannot be deceived for -long; but when the press is enslaved, when no voice can be raised, -discontent will soon exact, on the part of the government, either too -much concession or too much repression.” - -On the 26th of February, 1822, M. de Talleyrand spoke on the same -subject, commenting on the rights accorded by, and the intentions which -had presided over, the charter. Such efforts on such subjects preserved -for his name a national character, and connected the most memorable -acts of his own career with the most ardent aspirations of his country. - - -IV. - -Still, notwithstanding these occasional appearances on the public -stage, it is certain that the easy though momentary triumph of a cause -of which he had somewhat solemnly announced the almost certain defeat, -disgusted him from further meddling in affairs, and much of his time -was afterwards passed out of Paris, at Valençay, the estate which he -meant should be ancestral, in Touraine. His fortune, moreover, was -much affected by the bankruptcy of a commercial house in which he had -engaged himself as what we call a “sleeping partner.” Nevertheless -he held, when in the capital, a great existence:--his drawing-room -becoming to the Restoration what it had been to the best days of the -Empire--a rival court, and a court which gathered to itself all the -eminences of the old times, and all the rising young men of the new. - -There, from his easy-chair, drawn up to the window which looks upon the -Tuileries, and surrounded by those who had acted in the past with him, -or who might make a future for him, he read with pleased composure the -fall of ministry after ministry on the flushed countenance of the eager -deputy rushing to or from the fatal vote; until, at the nomination -of M. de Polignac, he repeated calmly to those about him, the phrase -he is said to have pronounced after the Russian campaign: “_C’est -le commencement de la fin_.” Indeed, ever since the dismissal of the -National Guard, and the failure of M. de Martignac’s ministry, which, -tried as it was and at the time it was, could not but fail, he spoke -without reserve, though always with expressions of regret, to those in -his intimacy, of the extreme peril to which the legitimate monarchy -was hurrying; and he could do this with the more certainty, from the -knowledge he possessed of Charles X.’s character, the good and bad -qualities of which he considered equally dangerous. - - -V. - -The following account of the share which M. de Talleyrand took in the -new Revolution, that, after many ominous preludes, at last took place, -was given me by an actor in the history he relates. - -For the first two days of the insurrection, viz., the 27th and 28th -of July, M. de Talleyrand said little or nothing, remaining quietly -at home and refusing himself to all inquirers. On the third day he -called to him his private secretary, and with that winning manner he -knew so well how to adopt when he had any object to gain, said to him: -“M. C----, I have a favour to request of you; go for me to St. Cloud” -(the service was one of some danger and difficulty), “see if the royal -family are still there, or what they are doing.” The secretary went and -found Charles X. just departing for Rambouillet. M. de Talleyrand, who -had during his messenger’s absence seen General Sebastiani, General -Gerard, and two or three other influential persons of the same party -and opinions, on hearing that the King had quitted St. Cloud, retired -to his room and remained there alone for about two hours, when he -again sent for the same gentleman, and this time his manners were, if -possible, more persuasive than before. “I have yet another and greater -favour to ask, M. C----. Go for me to Neuilly; get by some means or -other to Madame Adelaide;[77] give her this piece of paper, and when -she has read it, either see it burnt or bring it back to me.” The -piece of paper contained merely these words: “Madame peut avoir toute -confiance dans le porteur, qui est mon secrétaire.” “When madame has -read this, you will tell her that there is not a moment to lose. The -Duc d’Orléans must be here to-morrow; he must take no other title than -that of Lieutenant-general of the Kingdom, which has been accorded to -him--‘_le reste viendra_.’” - -With this confidential message, M. C---- started. With great -difficulty--for the gates of Neuilly were closed to every one--he got -to the château and to Madame. On saying that he brought a message -from M. de Talleyrand, “Ah, ce bon prince, j’étais sûre qu’il ne nous -oublierait pas!”[78] The messenger then delivered his credentials -and his message. “Tell the prince that I will pledge my word for my -brother’s following his advice. He shall be in Paris to-morrow,” -was the reply; after which M. C---- had the courage to ask, though -with some hesitation, that the piece of paper should be destroyed -or returned. It was given back to him, and he restored it to M. de -Talleyrand, who did not, by the way, forget to ask for it. It only -remains to say that the Duc d’Orléans did come to Paris the following -day; did only take the title of Lieutenant-general; and that the rest -did, as M. de Talleyrand had predicted, follow. Thus ended the last -Revolution with which this singular man was blended. - -When the message he sent arrived, the future king of the French was -concealed, the conduct he seemed likely to pursue uncertain; and those -who know anything of revolutions will be aware of the value of a day -and an hour. Moreover, this prince got to the throne by the very door -which M. de Talleyrand had warned Louis XVIII. to close, viz., a -constitution proceeding _from_ the people. - -Nor is this all: the knowledge that M. de Talleyrand had recognised, -and even been concerned in establishing, the new dynasty, had no slight -influence on the opinion formed of it in other courts, and might be -said more especially to have decided our own important and immediate -recognition of it. He himself was then offered the post of minister of -foreign affairs, but he saw it was more difficult and less important -than that of ambassador to St. James’, and while he refused the first -position he accepted the last. - - -VI. - -The choice was a fortunate one. No one else could have supplied the -place of M. de Talleyrand in England at that juncture; he knew well and -personally both the Duke of Wellington and Lord Grey, the chiefs of the -opposing parties, and it was perhaps his presence at the British court, -more than any other circumstance of the time, which preserved, in a -crisis when all the elements of war were struggling to get loose, that -universal peace which for so many years remained unbroken. - -With a firm conviction, indeed, of the necessity of this peace, he took -the best and only course for maintaining it. An ordinary diplomatist -is occupied with the thousand small affairs passing through his hands, -and the thousand ideas of more or less importance connected with them. -M. de Talleyrand’s great talent, as I have more than once said, was -in selecting at once in every affair the most _important question_ of -the moment, and in sacrificing, without delay or scruple, whatever was -necessary to attain his object with respect to that question. - -He saw that the peaceful acceptance of the Orleans’ dynasty could be -obtained, and could only be obtained, by being on good terms with -England. A quarrel with us was an European war; a good understanding -with us rendered such a war unlikely, almost impossible. Belgium was -the especial question on which all earlier negotiations turned, and -on which the amity of our government depended. That country, smarting -under many real, and irritated by the thought of many fancied, -grievances, had thrown off the Dutch yoke. The Dutch troops, who -with a little more vigour might have been victorious, had retreated, -beaten, from Brussels; the frontier fortresses were in the hands of -the insurgents, and it is no use disguising the fact that there was, -is, and ever will be, a considerable party in France in favour of -extending the French frontier, and comprising Antwerp within the -French dominions. England, however, was not then disposed, and probably -will not at any time be disposed, with statesmen caring for the safety -of their country, to submit to this. She had, in fact, as I have said -at the peace of 1814, provided especially, as she thought, for the -safety of the Netherlands, by the amalgamation of the Belgian and Dutch -provinces into one kingdom, and by the fortresses which she had built -or repaired for protecting that kingdom. - -This policy was now overthrown, and could not be reconstructed without -exciting the warlike and excited spirit of the French people. On -the other hand, we could only make a limited sacrifice to French -susceptibility and ambition. Much skill then was necessary on the -part of all persons, but more especially on the part of the French -negotiator, to avoid any serious wound to the interests of the one -nation, or to the feelings of the other. There was a call, in short, -for the steadiest discretion without any change of purpose; and all -through the various phases of those long negotiations, by which jarring -questions were finally composed, M. de Talleyrand warily persevered -in his plan of planting the new government of France amongst the -established governments of Europe through its alliance with Great -Britain. - -The establishment of conferences in London was one of the most -artful of the measures adopted with this end. Here the ambassador -of Louis Philippe was brought at once, and in union with the -Cabinet of St. James’, into almost daily and intimate communication -with the representatives of the other great powers. A variety of -misrepresentations were removed, and a variety of statements made, not -merely useful for the questions which were especially under discussion, -but for the general position and policy of the State which the veteran -diplomatist represented. - -The quadruple alliance--an alliance of the western and constitutional -governments of Europe--was, in fact, a mere extension of the alliance -between France and England, and a great moral exhibition of the -trust placed by the parties themselves in that alliance. With this -remarkable and popular compact--a compact which embodied the best -principles on which an Anglo-French alliance can be formed--the -diplomatic career of M. de Talleyrand closed. He felt, as he himself -said, that there “is a sort of space between death and life, which -should be employed in dying decently.” - -The retirement of Lord Grey removed from the scene of public affairs in -England that generation which, long accustomed to the reputation of a -man who had filled half a century with his name, treated both himself -and his opinions with the flattering respect due to old remembrances. -To the men of the new government he was, comparatively speaking, a -stranger. The busy time of their career he had passed in seclusion from -affairs. They considered him, in a certain degree, as antiquated and -gone by: a sentiment which he was keen enough to detect, and sensitive -enough to feel deeply. - -His opinions, indeed, became somewhat embittered by certain affronts -or negligences of which, during the latter part of his embassy, he -thought he had to complain; and, after his retirement, it is said that -he rather counselled his royal master to consider that the advantages -sought for in an alliance with England were obtained, and that the -future policy of France should be to conciliate other powers. - - -VII. - -At all events M. de Talleyrand, during his mission in England, not only -sustained his previous reputation, but added very considerably to it. -What struck the vulgar, and many, indeed, above the vulgar, who did -not remember that the really crafty man disguises his craft, was the -plain, open, and straightforward way in which he spoke of and dealt -with all public matters, without any of those mysterious devices which -distinguish the simpleton in the diplomacy from the statesman who is a -diplomatist. In fact, having made up his mind to consider the English -alliance at this time essential to his country, he was well aware that -the best and only way of obtaining it was by such frank and fair -dealing as would win the confidence of British statesmen. - -Lord Palmerston told me that his manner in diplomatic conferences -was remarkable for its extreme absence of pretension, without any -derogation of authority. He sat, for the most part, quiet, as if -approving: sometimes, however, stating his opinion, but never arguing -or discussing;--a habit foreign to the natural indolence which -accompanied him throughout his active career, and which he also -condemned on such occasions, as fruitless and impolitic: “I argue -before a public assembly,” he used to say, “not because I hope to -convince any one there, but because I wish my opinions to be known to -the world. But, in a room beyond which my voice is not to extend, the -attempt to enforce my opinion against that which another is engaged to -adopt, obliges him to be more formal and positive in expressing his -hostility, and often leads him, from a desire to shine in the sense of -his instructions, to go beyond them.” - -Whatever M. de Talleyrand did, therefore, in the way of argument, -he usually did beforehand, and alone, with the parties whom he was -afterwards to encounter, and here he tried to avoid controversy. His -manner was to bring out the principal point in his own opinion, and -present it to the best advantage in every possible position. - -Napoleon complained of this, saying, he could not conceive how people -found M. de Talleyrand eloquent. “Il tournait toujours sur la même -idée.”[79] But this was a system with him, as with Fox, who laid it -down as the great principle for an orator who wished to leave an -impression. - -He was apt, however, to ask to have a particular word or sentence, of -which he had generally studied the bearing and calculated the effect, -introduced into a paper under discussion, and from the carelessness -with which he made the request it was usually complied with. There was -something in this silent way of doing business, which disappointed -those who expected a more frequent use of the brilliant weapons which -it was well known that the great wit of the day had at his command. -But in the social circle which he wished to charm, or with the single -individual whom he wished to gain, the effect of his peculiar eloquence -generally overran the expectation. - -M. de Bacourt, who was secretary to his embassy in London, informed -me “that M. de Talleyrand rarely wrote a whole despatch,” but that a -variety of little notes and phrases were usually to be found in his -portfolio. When the question which these notes referred to had to be -treated, they were produced, and confided to him (M. de Bacourt), who -was told the general sense of the document he was to write, and how -such memoranda were to be introduced. Finally, a revisal took place, -and the general colouring, which proved that the despatch came from the -ambassador, and not from his chancery, was fused over the composition. -As a general rule in business, M. de Talleyrand held to the rule, that -a chief should never do anything that a subaltern could do for him. - -“You should always,” he used to say, “have time to spare, and rather -put off till to-morrow what you cannot do well and easily to-day, than -get into that hurry and flurry which is the necessary consequence of -feeling one has too much to do.” - -I have painted the subject of this sketch personally in his early -life. Towards the close of his existence, the likenesses of him that -are common are sufficiently resembling. His head, with a superfluity -of hair, looked large, and was sunk deep into an expanded chest. His -countenance was pale and grave, with a mouth, the under-lip rather -protruding, which formed itself instantly and almost instinctively into -a smile that was sarcastic without being ill-natured. He talked little -in general society, merely expressing at intervals some opinion that -had the air of an epigram, and which produced its effect as much from -the manner with which it was brought out, as from its intrinsic merit. -He was, in fact, an actor, but an actor with such ease and nonchalance -that he never seemed more natural than when he was acting. - -His recorded _bon mots_, of which I have given some, have become -hackneyed, especially the best. But I will venture to mention a -few that occur to me, as I am writing, and which are remarkable as -expressing an opinion concerning an individual or a situation. - -When the Comte d’Artois wished to be present at the councils of Louis -XVIII., M. de Talleyrand opposed the project. The Comte d’Artois -was offended, and reproached the minister. “Un jour,” said M. de -Talleyrand, “Votre Majesté me remerciera pour ce qui déplaît a Votre -Altesse Royale.” - -M. de Châteaubriand was no favourite with M. de Talleyrand. He -condemned him as an affected writer, and an impossible politician. When -the “Martyrs” first appeared, and was run after by the public with an -appetite that the booksellers could not satisfy, M. de Fontanes, after -speaking of it with an exaggerated eulogium, finished his explanation -of the narrative by saying that Eudore and Cymodocée were thrown into -the circus and devoured “par les bêtes.” “Comme l’ouvrage,” said M. de -Talleyrand. - -Some person saying that Fouché had a great contempt for mankind, “C’est -vrai,” said M. de Talleyrand, “cet homme s’est beaucoup étudié.” - -There is a certain instinct which most persons have as to their -successor; and when some one asked M. de Talleyrand a little before -the Duc de Richelieu, governor of Odessa, was appointed prime minister -in his own country, whether he, M. de Talleyrand, really thought that -the Duc was fit to govern France, he replied, to the surprise of the -questioner, “Most assuredly;” adding, after a slight pause, “No one -knows the Crimea better.” - -A lady, using the privilege of her sex, was speaking with violence of -the defection of the Duc de Raguse. “Mon Dieu, madame,” said M. de -Talleyrand, “tout cela ne prouve qu’une chose. C’est que sa montre -avançait et tout le monde était à l’heure.” - -A strong supporter of the chamber of peers, when there was much -question as to its merits, said, “At least you there find consciences.” -“Ah, oui,” said M. de Talleyrand, “beaucoup, beaucoup de consciences. -Semonville, par exemple, en a au moins deux.” - -Louis XVIII., speaking of M. de Blacas before M. de Talleyrand had -expressed any opinion concerning him, said, “Ce pauvre Blacas, il aime -la France, il m’aime, mais on dit qu’il est suffisant.” “Ah oui, Sire, -suffisant et insuffisant.” - -As Madame de Staël was praising the British Constitution, M. de -Talleyrand, turning round, said in a low, explanatory tone, “_Elle -admire surtout l’habeas corpus_.” - -One evening at Holland House the company had got into groups, talking -over some question of the moment in the House of Commons; and thus M. -de Talleyrand, left alone, got up to go away, when Lord Holland, with -his usual urbanity, following him to the door, asked where he was going -so early. “Je vais aux _Travellers_, pour entendre ce que vous dites -ici.” - -We could prolong almost indefinitely this record of sayings from -which M. de Talleyrand, notwithstanding his many services and great -abilities, derives his popular and traditional reputation: but, in -reality, they belong as much to the conversational epoch at which he -entered the world, as to himself. - - -VIII. - -On quitting England, he quitted not only diplomacy, as I have said, but -public life, and passed the remainder of his days in the enjoyment of -the highest situation, and the most agreeable and cultivated society, -that his country could afford. - -His fortune and ability might now, according to the Grecian sage, be -estimated; for his career was closed; and, as the old sought his saloon -as the hearth on which their brighter recollections could be revived, -so the young were glad to test their opinions by the experience of “the -politic man,” who had passed through so many vicissitudes, and walked -with a careless and haughty ease over the ruins of so many governments, -at the fall of which he had assisted. He himself, with that cool -presence of mind for which he was so remarkable, aware that he had but -a few years between the grave and himself, employed them in one of his -great and constant objects, that of prepossessing the age about to -succeed him in his favour, and explaining to those whom he thought -likely to influence the coming generation, the darker passages of his -brilliant career. To one distinguished person, M. Montalivet, who -related to me the fact, he once said: “You have a prejudice against me, -because your father was an Imperialist, and you think I deserted the -Emperor. I have never kept fealty to any one longer than he has himself -been obedient to common sense. But, if you judge all my actions by this -rule, you will find that I have been eminently consistent; and where -is there so degraded a human being, or so bad a citizen, as to submit -his intelligence, or sacrifice his country, to any individual, however -born, or however endowed?” - -This, indeed, in a few words, was M. de Talleyrand’s theory; a theory -which has formed the school, that without strictly adhering to the -principle that common sense should be the test of obedience, bows -to every authority with a smile and shrug of the shoulders, and the -well-known phrase of “_La France avant tout_.” - -Shortly previous to his last illness he appeared (evidently with the -intention of bidding the world a sort of dignified adieu) in the -tribune of the Institute. The subject which he chose for his essay -was M. Reinhard, who had long served under him, and was just dead, -and between whom and himself, even in the circumstance of their both -having received an ecclesiastical education, there was some sort of -resemblance. The discourse is interesting on this ground, and also as -a review of the different branches of the diplomatic service, and the -duties attached to each--forming a kind of legacy to that profession of -which the speaker had so long been the ornament. - - -IX. - -“GENTLEMEN,--[80] - -“I was in America when I was named a member of the Institute, and -placed in the department of moral and political sciences, to which -I have had the honour of being attached ever since it was first -established. - -“On my return to France, I made it my principal object to attend -its meetings, and to express to my new colleagues, many of whom we -now so justly regret, the pleasure it gave me to find myself one -of their number. At the first sitting I attended, the _bureau_ was -being renewed, and I had the honour of being named secretary. During -six months, I drew up, to the best of my ability, the minutes of the -proceedings, but my labours betrayed perhaps a little too plainly my -diffidence, for I had to report on a work, the subject of which was new -to me. That work, which had cost one of our most learned colleagues -many researches, many sleepless nights, was ‘A Dissertation on the -Riparian Laws.’ It was about the same period that I read at our public -meetings several papers, which were received with such indulgence as to -be thought worthy of being inserted in the memoirs of the Institute. -But forty years have now elapsed, during which I have been a stranger -to this tribune; first, in consequence of frequent absence; then from -duties, to which I felt bound to devote my whole time and attention; I -must also add, from that discretion, which, in times of difficulty, -is required of a man employed in public affairs; and finally, at a -later period, from the infirmities, usually brought on, or at least -aggravated, by age. - -“At the present moment, I feel myself called upon to perform a duty, -and to make a last appearance before this Assembly, in order that -the memory of a man, known to the whole of Europe;--of a man whom I -loved, and who, from the very foundation of the Institute, has been -our colleague, should receive here a public testimony of our esteem -and regret. His position with respect to my own furnishes me with -the means of speaking with authority of several of his merits. His -principal, but I do not say his only, claim to distinction, consists of -a correspondence of forty years, necessarily unknown to the public, and -likely to remain so for ever. I asked myself, ‘Who will mention this -fact within these walls? who, especially, will consider himself under -the obligation of directing your attention to it, if the task be not -undertaken by me, to whom the greater part of this correspondence was -addressed, to whom it always gave so much pleasure, and often so much -assistance in those ministerial duties, which I had to perform during -three reigns … so very different in character?’ - -“The first time I saw M. Reinhard, he was thirty, and I thirty-seven, -years of age. He entered public life with the advantage of a large -stock of acquired knowledge. He knew thoroughly five or six languages, -and was familiar with their literature. He could have made himself -remarkable as an historian, as a poet, or as a geographer; and it was -in this last capacity that he became a member of the Institute, from -the day it was founded. - -“Already at this time he was a member of the Academy of Sciences of -Göttingen. Born and educated in Germany, he had published in his youth -several pieces of poetry, which had brought him under the notice of -Gesner, Wieland, and Schiller. He was obliged at a later period to take -the waters of Carlsbad, where he was so fortunate as to find himself -frequently in the society of the celebrated Goethe, who appreciated -his taste and acquirements sufficiently to request to be informed by -him of everything that was creating a sensation in the French literary -world. M. Reinhard promised to do so; engagements of this kind between -men of a superior order are always reciprocal, and soon become ties of -friendship; those formed between M. Reinhard and Goethe gave rise to a -correspondence, which is now published in Germany. - -“We learn from these letters that when he had arrived at that time of -life, when it is necessary to select definitively the profession for -which one feels most aptitude, M. Reinhard, before making his final -decision, reflected seriously upon his natural disposition, his tastes, -his own circumstances and those of his family; and then made a choice -singular at that time, for instead of choosing a career that promised -independence, he gave the preference to one in which it is impossible -to secure it. The diplomatic career was selected by him, nor is it -possible to blame him; qualified for all the duties of this profession, -he has successively fulfilled them all, and each with distinction. - -“And I would here venture to assert that he had been successfully -prepared for the course he adopted by his early studies. He had been -remarked as a proficient in theology at the Seminary of Denkendorf, -and at that of the Protestant faculty of Tübingen, and it was to -this science especially that he owed the power, and at the same -time the subtlety, of reasoning, that abounds in all his writings. -And to divest myself of the fear of yielding to an idea which might -appear paradoxical, I feel obliged to bring before you the names of -several of our greatest diplomatists, who were at once theologians and -celebrated in history for having conducted the most important political -negotiations of their day. There was the chancellor, Cardinal Duprat, -equally skilled in canon and civil law, who established with Leo X. the -basis of the Concordat, of which several articles are still retained. -Cardinal d’Ossat, who, in spite of the efforts made by several great -powers, succeeded in effecting a reconciliation between Henry IV. and -the Court of Rome. The study of his letters is still recommended at the -present day to young men who are destined for political life. Cardinal -de Polignac, a theologian, poet and diplomatist, who, after so many -disastrous campaigns, was able to preserve, by the treaty of Utrecht, -the conquests of Louis XIV. for France. - -“The names I have just mentioned appear to me sufficient to justify -my opinion that M. Reinhard’s habits of thought were considerably -influenced by the early studies to which his education had been -directed by his father. - -“On account of his solid, and, at the same time, various acquirements, -he was called to Bordeaux, in order to discharge the honourable but -modest duties of a tutor in a Protestant family of that city. There he -naturally became acquainted with several of those men whose talents, -errors, and death have given so much celebrity to our first legislative -assembly. M. Reinhard was easily persuaded by them to devote himself to -the service of France. - -“It is not necessary to follow him step by step through all the -vicissitudes of his long career. In the succession of offices confided -to him, now of a higher, now of a lower order, there seems to be a sort -of inconsistency and absence of regularity, which, at the present day, -we should have some difficulty in conceiving. But, at that time, people -were as free from prejudice with respect to places as to persons. -At other periods, favour, and sometimes discernment, used to confer -situations of importance. But, in the days of which I speak, every -place had to be won. Such a state of things very quickly leads to -confusion. - -“Thus, we find M. Reinhard first secretary of legation at London; -occupying the same post at Naples; minister plenipotentiary to the -Hanseatic towns of Hamburg, Bremen, and Lübeck; chief clerk of -the third division in the department of foreign affairs; minister -plenipotentiary at Florence; minister of foreign affairs; minister -plenipotentiary to the Helvetian Republic; consul-general at Milan; -minister plenipotentiary to the Circle of Lower Saxony; president in -the Turkish provinces beyond the Danube, and commissary-general of -commercial relations in Moldavia; minister plenipotentiary to the -King of Westphalia; director of the _Chancellerie_ in the department -of foreign affairs; minister plenipotentiary to the Germanic Diet and -the free city of Frankfort; and, finally, minister plenipotentiary at -Dresden. - -“What a number of places, of charges, and of interests, all confided -to one man, and this at a time when it seemed likely that his civil -talents would be less justly appreciated, inasmuch as that war appeared -to decide every question. - -“You do not expect me, gentlemen, to give here a detailed account of -all M. Reinhard’s labours in the various employments, which I have just -enumerated. This would require a volume. - -“I have only to call your attention to the manner in which he regarded -the duties he had to perform, whether as chief clerk, minister, or -consul. - -“Although M. Reinhard did not possess at that time the advantage which -he might have had a few years later of being able to study excellent -examples, he was already perfectly aware of the numerous and various -qualities that ought to distinguish a chief clerk in the foreign -office. A delicate tact had made him feel that the habits of a chief -clerk ought to be simple, regular, and retired; that, a stranger to -the bustle of the world, he ought to live solely for his duty, and -devote to it an impenetrable secrecy; that, always prepared to give -an answer respecting facts or men, he must have every treaty fresh in -his memory, know its historical date, appreciate its strong and weak -points, its antecedents and consequences, and finally be acquainted -with the names of its principal negotiators, and even with their family -connections; that, in making use of this knowledge, he ought, at the -same time, to be cautious not to offend a minister’s self-esteem, -always so sensitive, and, even when he should have influenced the -opinion of his chief, to leave his success in the shade; for he knew -that he was to shine only by a reflected light. Still, he was aware -that much consideration would be the reward of so pure and modest a -life. - -“M. Reinhard’s power of observation did not stop here; it had taught -him to understand how rare is the union of qualities necessary to -make a minister of foreign affairs. Indeed, a minister of foreign -affairs ought to be gifted with a sort of instinct, which should be -always prompting him, and thus guarding him, when entering into any -discussion, from the danger of committing himself. It is requisite -that he should possess the faculty of appearing open, while remaining -impenetrable; of masking reserve with the manner of frankness; of -showing talent even in the choice of his amusements. His conversation -should be simple, varied, unexpected, always natural, and at times -_naïve_; in a word, he should never cease for an instant during the -twenty-four hours to be a minister of foreign affairs. - -“Yet all these qualities, however rare, might not suffice, if they did -not find in sincerity a guarantee which they almost always require. -I must not omit to notice here this fact, in order to destroy a -prejudice, into which people are very apt to fall. No! diplomacy is not -a science of craft and duplicity. If sincerity be anywhere requisite, -it is especially so in political transactions; for it is that which -makes them solid and durable. It has pleased people to confound reserve -with cunning. Sincerity never authorizes cunning, but it admits of -reserve; and reserve has this peculiarity, that it increases confidence. - -“If he be governed by the honour and interests of his country, by the -honour and interests of his sovereign, by the love of a liberty based -upon order and the rights of all men, a minister of foreign affairs, -who knows how to fill his post, finds himself thus in the noblest -position to which a superior mind can aspire. - -“After having been a distinguished minister, how many things more must -be known to make a good consul! For there is no end to the variety of -a consul’s attributions; and they are perfectly distinct from those -of the other persons employed in foreign affairs. They demand a vast -amount of practical knowledge which can only be acquired by a peculiar -education. Consuls are called upon to discharge, for the advantage -of their countrymen, and over the extent of their jurisdiction, the -functions of judges, arbitrators, and promoters of reconciliation; it -frequently happens that they are employed in other civil capacities; -they perform the duties of notaries, sometimes those of naval -administrators; they examine and pronounce upon sanitary questions; it -is they who are enabled, by their numerous professional connections, -to give correct and perfect notions respecting the state of commerce -or navigation, or of the manufactures peculiar to the country where -they reside. Accordingly, as M. Reinhard never neglected anything -which might confirm the accuracy of the information required by his -government, or the justice of the decisions which he had to pronounce -as a political agent, as a consular agent, or as a naval administrator, -he made a profound study of international and maritime law. It was -owing to this study, that he became persuaded that the day would come -when, by skilful political combinations, a universal system of commerce -and navigation would be inaugurated, which would respect the interests -of all nations, and be established on such foundations that war itself -would be powerless to assail its principles, even were it able to -suspend some of its effects. - -“He had also learned to resolve, with accuracy and promptitude, every -question connected with exchange, arbitration, valuation of money, -weights and measures; and all this without a single dispute ever having -arisen from the information he had supplied, or the judgments he had -pronounced. But it is also true that the personal consideration, -which accompanied him during his whole career, gave a weight to his -interference, in every question that required his assistance, and in -all arbitrations where he had to give a decision. - -“But, however extensive may be a man’s information, however vast his -capacity, there is nothing so rare as a complete diplomatist. We should -perhaps have found one in M. Reinhard if he had possessed but one -qualification more. He observed well, and understood well; when he took -up his pen, he could give an admirable account of what he had seen and -heard. His written language was ready, abundant, witty, and pointed. -Thus we find that, of all the diplomatic correspondence of my time, -none was preferred to that of Count Reinhard by the Emperor Napoleon, -who had the right, and was under the necessity, of being difficult to -please. But this eloquent writer was embarrassed when he had to speak. -To carry out his intentions, his mind required more time than ordinary -conversation affords. To express his thoughts with facility, it was -necessary for him to be alone, and not interfered with. - -“In spite of this serious difficulty, M. Reinhard always succeeded in -doing, and doing well, whatever was intrusted to him. How, then, did he -find the means of succeeding? whence did he derive his inspirations? - -“He received them, gentlemen, from a deep and true feeling, which -guided all his actions--from the sense of duty. People are not -sufficiently aware of the power derived from this feeling. A life -wholly devoted to duty is very easily diverted from ambition; and that -of M. Reinhard was entirely taken up by his professional avocations, -while he never was influenced in the slightest degree by an interested -motive or a pretension to premature advancement. - -“This worship of duty, to which M. Reinhard continued faithful to the -end of his days, comprised entire acquiescence in the orders of his -superiors--indefatigable vigilance, which, joined to much penetration, -never suffered them to remain ignorant of anything which it was -expedient for them to know--strict truthfulness in all his reports, -however unpleasing their contents--impenetrable discretion--regular -habits, which inspired esteem and confidence--a style of living suited -to his position--and finally, constant attention in giving to the -acts of his government the colour and lucidity which their importance -demanded. - -“Although age seemed to invite M. Reinhard to seek the repose of -private life, he would never have asked permission to retire from -active employment, so much did he fear to be thought lukewarm in the -duties of a profession which had occupied the greater part of his days. - -“It was necessary that his Majesty’s ever-thoughtful benevolence should -have providently intervened to place this great servant of France in a -most honourable position, by calling him to the Chamber of Peers. - -“Count Reinhard enjoyed this honour during too short a time. He died -suddenly on the 25th of December, 1837. - -“M. Reinhard was twice married. By his first wife he has left a son who -is now following a political career. For the son of such a man the -best wish that we can form is that he may resemble his father.” - - * * * * * - -The force of nature, which a long life had exhausted in a variety of -ways, seemed now unequal to any further struggle. - -A disease, which at Prince Talleyrand’s age was almost certain to -be fatal, and which had already made its appearance, assumed a more -formidable character. - -An operation was advised. The prince submitted to it, and bore it with -a fortitude that surprised even those who most knew the stoicism which -he on all occasions affected and usually practised. Dangerous symptoms, -however, soon followed, and his physician judged it an act of duty to -warn him that his disorder might be fatal. - -He was urged indeed to do so by the noble patient’s relations, who were -especially anxious that he should die in peace with the church; and -when convinced that he could not recover, he assented to all that was -asked of him, in this respect, as a favour that could not hurt himself, -and was agreeable to those about him. - -The following account of his last moments is given by a person who -was present at them: “When I entered the chamber where reposed the -veteran statesman, he had fallen into a profound slumber, from which -some amendment was augured by his physicians. The slumber, or rather -lethargy, had continued for about an hour after my arrival, when it -became curious to observe the uneasiness which was manifested, as time -drew on, even by those dearest and nearest, lest this repose, however -salutary, should endure beyond the hour fixed for the King’s visit, for -the sovereign intended to pay M. de Talleyrand this last homage. - -“With some difficulty he was at last aroused and made to comprehend -the approaching ceremony, and hardly was he lifted from his reclining -position and placed at the edge of the bed, when Louis Philippe, -accompanied by Madame Adelaide, entered the apartment. ‘I am sorry, -Prince, to see you suffering so much,’ said the King, in a low -tremulous voice, rendered almost inaudible by apparent emotion. ‘Sire, -you have come to witness the sufferings of a dying man; and those who -love him can have but one wish, that of seeing them shortly at an end.’ -This was uttered by M. de Talleyrand in that deep strong voice so -peculiar to himself, and which the approach of death had not the power -to weaken. - -“The royal visit, like all royal visits of a disagreeable nature, was -of the shortest duration possible. Indeed, the position was to all -parties embarrassing and painful. Louis Philippe rose, after an effort -and some few words of consolation, to take his leave; and not even at -this last moment did the old prince lose his wonted presence of mind, -or forget a duty which the etiquette he had been bred in dictated--that -of introducing those formally to the sovereign who found themselves -in his presence. Slightly raising himself, then, he mentioned by name -his physician, his secretary, his principal valet, and his own private -doctor, and then observed slowly: ‘Sire, our house has received this -day an honour worthy to be inscribed in our annals, and which my -successors will remember with pride and gratitude.’ It was shortly -afterwards that the first symptoms of dissolution were observed, and a -few persons were then admitted to his chamber; but the adjoining room -was crowded, and exhibited a strange scene for a room so near the bed -of death. - -“The flower of the society of Paris was there. On one side old and -young politicians, grey-headed statesmen, were gathered round the -blazing fire, and engaged in eager conversation; on another was to be -seen a coterie of younger gentlemen and ladies, whose sidelong looks -and low pleasant whispers formed a sad contrast to the dying groans of -the neighbouring sufferer. - -“Presently, the conversation stopped; the hum of voices was at an end. -There was a solemn pause, and every eye turned towards the slowly -opening door of the prince’s chamber. A domestic entered, with downcast -looks and swollen eyes, and advancing towards Dr. C----, who like -myself had just then sought an instant’s relief in the drawing-room, -whispered a few words in his ear. He arose instantly, and entered -the prince’s chamber. The natural precipitation with which this -movement was executed but too plainly revealed its cause. There was -an instantaneous rush to the door of the apartment within which M. de -Talleyrand was seated on the side of his bed, supported in the arms of -his secretary. It was evident that Death had set his seal upon that -marble brow; yet I was struck with the still existing vigour of the -countenance. It seemed as if all the life which had once sufficed to -furnish the whole being was now contained in the brain. From time to -time he raised up his head, throwing back with a sudden movement the -long grey locks which impeded his sight, and gazed around; and then, -as if satisfied with the result of his examination, a smile would pass -across his features, and his head would again fall upon his bosom. He -saw the approach of death without shrinking or fear, and also without -any affectation of scorn or defiance. - -“If there be truth in the assertion, that it is a satisfaction to die -amidst friends and relations, then, indeed, must his last feeling -towards the world he was for ever quitting have been one of entire -approbation and content, for he expired (on the 17th of May, 1838) -amidst regal pomp and reverence; and of all those whom he, perhaps, -would have himself called together, none were wanting. - -“The friend of his maturity, the fair young idol of his age, were -gathered on bended knee beside his bed, and if the words of comfort -whispered by the murmuring priest failed to reach his ear, it was -because the sound was stifled by the wailings of those he had loved so -well. Scarcely, however, had those eyes, whose every glance had been -watched so long, and with such deep interest, for ever closed, when a -sudden change came over the scene. - -“One would have thought that a flight of crows had suddenly taken -wing, so great was the precipitation with which each one hurried from -the hotel, in the hope of being first to spread the news amongst -the particular set or coterie of which he or she happened to be the -oracle. Ere nightfall, that chamber, which all the day had been -crowded to excess, was abandoned to the servants of the tomb; and when -I entered in the evening, I found the very arm-chair, whence I had so -often heard the prince launch the courtly jest or stinging epigram, -occupied by a hired priest, whispering prayers for the repose of the -departed soul.” - - -X. - -M. de Talleyrand was buried at Valençay, in the chapel of the Sisters -of St. André, which he had founded, and in which he had expressed a -desire that the family vault should be placed. - - * * * * * - -His career and character have been gradually developed in this sketch, -so that there remains little to say of them here. They were both, -as I have elsewhere observed, coloured by their times, and must be -regarded in connection with an epoch of social immorality and constant -political change. Many of his faults were so inherent in that epoch, -that, although they justly merit blame (for vice and virtue should be -independent of custom and example), they also admit of excuse. - -As to the variety of political parts which he played in the different -scenes of the great drama which lasted half a century, one is daily -seeing changes so extraordinary and so rapid amongst the most -respectable public men of our own day, and even of our own country, -that it would be absurd not to acknowledge that, when years run rapidly -through changeful events, we must expect to find those whose career -is embarked on so unsteady a current, uncertain and variable in their -opinions. The stiff consistent character is of the middle ages. - -At the commencement of the great Revolution of 1789, M. de Talleyrand -took the liberal side in politics; a strong party of his own rank and -profession did not do so, but many of the most illustrious did; and -with the best motives. A certain interval elapsed; the monarchy was -overthrown; a reign of madness and terror succeeded it; and, emerging -from this sanguinary obscurity, men were just beginning to adopt some -principles of order, which they brought together under the name of a -Republic. - -It is hardly for us (who have with our own eyes seen Frenchmen of high -rank and generally acknowledged honour, even the personal friends -of a deposed sovereign, become, within a few days after his fall, -Republicans; and within a few years the confidential leaders of -another dynasty)--it is hardly for us, I say, to judge with any great -severity a Frenchman, who, returning to France at the time at which M. -de Talleyrand revisited it, consented to serve the Directory. Neither -can we be surprised, when it appeared evident that under the Directory -things were again approaching the state of terror and confusion, of -which so horrible a recollection still existed, that M. de Talleyrand -preferred the government of one man to the want of any government -at all--the organization of society under a temporary despotism, to -its utter and radical decomposition. By and by, license and disorder -being vanquished, moderate and regular notions as to liberty grew up; -the dictator then appeared the tyrant,--and the fortunate soldier, -the military gambler after fortune. This soldier converted the nation -into an army, and his army was beaten: and M. de Talleyrand aided in -reviving that nation, and giving it the framework of a constitutional -system, under a legitimate monarchy;--almost, in fact, that very system -which thirty-five years before he had wished to see established. Years -rolled on and seemed to bring with them the renewal of the old maxim, -that “Restorations are impossible.” The royal _émigré_, pointedly -described as having forgotten nothing and learned nothing during his -misfortunes, had not sufficiently imbibed the spirit of a new society -which had risen up since his youth--a society which had neither the -customs nor inclinations on which he considered that a monarchy should -be maintained. - -Charles X.’s views created suspicions which his acts, greatly -exaggerated by those suspicions, hardly justified. But the knowledge -that he thought that public liberty depended solely on his will, made -the slightest movement towards controlling that liberty--dangerous. - -The crown fell into the gutters of Paris. The government which most -resembled the one which was overturned was still a monarchy with a -monarch taken from the same family as the one deposed, but who was -willing to accept his throne as a gift of the French nation and could -not pretend to it as a legitimate right. M. de Talleyrand helped to -form such a government. - -It cannot be said that he departed in this case from his principles, -though he changed his allegiance. - -In fact, I hardly think, looking calmly and dispassionately at each -of the epochs I have thus rapidly passed over, that any sensible and -moderate man will deny that the side taken by M. de Talleyrand was the -one on which, in every instance, lay good sense and moderation. It -cannot be said that in the various changes that marked his career, he -ever acted disinterestedly; but at the same time it may be urged that -every time he accepted office he did thereby a real service to the -cause he espoused, and even to the country to which he belonged. - -There can be no doubt that at the first establishment of something -like order and government under the Republic, the relations of France -with foreign powers were considerably strengthened by a man of M. de -Talleyrand’s birth and well-known acquirements and abilities being -selected as minister of foreign affairs. It is also undeniable that, -during the Consulate and early part of the Empire, the experience, -sagacity, and tact of the accomplished diplomatist were eminently -useful to the young, half-educated, and impetuous warrior whose fiery -genius had placed him at the head of the State. To Louis XVIII. M. de -Talleyrand’s assistance, when that sovereign recovered his throne, was -invaluable, and Louis Philippe derived in no small degree, as I have -already noticed, the respect which foreign governments paid so promptly -to his suddenly-acquired authority from the fact that M. de Talleyrand -had consented to undertake the embassy to London. I must likewise -here repeat that to which I have already called attention. No party -had to complain of treachery or ingratitude from this statesman so -frequently stigmatised as fickle. The course he took at the different -periods of his eventful life was that which seemed natural to the -position in which he found himself, and the course which both friend -and foe expected from him. His defections were from those whose policy -he had been previously opposing, and whose views the higher order of -intellects in his country condemned at the time that his own hostility -commenced. Indeed, the rule of his conduct and the cause of his success -may be pretty generally found in his well-known and wise maxim, that -“The thoughts of the greatest number of intelligent persons in any -country, are sure, with a few more or less fluctuations to become in -the end that public opinion which influences the State.” - -It must, however, be confessed that there is something to an honest -nature displeasing in the history of a statesman who has served various -masters and various systems, and appeared as the champion of each cause -at the moment of its triumph. Reason may excuse, explain, or defend -such versatility, but no generous sympathy calls upon us to applaud or -recommend it. - -The particular and especial talent of M. de Talleyrand was, as I have -more than once exemplified, his tact; the art of seizing the important -point in an affair--the peculiar characteristic of an individual, the -genius and tendency of an epoch! His other qualities were accessories -to this dominant quality, but of an inferior order and in an inferior -degree. - -His great good fortune was to have been absent from France during the -horrors of the Committee of Public Safety; his great merit, to have -served governments when in serving them he served the public interests. -His great defect, a love of money, or rather a want of scruple as -to how he obtained it. I never heard any clear justification of his -great wealth, though that which, it is said, he gave to Bonaparte, “I -bought stock before the 18th Brumaire, and sold it the day afterwards,” -has wit and _à propos_ to recommend it. His great calamity was to -have been minister of foreign affairs at the moment of the execution -of the Duc d’Enghien; and the part of his conduct most difficult to -explain justifiably, is to be found in the contradiction between his -declaration to Lord Grenville, when he came over to England after the -10th of August in 1792, that he had nothing to do with the provisional -government then established in France, and the declaration of M. de -Chénier to the convention in 1795--a declaration which he himself -subsequently repeated--that he went to England at the time alluded to -as Danton’s agent. - -An extract from the _Moniteur_, the 27th of May, 1838, page 1412, -quoting from the _Gazette des Tribunaux_, is worth preserving:[81] - - “We have already said that in the sequel to the will of - Prince Talleyrand was found a sort of manifesto, in which the - celebrated diplomatist asserted the principles which had guided - him in his political life, and explained his way of looking at - certain events. - - “According to various facts we have collected, the following is - the substance of that declaration, which is dated in 1836, and - which, in accordance with the wish of the testator, has been - read to the family and assembled friends. - - “The prince declares that before all things, and to all things, - he had preferred the true interests of France. - - “Explaining himself on the part he had taken in the return - of the Bourbons in 1814, he says that, in his opinion, - the Bourbons did not re-ascend the throne in virtue of a - pre-existing and hereditary right; and he gives us, moreover, - to understand that his counsels and advice were never wanting - to enlighten them on their true position, and on the conduct - which they ought to have followed in consequence. - - “He repels the reproach of having betrayed Napoleon; if he - abandoned him, it was when he discovered that he could no - longer blend, as he had up to that time done, France and - the Emperor in the same affection. _This was not without a - lively feeling of sorrow, for he owed to Napoleon nearly - all his fortune. He enjoins his heirs never to forget these - obligations, to tell them to their children, and to instruct - these, again, to tell them to their offspring; so that if - some day a man of the name of Bonaparte should be found in - want of assistance, he should always find it in the family of - Talleyrand._ - - “Replying to those who reproached him for having served - successively all governments, he observes that he had done so - without the least scruple, guided by the idea that, in whatever - situation the country might be, there were always means of - doing it some good, and that to do this good was the business - of a statesman.” - -Supposing the testament thus spoken of to exist, it is curious; and the -expression of gratitude to the Bonaparte family is the more creditable -from the fact that it could not have been made with any idea that it -would be rewarded. - -As to the defence set up for serving all dynasties and all causes, it -cannot apply to any country where public men have the power, out of -office, to put down a bad government, as they have in office the power -to uphold a good one. - -I will conclude with the appreciation of a French friend, who thus -summed up many of my own remarks:-- - -“Enfin, chez M. de Talleyrand, l’aménité et la raison remplaçaient -le cœur, et la conscience. Avec bien des défauts qui ont terni sa -réputation, il avait toutes les qualités qui devaient faire prospérer -son ambition. Ses talents qu’il a employés constamment pour son propre -avantage, il les a employés presque aussi constamment pour le bien -public. Beaucoup attaqué et peu défendu par ses contemporains, il n’en -restera pas moins pour la postérité un des hommes les plus aimables de -son temps et un des citoyens les plus illustres de son pays.” - - - - -MACKINTOSH, THE MAN OF PROMISE. - - - - -PART I. - -FROM HIS YOUTH TO HIS APPOINTMENT IN INDIA. - - Mackintosh’s character.--Character of men of his type.--Birth - and parentage.--Starts as a physician, fails, and becomes a - newspaper writer, and author of a celebrated pamphlet in answer - to Burke’s “Thoughts on the French Revolution.”--Studies for - the bar.--Becomes noted as a public character, violent on the - Liberal side.--Becomes acquainted with Mr. Burke.--Modifies - his opinions.--Gives lectures on public law, remarkable for - their eloquence and their Conservative opinions.--Becomes - the advocate of Peltier; makes a great speech, and shortly - afterwards accepts an appointment in India. - - -I. - -I still remember, amongst the memorable events of my early youth, an -invitation to meet Sir James Mackintosh at dinner; and the eager and -respectful attention with which this honoured guest was received. -I still remember also my anxiety to learn the especial talents, or -remarkable works, for which Sir James was distinguished, and the -unsatisfactory replies which all my questions elicited. He was a -writer, but many had written better; he was a speaker, but many had -spoken better; he was a philosopher, but many had done far more for -philosophy; and yet, though it was difficult to fix on any one thing -in which he was first-rate, it was generally maintained that he was -a first-rate man. There is, indeed, a class amongst mankind, a body -numerous in all literary societies, who are far less valued for any -precise thing they have done than according to a vague notion of what -they are capable of doing. Mackintosh may be taken as a type of this -class; not that he passed his life in the learned inactivity to which -the resident members of our own universities sometimes consign their -intellectual powers, but which more frequently characterizes the -tranquil scholars, whose erudition is the boast of some small German or -Italian city. - -But though mixing in the action of a great and stirring community, a -lawyer, an author, a member of parliament, Mackintosh never arrived at -the eminence in law, in letters, or in politics, that satisfied the -expectations of those who, living in his society, were impressed by his -intellect and astonished at his acquirements. - -If I were to sum up in a few words the characteristics of the persons -who thus promise more than they ever perform, I should say that their -powers of comprehension are greater than their powers either of -creation or exposition; and that their energy, though capable of being -roused occasionally to great exertions, can rarely be relied on for any -continued effort. - -They collect, sometimes in rather a sauntering manner, an immense store -of varied information. But it is only by fits and starts that they are -able to use it with effect, and at their happiest moments they rarely -attain the simple grace and the natural vigour which give beauty and -life to composition. Their deficiencies are inherent in their nature, -and are never therefore entirely overcome. They have not in their minds -the immortal spark of genius, but the faculty of comprehending genius -may give them, in a certain degree, the power of imitating it; whilst -ambition, interest, and necessity, will at times stimulate them to -extraordinary exertions. As writers, they usually want originality, -ease, and power; as men of action, tact, firmness, and decision. The -works in which they most succeed are usually short, and written under -temporary excitement; as statesmen, they at times attract attention -and win applause, but rarely obtain authority or take and keep the -lead in public affairs. In society, however, the mere faculty of -remembering and comprehending a variety of things is quite sufficient -to obtain a considerable reputation; whilst the world, when indulgent, -often estimates the power of a man’s abilities by some transient and -ephemeral display of them. - -I will now turn from these general observations to see how far they -are exemplified in the history of the person whose name is before me; -a person who advanced to the very frontier of those lands which it was -not given to him to enter; and who is not only a favourable specimen -of his class, but who, as belonging to that class, represents in many -respects a great portion of the public during that memorable period of -our annals, which extends from the French Revolution of 1789 to the -English Reform Bill in 1830. - - -II. - -The father of Sir James was a Scotch country gentleman, who, having a -small hereditary property, which he could neither part with nor live -upon, entered the army early, and passed his life almost entirely -with his regiment. Young Mackintosh was born on the 24th of October, -1765, in the county of Inverness, and was sent as soon as he could be -to a school at Fortrose; where he fell in with two books which had a -permanent influence on his future career. These books were “Plutarch’s -Lives” and the “Roman History,” books which, by making him ambitious -of public honours, rendered his existence a perpetual struggle between -that which he desired to be and that for which he was best suited. At -Aberdeen, then, where he was sent on quitting Fortrose, he was alike -remarkable for his zeal in politics, and his love for metaphysics--that -is, for his alternate coquetry between an active and a meditative life. -At Edinburgh, also, where he subsequently went to study medicine, -it was the same thing. In the evening he would go now and then to -a “spouting” club and make speeches, while the greater part of his -mornings was spent in poetical lucubrations. To the medical profession -he paid little attention, till all of a sudden necessity aroused him. -He then applied himself, with a start, to that which he was obliged to -know; but his diligence was not of that resolute and steady kind which -insures success as the consequence of a certain period of application; -and after rushing into the novelties of the Brunonian System,[82] which -promised knowledge with little labour, and then, rushing back again, he -resolved on taking his countrymen’s short road to fortune, and set out -for England. His journey, however, did not answer. He got a wife, but -no patients; and on the failure of his attempts to establish himself -at Salisbury and at Weymouth, retired to Brussels--ill, wearied, -and disgusted. The Low Countries were at that time the theatre of a -struggle between the Emperor Joseph and his subjects; the general -convulsion which shortly afterwards took place throughout Europe was -preparing, and the agitation of men’s minds was excessive. These -exciting scenes called the disappointed physician back to the more -alluring study of politics; and to this short visit to the Continent -he owed a knowledge of its opinions and its public men, which first -served him as the correspondent of a newspaper, _The Oracle_; and, -subsequently, furnished him with materials for a pamphlet which in an -instant placed him in the situation he so long occupied as one of _the -most promising men of his day_. This celebrated pamphlet, published -in 1791, and known under the name of “Vindiciæ Gallicæ,” whether we -consider the circumstances under which it appeared, the opponent whom -it combated, or the ability of the composition itself, merited all the -attention it received, and was the more successful because it gave just -the answer to Burke which Burke himself would have given to his own -Reflections. - -Thus, the club of Saint James’, the cloister of Trinity College, had a -writer to quote, whose sentiments were in favour of liberty, and whose -language, agreeable to the ear of the gentleman and the scholar, did -not, in defending the patriots of France, advise their imitation or -approve their excesses. - -“Burke,” he says, “admires the Revolution of 1688; but we, who conceive -that we pay the purest homage to the authors of that Revolution, not in -contending for what they then did, but for what they would now do, can -feel no inconsistency in looking on France--not to model our conduct, -but to invigorate the spirit of freedom. We permit ourselves to imagine -how Lord Somers, in the light and knowledge of the eighteenth century, -how the patriots of France, in the tranquillity and opulence of -England, would have acted. - -“We are not bound to copy the conduct to which the last were driven -by a bankrupt exchequer, and a dissolved government; nor to maintain -the establishments which were spared by the first in a prejudiced and -benighted age. - -“Exact imitation is not necessary to reverence. We venerate the -principles which presided in both, and we adapt to political -admiration a maxim which has long been received in polite letters, -that the only manly and liberal imitation is to speak as a great man -would have spoken, had he lived in our times, and been placed in our -circumstances.” - -There is much even in this passage to show that the adversary was -still the imitator, imbued with the spirit and under the influence -of the genius of the very writer whom he was bold enough to attack. -Many, nevertheless, who, taken by surprise, had surrendered to the -magisterial eloquence of the master, were rescued by the elegant -pleading of the scholar. Everywhere, then, might be heard the loudest -applause, and an applause well merited. On the greatest question of -the times, the first man of the times had been answered by a young -gentleman aged twenty-six, and who, hitherto unknown, was appreciated -by his first success. - -The leaders of the Whig party sought him out; they paid him every -attention. His opinions went further than theirs; for he was an -advocate of universal suffrage, an abolitionist of all titles, an -enemy to a senate or second assembly. No persons practically contending -for power could say they exactly sanctioned such notions as these; -but all praised the style in which they were put forth, and, allowing -for the youth, lauded the talent, of the author. Indeed, “the love -to hatred turned” ever repudiates moderation, and the antagonist of -Burke was certain of the rapturous cheers of those whom that great -but passionate man had deserted. In this manner Mackintosh (who was -now preparing for the bar) became necessarily a party man, and a -violent party man. Mr. Fox praised his abilities in Parliament; the -famous Reform Association called the “Friends of the People” chose -him for their honorary secretary. A great portion of the well-known -declaration of this society was his composition; and in a letter to the -Prime Minister of the day (Mr. Pitt), he abused that statesman with a -fierceness and boldness of invective which even political controversy -scarcely allowed. - -Here was the great misfortune of his life. This fierceness and boldness -were not in his nature; in becoming a man of action, he entered upon a -part which was not suited to his character, and which it was certain -therefore he would not sustain. The reaction soon followed. Amongst its -first symptoms was a review of Mr. Burke’s “Regicide Peace.” The author -of the review became known to the person whose writing was criticised: -a correspondence ensued, very flattering to Mr. Mackintosh, who shortly -afterwards spent a few days at Beaconsfield (1796). - -It was usual for him to say, referring to this visit, that in half an -hour Mr. Burke overturned the previous reflections of his whole life. -There was some exaggeration, doubtless, in this assertion, but it is -also likely that there was some truth in it. His opinions had begun -to waver, and at that critical moment he came into personal contact -with, and was flattered by, a man whom every one praised, and who -praised few. At all events, he was converted, and not ashamed of his -conversion, but, on the contrary, mounted with confidence a stage on -which his change might be boldly justified. - -The faults as well as the excellences of the English character arise -from that great dislike to generalise which has made us the practical, -and in many instances the prejudiced, people that we are. Abroad, -a knowledge of general or natural law, of the foundations on which -all laws are or ought to be based, enters as a matter of course into -a liberal education. In England lawyers themselves disregard this -study as useless or worse than useless.[83] They look, and they look -diligently, into English law, such as it is, established by custom, -precedent, or act of Parliament. They know all the nice points and -proud formalities on which legal justice rests, or by which it may -be eluded. The conflicting cases and opposing opinions, which may be -brought to bear on an unsound horse, or a contested footpath, are -deeply pondered over, carefully investigated. But the great edifice -of general jurisprudence, though standing on his wayside, is usually -passed by the legal traveller with averted eyes: the antiquary and the -philosopher, indeed, may linger there; but the plodding man of business -scorns to arrest his steps. - -When, however, amidst the mighty crash of states and doctrines that -followed the storm of 1791--when, amidst the birth of new empires -and new legislatures, custom lost its sanctity, precedent its -authority, and statute was made referable to common justice and common -sense,--then, indeed, there uprose a strong and earnest desire to -become acquainted with those general principles so often cited by the -opponents of the past; to visit that armoury in which such terrible -weapons had been found, and to see whether it could not afford means as -powerful for defending what remained as it had furnished for destroying -what had already been swept away. - - -III. - -A course of Lectures on Public Law--about which the public knew so -little, and were yet so curious--offered a road to distinction, which -the young lawyer, confident in his own abilities and researches, had -every temptation to tread. Private interest procured him the Hall at -Lincoln’s Inn; but this was not sufficient; it was necessary that -he should make the world aware of the talent, the knowledge, and the -sentiments with which he undertook so great a task. He published his -introductory essay--the only memorable record of the Lectures to which -we are referring that now remains. The views contained in this essay -may in many instances be erroneous; but its merits as a composition -are of no common kind. Learned, eloquent, it excited nearly as much -enthusiasm as the “Vindiciæ Gallicæ,” and deserved, upon the whole, a -higher order of admiration. - -But praise came this time from a different quarter. A few years before, -and Mackintosh had spoken of Mr. Pitt as cold, stern, crafty, and -ambitious; possessing “the parade without the restraint of morals;” -the “most profound dissimulation with the utmost ardour of enterprise; -prepared by one part of his character for the violence of a multitude, -by another for the duplicity of a court.”[84] - -It was under the patronage of this same Mr. Pitt that the hardy -innovator now turned back to “the old ways,” proclaiming that “history -was a vast museum, in which specimens of every variety of human nature -might be studied. From these great occasions to knowledge,” he said, -“lawgivers and statesmen, but more especially moralists and political -philosophers, may reap the most important instruction. There, they -may plainly discover, amid all the useful and beautiful variety of -governments and institutions, and under all the fantastic multitude of -usages and rites which ever prevailed among men, the same fundamental, -comprehensive truths--truths which have ever been the guardians of -society, recognised and revered (with very few and slight exceptions) -by every nation upon earth, and uniformly taught, with still fewer -exceptions, by a succession of wise men, from the first dawn of -speculation down to the latest times.” - -“See,” he continued, “whether from the remotest periods any -improvement, or even any change, has been made in the practical rules -of human conduct. Look at the code of Moses. I speak of it now as -a mere human composition, without considering its sacred origin. -Considering it merely in that light, it is the most ancient and the -most curious memorial of the early history of mankind. More than 3000 -years have elapsed since the composition of the Pentateuch; and let -any man, if he is able, tell me in what important respects the rule of -life has varied since that distant period. Let the institutes of Menu -be explored with the same view; we shall arrive at the same conclusion. -Let the books of false religion be opened; it will be found that their -moral system is, in all its good features, the same. The impostors who -composed them were compelled to pay this homage to the uniform moral -sentiments of the world. Examine the codes of nations, those authentic -depositories of the moral judgments of men: you everywhere find the -same rules prescribed, the same duties imposed. Even the boldest of -these ingenious sceptics who have attacked every other opinion, have -spared the sacred and immortal simplicity of the rules of life. In our -common duties, Bayle and Hume agree with Bossuet and Barrow. Such as -the rule was at the first dawn of history, such it continues at the -present day. Ages roll over mankind; mighty nations pass away like a -shadow; virtue alone remains the same, immutable and unchangeable.” - -The object of Mackintosh was to show that the instinct of man was -towards society; that society could not be kept together except on -certain principles; that these principles, therefore, from the nature -of man--a nature predestined and fashioned by God--were at once -universal and divine, and that societies would perish that ignored -them;--a true and sublime theory; but with respect to which we must, if -we desire to be practical, admit that variety of qualifications which -different civilizations, different climates, accidental interests, and -religious prescriptions interpose. - -It may be said, for instance, that no society could exist if its -institutions honoured theft as a virtue, and instructed parents to -murder their children; but a great and celebrated society did exist in -ancient Greece,--a society which outlived its brilliant contemporaries, -and which sanctioned robbery, if not detected; and allowed parents -to kill their children, if sickly. It is perfectly true that the ten -commandments of the Jewish legislator are applicable to all mankind, -and are as much revered by the people of the civilized world at the -present day, as by the semi-barbarous people of Israel 3000 years ago. -They are admitted as integrally into the religion taught by Christ, -as they were into the religion taught by Moses. But how different the -morality founded on them! How different the doctrine of charity and -forgiveness from the retributive prescription of vindicative justice! -Nay, how different the precepts taught by the various followers of -Christ themselves, who draw those precepts from the same book! - -If there is anything on which it is necessary for the interest and -happiness of mankind to constitute a fixed principle of custom or of -law, it is the position of woman. The social relationship of man with -woman rules the destiny of both from the cradle to the grave; and yet, -on this same relationship, what various notions, customs, and laws! - -I make these observations, because it is well that we should see how -much is left to the liberty of man, whilst we recognise the certain -rules by which his caprice is limited: how much is to be learned from -the past--how much is left open to the future! - -But all argument at the time that Mackintosh opened his lectures -consisted in the opposition of extremes. As the one party decried -history altogether, so the other referred everything to history; as the -former sect declared that no reverence was due to custom, so the latter -announced that all upon which we valued ourselves most was traditional. -Because those fanatics scoffed at the ideas and manners of the century -that had just elapsed, these referred with exultation to the manners -and ideas that prevailed some thousands of years before. - -Mackintosh stood forth, confessedly, as History’s champion; and with -the beautiful candour, which marked his modest and elevated frame of -mind, confessed that the sight of those who surrounded his chair--the -opinions he knew them to entertain--the longing after applause, for -which every public speaker, whatever his theme, naturally thirsts--and -also, he adds, “a proper repentance for former errors”--might all -have heightened the qualities of the orator to the detriment of the -lecturer, and carried him, “in the rebound from his original opinions, -too far towards the opposite extreme.”[85] - - -IV. - -We shall soon have to inquire what were the real nature and character -of the change which he confessed that his language at this time -exaggerated. Suffice it here to say that, amidst the sighs of his -old friends, the applauses of his new, and the sneering murmurs and -scornful remarks of the stupid and the envious of all parties, his -eloquence (for he was eloquent as a professor) produced generally the -most flattering effects. Statesmen, lawyers, men of letters, idlers, -crowded with equal admiration round the amusing moralist, whose -glittering store of knowledge was collected from the philosopher, the -poet, the writer of romance and history. - -“In mixing up the sparking julep,” says an eloquent though somewhat -affected writer, “that by its potent application was to scour away -the drugs and feculence and peccant humours of the body politic, -he (Mackintosh) seemed to stand with his back to the drawers in a -metaphysical dispensary, and to take out of them whatever ingredients -suited his purpose.”[86] - -In the meanwhile (having lost his first wife and married again) he -pursued his professional course, though without doing anything as an -advocate equal to his success as a professor. - -M. Peltier’s trial, however, now took place. M. Peltier was an -_émigré_, whom the neighbouring revolution had driven to our shores; a -gentleman possessing some ability, and ardently attached to the royal -cause. - -He had not profited by the permission to return to France, which had -been given to all French exiles, but carried on a French journal, -which, finding its way to the Continent, excited the remarkable -susceptibility of the first consul. This was just after the peace -of Amiens. Urged by the French government, our own undertook the -prosecution of M. Peltier’s paper. The occasion was an ode, in which -the apotheosis of Bonaparte was referred to, and his assassination -pretty plainly advocated. So atrocious a suggestion, however veiled, or -however provoked, merited, no doubt, the reprobation of all worthy and -high-minded men; but party spirit and national rancour ran high, and -the defender of the prosecuted journalist was sure to stand before his -country as the enemy of France and the advocate of freedom. - -A variety of circumstances pointed out Mr. Mackintosh as the proper -counsel to place in this position; and here, by a singular fortune, he -was enabled to combine a hatred to revolutionary principles with an -ardent admiration of that ancient spirit of liberty, which is embodied -in the most popular institutions of England. - -“Circumstanced as my client is,” he exclaimed, in his rather studied -but yet powerful declamation, “the most refreshing object his eye can -rest upon is an English jury; and he feels with me gratitude to the -Ruler of empires, that after the wreck of everything else ancient -and venerable in Europe, of all established forms and acknowledged -principles, of all long-subsisting laws and sacred institutions, we are -met here, administering justice after the manner of our forefathers in -this her ancient sanctuary. Here these parties come to judgment; one, -the master of the greatest empire on the earth; the other, a weak, -defenceless fugitive, who waives his privilege of having half his jury -composed of foreigners, and puts himself with confidence on a jury -entirely English. Gentlemen, there is another view in which this case -is highly interesting, important, and momentous, and I confess I am -animated to every exertion that I can make, not more by a sense of my -duty to my client, than by a persuasion that this cause is the first -of a series of contests with the ‘freedom of the press.’ My learned -friend, Mr. Perceval, I am sure, will never disgrace his magistracy -by being instrumental to a measure so calamitous. But viewing this as -I do, as the first of a series of contests between the greatest power -on earth and the only press that is now free, I cannot help calling -upon him and you to pause, before the great earthquake swallows up -all the freedom that remains among men; for though no indication has -yet been made to attack the freedom of the press in this country, -yet the many other countries that have been deprived of this benefit -must forcibly impress us with the propriety of looking vigilantly to -ourselves. Holland and Switzerland are now no more, and near fifty of -the imperial crowns in Germany have vanished since the commencement -of this prosecution. All these being gone, there is no longer any -control but what this country affords. Every press on the Continent, -from Palermo to Hamburg, is enslaved; one place alone remains where the -press is free, protected by our government and our patriotism. It is -an awfully proud consideration that that venerable fabric, raised by -our ancestors, still stands unshaken amidst the ruins that surround us. -_You are the advanced guard of liberty_,” &c. - -After the delivery of this speech, which, after being translated by -Madame de Staël, was read with admiration not only in England, but -also on the Continent, Mr. Mackintosh, though he lost his cause, was -considered no less promising as a pleader, than after the publication -of the “Vindiciæ Gallicæ” he had been considered as a pamphleteer. -In both instances, however, the sort of effort he had made seemed to -have exhausted him, and three months had not elapsed, when, with the -plaudits of the public, and the praise of Erskine, still ringing in his -ears, he accepted the Recordership of Bombay from Mr. Addington, and -retired with satisfaction to the well-paid and knighted indolence of -India. His objects in so doing were, he said, to make a fortune, and to -write a work. - -We shall thoroughly understand the man when we see what he achieved -towards the attainment of these two objects. He did not make a fortune; -he did not write a work. The greater part of his time seems to have -been employed in a restless longing after society, and a perpetual -dawdling over books; during the seven years he was absent, he speaks -continually of his projected work as “always to be projected.” “I -observe” he says, in one of his letters to Mr. Sharpe, “that you touch -me once or twice with the spur about my books on Morals. I felt it gall -me, for I have not begun.” - - - - -PART II. - -HIS STAY IN INDIA AND HIS CAREER IN PARLIAMENT. - - Goes to India.--Pursuits there.--Returns home dissatisfied - with himself.--Enters Parliament on the Liberal side.--Reasons - why he took it.--Fails in first speech.--Merits as an - orator.--Extracts from his speeches.--Modern ideas.--Excessive - punishments.--Mackintosh’s success as a law reformer.--General - parliamentary career. - - -I. - -Sir James Mackintosh, in accepting a place in India, abdicated the -chances of a brilliant and useful career in England; still his presence -in one of our great dependencies was not without its use--for his -literary reputation offered him facilities in the encouragement of -learned and scientific pursuits--which, when they tend to explore and -illustrate the history and resources of a new empire, are, in fact, -political ones; while his attempts to obtain a statistical survey, as -well as to form different societies, the objects of which were the -acquirement and communication of knowledge, though not immediately -successful, did not fail to arouse in Bombay, and to spread much -farther, a different and a far more enlightened spirit than that which -had hitherto prevailed amongst our speculating settlers, or rather -sojourners in the East. The mildness of his judicial sway, moreover, -and a wish to return to Europe with, if possible, a “bloodless -ermine,”[87] contributed not only to extend the views, but to soften -the manners of the merchant conquerors, and to lay thereby something -like a practical foundation for subsequent legislative improvement. - -To himself, however, this distant scene seems to have possessed no -interest, to have procured no advantage. Worn by the climate, wearied -by a series of those small duties and trifling exertions which, -unattended by fame, offer none of that moral excitement which overcomes -physical fatigue; but little wealthier than when he undertook his -voyage, having accomplished none of those works, and enjoyed little of -that ease, the visions of which cheered him in undertaking it; a sick, -a sad, and, so far as the acceptance of his judgeship was concerned, a -repentant man, he (in 1810) took his way homewards. - -“It has happened,” he observes in one of his letters--“it has happened -by the merest accident that the ‘trial of Peltier’ is among the books -in the cabin; and when I recollect the way in which you saw me opposed -to Perceval on the 21st of February, 1803 (the day of the trial), -and that I compare his present situation--whether at the head of an -administration or an opposition--with mine, scanty as my stock is of -fortune, health, and spirits, in a cabin nine feet square, on the -Indian Ocean, I think it enough that I am free from the soreness of -disappointment.” - -There is, indeed, something melancholy in the contrast thus offered -between a man still young, hopeful, rising high in the most exciting -profession, just crowned with the honours of forensic triumph, and -the man prematurely old, who in seven short years had become broken, -dispirited, and was now under the necessity of beginning life anew, -with wasted energies and baffled aspirations. - -But Sir James Mackintosh deceived himself in thinking that if the -seven years to which he alludes had been passed in England, they would -have placed him in the same position as that to which Mr. Perceval -had ascended within the same period. Had he remained at the bar, or -entered Parliament instead of going to India, he might, indeed, have -made several better speeches than Mr. Perceval, as he had already -made one; but he would not always have been speaking well, like Mr. -Perceval, nor have pushed himself forward in those situations, and at -those opportunities, when a good speech would have been most wanted or -most effective. At all events, his talents for active life were about -to have a tardy trial; the object of his early dreams and hopes was -about to be attained--a seat in the House of Commons. He took his place -amongst the members of the Liberal opposition; and many who remembered -the auspices under which he left England, were somewhat surprised at -the banner under which he now enlisted. - - -II. - -Here is the place at which it may be most convenient to consider Sir -James Mackintosh’s former change; as well as the circumstances which -led him back to his old connections. He had entered life violently -democratical,--a strong upholder of the French Revolution; he became, -so to speak, violently moderate, and a strong opponent of this same -Revolution. He altered his politics, and this alteration was followed -by his receiving an appointment. - -Such is the outline which malignity might fill up with the darkest -colours; but it would be unjustly. The machinery of human conduct is -complex; and it would be absurd to say that a man’s interests are not -likely to have an influence on his actions. But they who see more -of our nature than the surface, know that our interests are quite -as frequently governed by our character as our character is by our -interests. The true explanation, then, of Mackintosh’s conduct is to -be found in his order of intellect. His mind was not a mind led by its -own inspirations, but rather a mind reflecting the ideas of other men, -and of that class of men more especially to which he, as studious and -speculative, belonged. The commencement of the French Revolution, the -long-prepared work of the Encyclopedists, was hailed by such persons -(we speak generally) as a sort of individual success. Burke did much to -check this feeling; and subsequent events favoured Burke. But by far -the greater number of those addicted to literary pursuits sympathized -with the popular party in the States-General. Under this impulse the -“Vindiciæ Gallicæ” was written. The exclusion of the eminent men of the -National Assembly from power modified, the execution of the Girondists -subdued, this impulse. At the fall of those eloquent Republicans -the lettered usurpation ceased; and now literature, instead of -being opposed to royalty, owed, like it, a debt of vengeance to that -inexorable mob which had spared neither. - -It was at the time, then, when everybody was recanting that Mackintosh -made _his_ recantation. Most men of his class and nature took the same -part in the same events; for such men were delighted with the theories -of freedom, but shocked at its excesses; and, indeed, it is difficult -to conceive anything more abhorrent to the gentle dreams of a civilised -philosophy than that wild hurricane of liberty which carried ruin and -desolation over France in the same blast that spread the seeds of -future prosperity. - -We find, it is true, this beautiful passage in the “Vindiciæ Gallicæ:” -“The soil of Attica was remarked by antiquity as producing at once the -most delicious fruits and the most violent poisons. It is thus with the -human mind; and to the frequency of convulsions in the commonwealths -we owe those examples of sanguinary tumult and virtuous heroism which -distinguish their history from the monotonous tranquillity of modern -states.” But though these words were used by Mackintosh, they were -merely transcribed by him; they belong to a deeper and more daring -genius--they are almost literally the words of Machiavel, and were -furnished by the reading, and not by the genuine reflections, of the -youthful pamphleteer. He had not in rejoicing over the work of the -Constituante anticipated the horrors of the Convention; the regret, -therefore, that he expressed for what he condemned as his early want of -judgment, was undoubtedly sincere; and no one can fairly blame him for -accepting, under such circumstances, a post which was not political, -and which removed him from the angry arena in which he would have had -to combat with former friends, whose rancour may be appreciated by Dr. -Parr’s brutal reply--when Mackintosh asked him, how Quigley, an Irish -priest, executed for treason, could have been worse. “I’ll tell you, -Jemmy--Quigley was an Irishman, he might have been a Scotchman; he was -a priest, he might have been a lawyer; he was a traitor, he might have -been an apostate.” - -Thus much for the Bombay Recordership. But the feverish panic which the -sanguinary government of Robespierre had produced--calmed by his fall, -soothed by the feeble government which succeeded him, and replaced at -last by the stern domination of a warrior who had at least the merit of -restoring order and tranquillity to his country--died away. - -A variety of circumstances--including the publication of the “Edinburgh -Review,” which, conducted in a liberal and moderate spirit, made upon -the better educated class of the British population a considerable -impression--favoured and aided the reaction towards a more temperate -state of thought. A new era began, in which the timid lost their -fears, the factious their hopes. All question of the overthrow of the -constitution and of the confiscation of property was at an end; and as -politics thus fell back into more quiet channels, parties adopted new -watchwords and new devices. The cry was no longer, “Shall there be a -Monarchy or a Republic?” but, “Shall the Catholics continue proscribed -as helots, or shall they be treated as free men?” - -During the seven years which Sir James had passed in India, this was -the turn that had been taking place in affairs and opinions. It is -hardly possible to conceive any change more calculated to carry along -with it a mild and intelligent philosopher, to whom fanaticism of all -kinds was hateful. - -Those whom he had left, under the standard of Mr. Pitt, contending -against anarchical doctrines and universal conquest, were now for -disputing one of Mr. Pitt’s most sacred promises, and refusing to -secure peace to an empire, at the very crisis of its fortunes, by -the establishment of a system of civil equality between citizens -who thought differently on the somewhat abstruse subject of -transubstantiation. Mr. Perceval, at the head of this section of -politicians, was separated from almost every statesman who possessed -any reputation as a scholar. Mr. Canning did not belong to his -administration; Lord Wellesley was on the point of quitting it. There -never was a government to which what may be called the thinking -class of the country stood so opposed. Thus, the very same sort of -disposition which had detached Sir James Mackintosh, some years ago, -from his early friends, was now disposing him to rejoin them; and he -moved backwards and forwards, I must repeat, in both instances--when he -went to India a Tory,[88] and when he entered Parliament a Whig--with -a considerable body of persons, who, though less remarked because less -distinguished, honestly pursued the same conduct. - -All the circumstances, indeed, which marked his conduct at this time -do him honour. Almost immediately on his return to England, the -premier offered him a seat in Parliament, and held out to him the -hopes of the high and lucrative situation of President of the Board of -Control. A poor man, and an ambitious man, equally anxious for place -and distinction, he refused both; and this refusal, of which we have -now the surest proof, was a worthy answer to the imputations which had -attended the acceptance of his former appointment. Lord Abinger, who -has since recorded the refusal of a seat from Mr. Perceval, was himself -the bearer of a similar offer from Lord Cawdor;[89] and under the -patronage of this latter nobleman Sir James Mackintosh first entered -Parliament (1813) as the Member for Nairnshire, a representation the -more agreeable, since it was that of his ancestral county, wherein he -had inherited the small property which some years before he had been -compelled to part with.[90] - - -III. - -Any man entering the House of Commons for the first time late in life -possesses but a small chance of attaining considerable parliamentary -eminence. It requires some time to seize the spirit of that singular -assembly, of which most novices are at first inclined to over-rate and -then to under-rate the judgment. - -A learned man is more likely to be wrong than any other. He fancies -himself amidst an assembly of meditative and philosophic statesmen; -he calls up all his deepest thoughts and most refined speculations; -he is anxious to astonish by the profundity and extent of his views, -the novelty and sublimity of his conceptions; as he commences, the -listeners are convinced he is a bore, and before he concludes, he is -satisfied that they are blockheads. - -The orator, however, is far more out in his conjectures than the -audience. The House of Commons consists of a mob of gentlemen, the -greater part of whom are neither without talent nor information. But -a mob of well-informed gentlemen is still a mob, requiring to be -amused rather than instructed, and only touched by those reasons and -expressions which, clear to the dullest as to the quickest intellect, -vibrate through an assembly as if it had but one ear and one mind. - -Besides, the House of Commons is a mob divided beneficially, though it -requires some knowledge of the general genius and practical bearings -of a representative government to see all the advantages of such a -division, into parties. What such parties value is that which is done -in their ranks, that which is useful to themselves, of advantage to -a common cause; any mere personal exhibition is almost certain to -be regarded by them with contempt or displeasure. Differing amongst -themselves, indeed, in almost everything else--some being silent and -fastidious, some bustling and loquacious, some indolent and looking -after amusement, some incapable of being and yet desiring to appear to -be men of business, some active, public-spirited, and ambitious--all -agree in detecting the philosophic rhetorician. Anything in the shape -of subtle refinement,--anything that borders on learned generalities, -is sure to be out of place. Even supposing that the new member, already -distinguished elsewhere although now at his maiden essay in this -strange arena, has sufficient tact to see the errors into which he is -likely to fall, he is still a suspected person, and will be narrowly -watched as to any design of parading his own acquirements at the -expense of other people’s patience. - -How did Sir J. Mackintosh first appear amongst auditors thus disposed? -Lord Castlereagh moved, on the 20th of December, 1814, for an -adjournment to the 1st of March. At that moment the whole of Europe was -pouring, in the full tide of victory, into France. Every heart thrilled -with recent triumph and the anticipation of more complete success. The -ministry had acquired popularity as the reflection of the talents of -their general and the tardy good fortune of their allies. The demand -for adjournment was the demand for a confidence which they had a -right to expect, and which Mr. Whitbread and the leading Whigs saw it -would be ungenerous and impolitic to refuse. They granted then what -was asked; Mackintosh alone opposed it. His opposition was isolated, -certain to be without any practical result, and could only be accounted -for by the desire to make a speech! - -Lord Castlereagh, who was by nature the man of action which Mackintosh -was not, saw at once the error which the new Whig member had committed, -and determined to add as much as possible to his difficulties. Instead, -therefore, of making the statement which he knew was expected from him, -and to which he presumed the orator opposite would affect to reply, he -merely moved for the adjournment as a matter of course, which needed -no justification. By this simple manœuvre all the formidable artillery -which the profound reflector on foreign politics and the eloquent -lecturer on the law of nations had brought into the field, was rendered -useless. A fire against objects which were not in view, an answer to -arguments which had never been employed, was necessarily a very tame -exhibition, and indeed the new member was hardly able to get through -the oration to which it was evident he had given no common care. In -slang phrase, he “broke down.” Why was this? Sir James Mackintosh was -not ignorant of the nature of the assembly he addressed; he could have -explained to another all that was necessary to catch its ear; but, as -I have said a few pages back, the character of a person governs his -interests far more frequently than his interests govern his character; -and the man I am speaking of was not the man whom a sort of instinct -hurries into the heat and fervour of a real contest. To brandish his -glittering arms was to him the battle. He therefore persuaded himself -that what he did with satisfaction he should do with success. It was -just this which made his failure serious to him. - -The runner who trips in a race and loses it may win races for the rest -of his life; but if he stops in the middle of his course, because he -is asthmatic and cannot keep his breath, few persons would bet on -him again. Now, the failure of Mackintosh was of this kind; it was -not an accidental, but a constitutional one, arising from defects or -peculiarities that were part of himself. He never, then, recovered from -it. And yet it could not be said that he spoke ill; on the contrary, -notwithstanding certain defects in manner, he spoke, after a little -practice, well, and far above the ordinary speaking of learned men and -lawyers. Some of his orations may be read with admiration, and were -even received with applause. - - -IV. - -Where shall we find a nobler tone of statesmanlike philosophy than -in the following condemnation of that policy which attached Genoa to -Piedmont[91]--a condemnation not the less remarkable for the orator’s -not unskilful attempt to connect his former opposition to the French -Revolution with the war he was then waging against the Holy Alliance? - -“One of the grand and patent errors of the French Revolution was -the fatal opinion, that it was possible for human skill to make -a government. It was an error too generally prevalent not to be -excusable. The American Revolution had given it a fallacious semblance -of support, though no event in history more clearly showed its -falsehood. The system of laws and the frame of society in North America -remained after the Revolution, and remain to this day, fundamentally -the same as they ever were.[92] The change in America, like the change -in 1688, was made in defence of legal right, not in pursuit of -political improvement; and it was limited by the necessity of defence -which produced it. The whole internal order remained, which had always -been Republican. The somewhat slender tie which loosely joined these -Republics to a monarchy, was easily and without violence divided. But -the error of the French Revolutionists was, in 1789, the error of -Europe. From that error we have been long reclaimed by fatal experience. - -“We now see, or rather we have seen and felt, that a government is not -like a machine or a building, the work of man; that it is the work of -nature, like the nobler productions of the vegetable or animal world, -which man may improve and corrupt, and even destroy, but which he -cannot create. We have long learned to despise the ignorance or the -hypocrisy of those who speak of giving a free constitution to a people, -and to exclaim, with a great living poet: - - ‘A gift of that which never can be given - By all the blended powers of earth and heaven!’ - -“Indeed, we have gone, perhaps as usual, too near to the opposite -error, and not made sufficient allowances for those dreadful cases, -which I must call desperate, where, in long-enslaved countries, it is -necessary either humbly and cautiously to lay foundations from which -liberty may slowly rise, or acquiesce in the doom of perpetual bondage -on ourselves and our children. - -“But though we no longer dream of making governments, the confederacy -of kings seem to feel no doubt of their own power to make a nation. -A government cannot be made, because its whole spirit and principles -spring from the character of the nation. There would be no difficulty -in framing a government, if the habits of a people could be changed by -a lawgiver; if he could obliterate their recollections, transform their -attachment and reverence, extinguish their animosities and correct -those sentiments which, being at variance with his opinions of public -interest, he calls prejudices. Now this is precisely the power which -our statesmen at Vienna have arrogated to themselves. They not only -form nations, but they compose them of elements apparently the most -irreconcilable. They made one nation out of Norway and Sweden; they -tried to make another out of Prussia and Saxony. They have, in the -present case, forced together Piedmont and Genoa to form a nation which -is to guard the avenues of Italy, and to be one of the main securities -of Europe against universal monarchy. - -“It was not the pretension of the ancient system to form states, to -divide territory according to speculations of military convenience. - -“The great statesmen of former times did not speak of their measures -as the noble lord (Lord Castlereagh) did about the incorporation -of Belgium with Holland (about which I say nothing), as a great -improvement in the system of Europe. That is the language of those -who revolutionize that system by a partition like that of Poland, -by the establishment of the Federation of the Rhine at Paris, or by -the creation of new states at Vienna. The ancient principle was to -preserve all those States which had been founded by Time and Nature, -the character of which was often maintained, and the nationality of -which was sometimes created by the very irregularities of frontier -and inequalities of strength, of which a shallow policy complains; -to preserve all such States down to the smallest, first by their own -national spirit, and secondly by that mutual jealousy which makes every -great power the opponent of the dangerous ambition of every other; to -preserve nations, living bodies, produced by the hand of Nature--not -to form artificial dead machines, called nations, by the words and -parchment of a diplomatic act--was the ancient system of our wiser -forefathers, &c. &c.…” - - -V. - -There is also a noble strain of eloquence in the following short -defence of the slave-treaty with Spain: - -“I feel pride in the British flag being for this object subjected to -foreign ships. I think it a great and striking proof of magnanimity -that the darling point of honour of our country, the British flag -itself, which for a thousand years has braved the battle and the -breeze, which has defied confederacies of nations, to which we have -clung closer and closer as the tempest roared around us, which has -borne us through all perils and raised its head higher as the storm has -assailed us more fearfully, should now bend voluntarily to the cause -of justice and humanity--should now lower itself, never having been -brought low by the mightiest, to the most feeble and defenceless--to -those who, far from being able to return the benefits we would confer -upon them, will never hear of those benefits, will never know, perhaps, -even our name.” - -By far the most effective of Sir James Mackintosh’s speeches in -Parliament, however, was one that he delivered (June, 1819) against -“The Foreign Enlistment Bill,” a measure which was intended to prevent -British subjects from aiding the South American colonies in the -struggle they were then making for independence. No good report of this -oration remains, but even our parliamentary records are sufficient -to show that it possessed many of the rarer attributes of eloquence, -and moving with a rapidity and a vigour (not frequent in Sir James’s -efforts), prevented his language from seeming laboured or his learning -tedious. - -It contained, doubtless, other passages more striking in the delivery, -but the one which follows is peculiarly pleasing to me--considering the -argument it answered and the audience to which it was addressed: - -“Much has been said of the motives by which the merchants of England -are actuated as to this question. A noble lord, the other night, -treated these persons with great and unjust severity, imputing the -solicitude which they feel for the success of the South American cause -to interested motives. Without indulging in commonplace declamations -against party men, I must considerately say that it is a question with -me whether the interest of merchants do not more frequently coincide -with the best interests of mankind than do the transient and limited -views of politicians. If British merchants look with eagerness to the -event of the struggle in America, no doubt they do so with the hope of -deriving advantage from that event. But on what is such hope founded? -On the diffusion of beggary, on the maintenance of ignorance, on the -confirmation, on the establishment of tyranny in America? No; these are -the expectations of Ferdinand. The British merchant builds his hopes of -trade and profit on the progress of civilization and good government; -on the successful assertion of freedom--of freedom, that parent of -talent, that parent of heroism, that parent of every virtue. The fate -of America can only be necessary to commerce as it becomes accessory to -the dignity and the happiness of the race of man.” - - -VI. - -As a parliamentary orator, Sir James Mackintosh never before or -afterwards rose to so great a height as in this debate; but he -continued at intervals, and on great and national questions, to deliver -what may be called very remarkable essays up to the end of his career. -I myself was present at his last effort of this description; and most -interesting it was to hear the man who began his public life with the -“Vindiciæ Gallicæ,” closing it with a speech in favour of the Reform -Bill. During the interval, nearly half a century had run its course. -The principles which, forty years before, had appeared amidst the storm -and tempest of doubtful discussion, and which, since that period, -had been at various times almost totally obscured, were now again on -the horizon, bright in the steady sunshine of matured opinion. The -distinguished person who was addressing his countrymen on a great -historical question was himself a history,--a history of his own time, -of which, with the flexibility of an intelligent but somewhat feeble -nature, he had shared the enthusiasm, the doubt, the despair, the hope, -the triumph. - -The speech itself was remarkable. Overflowing with thought and -knowledge, containing sound general principles as to government, -undisfigured by the violence of party spirit, it pleased and instructed -those who took the pains to listen to it attentively; but it wanted the -qualities which attract or command attention. - -It were vain to seek in Mackintosh for the playful fancy of Canning, -the withering invective of Brougham, the deep earnestness of Plunkett. -The speaker’s person, moreover, was gaunt and ungainly, his accent -Scotch, his voice monotonous, his action (the regular and graceless -vibration of two long arms) sometimes vehement without passion, -and sometimes almost cringing through good nature and civility. In -short, his manner, wanting altogether the quiet concentration of -self-possession, was peculiarly opposed to that dignified, simple, and -straightforward style of public speaking, which may be characterised as -“English.” - -Still, it must be remembered that he was then at an advanced age, -and deprived, in some degree, of that mental, and yet more of that -physical, energy, which at an earlier period might possibly have -concealed these defects. I have heard, indeed, that on previous -occasions there had been moments when a temporary excitement gave -a natural animation to his voice and gestures, and that then the -excellence of his arguments was made strikingly manifest by an -effective delivery. - -His chief reputation in Parliament, nevertheless, is not as an orator, -but as a person successfully connected with one of those great -movements of opinion which are so long running their course, and which -it is the fortune of a man’s life to encounter and be borne up upon -when they are near their goal. - - -VII. - -Sir Thomas More, in his “Utopia” (1520), says of thieving, that, “as -the severity of the remedy is too great, so it is ineffectual.” In -Erasmus, Raleigh, Bacon, are to be found almost precisely the same -phrases and maxims that a few years ago startled the House of Commons -as novelties. “What a lamentable case it is,” observes Sir Edward Coke -(1620), “to see so many Christian men and women strangled on that -cursed tree of the gallows, the prevention of which consisteth in three -things: - -‘Good education, - -‘Good laws, - -‘Rare pardons.’” - -Evelyn, in his preface to “State Trials” (1730), observes, “that -our legislation is very liberal of the lives of offenders, making no -distinction between the most atrocious crimes and those of a less -degree.” - -“Experience,” says Montesquieu, “shows that in countries remarkable -for the lenity of their laws, the spirit of its inhabitants is as -much affected by slight penalties as in other countries by severe -punishments.”[93] - -This feeling became general amongst reflecting men in the middle and -towards the end of the eighteenth century. - -Johnson displays it in the “Rambler” (1751). Blackstone expressly -declares that “every humane legislator should be extremely cautious of -establishing laws which inflict the penalty of death, especially for -slight offences.” Mr. Grose, in writing on the Criminal Laws of England -(1769), observes: “The sanguinary disposition of our laws, besides -being a national reproach, is, as it may appear, an encouragement -instead of a terror to delinquents.” - -At this time also appeared the pamphlet of “Beccaria” (1767), which -was followed by an almost general movement in favour of milder laws -throughout Europe. The Duke of Modena (1780) abolished the Inquisition -in his states; the King of France, in 1781, the torture; in Russia, -capital punishment--never used but in cases of treason--may be said, -for all ordinary crimes, to have been done away with. - -In England, where every doctrine is sure to find two parties, there -was a contest between one set of men who wished our rigorous laws to -be still more rigorously executed, and another that considered the -rigour of those laws to be the main cause of their inefficiency. A -pamphlet, called “Thoughts on Executive Justice,” which produced some -sensation at the moment, represented the first class of malcontents, -and the author declaimed vehemently against those juries, who acquitted -capital offenders because it went against their conscience to take away -men’s lives. Sir Samuel Romilly, then a very young man, replied to this -pamphlet with its own facts, and contended that the way of insuring the -punishment of criminals was to make that punishment more proportionate -to their offences. - -From this pamphlet dates the modern battle which the great lawyer, -whose public career commenced with it, carried subsequently to the -floor of the House of Commons. - -His exertions, however, were less fortunate than they deserved to be. -To him, indeed, we owe, in a great measure, the spreading of truths -amongst the many which had previously been confined to the few; but he -never enjoyed the substantial triumph of these truths, for the one or -two small successes which he obtained are scarcely worth mentioning. - -His melancholy death took place in 1819, and Sir James Mackintosh, who -had just previously called the attention of Parliament to the barbarous -extent to which executions for forgery had been carried, now came -forward as the successor of Romilly in the general work of criminal law -reformation. - -In March, 1819, accordingly, he moved for a committee to inquire into -the subject, and obtained, such being the result in a great measure of -his own able and temperate manner, a majority of nineteen. Again, in -1822, though opposed by the ministers and law-officers of the Crown, he -carried a motion which pledged the House _to increase the efficiency by -diminishing the rigour of our criminal jurisprudence_; and, in 1823, -he followed up this triumph by Nine Resolutions, which, had they been -adopted, would have taken away the punishment of death in the case -of larceny from shops, dwelling-houses, and on navigable rivers, and -also in those of forgery, sheep-stealing, and other felonies, made -capital by the “_Marriage_ and Black Act;” in short, he proposed that -sentences of death should only be pronounced when it was intended to -carry them into execution. Mr. Peel, then home secretary, opposed these -resolutions, and obtained a majority against them; but he pledged -himself at the same time to undertake, on behalf of the government, a -plan of law reform, which, although less comprehensive than that which -Sir James Mackintosh contended for, was a great measure in itself, and -an immense step towards further improvement. - -Mackintosh’s success, throughout these efforts, was mainly due to -the plain unpretending manner in which he stated his case. “I don’t -mean,” he said, “to frame a new criminal code; God forbid I should -have such an idle and extravagant pretension. I don’t mean to abolish -the punishment of death; I believe that societies and individuals may -use it as a legitimate mode of defence. Neither do I mean to usurp on -the right of pardon now held by the Crown, which, on the contrary, -I wish, practically speaking, to restore. I do not even hope that I -shall be able to point out a manner in which the penalty of the law -should always be inflicted and never remitted. But I find things in -this condition--that the infliction of the law is the exception, and I -desire to make it the rule. I find two hundred cases in which capital -punishment is awarded by the statute-book, and only twenty-five in -which, for seventy years, such punishment has been executed. Why is -this? Because the code says one thing, and the moral feeling of your -society another. All I desire is that the two should be analogous, and -that our laws should award such punishments as our consciences permit -us to inflict.” - -It was this kind of tone which reassured the House that it was not -perilling property by respecting life, and brought about more quickly -than less prudent management would have done that reform to which the -general spirit of the time was tending, and which must necessarily, a -few years sooner or later, have arrived. - - -VIII. - -Thus, Sir James Mackintosh not only delivered some remarkable speeches -in Parliament, but he connected his name with a great and memorable -parliamentary triumph; nor is this all, he was true to his party, -opposing the government, though with some internal scruples, in 1820; -supporting Mr. Canning in 1827; and going again into opposition, to -the Duke of Wellington, in 1828. And yet, notwithstanding the ability -usually displayed in his speeches, notwithstanding the result of his -efforts in criminal law reform, and, more than all, notwithstanding the -constancy during late years of his politics, he held but a third-rate -place with the Whigs, and when they came into office in 1830, was -only made secretary at that board of which he had been offered the -presidency twenty years before. It is easy to say that this was because -he had not aristocratical connections. Mr. Poulett Thompson was not -more highly connected, and yet, though thirty years his junior, and far -his inferior in knowledge and mental capacity, received at the time a -higher office, and rose in ten years to the first places and honours -of the State. The one had much the higher order of intelligence, the -other the more resolute practical character. What you expected from the -first, he did not perform; the other went beyond your expectations. -For this is to be remarked: a man’s career is formed of the number -of little things he is always doing, whereas your opinion of him is -frequently derived, as I have already said, from something which, under -a particular stimulus, he has done once or twice, and may do now and -then. - -The fact is that Mackintosh was not fit for the daily toil and struggle -of Parliament; he had not the quickness, the energy, the hard and -active nature of those who rise by constant exertions in popular -assemblies. He did very well to come out like the State steed, on great -and solemn occasions, with gorgeous caparison and prancing action, but -he did not do as the every-day hack on a plain road. He was, moreover, -inclined by his nature rather to repose than to strife; and that which -we do by effort we cannot be doing for ever--nor even do frequently -well. His reason, which was acute, told him what he should be; but he -had not the energy to be it. For instance, on returning to England, -he exclaimed: “It is time to be something decided, and I am resolved -to exert myself to the utmost in public life, if I have a seat in -Parliament, or to condemn myself to profound retirement if the doors of -St. Stephen’s are barred to me.”[94] - -He had not, however, been many years a member before he accepted a -professorship (year 1818) at Haileybury College, because it left him -in the House of Commons; and refused the chair of moral philosophy -at Edinburgh (1818), because, it would have withdrawn him from it. -The great stream of public life thus passed for ever by him; he could -neither commit himself to its waves nor yet avoid lingering on its -shores. Now and then, in a moment of excitement, he would rush into it, -but it was soon again to retire to some sunny reverie, or some shady -regret, where he could quietly plot for the future, or mourn over the -past, or indulge the scheme of lettered indolence which wooed him at -the moment. - - - - -PART III. - -MERITS AS A WRITER, DEATH, AND ESTIMATE OF GENERAL CAPACITY AND -CHARACTER. - - History of England.--Articles in “Edinburgh Review.”--Treatise - on Ethical Philosophy.--Revolution of 1688.--Bentham’s system - of morals and politics.--His own death.--Comparison with - Montaigne. - - -I. - -I have said that Sir James Mackintosh allowed himself to be lured -from the strife of politics by the love of letters. And what was the -species of learned labour on which his intervals of musing leisure were -employed? He read at times--this he was always able and willing to -do--for the future composition of a great historical work--the “History -of England”--which his friends and the public, with a total ignorance -of his sort of character and ability, always sighed that he should -undertake, and considered that he would worthily accomplish. But while -he read for the future composition of this work, he actually wrote -but little for it. The little he did write was undertaken at the call -of some particular impulse, and capable of being finished before that -impulse was passed away. In such writings he followed the bent of his -nature, and in them accordingly he best succeeded, as they who refer to -his contributions to the “Edinburgh Review”[95] may be well disposed -to acknowledge. At last, within a few yards of his grave, he made a -start. Life was drawing to a close, the season for action was almost -passed, and of all he had mused and read and planned for it, there -existed nothing. This thought galled him to a species of exertion, and -he is one of the very few men who, at an advanced age, crowded the most -considerable and ambitious of their works into the last years of their -life. - -The volumes on “English History” brought out in Dr. Lardner’s -“Encyclopædia,” the “Life of Sir Thomas More,” which appeared in -the same publication, a “Treatise on Ethical Philosophy,” and a -commencement of the “History of the Revolution of 1688,” delivered to -the world after his death, are these works. - -They all exhibit the author’s defects and merits; third-rate in -themselves, and yet at various times persuading us that he who wrote -them was a first-rate man. Let us take up, for instance, the volumes -on “English History.” The narrative is languid, and interrupted by -disquisitions: the style is in general prolix, cumbrous, cold, profuse; -nevertheless, these volumes are full of thought and knowledge; they -contain many curious anecdotes, many scattered observations of profound -wisdom, while here and there burst upon us, by surprise it must be -confessed, passages which, written under a temporary excitement, -display remarkable spirit and power. Such is the description of -Becket’s murder: - - -II. - -“Provoked by these acts of extraordinary imprudence, Henry is said to -have called out before an audience of lords, knights, and gentlemen, -‘To what a miserable state am I reduced, when I cannot be at rest in -my own realm, by reason of only one priest; is there no one to deliver -me from my troubles?’ Four knights of distinguished rank, William -de Tracy, Hugh de Moreville, Richard Briths, and Reginald Fitz-Urse -(December 28), interpreted the King’s complaints as commands. They -repaired to Canterbury, confirmed in their purpose by finding that -Becket had recommenced his excommunications by that of Robert de Broe, -and that he had altered his course homeward to avoid the royalist -bishops on their way to court, in Normandy; they instantly went to his -house, and required him, not very mildly, to withdraw the censures of -the prelates, and take the oath to his lord-paramount. He refused. John -of Salisbury, his faithful and learned secretary, ventured at this -alarming moment to counsel peace. The primate thought that nothing was -left to him but a becoming death. - -“The knights retired to put on their armour, and there seems to have -been sufficient interval either for negotiation or escape. At that -moment, indeed, measures were preparing for legal proceedings against -him. - -“But the visible approach of peril awakened his sense of dignity, and -breathed an unusual decorum over his language and deportment. He went -through the cloisters into the church, whither he was followed by his -enemies, attended by a band of soldiers, whom they had hastily gathered -together. They rushed into the church with drawn swords. Tracy cried -out, ‘Where is the traitor? Where is the archbishop?’ Becket, who -stood before the altar of St. Bennet, answered gravely, ‘Here am I, no -traitor, but the archbishop.’ Tracy pulled him by the sleeve, saying: -‘Come hither, thou art a prisoner.’ He pulled back his arm with such -force as to make Tracy stagger, and said: ‘What meaneth this, William? -I have done _thee_ many pleasures; comest thou with armed men into -my church?’ ‘It is not possible that thou shouldst live any longer,’ -called out Fitz-Urse. The intrepid primate replied: ‘I am ready to die -for my God, in defence of the liberties of the Church.’ - -“At that moment, either by a relapse into his old disorders, or to -show that his non-resistance sprung not from weakness, but from duty, -he took hold of Tracy by the habergeon, or gorget, and flung him with -such violence as had nearly thrown him to the ground. He then bowed -his head, as if he would pray, and uttered his last words: ‘To God -and St. Mary I commend my soul, and the cause of the Church!’ Tracy -aimed a heavy blow at him, which fell on a bystander. The assassins -fell on him with many strokes, and though the second brought him to -the ground, they did not cease till his brains were scattered over the -pavement.”[96] - - -III. - -The characters of Alfred, of William I., of Henry VII., are superior -to any sketches of the same persons with which I am acquainted. The -summing up of events into pictures of certain epochs is frequently -done with much skill, and I particularly remember a short description -of the commencement of the Crusades, concluding with the capture of -Jerusalem;--the state of Europe in the thirteenth century, comprising -a large portion of history in two pages; and the death of Simon de -Montfort, with the establishment of the English Constitution. In a true -spirit of historical philosophy, Sir James Mackintosh says: - -“The introduction of knights, citizens, and burgesses into the -Legislature, by its continuance in circumstances so apparently -inauspicious, showed how exactly it suited the necessities and demands -of society at that moment. No sooner had events brought forward -the measure, than its fitness to the state of the community became -apparent. It is often thus that in the clamours of men for a succession -of objects, society selects from among them the one that has an -affinity with itself, and which most easily combines with its state at -the time.” - -The condition of Europe, also, just prior to the wars of the Roses, is -rapidly, picturesquely, and comprehensively sketched. - -“The historian who rests for a little space between the termination -of the Plantagenet wars in France and the commencement of the civil -wars of the two branches of that family in England, may naturally -look around him, reviewing some of the more important events which -had passed, and casting his eye onward to the preparations for the -mighty changes which were to produce an influence on the character and -lot of the human race. A very few particulars only can be selected as -specimens from so vast a mass. The foundations of the political system -of the European commonwealth were now laid. A glance over the map of -Europe, in 1453, will satisfy an observer that the territories of -different nations were then fast approaching to the shape and extent -which they retain at this day. The English islanders had only one town -of the continent remaining in their hands. The Mahometans of Spain -were on the eve of being reduced under the Christian authority. Italy -had, indeed, lost her liberty, but had yet escaped the ignominy of a -foreign yoke. Moscovy was emerging from the long domination of the -Tartars. Venice, Hungary, and Poland, three states now placed under -foreign masters, guarded the eastern frontier of Christendom against -the Ottoman barbarians, whom the absence of foresight, of mutual -confidence, and a disregard of general safety and honour, disgraceful -to the western governments, had just suffered to master Constantinople -and to subjugate the eastern Christians. France had consolidated the -greater part of her central and commanding territories. In the transfer -of the Netherlands to the house of Austria originated the French -jealousy of that power, then rising in South-Eastern Germany. The -empire was daily becoming a looser confederacy under a nominal ruler, -whose small remains of authority every day continued to lessen. The -internal or constitutional history of the European nations threatened, -in almost every continental country, the fatal establishment of an -absolute monarchy, from which the free and generous spirit of the -northern barbarians did not protect their degenerate posterity. In the -Netherlands an ancient gentry, and burghers, enriched by traffic, held -their still limited princes in check. In Switzerland, the patricians of -a few towns, together with the gallant peasantry of the Alpine valleys, -escaped a master. But Parliaments and Diets, States-General and -Cortes, were gradually disappearing from view, or reduced from august -assemblies to insignificant formalities, and Europe seemed on the eve -of exhibiting nothing to the disgusted eye but the dead uniformity of -imbecile despotism, dissolute courts, and cruelly oppressed nations. - -“In the meantime the unobserved advancement and diffusion of knowledge -were preparing the way for discoveries, of which the high result -will be contemplated only by unborn ages. The mariner’s compass had -conducted the Portuguese to distant points on the coast of Africa, -and was about to lead them through the unploughed ocean to the famous -regions of the East. Civilized men, hitherto cooped up on the shores -of the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, now visited the whole of -their subject planet and became its undisputed sovereigns. The great -adventurer[97] was then born, who, with two undecked boats and one -frail sloop, containing with difficulty a hundred and twenty persons, -dared to stretch across an untraversed ocean, which had hitherto -bounded the imaginations as well as the enterprises of men; and who, -instead of that India renowned in legend and in story, of which he was -in quest, laid open a new world which, under the hands of the European -race, was one day to produce governments, laws, manners, modes of -civilization and states of society almost as different as its native -plants and animals from those of ancient Europe. - -“Who could then--who can even now--foresee all the prodigious effects -of these discoveries on the fortunes of mankind?” - - -IV. - -No one will deny that what I have just quoted might have been written -by a great historian; yet no one will say that the work I quote from is -a great history. - -It is a series of parts, some excellent, some indifferent, but which -altogether do not form a whole. The fragment of the Revolution, though -a fragment, presents the same qualities and defects. The narrative is -poor; some of the characters, such as those of Rochester, Sunderland, -and Halifax--and some of the passages (that with which the work opens, -for instance)--are excellent; but then, these fine figures of gold -embroidery are worked here and there with care and toil, on an ordinary -sort of canvas. - -The “Life of Sir Thomas More” is the only complete performance; and -this because it was a portrait which might have been taken at one -sitting. - -The “Treatise on Ethics,” first published in the supplement of the -seventh edition of the “Encyclopædia Britannica,” and which has -since appeared in a separate form under the auspices of Professor -Whewell, is still more remarkable, both in its design and execution, -as characterising the author. He seems here, indeed, to have been -aware of his own capabilities, and to have accommodated his labours -to them; for his work is conceived in separate and distinct portions, -and he undertakes to write the course and progress of philosophy by -descriptions of its most illustrious masters and professors; a plan -gracefully imagined, as diffusing the charm of personal narrative over -dry and speculative disquisition. - -Nothing, accordingly, can be better executed than some of these -pictures. It would be difficult to paint Hobbes, Leibnitz, Shaftesbury, -more faithfully, or in more suitable colours; the contrast between the -haughty Bossuet and the gentle Fénelon is perfectly sustained; while -Berkeley the virtuous, the benevolent, the imaginative, is drawn -with a pencil which would even have satisfied the admiration of his -contemporaries: - - -V. - -“_Berkeley._--Ancient learning, exact science, polished society, modern -literature, and the fine arts, contributed to adorn and enrich the -mind of this accomplished man. All his contemporaries agreed with the -satirist in ascribing - - “‘To Berkeley every virtue under heaven!’ - -“Adverse factions and hostile wits concurred only in loving, admiring, -and contributing to advance him. The severe sense of Swift endured his -visions; the modest Addison endeavoured to reconcile Clarke to his -ambitious speculations. His character converted the satire of Pope into -fervid praise. Even the fastidious and turbulent Atterbury said, after -an interview with him, ‘So much understanding, so much knowledge, so -much innocence, and such humility, I did not think had been the portion -of any but angels, till I saw this gentleman.’[98] ‘Lord Bathurst told -me,’ says Warton, ‘that the members of the Scribblers’ Club being met -at his house at dinner, they agreed to rally Berkeley, who was also -his guest, on his scheme at Bermudas. Berkeley, having listened to the -many lively things they had to say, begged to be heard in his turn, -and displayed his plan with such an astonishing and animating force of -eloquence and enthusiasm that they were struck dumb, and, after some -pause, rose all up together, with earnestness exclaiming, “Let us set -out with him immediately!”’[99] It was when thus beloved and celebrated -that he conceived, at the age of forty-five, the design of devoting -his life to reclaim and convert the natives of North America; and he -employed as much influence and solicitation as common men do for their -most prized objects, in obtaining leave to resign his dignities and -revenues, to quit his accomplished and affectionate friends, and to -bury himself in what must have seemed an intellectual desert. After -four years’ residence at Newport, in Rhode Island, he was compelled, -by the refusal of government to furnish him with funds for his college, -to forego his work of heroic, or rather godlike benevolence, though not -without some consoling forethought of the fortune of a country where he -had sojourned: - - “‘Westward the course of empire takes its way: - The first four acts already past, - A fifth shall close the drama with the day, - Time’s noblest offspring is its last.’ - -“Thus disappointed in his ambition of keeping a school for savage -children, at a salary of a hundred pounds a year, he was received -on his return with open arms by the philosophical Queen, at whose -metaphysical parties he made one, with Sherlock, who, as well as -Smallridge, was his supporter, and with Hoadley, who, following Clarke, -was his antagonist. By her influence he was made Bishop of Cloyne. -It is one of his greatest merits, that though of English extraction, -he was a true Irishman, and the first eminent Protestant, after the -unhappy contest at the Revolution, who avowed his love for all his -countrymen;[100] and contributed, by a truly Christian address to -the Roman Catholics of his diocese, to their perfect quiet during -the rebellion of 1745. From the writings of his advanced years, when -he chose a medical tract[101] to be the vehicle of philosophical -reflections, though it cannot be said that he relinquished his early -opinions, it is at least apparent that his mind had received a new -bent, and was habitually turned from reasoning towards contemplation. -His immaterialism, indeed, modestly appears, but only to purify and -elevate our thoughts, and to fix them on mind, the paramount and -primeval principle of all things. ‘Perhaps,’ says he, ‘the truths -about innate ideas may be, that there are properly no ideas on passive -objects in the mind but what are derived from sense, but that there are -also, besides these, her own acts and operations--such are notions;’ a -statement which seems once more to admit general conceptions, and which -might have served, as well as the parallel passage of Leibnitz, as the -basis of modern philosophy in Germany. From these compositions of his -old age, he then appears to have recurred with fondness to Plato, and -the later Platonists: writers from whose mere reasonings an intellect -so acute could hardly hope for an argumentative satisfaction of all its -difficulties, and whom he probably either studied as a means of inuring -his mind to objects beyond the visible diurnal sphere, and of attaching -it, through frequent meditation, to that perfect and transcendent -goodness, to which his moral feelings always pointed, and which they -incessantly strove to grasp. His mind, enlarging as it rose, at length -receives every theist, however imperfect his belief, to a communion in -its philosophic piety. ‘Truth,’ he beautifully concludes, ‘is the cry -of all, but the game of few. Certainly, where it is the chief passion, -it does not give way to vulgar cares, nor is it contented with a little -ardour in the early time of life; active perhaps to pursue, but not -so fit to weigh and revise. He that would make a real progress in -knowledge, must dedicate his age as well as youth, the latter growth as -well as first fruits, at the altar of truth.’ So did Berkeley, and such -were almost his latest words. - -“His general principles of ethics may be shortly stated by himself: -‘As God is a being of infinite goodness, His end is the good of His -creatures. The general well-being of all men of all nations, of all -ages of the world, is that which He designs should be procured by -the concurring actions of each individual.’ Having stated that this -end can be pursued only in one of two ways--either by computing the -consequences of each action, or by obeying the rules which generally -tend to happiness; and having shown the first to be impossible, he -rightly infers, ‘That the end to which God requires the concurrence -of human actions, must be carried on by the observation of certain -determinate and universal rules, or moral precepts, which in their own -nature have a necessary tendency to promote the well-being of mankind, -taking in all nations and ages, from the beginning to the end of the -world.’[102] A romance, of which a journey to an Utopia in the centre -of Africa forms the chief part, called, ‘The adventures of Signor -Gaudentio di Lucca,’ has been commonly ascribed to him; probably on no -other ground than its union of pleasing invention with benevolence and -elegance.”[103] - - -VI. - -The following short description of the practical Paley comes aptly -after that of this charming Utopian: - -“_Paley._--The natural frame of Paley’s understanding fitted it more -for business and the world than for philosophy; and he accordingly -enjoyed with considerable relish the few opportunities which the -latter part of his life afforded, of taking a part in the affairs of -his country, as a magistrate. Penetration and shrewdness, firmness and -coolness, a vein of pleasantry, fruitful, though somewhat unrefined, -with an original homeliness and significancy of expression, were -perhaps more remarkable in his conversation than the restraints of -authorship and profession allowed them to be in his writings. His taste -for the common business and ordinary amusements of life, fortunately -gave a zest to the company which his neighbourhood chanced to yield, -without rendering him insensible to the pleasures of intercourse with -more enlightened society. The practical bent of his nature is visible -in the language of his writings, which, on practical matters, is as -precise as the nature of the subject requires; but, in his rare and -reluctant efforts to rise to first principles, becomes undeterminate -and unsatisfactory, though no man’s composition was more free from the -impediments which hinder a writer’s meaning from being quickly and -clearly seen. He possessed that chastised acuteness of discrimination, -exercised on the affairs of men, and habitually looking to a purpose -beyond the mere increase of knowledge, which forms the character of a -lawyer’s understanding, and which is apt to render a mere lawyer too -subtle for the management of affairs, and yet too gross for the pursuit -of general truths. His style is as near perfection, in its kind, as -any in our language. Perhaps no words were ever more expressive and -illustrative than those in which he represents the art of life to be -that of rightly setting our habits.”--“Ethical Philosophy,” p. 274. - -Such are the portraits in this work; the history of ancient ethics, -and the vindication of the scholiasts also, are in themselves and as -separate compositions of great merit; but when, after admiring these -different fragments, we look at the plan, at the system which is to -result from them, or endeavour to follow out the line of reasoning -which is to bring them together--we quit the land of realities for -that of shadows, and are obliged to confess that the author has barely -sufficient vigour to make his meaning intelligible. - - -VII. - -To give the history intended to be given by Sir James’s treatise, would -be without the scope of the present sketch; but it may not be amiss to -say something of the state of the philosophical opinions which existed -at the time of its publication, and which, in fact, called it forth. -Helvetius, the friend of Voltaire and Diderot--Helvetius, whose works -have been considered as merely the record of those opinions which -circulated around him--the most amusing, if not the most logical of -metaphysicians, wrote that everything proceeded from the senses, and -that man (for this was one of his favourite hypotheses) differed from a -monkey mainly because his hands were tenderer and more soft. - -The doctrine of sensation led necessarily to that of selfishness, -since, owing what we think to what we feel, every idea is the -consequence of some pain or pleasure, and our own pains and pleasures -are thus the parents of all our emotions. - -A strong reaction, however, took place in the beginning of the -nineteenth against the eighteenth century; the original existence of -certain sentiments or affections implanted by nature, was contended -for, in Germany and in Scotland, under a variety of qualifications. -The school, which said that the affections arose from this primary -source, called them disinterested, as that which contended that they -more or less directly proceeded from some cause which had reference to -ourselves, called them interested. There was but one step easily made -by both parties in carrying out their doctrines. - -The philosophers who thought that self-interest, “through some -certain strainers well refined,” was the cause of all our actions and -ideas, maintained that utility was the only measure of virtue, or of -greatness. The philosophers of the opposite faction argued on the -contrary, that as many of our emotions were natural and involuntary, so -there was also a sense of wrong and right, natural and involuntary, and -connected with those emotions implanted in us. - -Living in a retired part of London, visited only by his adorers and -disciples, looking rarely beyond the confines of his early knowledge, -and on the train of thinking it had inspired, an old and singular -gentleman, with great native powers of mind, almost alone resisted the -new impulse, and, classifying and extending the doctrines of the French -philosophy, established a reputation and a school of his own. The charm -of Mr. Bentham’s philosophy, however obscured by fanciful names and -unnecessary subdivisions, is its apparent clearness and simplicity. - -He considers with the disciples of Helvetius--1, that our ideas do come -from our sensations, and that consequently we are selfish; 2, that man -in doing what is most useful to himself does what is right. - -Very strange and fantastical notions have been propagated against the -philosopher by persons so egregiously mistaking him as to imagine that -what he thus says of mankind generally--of man, meaning every man--is -said of a man, of man separately; so that a murderer, pretend these -commentators, has only to be sure that a second murder is useful to -him by preventing the detection of the first, in order to be justified -in committing it. It were useless to dwell upon this ridiculous -construction. But in urging men to pursue the general interest of -society at large, in telling them that to do what is most for that -interest is to act usefully and thereby virtuously, Mr. Bentham found -it necessary to explain how such interest was to be discovered. - -Accordingly he has propounded that the general interest of a society -must be considered to be the interest of the greatest number in that -society, and that the greatest number in any society is the best judge -of its interest. Moreover, in the further development of his doctrine, -he contends that a majority would always, under natural circumstances, -govern a minority, and that, therefore, there is a natural tendency, -if not thwarted, towards the happiness and good government of mankind. -This system of philosophy gained the more attention from its being also -a system of politics. According to Mr. Bentham, that which was most -important to men depended on maintaining what he considered the natural -law, viz., governing the minority by the majority. - - -VIII. - -Unfortunately for the destiny of mankind, and the soundness of the -Benthamite doctrine, it is by no means certain that the majority in -any community is the best judge of its interests; whilst it is even -less certain, if it did know these interests, that it would necessarily -and invariably follow them. In almost every collection of men the -intelligent few know better what is for the common interest than the -ignorant many; and it is rare indeed to see communities or individuals -pursuing their interest steadily even when they perceive it clearly. -It would, perhaps, be more reconcilable to reason to say that the -intellect of a community should govern a community; but this assertion -is also open to objection, since a small number of intelligent men -might govern for their own interest, and not for the interest of the -society they represented. In short, though it is easy to see that the -science of government does not consist in giving power to the greatest -number, but in giving it to the most intelligent, and making it for -their interest to govern for the interest of the greatest number; -still, every day teaches us that good government is rather a thing -relative than a thing absolute; that all governments have good mixed -with evil, and evil mixed with good; and that the statesman’s task, as -is beautifully demonstrated by Montesquieu, is, not to destroy an evil -combined with a greater good, nor to create a good accompanied with a -greater evil; but to calculate how the greatest amount of good and the -least amount of evil can be combined together. Hence it is, that the -best governments with which we are acquainted seem rather to have been -fashioned by the working hand of daily experience, than by the artistic -fingers of philosophical speculation. - -Nevertheless, the theory, that the good of the greatest number in any -community ought to be the object which its government should strive -to attain, and the maxim, that the interest and happiness of every -unit in a community are to be treated as a portion of the interest and -happiness of the whole community, are humanizing precepts, and have, -through the influence of Mr. Bentham and of his disciples, produced, -within my own memory, a considerable change in the public opinion of -England. - -Mr. Bentham’s name, then, is far more above the scoff of his -antagonists than below the enthusiasm of his disciples; and it is in -this spirit, and with a becoming respect, that Sir James Mackintosh -treats the philosopher while he combats his philosophy. - - -IX. - -In regard to the theory of Sir James himself, if I understand it -rightly (and it is rather, as I have said, indistinctly expressed), he -accepts neither the doctrine of innate ideas disinterestedly producing -or ordering our actions, nor that of sense-derived ideas by which, with -a concentrated regard to self, some suppose men to be governed--but -imagines an association of ideas, naturally suggested by our human -condition, which, according to a pre-ordinated state of the mind, -produces, as in chemical processes, some emotion different from any of -the combined elements or causes from which it springs. - -This emotion, once existing, requires, without consideration or -reflection, its gratification. In this manner the satisfaction of -benevolence and pity springs as much from a spontaneous desire as -the satisfaction of hunger; and man is unconsciously taught, through -feelings necessary to him as man, to wish involuntarily for that which, -on reflection and experience, he would find (such is the beautiful -dispensation of Providence) most for his happiness and advantage. - -The union, assemblage, or incorporation, if one may so speak, of these -involuntary desires, affecting and affected by them all, becomes our -universal moral sense or conscience, which in each of its propensities -is gratified or mortified, according to our conduct. - - -X. - -Here end my criticisms. They have passed rapidly in review the -principal works and events of Sir James Mackintosh’s life;[104] and -what have they illustrated? That, which I commenced by observing: that -he had made several excellent speeches, that he had taken an active -part in politics, that he had written ably upon history, that he had -manifested a profound knowledge of philosophy; but that he had not -been pre-eminent as an orator, as a politician, as an historian, as a -philosopher.[105] It may be doubted whether any speech or book of his -will long survive his time; but a very valuable work might be compiled -from his writings and speeches. Indeed, there are hardly any books -in our language more interesting or more instructive than the two -volumes published by his son, and which display in every page the best -qualities of an excellent heart and an excellent understanding, set off -by the most amiable and remarkable simplicity. His striking, peculiar, -and unrivalled merit, however, was that of a conversationalist. Great -good-nature, great and yet gentle animation, much learning, and a -sound, discriminating, and comprehensive judgment, made him this. -He had little of the wit of words--brilliant repartées, caustic -sayings, concentrated and epigrammatic turns of expression. But he -knew everything and could talk of everything without being tedious. A -lady of great wit, intellect, and judgment (Lady William Russell), in -describing his soft Scotch voice, said to me--“Mackintosh played on -your understanding with a flageolet, Macaulay with a trumpet.” Having -lived much by himself and with books, and much also in the world and -with men, he had the light anecdote and easy manner of society, and -the grave and serious gatherings in of lonely hours. He added also to -much knowledge considerable powers of observation; and there are few -persons of whom he speaks, even at the dawn of their career, whom he -has not judged with discrimination. His agreeableness, moreover, being -that of a full mind expressed with facility, was the most translatable -of any man’s, and he succeeded with foreigners, and in France, which -he visited three times--once at the peace of Amiens, again in 1814, -and again in 1824--quite as much as in his own country, and with -his own countrymen. Madame de Staël and Benjamin Constant prized -him not less than did Lord Dudley or Lord Byron. It was not only in -England, then, but also on the Continent, where his early pamphlet and -distinguished friendships had made him equally known--that he ever -remained the _man of promise_; until, amidst hopes which his vast and -various information, his wonderful memory, his copious elocution, -and his transitory fits of energy, still nourished, he died, in the -sixty-seventh year of his age, universally admired and regretted, -though without a high reputation for any one thing, or the ardent -attachment of any particular set of persons. His death, which took -place the 30th of May, 1832, was occasioned by a small fragment of -chicken-bone, which, having lacerated the trachea, created a wound that -ultimately proved fatal. He met his end with calmness and resignation, -expressing his belief in the Christian faith, and placing his trust in -it. - - -XI. - -No man doing so little ever went through a long life continually -creating the belief that he would ultimately do so much. A want of -earnestness, a want of passion, a want of genius, prevented him from -playing a first-rate part amongst men during his day, and from leaving -any of those monuments behind him which command the attention of -posterity. A love of knowledge, an acute and capacious intelligence, -an early and noble ambition, led him into literary and active life, -and furnished him with the materials and at moments with the energy by -which success in both is obtained. An amiable disposition, a lively -flow of spirits, an extraordinary and varied stock of information made -his society agreeable to the most distinguished persons of his age, -and induced them, encouraged by some occasional displays of remarkable -power, to consider his available abilities to be greater than they -really were. - -“What have you done,” he relates that a French lady once said to him, -“that people should think you so superior?” “I was obliged,” he adds, -“as usual, to refer to my projects.” For active life he was too much -of the academic school:--believing nearly all great distinctions to -be less than they were, and remaining irresolute between small ones. -He passed, as he himself said, from Burke to Fox in half an hour, and -remained weeks, as we learn from a friend (Lord Nugent), in determining -whether he should employ “usefulness” or “utility” in some particular -composition. Such is not the stuff out of which great leaders or -statesmen are formed. His main error as a writer and as a speaker -was his elaborate struggle against that easy idle way of delivering -himself, which made the charm of his talk when he did not think of what -he was saying. “The great fault of my manner,” he himself observes -somewhere, “is that I overload.” And to many of his more finished -compositions we might, indeed, apply the old saying of the critic, -who on being asked whether he admired a certain tragedy of Dionysius, -replied: “I have not seen it; it is obscured with language.” His early -compositions had a sharper and terser style than his later ones, the -activity of the author’s mind being greater, and his doubts and toils -after perfection less; but even these were over-prepared. Can he be -considered a failure? No; if you compare him with other men. Yes; if -you compare him with the general idea entertained as to himself. The -reputation he attained, however vague and uncertain, the writings -that he left, though inferior to the prevalent notions as to his -powers,--all placed him on a pedestal of conspicuous, though not of -gigantic elevation amongst his contemporaries. The results of his life -only disappointed when you measured them by the anticipations which -his merits had excited--then he became “the man of promise.” Could he -have arrived at greater eminence than that which he attained? if so, it -must have been by a different road. I cannot repeat too often that no -man struggles perpetually and victoriously against his own character; -and one of the first principles of success in life, is so to regulate -our career as rather to turn our physical constitution and natural -inclinations to good account, than to endeavour to counteract the one -or oppose the other. - -There can be no general comparison between Montaigne and Mackintosh. -The first was an original thinker, and the latter a combiner and -retailer of the thoughts of others. But I have often pictured to myself -the French philosopher lounging away the greatest portion of his life -in the old square turret of his château, yielding to his laziness all -that it exacted from him, and becoming, almost in spite of himself, the -first magistrate of his town, and, though carelessly and discursively, -the greatest writer of his time. He gave the rein to the idleness of -his nature, and had reason to be satisfied with the employment of his -life. - -On the other hand, let us look at the accomplished Scotchman, -constantly agitated by his aspirations after fame and his inclinations -for repose; formed for literary ease, forcing himself into political -conflict--dreaming of a long-laboured history, and writing a hasty -article in a review; earnest about nothing, because the objects to -which he momentarily directed his efforts were not likely to give the -permanent distinction for which he pined; and thus, with a doubtful -mind and a broken career, achieving little that was worthy of his -abilities, or equal to the expectations of his friends. I have said -there can be no general comparison between men whose particular -faculties were no doubt of a very different order; yet, had the one -mixed in contest with the bold and factious spirits of his day, he -would have been but a poor “_ligueur_;” and had the other abstained -from politics and renounced long and laborious compositions, merely -writing under the stimulus of some accidental inspiration, it is -probable that his name would have gone down to posterity as that of the -most agreeable and instructive essayist of his remarkable epoch. But at -all events that name is graven on the monument which commemorates more -Christian manners and more mild legislation: and “Blessed shall he be,” -as said our great lawyer, “who layeth the first stone of this building; -more blessed he that proceeds in it; most of all he that finisheth it -in the glory of God, and the honour of our king and nation.” - - - - -COBBETT, THE CONTENTIOUS MAN. - - - - -PART I. - -FROM HIS BIRTH, IN MARCH, 1762, TO HIS QUITTING THE UNITED STATES, JUNE -1ST, 1800. - - Son of a small farmer.--Boyhood spent in the country.--Runs - away from home.--Becomes a lawyer’s clerk.--Enlists as a - soldier, 1784.--Learns grammar and studies Swift.--Goes - to Canada.--Remarked for good conduct.--Rises to rank of - sergeant-major.--Gets discharge, 1791.--Marries.--Quits - Europe for United States.--Starts as a bookseller in - Pennsylvania.--Becomes a political writer of great - power.--Takes a violent anti-republican tone.--Has to suffer - different prosecutions, and at last sets sail for England. - - -I. - -The character which I am now tempted to delineate is just the reverse -of that which I rise from describing. Mackintosh was a man of great -powers of reasoning, of accomplished learning, but of little or no -sustained energy. His vision took a wide and calm range; he saw all -things coolly, dispassionately, and, except at his first entry into -life, was never so lost in his admiration of one object as to overlook -the rest. His fault lay in rather the opposite extreme; his perception -of the universal weakened that of the particular, and the variety of -colours which appeared at once before him became too blended in his -sight for the adequate appreciation of each. - -The subject of this memoir, on the contrary, though he could argue -well in favour of any opinion he adopted, had not that elevated and -philosophic cast of mind which makes men inquire after truth for the -sake of truth, regarding its pursuit as a delight, its attainment as -a duty. Neither could he take that comprehensive view of affairs which -affords to the judgment an ample scope for the comparison and selection -of opinions. But he possessed a rapid power of concentration; a will -that scorned opposition; he saw clearly that one side of a question -which caught his attention; and pursued the object he had momentarily -in view with an energy that never recoiled before a danger, and was -rarely arrested by a scruple. The sense of his force gave him the -passion for action; but he encouraged this passion until it became -restlessness, a desire to fight rather for the pleasure of fighting -than for devotion to any cause for which he fought. - -While Mackintosh always struggled against his character, and thereby -never gave himself fair play, the person of whom I am now about -to speak--borne away in a perfectly opposite extreme--allowed his -character to usurp and govern his abilities, frequently without either -usefulness or aim. Thus, the one changed sides two or three times -in his life, from that want of natural ardour which creates strong -attachments; the other attacked and defended various parties with a -furious zeal, upon which no one could rely, because it proceeded from -the temporary caprice of a whimsical imagination, and not from the -stedfast enthusiasm of any well-meditated conviction. With two or three -qualities more, Cobbett would have been a very great man in the world; -as it was, he made a great noise in it. But I pass from criticism to -narrative. - - -II. - -William Cobbett was born in the neighbourhood of Farnham, on the 9th -of March, 1762. The remotest ancestor he had ever heard of was his -grandfather, who had been a day labourer, and, according to the rustic -habits of old times, worked with the same farmer from the day of his -marriage to that of his death. The son, Cobbett’s parent, was a man -superior to the generality of persons in his station of life. He -could not only read and write, but he knew also a little mathematics; -understood land surveying, was honest and industrious, and had thus -risen from the position of labourer, a position in which he was born, -to that of having labourers under him. - -Cobbett’s boyhood, I may say his childhood, was passed in the fields: -first he was seen frightening the birds from the turnips, then weeding -wheat, then leading a horse at harrowing barley, finally joining the -reapers at harvest, driving the team, and holding the plough. His -literary instruction was small, and only such as he could acquire at -home. It was shrewdly asked by Dr. Johnson, “What becomes of all the -clever schoolboys?” In fact, many of the boys clever at school are not -heard of afterwards, because if they are docile they are also timid, -and attend to the routine of education less from the love of learning -than the want of animal spirits. Cobbett was not a boy of this kind. -At the age of sixteen he determined to go to sea, but could not get -a captain to take him. At the age of seventeen he quitted his home -(having already, when much younger, done so in search of adventures), -and without communicating his design to any one, started, dressed -in his Sunday clothes, for the great city of London. Here, owing to -the kind exertions of a passenger in the coach in which this his -first journey was made, he got engaged after some time and trouble as -under-clerk to an attorney (Mr. Holland), in Gray’s Inn Lane. - -It is natural enough that to a lad accustomed to fresh air, green -fields, and out-of-door exercise, the close atmosphere, dull aspect, -and sedentary position awaiting an attorney’s under-clerk at Gray’s -Inn must have been hateful. But William Cobbett never once thought of -escaping from what he called “an earthly hell” by a return to his home -and friends. This would have been to confess himself beaten, which -he never meant to be. On the contrary, rushing from one bold step to -another still more so, he enlisted himself (1784) as a soldier in a -regiment intended to serve in Nova Scotia. His father, though somewhat -of his own stern and surly nature, begged, prayed, and remonstrated. -But it was useless. The recruit, however, had some months to pass -in England, since, peace having taken place, there was no hurry in -sending off the troops. These months he spent in Chatham, storing his -brains with the lore of a circulating library, and his heart with -love-dreams of the librarian’s daughter. - -To this period he owed what he always considered his most valuable -acquisition, a knowledge of his native language; the assiduity with -which he gave himself up to study, on this occasion, insured his -success and evinced his character. He wrote out the whole of an English -grammar two or three times; he got it by heart; he repeated it every -morning and evening, and he imposed on himself the task of saying it -over once every time that he mounted guard. “I learned grammar,” he -himself says, “when I was a private soldier on the pay of sixpence a -day. The edge of my berth, or that of the guard-bed, was my seat to -study on; my knapsack was my book-case, a bit of board lying on my lap -was my writing-table, and the task did not demand anything like a year -of my life.” Such is will. In America, Cobbett remained as a soldier -till the month of September, 1791, when his regiment was relieved and -sent home. On the 19th of November, he obtained his discharge, after -having served nearly eight years, never having once been disgraced, -confined, or reprimanded, and having attained, owing to his zeal and -intelligence, the rank of sergeant-major without having passed through -the intermediate rank of sergeant. - -The following was the order issued at Portsmouth on the day of his -discharge: - - “Portsmouth, 19th Dec. 1791. - - “Sergeant-Major Cobbett having most pressingly applied for his - discharge, at Major Lord Edward Fitzgerald’s request, General - Frederick has ordered Major Lord Edward Fitzgerald to return - the Sergeant-Major thanks for his behaviour and conduct during - the time of his being in the regiment, and Major Lord Edward - adds his most hearty thanks to those of the General.” - - -III. - -At this period Cobbett married. Nobody has left us wiser sentiments or -pithier sentences on the choice of a wife. His own, the daughter of -a sergeant of artillery, stationed like himself at New Brunswick, had -been selected at once. He had met her two or three times, and found -her pretty; beauty, indeed, he considered indispensable, but beauty -alone would never have suited him. Industry, activity, energy, the -qualities which he possessed, were those which he most admired, and -the partner of his life was fixed upon when he found her, one morning -before it was distinctly light, “scrubbing out a washing-tub before her -father’s door.” “That’s the girl for me,” he said, and he kept to this -resolution with a fortitude which the object of his attachment deserved -and imitated. - -The courtship was continued, and the assurance of reciprocated -affection given; but before the union of hands could sanctify that of -hearts, the artillery were ordered home for England. Cobbett, whose -regiment was then at some distance from the spot where his betrothed -was still residing, unable to have the satisfaction of a personal -farewell, sent her 150 guineas, the whole amount of his savings, and -begged her to use it--as he feared her residence with her father at -Woolwich might expose her to bad company--in making herself comfortable -in a small lodging with respectable people until his arrival. It was -not until four years afterwards that he himself was able to quit -America, and he then found the damsel he had so judiciously chosen -not with her father, it is true, nor yet lodging in idleness, but -as servant-of-all-work for five pounds a year, and at their first -interview she put into his hands the 150 guineas which had been -confided to her--untouched. Such a woman had no ordinary force of -mind; and it has been frequently asserted that he who, once beyond -his own threshold, was ready to contend with every government in the -world, was, when at home, under what has been appropriately called the -government of the petticoat. - -Cobbett’s marriage took place on the 3rd of February, 1792; that is, -about ten weeks after his discharge; but having in March brought -a very grave charge against some of the officers of his regiment, -which charge, when a court-martial was summoned, he did not appear to -support, he was forced to quit England for France, where he remained -till September, 1792, when he determined on trying his fortune in the -United States. - - -IV. - -On his arrival he settled in Philadelphia, and was soon joined by Mrs. -Cobbett, who had not accompanied him out. His livelihood was at first -procured by giving English lessons to French emigrants; and it is a -fact not without interest that a celebrated person who figures amongst -these sketches--M. de Talleyrand--wished to become one of his pupils. -He refused, he says, to go to the ci-devant bishop’s house, but adds, -in his usual style, that the lame fiend hopped over this difficulty at -once by offering to come to his (Cobbett’s) house, an offer that was -not accepted. About this time Doctor Priestley came to America. The -enthusiasm with which the doctor was received roused the resentment of -the British soldier, who moreover panted for a battle. He published -then--though with some difficulty, booksellers objecting to the -unpopularity of the subject, an objection at which the author was most -indignant--a pamphlet called “Observations on Priestley’s Emigration.” -This pamphlet, on account both of its ability and scurrility, made a -sensation, and thus commenced the author’s reputation, though it only -added 1_s._ 7½_d._ to his riches. But he was abusing, he was abused. -This was to be in his element, and he rose at once, so far as the -power and peculiarity of his style were concerned, to a foremost place -amongst political writers. This style had been formed at an early -period of life, and perhaps unconsciously to himself. - -“At eleven years of age,” he says in an article in the _Evening Post_, -calling upon the reformers to pay for returning him to Parliament, “my -employment was clipping of box-edgings and weeding beds of flowers -in the garden of the Bishop of Winchester at the castle of Farnham, -my native town. I had always been fond of beautiful gardens, and a -gardener who had just come from the King’s gardens at Kew gave me -such a description of them as made me instantly resolve to work in -those gardens. The next morning” (this is the early adventure I have -previously spoken of), “without saying a word to any one, off I set, -with no clothes except those upon my back, and with thirteen halfpence -in my pocket. I found that I must go to Richmond, and I accordingly -went on from place to place inquiring my way thither. A long day (it -was in June) brought me to Richmond in the afternoon. Two pennyworth -of bread and cheese and a pennyworth of small beer which I had on the -road, and one halfpenny that I had lost somehow or other, left three -pence in my pocket. With this for my whole fortune, I was trudging -through Richmond in my blue smock-frock, and my red garters tied under -my knees, when, staring about me, my eye fell upon a little book in a -bookseller’s window, on the outside of which was written ‘The Tale of a -Tub, price 3_d._’ The title was so odd that my curiosity was excited. I -had the threepence; but then I could not have any supper. In I went and -got the little book, which I was so impatient to read, that I got over -into a field at the upper corner of Kew Gardens, where there stood a -haystack. On the shady side of this I sat down to read. The book was so -different from anything that I had ever read before, it was something -so new to my mind, that, though I could not understand some parts of -it, it delighted me beyond description, and produced what I have always -considered a sort of birth of intellect. - -“I read on until it was dark without any thought of supper or bed. When -I could see no longer, I put my little book in my pocket and tumbled -down by the side of the stack, where I slept till the birds in the Kew -Gardens awakened me in the morning, when off I started to Kew, reading -my little book. The singularity of my dress, the simplicity of my -manner, my lively and confident air, and doubtless his own compassion -besides, induced the gardener, who was a Scotchman, I remember, to give -me victuals, find me lodging, and set me to work; and it was during -the period that I was at Kew that George IV. and two of his brothers -laughed at the oddness of my dress while I was sweeping the grass-plot -round the foot of the Pagoda. The gardener, seeing me fond of books, -lent me some gardening books to read; but these I could not relish -after my ‘Tale of a Tub,’ which I carried about with me wherever I -went, and when I--at about twenty years old--lost it in a box that -fell overboard in the Bay of Fundy, in North America, the loss gave me -greater pain than I have since felt at losing thousands of pounds.” - - -V. - -Many had cause to remember, this evening passed under a haystack at -Kew. The genius of Swift engrafted itself naturally on an intellect so -clear and a disposition so inclined to satire as that of the gardener’s -boy. - -Cobbett’s earliest writings are more especially tinged with the -colouring of his master. Take for instance the following fable, which -will at all times find a ready application: - -“In a pot-shop, well stocked with wares of all sorts, a discontented, -ill-formed pitcher unluckily bore the sway. One day, after the -mortifying neglect of several customers, ‘Gentlemen,’ said he, -addressing himself to his brown brethren in general--‘gentlemen, with -your permission, we are a set of tame fools, without ambition, without -courage, condemned to the vilest uses; we suffer all without murmuring; -let us dare to declare ourselves, and we shall soon see the difference. -That superb ewer, which, like us, is but earth--these gilded jars, -vases, china, and, in short, all those elegant nonsenses whose colour -and beauty have neither weight nor solidity--must yield to our strength -and give place to our superior merit.’ This civic harangue was received -with applause, and the pitcher, chosen president, became the organ of -the assembly. Some, however, more moderate than the rest, attempted to -calm the minds of the multitude; but all the vulgar utensils, which -shall be nameless, were become intractable. Eager to vie with the bowls -and the cups, they were impatient, almost to madness, to quit their -obscure abodes to shine upon the table, kiss the lip, and ornament the -cupboard. - -“In vain did a wise water-jug--some say it was a platter--make them -a long and serious discourse upon the utility of their vocation. -‘Those,’ said he, ‘who are destined to great employments are rarely the -most happy. We are all of the same clay, ’tis true, but He who made us -formed us for different functions; one is for ornament, another for -use. The posts the least important are often the most necessary. Our -employments are extremely different, and so are our talents.’ - -“This had a most wonderful effect; the most stupid began to open their -ears; perhaps it would have succeeded, if a grease-pot had not cried -out in a decisive tone: ‘You reason like an ass--to the devil with you -and your silly lessons.’ Now the scale was turned again; all the horde -of pans and pitchers applauded the superior eloquence and reasoning -of the grease-pot. In short, they determined on an enterprise; but -a dispute arose--who should be the chief? Every one would command, -but no one obey. It was then you might have heard a clatter; all put -themselves in motion at once, and so wisely and with so much vigour -were their operations conducted, that the whole was soon changed--not -into china, but into rubbish.” - - -VI. - -The tendency of this tale is manifest. It was in opposition to the -democratic spirit mainly because such was the ruling spirit of the -country in which the author had come to reside--a democratic spirit -which has since developed itself more fully, but which then, though -predominant, had a powerful and respectable party to contend against. - -The constitution of the United States had indeed perfectly satisfied -none of its framers. Franklin had declared that he consented to it, not -as the best, but as the best that he could then hope for. Washington -expressed the same opinion. It necessarily gave birth to two parties, -which for a time were held together by the position, the abilities, -and the reputation of the first president of the new Republic. They -existed, however, in his government itself, where Jefferson represented -the Democratic faction, and Hamilton the Federal or Conservative one. -To the latter the president--though holding the balance with apparent -impartiality--belonged; for he was an English gentleman, of a firm -and moderate character, and, moreover, wished that the government -of which he was the head should be possessed of an adequate force. -The great movement, however, in France--which he was almost the only -person to judge from the first with calm discernment--overbore his -views and complicated his situation. Determined that the United States -should take only a neutral position in the European contest, he was -assailed on all sides--as a tyrant, because he wished for order--as -a partisan of Great Britain, because he wished for peace. To those -among the native Americans, who dreamt impossible theories, or desired -inextricable confusion, were joined all the foreign intriguers, who, -banished from their own countries, had no hopes of returning there but -as enemies and invaders. “I am called everything,” said Washington, -“even a Nero.”[106] His continuance in the presidency, to which he was -incited by some persons to pretend for a third time, had indeed become -incompatible with his character and honour. - -The respect which he had so worthily merited and so long inspired was -on the wane. The cabinet with which he had commenced his government -was broken up; his taxes, in some provinces, were refused; a treaty -he had concluded with England was pretty generally condemned; and as -he retired to Mount Vernon, the democratic party saw that approaching -triumph which the election of their leader to the presidency was soon -about to achieve. The cry against Great Britain was fiercer; the shout -for Jefferson was louder than it had ever been before. - - -VII. - -At this time Cobbett, then better known as Peter Porcupine, a name -which on becoming an author he had assumed, and which had at least the -merit of representing his character appropriately, having quarrelled -with a legion of booksellers, determined to set up in the bookselling -line for himself; and in the spring of 1796, he took a house in Second -Street for that purpose. - -Though he was not so universally obnoxious then as he subsequently -became, his enemies were already many and violent--his friends warm, -but few. These last feared for him in the course he was entering upon; -they advised him, therefore, to be prudent--to do nothing, at all -events, on commencing business, that might attract public indignation; -and, above all, not to put up any aristocratic portraits in his windows. - -Cobbett’s plan was decided. His shop opened on a Monday, and he spent -all the previous Sunday in so preparing it that, when he took down -his shutters on the morning following, the people of Philadelphia -were actually aghast at the collection of prints, arrayed in their -defiance, including the effigies of George III., which had never -been shown at any window since the rebellion. From that moment the -newspapers were filled, and the shops placarded, with “A Blue Pill for -Peter Porcupine,” “A Pill for Peter Porcupine,” “A Boaster for Peter -Porcupine,” “A Picture of Peter Porcupine.” Peter Porcupine had become -a person of decided consideration and importance. - -“Dear father,” says the writer who had assumed this name, in one of -his letters home, “when you used to set me off to work in the morning, -dressed in my blue smock-frock and woollen spatterdashes, with a bag of -bread and cheese and a bottle of small beer over my shoulder, on the -little crook that my godfather gave me, little did you imagine that I -should one day become so great a man.” - - -VIII. - -Paine’s arrival in America soon furnished fresh matter for invective. -Paine, like Priestley, was a Republican; and was, like Priestley, -hailed with popular enthusiasm by the Republicans. Cobbett attacked -this new idol, therefore, as he had done the preceding one, and even -with still greater virulence. This carried him to the highest pitch of -unpopularity which it was possible to attain in the United States, and -it was now certain that no opportunity would be lost of restraining -his violence or breaking his pen. In August, 1797, accordingly, he was -indicted for a libel against the Spanish minister and his court; but -the bill was ignored by a majority of one; and indeed, it would have -been difficult for an American jury to have punished an Englishman -for declaring the Spanish king at that time “the tool of France.” A -question was now raised as to whether the obnoxious writer should not -be turned out of the United States, under the Alien Act. - -This having been objected to by the Attorney General, a new course of -prosecution was adopted. Nearly all Cobbett’s writings were brought -together into one mass, and he was charged with having published -throughout them libels against almost every liberal man of note in -America, France, and England. Under such a charge he was obliged -to find recognisances for his good behaviour to the amount of 4000 -dollars, and it was hoped by a diligent search into his subsequent -writings to convict him of having forfeited these recognisances. - -His enemies, indeed, might safely count on his getting into further -troubles; nor had they long to wait. A Doctor Rash having at this time -risen into great repute by a system of purging and bleeding, with which -he had attempted to stop the yellow fever, Cobbett, who could ill -tolerate another’s reputation, even in medicine, darted forth against -this new candidate for public favour with his usual vigour of abuse. -“Can the Rush grow up without mire, or the flag without water?” was -his exclamation, and down went his ruthless and never-pausing flail on -poor Dr. Rush’s birth, parentage, manners, character, medicine, and -everything that was his by nature, chance, or education. This could not -long continue; Cobbett was again indicted for a libel. - -In tyrannies justice is administered unscrupulously in the case of a -political enemy; in democracies also law must frequently be controlled -by vulgar prejudice and popular passion. This was seen in the present -case. The defendant pleaded, in the first place, that his trial should -be removed from the Court of the State of Pennsylvania to that of the -United States. It was generally thought that as an alien he could claim -to have his cause thus transferred. This claim, however, was refused -by the chief justice, whom he had recklessly affronted; and the trial -coming on when a jury was pretty certain to be hostile, Cobbett -was assessed in damages to the amount of 5000 dollars; nor was much -consolation to be derived from the fact that on the 14th December, the -day on which he was condemned for libelling Rush, General Washington -died, in some degree the victim of that treatment which the libelled -doctor had prescribed. - -The costs of the suit he had lost, added to the fine which the adverse -sentence had imposed, made altogether a considerable sum. Cobbett was -nearly ruined, but he bore himself up with a stout heart; and for a -moment turning round at bay faced his enemies, and determined yet to -remain in the United States. But on second thoughts, without despairing -of his fortunes, he resolved to seek them elsewhere; and set sail for -England. This he did on the 1st of June, 1800; shaking the dust from -his feet on what he then stigmatised as “that infamous land, where -judges become felons, and felons judges.” - - - - -PART II. - -FROM JUNE 1ST, 1800, TO MARCH 28TH, 1817, WHEN, HAVING ALTOGETHER -CHANGED HIS POLITICS, HE RETURNS TO AMERICA. - - Starts a paper, by title _The Porcupine_, which he had - made famous in America.--Begins as a Tory.--Soon verges - towards opposition.--Abandons _Porcupine_ and commences - _Register_.--Prosecuted for libel.--Changes politics, and - becomes radical.--Prosecuted again for libel.--Convicted - and imprisoned.--Industry and activity though confined in - Newgate.--Sentence expires.--Released.--Power as a writer - increases.--Government determined to put him down.--Creditors - pressing.--He returns to the United States. - - -I. - -The space Cobbett filled in the public mind of his native land was -at this time, 1800, considerable. Few, in fact, have within so brief -a period achieved so remarkable a career, or gained under similar -circumstances an equal reputation. The boy from the plough had become -the soldier, and distinguished himself, so far as his birth and term -of service at that time admitted, in the military profession; the -uneducated soldier had become the writer; and, as the advocate of -monarchical principles in a Republican state, had shown a power and a -resolution which had raised him to the position of an antagonist to the -whole people amongst whom he had been residing. There was Cobbett on -one side of the arena, and all the democracy of democratic America on -the other! - -He now returned to the Old World and the land for which he had been -fighting the battle. His name had preceded him. George III. admired -him as his champion; Lord North hailed him as the greatest political -reasoner of his time (Burke being amongst his contemporaries); Mr. -Windham--the elegant, refined, classical, manly, but whimsical Mr. -Windham--was in raptures at his genius; and though the English people -at this time were beginning to be a little less violent than they -had been in their hatred of France and America, the English writer -who despised Frenchmen and insulted Americans, was still a popular -character in England. - -Numerous plans of life were open to him; that which he chose was the -one for which he was most fitting, and to which he could most easily -and naturally adapt himself. He again became editor of a public -paper, designated by the name he had rendered famous, and called _The -Porcupine_. - -The principles on which this paper was to be conducted were announced -with spirit and vigour. “The subjects of a British king,” said Cobbett, -“like the sons of every provident and tender father, never know his -value till they feel the want of his protection. In the days of -youth and ignorance I was led to believe that comfort, freedom, and -virtue were exclusively the lot of Republicans. A very short trial -convinced me of my error, admonished me to repent of my folly, and -urged me to compensate for the injustice of the opinion which I had -conceived. During an eight years’ absence from my country, I was not an -unconcerned spectator of her perils, nor did I listen in silence to the -slander of her enemies. - -“Though divided from England by the ocean, though her gay fields were -hidden probably for ever from my view, still her happiness and her -glory were the objects of my constant solicitude. I rejoiced at her -victories, I mourned at her defeats; her friends were my friends, her -foes were my foes. Once more returned, once more under the safeguard -of that sovereign who watched over me in my infancy, and the want of -whose protecting arm I have so long had reason to lament, I feel an -irresistible desire to communicate to my countrymen the fruit of my -experience; to show them the injurious and degrading consequences of -discontent, disloyalty, and innovation; to convince them that they are -the first as well as happiest of the human race, and above all to warn -them against the arts of those ambitious and perfidious demagogues who -could willingly reduce them to a level with the cheated slaves, in the -bearing of whose yoke I had the mortification to share.” - - -II. - -The events even at this time were preparing, which in their series of -eddies whirled the writer we have been quoting into the midst of those -very ambitious and perfidious demagogues whom he here denounces. Nor -was this notable change, under all the circumstances which surrounded -it, very astonishing. In the first place, the party in power, after -greeting him on his arrival with a welcome which, perhaps, was more -marked by curiosity than courtesy, did little to gratify their -champion’s vanity, or to advance his interests. With that indifference -usually shown by official men in our country to genius, if it is -unaccompanied by aristocratical or social influence, they allowed the -great writer to seek his fortunes as he had sought them hitherto, pen -in hand, without aid or patronage. - -In the second place, the part which Mr. Pitt took on the side of -Catholic emancipation was contrary to all Cobbett’s antecedent -prejudices: and then Mr. Pitt had treated Cobbett with coolness one day -when they met at Mr. Windham’s. Thus a private grievance was added to a -public one. - -The peace with France--a peace for which he would not illuminate, -having his windows smashed by the mob in consequence--disgusted him yet -more with Mr. Addington, whose moderate character he heartily despised; -and not the less so for that temporising statesman’s inclination -rather to catch wavering Whigs than to satisfy discontented Tories. -These reasons partly suggested his giving up the daily journal he had -started (called, as I have said, _The Porcupine_), and commencing the -_Weekly Political Register_, which he conducted with singular ability -against every party in the country. I say against every party in the -country; for, though he was still, no doubt, a stout advocate of kingly -government, he did not sufficiently admit, for the purposes of his -personal safety, that the king’s government was the king’s ministers. -Thus, no doubt to his great surprise, he found that he, George III.’s -most devoted servant, was summoned one morning to answer before the -law for maliciously intending to move and incite the liege subjects of -his Majesty to hatred and contempt of his royal authority. - -The libel made to bear this forced interpretation was taken from -letters in November and December, 1803, signed “Juverna,” that appeared -in the _Register_, and were not flattering to the government of Ireland. - - -III. - -If we turn to the state of that country at this time, we shall find -that the resignation of Mr. Pitt, and the hopeless situation of the -Catholics, had naturally created much discontent. Mr. Addington, it -is true, was anything but a severe minister; he did nothing to rouse -the passions of the Irish, but he did nothing to win the heart, excite -the imagination, or gain the affection of that sensitive people. The -person he had nominated to the post of Lord Lieutenant was a fair type -of his own ministry, that person being a sensible, good-natured man, -with nothing brilliant or striking in his manner or abilities, but -carrying into his high office the honest intention to make the course -he was enjoined to pursue as little obnoxious as possible to those whom -he could not expect to please. In this manner his government, though -mild and inoffensive, neither captivated the wavering nor overawed -the disaffected; and under it was hatched, by a young and visionary -enthusiast (Mr. Emmett), a conspiracy, which, though contemptible as -the means of overturning the established authority, was accompanied at -its explosion by the murder of the Lord Chief Justice, and the exposure -of Dublin to pillage and flames. The enemies of ministers naturally -seized on so fair an occasion for assailing them, and Cobbett, who held -a want of energy to be at all times worse than the want of all other -qualities, put his paper at their disposal. - -In the present instance, the writer of “Juverna’s” letters, calling -to his aid the old story of the wooden horse which carried the Greeks -within the walls of Troy, and exclaiming, “Equo ne credite Teucri!” -compared the Irish administration, so simple and innocuous in its -outward appearance, but containing within its bosom, as he said, all -the elements of mischief, to that famous and fatal prodigy of wood; and -after complimenting the Lord Lieutenant on having a head made of the -same harmless material as the wooden horse itself, thus flatteringly -proceeded: “But who is this Lord Hardwicke? I have discovered him to be -in rank an earl, in manners a gentleman, in morals a good father and a -kind husband, and that, moreover, he has a good library in St. James’s -Square. Here I should have been for ever stopped, if I had not by -accident met with one Mr. Lindsay, a Scotch parson, since become (and -I am sure it must be by Divine Providence, for it would be impossible -to account for it by secondary causes) Bishop of Killaloe. From this -Mr. Lindsay I further learned that my Lord Hardwicke was celebrated for -understanding the mode and method of fattening sheep as well as any man -in Cambridgeshire.” - -The general character of the attack on Lord Hardwicke may be judged -of by the above quotation, and was certainly not of a very malignant -nature. It sufficed, however, to procure a hostile verdict; and the -Editor of the _Political Register_ was declared “Guilty of having -attempted to subvert the King’s authority.” - -This, however, was not all. Mr. Plunkett, then Solicitor-General for -Ireland, had pleaded against Mr. Emmett, whose father he had known, -with more bitterness than perhaps was necessary, since the culprit -brought forward no evidence in his favour, and did not even attempt -a defence. Mr. Plunkett, moreover, had himself but a short time -previously expressed rather violent opinions, and, when speaking of -the Union, had gone so far as to say that, if it passed into a law, no -Irishman would be bound to obey it. In short, the position in which -he stood was one which required great delicacy and forbearance, and -delicacy and forbearance he had not shown. “Juverna” thus speaks of him: - -“If any one man could be found of whom a young but unhappy victim of -the justly offended laws of his country had, in the moment of his -conviction and sentence, uttered the following apostrophe: ‘That viper, -whom my father nourished, he it is whose principles and doctrines -now drag me to my grave; and he it is who is now brought forward -as my prosecutor, and who, by an unheard-of exercise of the royal -prerogative, has wantonly lashed with a speech to evidence the dying -son of his former friend, when that dying son had produced no evidence, -had made no defence, but, on the contrary, acknowledged the charge and -submitted to his fate’--Lord Kenyon would have turned with horror from -such a scene, in which, if guilt were in one part punished, justice -in the whole drama was confounded, humanity outraged, and loyalty -insulted.” - -These observations, made in a far more rancorous spirit than those -relating to Lord Hardwicke, could not fail to be bitterly felt by the -Solicitor-General, who was probably obliged, in deference to Irish -opinion, to prosecute the editor of the paper they appeared in. - -He did so, and obtained 500_l._ damages. - -Luckily for Cobbett, however, he escaped punishment in both suits; -for the real author of these attacks, Mr. Johnson, subsequently Judge -Johnson, having been discovered, or having discovered himself, Cobbett -was left without further molestation. But an impression had been -created in his mind. He had fought the battle of loyalty in America -against a host of enemies to the loss of his property, and even at -the hazard of his life. Shouts of triumph had hailed him from the -British shores. The virulence of his invectives, the coarseness of his -epithets, the exaggeration of his opinions, were all forgotten and -forgiven when he wrote the English language out of England. He came to -his native country; he advocated the same doctrines, and wrote in the -same style; his heart was still as devoted to his king, and his wishes -as warm for the welfare of his country; but, because it was stated in -his journal that Lord Hardwicke was an excellent sheep-feeder, and Mr. -Plunkett a viper--(a disagreeable appellation, certainly, but one soft -and gentle in comparison with many which he had bestowed, fifty times -over, on the most distinguished writers, members of Congress, judges -and lawyers in the United States--without the regard and esteem of his -British patrons being one jot abated)--he had been stigmatised as a -traitor and condemned to pay five hundred pounds as a libeller. - -He did not recognise, in these proceedings, the beauties of the British -Constitution, nor the impartial justice which he had always maintained -when in America, was to be found in loyal old England. He did not see -why his respect for his sovereign prevented him from saying or letting -it be said that a Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was a very ordinary man, -nor that a Solicitor-General of Ireland had made a very cruel and -ungenerous speech, when the facts thus stated were perfectly true. The -Tory leaders had done nothing to gain him as a partisan, they had done -much that jarred with his general notions on politics, and finally they -treated him as a political foe. The insult, for such he deemed it, was -received with a grim smile of defiance, and grievous was the loss which -Conservative opinions sustained when those who represented them drove -the most powerful controversialist of his day into the opposite ranks. - -Nor can the value of his support be estimated merely by the injury -inflicted by his hostility. When Cobbett departed from his consistency, -he forfeited a great portion of his influence. With his marvellous -skill in exciting the popular passions in favour of the ideas he -espoused; with his nicknames, with his simple, sterling, and at all -times powerful eloquence, it is difficult to limit the effect he -might have produced amongst the classes to which he belonged, and -which with an improved education were beginning to acquire greater -power, if acquainted with their habits and warmed by their passions, -he had devoted his self-taught intellect to the defence of ancient -institutions and the depreciation of modern ideas. - -But official gentlemen then were even more official than they are now; -and fancying that every man in office was a great man, every one out -of it a small one, their especial contempt was reserved for a public -writer. If, however, such persons, the scarecrows of genius, were -indifferent to Cobbett’s defection, they whose standard he joined -hailed with enthusiasm his conversion. - -These were not the Whigs. Cobbett’s was one of those natures which -never did things by halves. Sir Francis Burdett, Mr. Hunt, Major -Cartwright, and a set of men who propounded theories of parliamentary -reform--which no one, who was at that time considered a practical -statesman, deemed capable of realization--were his new associates and -admirers. - -Nor was his change a mere change in political opinion. It was, -unfortunately, a change in political morality. The farmer’s son -had not been educated at a learned university--having his youthful -mind nourished and strengthened by great examples of patriotism and -consistency, drawn from Greece and Rome:--he was educating himself by -modern examples from the world in which he was living, and there he -found statesmen slow to reward the advocacy of their public opinions, -but quick to avenge any attack on their personal vanity or individual -interests. It struck him then that their principles were like the signs -which innkeepers stick over their tap-rooms, intended to catch the -traveller’s attention, and induce him to buy their liquors; but having -no more real signification than “St. George and the Dragon,” or the -“Blue Boar,” or the “Flying Serpent;” hence concluding that one sign -might be pulled down and the other put up, to suit the taste of the -customers, or the speculation of the landlord. - -And now begins a perfectly new period in his life. Up to this date he -had always been one and the same individual. Every corner of his being -had been apparently filled with the same loyal hatred to Frenchmen and -Democrats. He had loved, in every inch of him, the king and the church, -and the wooden walls of Old England. “Who will say,” he exclaims in -America, “that an Englishman ought not to despise all the nations in -the world? For my part I do, and that most heartily.” What he here says -of every one of a different nation from his own, he had said, and said -constantly, of every one of a different political creed from his own, -and his own political creed had as yet never varied. But consistency -and Cobbett here separated. Not only was his new self a complete and -constant contradiction with his old self--this was to be expected: but -whereas his old self was one solid block, his new self was a piece of -tesselated workmanship, in which were patched together all sorts of -materials of all sorts of colours. I do not mean to say that, having -taken to the liberal side in politics, he ever turned round again and -became violent on the opposite side. But his liberalism had no code. -He recognised no fixed friends--no definite opinions. The notions -he advocated were such as he selected for the particular day of the -week on which he was writing, and which he considered himself free on -the following day to dispute with those who adopted them. As to his -alliances, they were no more closely woven into his existence than his -doctrines; and he stood forth distinguished for being dissatisfied with -everything, and quarrelling with every one. - - -IV. - -The first tilt which he made from the new side of the ring where he had -now taken his stand was against Mr. Pitt--whom it was not difficult -towards the close of his life to condemn, for the worst fault which -a minister can commit--being unfortunate. Cobbett’s next assault--on -the demand of the Whigs for an increase of allowance to the king’s -younger sons--was against Royalty itself, its pensions, governorships, -and rangerships, which he called “its cheeseparings and candle-ends!” -Some Republicans on the other side of the Atlantic must have rubbed -their spectacles when they read these effusions; but the editor of the -_Register_ was indifferent to provoking censure, and satisfied with -exciting astonishment. Besides, we may fairly admit, that, when the -King demanded that his private property in the funds should be free -from taxation (showing he had such property), and at the same time -called upon the country to increase the allowances of his children, he -did much to try the loyalty of the nation, and gave Cobbett occasion -to observe that a rich man did not ask the parish to provide for -his offspring. “I am,” said he, “against these things, not because -I am a Republican, but because I am for monarchical government, and -consequently adverse to all that gives Republicans a fair occasion for -sneering at it.” - -In the meantime his periodical labours did not prevent his undertaking -works of a more solid description; and in 1806 he announced the -“Parliamentary Register,” which was to contain all the recorded -proceedings of Parliament from the earliest times; and was in the -highest degree useful, since the reader had previously to wade through -a hundred volumes of journals in order to know anything of the -history of the two Houses of Parliament. These more serious labours -did not, however, interfere with his weekly paper, which had a large -circulation, and, though without any party influence (for Cobbett -attacked all parties), gave him a great deal of personal power and -importance. “It came up,” says the author, proudly, “like a grain of -mustard-seed, and like a grain of mustard-seed it has spread over the -whole civilised world.” Meanwhile, this peasant-born politician was -uniting rural pursuits with literary labours, and becoming, in the -occupation of a farm at Botley, a prominent agriculturist and a sort of -intellectual authority in his neighbourhood. From this life, which no -one has described with a pen more pregnant with the charm and freshness -of green fields and woods, he was torn by another prosecution for libel. - - -V. - -The following paragraph had appeared in the _Courier_ paper: - - “London, Saturday, July 1st, 1809. - -“Motto.--The mutiny amongst the Local Militia, which broke out at -Ely, was _fortunately_ suppressed on Wednesday by the arrival of four -squadrons of the German Legion Cavalry from Bury, under the command of -General Auckland. - -“Five of the ringleaders were tried by a court-martial, and sentenced -to receive _five hundred lashes each_, part of which punishment they -received on Wednesday, and a part was remitted. A stoppage for their -knapsacks was the ground of complaint which excited this mutinous -spirit, and occasioned the men to surround their officers and demand -what they deemed their arrears. The first division of the German Legion -halted yesterday at Newmarket on their return to Bury.” - -On this paragraph Cobbett made the subjoining observations: - -“‘Summary of politics. Local Militia and German Legion.’ See the motto, -English reader, see the motto, and then do, pray, recollect all that -has been said about the way in which Bonaparte raises his soldiers. -Well done, Lord Castlereagh! This is just what it was thought that your -plan would produce. Well said, Mr. Huskisson! It was really not without -reason you dwelt with so much earnestness upon the great utility of -the foreign troops, whom Mr. Wardle appeared to think of no utility at -all. Poor gentleman! he little thought how great a genius might find -employment for such troops; he little imagined they might be made the -means of compelling Englishmen to submit to that sort of discipline -which is so conducive to producing in them a disposition to defend the -country at the risk of their lives. Let Mr. Wardle look at my motto, -and then say whether the German soldiers are of no use. _Five hundred -lashes each!_ Ay, that is right; flog them! flog them! flog them; they -deserve it, and a great deal more! They deserve a flogging at every -meal time. Lash them daily! Lash them daily! What! shall the rascals -dare to _mutiny_, and that, too, when the _German_ Legion is so near at -hand? Lash them! Lash them! Lash them! they deserve it. Oh! yes, they -deserve a double-tailed cat. Base dogs! what, mutiny for the sake of -the price of a knapsack! Lash them! flog them! base rascals! mutiny for -the price of a goat-skin, and then upon the appearance of the German -soldiers they take a flogging as quietly as so many trunks of trees.” - - -VI. - -The attack on the Hanoverian troops, who had nothing to do with the -question as to whether the militiamen were flogged justly or not, was -doubtless most illiberal and unfair. Those troops simply did their -duty, as any other disciplined troops would have done, in seeing a -superior’s order executed. It was not their fault if they were employed -on this service; neither were they in our country or our army under -ordinary circumstances. They had lost their own land for fighting our -battles; they were in our army because they would not serve in the army -of the enemy. - -But we can hardly expect newspaper writers to be more logical and just -than forensic advocates. A free press is not a good unmixed with evil; -there are arguments against it, as there are arguments for it; but -where it is admitted as an important part of a nation’s institutions, -this admission includes, as I conceive, the permission to state one -side of a question in the most telling manner, the corrective being the -juxtaposition of the other side of the question stated with an equal -intent to captivate, and perhaps to mislead. - -Two years’ imprisonment, and a fine of £1000 only wanted the gentle -accompaniment of ear-cropping to have done honour to the Star Chamber; -for, to a man who had a newspaper and a farm to carry on, imprisonment -threatened to consummate the ruin which an exorbitant fine was well -calculated to commence. - -Cobbett was accused of yielding to the heaviness of the blow, and -of offering the abandonment of his journal as the price of his -forgiveness. I cannot agree with those who said that such an offer -would have been an unparalleled act of baseness. In giving up his -journal, Cobbett was not necessarily giving up his opinions. Every -one who wages war unsuccessfully retains the right of capitulation. -A writer is no more obliged to rot uselessly in a gaol for the sake -of his cause, than a general is obliged to fight a battle without a -chance of victory for the sake of his country. A man, even if a hero, -is not obliged to be a martyr. Cobbett’s disgraceful act was not in -making the proposal of which he was accused, but in denying most -positively and repeatedly that he had ever made it; for it certainly -seems pretty clear, amidst a good deal of contradictory evidence, that -he did authorize Mr. Reeves, of the Alien Office, to promise that the -_Register_ should drop if he was not brought up for judgment; and if a -Mr. Wright, who was a sort of factotum to Cobbett at the time, can be -believed, the farewell was actually written, and only withdrawn when -the negotiation was known to have failed. At all events, no indulgence -being granted to the offender, he turned round and faced fortune with -his usual hardihood. In no portion of his life, indeed, did he show -greater courage--in none does the better side of his character come -out in brighter relief than when, within the gloomy and stifling walls -of Newgate, he carried on his farming, conducted his paper, educated -his children, and waged war (his most natural and favourite pursuit) -against his enemies with as gay a courage as could have been expected -from him in sight of the yellow cornfields, and breathing the pure air -he loved so well. - -“Now, then,” he says, in describing this period of his life, “the -book-learning was forced upon us. I had a farm in hand; it was -necessary that I should be constantly informed of what was doing. I -gave all the orders, whether as to purchases, sales, ploughing, sowing, -breeding--in short, with regard to everything, and the things were in -endless number and variety, and always full of interest. My eldest son -and daughter could now write well and fast. One or the other of these -was always at Botley, and I had with me--having hired the best part -of the keeper’s house--one or two besides, either their brother or -sister. We had a hamper, with a lock and two keys, which came up once a -week or oftener, bringing me fruit and all sorts of country fare. This -hamper, which was always at both ends of the line looked for with the -most lively interest, became our school. It brought me a journal of -labours, proceedings, and occurrences, written on paper of shape and -size uniform, and so contrived as to margins as to admit of binding. -The journal used, when my eldest son was the writer, to be interspersed -with drawings of our dogs, colts, or anything that he wanted me to have -a correct idea of. The hamper brought me plants, herbs, and the like, -that I might see the size of them; and almost every one sent his or her -most beautiful flowers, the earliest violets and primroses and cowslips -and bluebells, the earliest twigs of trees, and, in short, everything -that they thought calculated to delight me. The moment the hamper -arrived, I--casting aside everything else--set to work to answer every -question, to give new directions, and to add anything likely to give -pleasure at Botley. - -“Every hamper brought one letter, as they called it, if not more, from -every child, and to every letter I wrote an answer, sealed up and -sent to the party, being sure that that was the way to produce other -and better letters; for though they could not read what I wrote, and -though their own consisted at first of mere scratches, and afterwards, -for a while, of a few words written down for them to imitate, I always -thanked them for their pretty letter, and never expressed any wish to -see them write better, but took care to write in a very neat and plain -hand myself, and to do up my letter in a very neat manner. - -“Thus, while the ferocious tigers thought I was doomed to incessant -mortification, and to rage that must extinguish my mental powers, -I found in my children, and in their spotless and courageous and -affectionate mother, delights to which the callous hearts of those -tigers were strangers. ‘Heaven first taught letters for some wretch’s -aid.’ How often did this line of Pope occur to me when I opened the -little fuddling letters from Botley. This correspondence occupied a -good part of my time. I had all the children with me, turn and turn -about; and in order to give the boys exercise, and to give the two -eldest an opportunity of beginning to learn French, I used for a part -of the two years to send them for a few hours a day to an abbé, who -lived in Castle Street, Holborn. All this was a great relaxation to -my mind; and when I had to return to my literary labours, I returned -fresh and cheerful, full of vigour, and full of hope of finally seeing -my unjust and merciless foes at my feet, and that, too, without caring -a straw on whom their fall might bring calamity, so that my own family -were safe, because--say what any one might--the community, taken as a -whole, had suffered this thing to be done unto us. - -“The paying of the workpeople, the keeping of the accounts, the -referring to books, the writing and reading of letters, this -everlasting mixture of amusement with book-learning, made me, almost to -my own surprise, find at the end of two years that I had a parcel of -scholars growing up about me, and, long before the end of the time, I -had dictated my _Register_ to my two eldest children. Then there was -copying out of books, which taught spelling correctly. The calculations -about the farming affairs forced arithmetic upon us; the _use_, the -_necessity_ of the thing, led to the study. - -“By and by we had to look into the laws, to know what to do about the -highways, about the game, about the poor, and all rural and parochial -affairs. - -“I was, indeed, by the fangs of government defeated in my -fondly-cherished project of making my sons farmers on their own land, -and keeping them from all temptation to seek vicious and enervating -enjoyments; but those fangs--merciless as they had been--had not been -able to prevent me from laying in for their lives, a store of useful -information, habits of industry, care, and sobriety, and a taste for -innocent, healthful, and manly pleasures. The fiends had made me and -them penniless, but had not been able to take from us our health, -or our mental possessions, and these were ready for application as -circumstances might ordain.” - - -VII. - -At length, however, Cobbett’s punishment was over; and his talents -still conferred on him sufficient consideration to have the event -celebrated by a dinner, at which Sir Francis Burdett presided. This -compliment paid, Cobbett returned to Botley and his old pursuits, -literary and agricultural. The idea of publishing cheap newspapers, -under the title of “Twopenny Trash,” and which, not appearing as -periodicals, escaped the Stamp Tax, now added considerably to his -power; and by extending the circulation of his writings to a new -class,--the mechanic and artisan, in urban populations,--made that -power dangerous at a period when great distress produced general -discontent--a discontent of which the government rather tried to -suppress the exhibition, than to remove the causes. Nor did Cobbett -speak untruly when he said, that the suspension of the Habeas Corpus, -and the passing of the celebrated “Six Acts,” in the year 1817, were -more directed against himself than against all the other writers -of sedition put together. But notwithstanding the exultation which -this position gave him for a moment, he soon saw that it was one -which he should not be able to maintain, and that the importance he -had temporarily acquired had no durable foundation. He had no heart, -moreover, for another midsummer’s dream in Newgate. Nor was this all. -Though he had not wanted friends or partisans, who had furnished him -with pecuniary aid, his expenses had gone far beyond his means; and I -may mention as one of the most extraordinary instances of this singular -person’s influence, that the debts he had at this time been allowed to -contract amounted to no less than £34,000, a sum he could not hope to -repay. - -For the first time his ingenuity furnished him with no resource, or his -usual audacity failed him; and with a secrecy, for which the state of -his circumstances accounted, he made a sudden bolt (the 28th of March, -1817) for the United States, informing his countrymen that they were -too lukewarm in their own behalf to justify the perils he incurred -for their sakes; and observing to his creditors that, as they had not -resisted the persecutions from which his losses had arisen, they must -be prepared to share with his family the consequences of his ruin. - -Sir Francis Burdett had been for many years, as we have seen, his -friend and protector, and had but recently presided at the festival -which commemorated his release from confinement; but Sir Francis -Burdett was amongst those from whom Cobbett had borrowed pretty -largely; and though the wealthy baronet could scarcely have expected -this money to be repaid, yet, having advanced it to a political -partisan, he was not altogether pleased at seeing his money and his -partisan slip through his fingers at the same time; and made some -remarks which, on reaching Cobbett’s ears, irritated a vanity that -never slept, and was only too ready to avenge itself by abuse equally -ungrateful and unwise. - - - - -PART III. - -FROM QUITTING ENGLAND IN 1817 TO HIS DEATH IN 1835. - - Settles on Long Island.--Professes at first great - satisfaction.--Takes a farm,--Writes his Grammar.--Gets - discontented.--His premises burnt.--He returns to England, - and carries Paine’s bones with him.--The bones do not - succeed.--Tries twice to be returned to Parliament.--Is not - elected.--Becomes a butcher at Kensington.--Fails there and - is a bankrupt.--His works from 1820 to 1826.--Extracts.--New - prosecution.--Acquitted.--Comes at last into Parliament for - Oldham.--Character as a speaker.--Dies.--General summing up. - - -I. - -The epoch of Cobbett’s flight from England was decidedly the one most -fatal to his character. So long as a man pays his bills, or sticks -to his party, he has some one to speak in his favour; but a runaway -from his party and his debts, whatever the circumstances that lead -to his doing either, must give up the idea of leaving behind him any -one disposed to say a word in his defence. Cobbett probably did give -up this idea, and, having satisfied himself by declaring that the -overthrow of the regular laws and constitution of England had rendered -his person as a public writer insecure, and his talents unprofitable, -in his native country, seemed disposed to a divorce from the old world, -and to a reconciliation with the new. At all events, he viewed America -with very different eyes from those with which he had formerly looked -at it. The weather was the finest he had ever seen; the ground had -no dirt; the air had no flies; the people were civil, not servile; -there were none of the poor and wretched habitations which sicken the -sight at the outskirts of cities and towns in England; the progress of -wealth, ease, and enjoyment evinced by the regular increase of the size -of the farmers’ buildings, spoke in praise of the system of government -under which it had taken place; and, to crown all, four Yankee mowers -weighed down eight English ones! During the greater part of the time -that these encomiums were written, Cobbett was living at a farm he had -taken on Hampstead Plains, Long Island, where he wrote his grammar, the -only amusing grammar in the world, and of which, when it was sent to -his son in England, 10,000 copies were sold in one month. - -A year, however, after his arrival at Long Island, a fire broke out on -his premises and destroyed them. The misfortune was not, perhaps, an -untimely one. - -Whatever Cobbett might have been able to do in the United States as -a farmer, he did not seem to have a chance there of playing any part -as a politician. He was not even taken up as a “lion,” for his sudden -preference for Republican institutions created no sensation amongst men -who were now all heart and soul Republicans. He was not a hero; and he -could not, consistently with his present doctrines, attempt to become -a martyr. He had, to be sure, the satisfaction of saying bitter things -about the tyranny established in his native land; but these produced no -effect in America, where abuse of monarchical government was thought -quite natural, and he did not see the effect they produced at home. -Moreover, they did not after all produce much effect even there. His -periodical writings were like wine meant to be drunk on the spot, and -lost a great deal of their flavour when sent across the wide waters of -the ocean. They were, indeed, essentially written for the day, and for -the passions and purposes of the day. Arriving after the cause which -had produced them had ceased to excite the public mind, their sound and -fury were like the smoke and smell of an explosion without its noise or -its powers of destruction. Cobbett saw this clearly, though even to his -own children he would never confess it. - - -II. - -The condition of England, moreover, at this moment excited his -attention, perhaps his hopes. A violent policy can never be a lasting -one. The government was beginning to wear out the overstretched -authority that had been confided to it and the community was beginning -to feel that you should not make (to use the words of Mr. Burke) “the -extreme remedies of the State its daily bread.” On the other hand, the -general distress, which had created the discontent that these extreme -remedies had been employed to suppress, was in no wise diminished. The -sovereign and the administration were unpopular, the people generally -ignorant and undisciplined, neither the one nor the other understanding -the causes of the prevalent disaffection, nor having any idea as to how -it should be dealt with. - -Such is the moment undoubtedly for rash or designing men to propagate -wild theories; and such is also the moment when bold men, guided by -better motives, will find, in a country where constitutional liberty -cannot be entirely destroyed, the means of turning the oppressive -measures of an unscrupulous minister against himself. With the one -there was a chance of war against all government, with the other a -chance of resistance against bad government. The revolutionist and the -patriot were both stirring, whilst a vague idea prevailed amongst many, -neither patriots nor revolutionists, that our society was about to be -exposed to one of those great convulsions which overturn thrones and -change the destiny of empires. - -Cobbett was probably too shrewd to look on such a crisis as a -certainty; but he was very probably sanguine enough to build schemes on -it as a possibility. Besides, there were strife and contention in the -great towns, and murmurings in the smaller hamlets; and, where there -were strife and contention and murmurings, such a man as Cobbett could -not fail to find a place and to produce an effect. This was sufficient -to make him feel restlessly anxious to re-appear on the stage he had -so abruptly quitted. But he was essentially an actor, and disposed to -study the dramatic in all his proceedings. To slink back unperceived to -his old haunts, and recommence quietly his old habits, would neither -suit his tastes, nor, as he thought, his interests. It was necessary -that his return should be a sensation. Too vain and too quarrelsome -to pay court to any one, he had through life made friends by making -enemies. His plan now was to raise a howl against the returning exile -as an atheist and a demagogue amongst one portion of society, not -doubting that in such case he would be taken up as the champion of -civil and religious liberty by another. - - -III. - -The device he adopted for this object was disinterring, or saying -he had disinterred, the bones of Thomas Paine, whom he had formerly -assailed as “the greatest disgrace of mankind,” and now declared to be -“the great enlightener of the human race,” and carrying these bones -over to England as the relics of a patron saint, under whose auspices -he was to carry on his future political career. - -Now, Paine had been considered the enemy of kingly government and the -Christian religion in his time, and had greatly occupied the attention -of Cobbett, who had styled him “an infamous and atrocious miscreant,” -but he had never been a man of great weight or note in our country; -many of the existing generation scarcely knew his name, and those who -did felt but a very vague retrospective interest in his career. In vain -Cobbett celebrated him as “an unflinching advocate for the curtailment -of aristocratical power,” and “the boldest champion of popular -rights.” In vain he gave it clearly to be understood that Paine did -not believe a word of the Old Testament or the New; nobody, in spite -of Cobbett’s damning encomiums, would care about Paine, or consider -a box of old bones as anything but a bad joke. So that after vainly -offering locks of hair or any particle of the defunct and exhumed -atheist and Republican at a low price, considering the value of the -relics, he let the matter drop; and, rubbing his hands and chuckling -with that peculiar sardonic smile which I well remember, began to treat -the affair as the world did, and the inestimable fragments of the -disinterred Quaker suddenly disappeared, and were never heard of more. - -But though his stage trick had failed to give him importance, his -sterling unmistakable talent and unflagging energy were sufficient to -secure him from insignificance. Cobbett in England, carrying on his -_Register_, charlatan as he might be, unreliable as he had become, was -still a personage and a power. He supplied a sort of writing which -every one read, and which no one else wrote or could write. People had -no confidence in him as a politician, but, in spite of themselves, -they were under his charm as an author. He was not, however, satisfied -with this; he now pretended to play a higher part than he had hitherto -attempted. In his own estimate of his abilities--and perhaps he did not -over-rate them--his talent as an orator might, under cultivation and -practice, become equal to that which he never failed to display as a -pamphleteer. - -A seat in the House of Commons had become then the great object of -his ambition, and with his usual coolness, which might, perhaps, not -unadvisedly be termed impudence, he told his admirers that the first -thing they had to do, if they wanted reform, was to subscribe 5000_l._, -and place the sum in his hands, to be spent as he might think proper, -and without giving an account of it to any person. “One meeting,” he -says, arguing this question--“one meeting subscribing 5000_l._ will be -worth fifty meetings of 50,000 men.” - -On the dissolution of Parliament, at the demise of George III., he -pursues the subject. “To you”--he is speaking to his partisans--“I do -and must look for support in my public efforts. As far as the press can -go, I want no assistance. Aided by my sons, I have already made the -ferocious cowards of the London press sneak into silence. But there is -a larger range--a more advantageous ground to stand on, and that is -the House of Commons. A great effect on the public mind I have already -produced, but that is nothing to the effect I should produce in only -the next session of June in the House of Commons; yet there I cannot be -without your assistance.” - -Coventry was the place fixed on as that which should have the honour -of returning Cobbett to the House of Commons. Nor was the place -badly chosen. In no town in England is the class of operatives more -powerful, and by this class it was not unnatural to expect that he -might be elected. The leading men, however, amongst the operatives, -whilst admiring Cobbett, did not respect him. The Goodes and the -Pooles--men whom I remember in my time--said in his day, “He is a man -who will assuredly make good speeches, but nobody can tell what he will -speak in favour of, or what he will speak about. That he will say and -prove that Cobbett is a very clever fellow, we may be pretty sure; but -with respect to every other subject there is no knowing what he will -say or prove.” - -Nor did the story of Paine and his bones do Cobbett any service with -the Coventry electors. Some considered his conduct in this affair -impious, others ludicrous. “I say, Cobbett, where are the old Quaker’s -bones?” was a question which his most enthusiastic admirers heard put -with an uncomfortable sensation. - -He puffed himself in vain. His attempt to enter the great national -council was this time a dead failure, and clearly indicated that though -he might boast of enthusiastic partisans, he had not as yet obtained -the esteem of an intelligent public. This, however, did not prevent -his announcing not very long afterwards that bronze medals, which -judges thought did justice to his physiognomy, might be had for a pound -apiece--a price which he thought low, considering the article. The -medals, however, in spite of their artistic value, and the intrinsic -merit of the person they represented, were not considered a bargain; -and some of Mr. Cobbett’s most devoted friends observed that they had -had already enough of his bronze. This was preparatory to his starting -to contest Preston (1826). But he was no better treated there than -at Coventry, being the last on the poll, though as usual perfectly -satisfied with himself, notwithstanding a rather remarkable pamphlet -got up by a rival candidate, Mr. Wood, which placed side by side his -many inconsistencies. - -Mr. Huish, in a work called “Memoirs of Cobbett,” published in 1836, -states that this singular man now appeared in a new character that -required no constituents; coming forth “as a vendor of meat, and weekly -assuring his readers that there never was such mutton, such beef, or -such veal, as that which might be seen in his windows, an assurance -which continued uninterruptedly,” says this author, “until one -inauspicious day, when it was replaced by the announcement of William -Cobbett, butcher, at Kensington, having become a bankrupt.”[107] But -this story, though told thus circumstantially (I have not, for the -sake of brevity, copied the exact words, but in all respects their -meaning), though generally repeated, and apparently confirmed by -other contemporaneous writers, is incorrect; and we are not to count -amongst Cobbett’s eccentricities that of cutting up carcases as well as -reputations. - - -IV. - -But whatever the other pursuits Cobbett had indulged in since his -return to England, none had interfered with those which his literary -talents suggested to him. - -“A Work on Cottage Economy,” a Volume of Sermons, “The Woodlands,” -“Paper against Gold,” “The Rural Rides,” “The Protestant Reformation,” -were all published between the years 1820 and 1826. His “Rural Rides,” -indeed, are amongst his best compositions. No one ever described the -country as he did. Everything he says about it is real. You see the dew -on the grass, the fragrance comes fresh to you from the flowers; you -fancy yourself jogging down the green lane, with the gipsy camp under -the hedge, as the sun is rising; you learn the pursuits and pleasures -of the country from a man who has been all his life practically engaged -in the one, and keenly enjoying the other, and who sees everything he -talks to you of with the eye of the poet and the farmer. - -“The History of the Protestant Reformation” turned out a more important -production than the author probably anticipated--for his chief aim -seems to have been to volunteer a contemptuous defiance to all the -religious and popular feelings in England. The work, however, was -taken up by the Catholics, translated into various languages, and -widely circulated throughout Europe. The author’s great satisfaction -seems to consist in calling Queen Elizabeth, “Bloody Queen Bess,” -and Mary, “Good Queen Mary,” and he, doubtless, brought forward much -that could be said against the one, and in favour of the other, which -Protestant writers had kept back; still his two volumes are not to be -regarded as a serious history, but rather as a party pamphlet, and -no more racy and eloquent party pamphlet was ever written. I quote a -passage of which those who do not accept the argument may admire the -composition: - -“Nor must we by any means overlook the effects of these institutions -(monastic) on the mere face of the country. That man must be low and -mean of soul who is insensible to all feeling of pride in the noble -edifices of his country. Love of country, that variety of feelings -which altogether constitute what we properly call patriotism, consist -in part of the admiration of, and veneration for, ancient and -magnificent proofs of skill and opulence. The monastics built as well -as wrote for posterity. The never-dying nature of their institutions -set aside in all their undertakings every calculation as to time and -age. Whether they built or planted, they set the generous example of -providing for the pleasure, the honour, the wealth, and greatness of -generations upon generations yet unborn. They executed everything in -the very best manner; their gardens, fishponds, farms, were as near -perfection as they could make them; in the whole of their economy -they set an example tending to make the country beautiful, to make it -an object of pride with the people, and to make the nation truly and -permanently great. - -“Go into any county and survey, even at this day, the ruins of its, -perhaps, twenty abbeys and priories, and then ask yourself, ‘What have -we in exchange for these?’ Go to the site of some once opulent convent. -Look at the cloister, now become in the hands of some rack-renter the -receptacle for dung, fodder, and fagot-wood. See the hall, where for -ages the widow, the orphan, the aged, and the stranger found a table -ready spread. See a bit of its walls now helping to make a cattle-shed, -the rest having been hauled away to build a workhouse. Recognise on -the side of a barn, a part of the once magnificent chapel; and, if -chained to the spot by your melancholy musings, you be admonished of -the approach of night by the voice of the screech-owl issuing from -those arches which once at the same hour resounded with the vespers -of the monk, and which have for seven hundred years been assailed by -storms and tempests in vain; if thus admonished of the necessity of -seeking food, shelter, and a bed, lift up your eyes and look at the -whitewashed and dry-rotten shed on the hill called the ‘Gentleman’s -House,’ and apprised of the ‘board wages’ and ‘spring guns,’ which -are the signs of his hospitality, turn your head, jog away from the -scene of former comfort and grandeur; and with old-English welcoming -in your mind, reach the nearest inn, and there, in a room, half-warmed -and half-lighted, with a reception precisely proportioned to the -presumed length of your purse, sit down and listen to an account of the -hypocritical pretences, the base motives, the tyrannical and bloody -means, under which, from which, and by which, the ruin you have been -witnessing was effected, and the hospitality you have lost was for ever -banished from the land.” - - -V. - -The popularity of Mr. Canning had now become a grievous thorn in -Cobbett’s side. That of Mr. Robinson (afterwards Lord Goderich) had -at one time sorely galled him. But Mr. Robinson’s reputation was on -the wane; the reputation of Mr. Canning, on the contrary, rose higher -every day; and when that statesman, after being deserted by his -colleagues, stood forward as premier of a new government, being taken -up by Sir Francis Burdett, and many of the Whig leaders, Mr. Cobbett -set no bounds to his choler; and, in company with Mr. Hunt, made at a -Westminster dinner (in 1827) a foolish and ill-timed display of his -usual hostility to the popular feeling. - -His character, in sooth, was never so low as about this period, and in -1828, when he offered himself as a candidate for the place of common -councilman (for Farringdon Without), he did not even find one person -who would propose him for the office. - -It is needless to add that he was now an utterly soured and -disappointed man, and in this state the year 1830 found him. The close -of that year was more full of melancholy presage for England than -perhaps any which the oldest man then alive could remember. The success -of the insurrection at Paris had shaken the political foundations -of every state in Europe. Scarcely a courier arrived without the -bulletin of a revolution. The minds of the intelligent classes were -excited; they expected, and perhaps wished for, some great movement -at home, analogous to those movements which a general enthusiasm -was producing on the Continent. The minds of the lower classes were -brutalized by the effects of a Poor Law which had taught them that -idleness was more profitable than labour, prostitution than chastity, -bad conduct, in short, than good. Consequently, there was on the one -hand a widely-spread cry for parliamentary reform, and on the other a -general rural insurrection. Amidst this state of things the ministry of -the Duke of Wellington retired, and Lord Grey’s, composed of somewhat -discordant materials, and with a doubtful parliamentary majority, took -its place. Fires blazed throughout the country; rumours of plots and -insurrections were rife, and the _Register_ appeared with an article -remarkable for its power, and which indirectly excited to incendiarism -and rebellion. The Attorney-General prosecuted it. I had then just -entered Parliament, and ventured to condemn the prosecution, not -because the article in question was blameless, but because I thought -that the period for newspaper prosecutions by government was gone by, -and that they only excited sympathy for the offender. I was not wrong -in that opinion; for the jury being unable to agree as to a verdict, -Cobbett walked triumphantly out of court, and having gained some credit -by his trial, was shortly afterwards returned to Parliament for Oldham, -being at the same time an unsuccessful candidate for Manchester. - -The election, however, was less the effect of public esteem than of -private admiration, since the veteran journalist owed his success -mainly to the influence of a gentleman (Mr. Fielden) who had the -borough of Oldham pretty nearly under his control. Still, it was a -success, and not an inconsiderable one. The ploughboy, the private -of the 54th, after a variety of vicissitudes, had become a member -of the British Legislature. Nor for this had he bowed his knee to -any minister, nor served any party, nor administered with ambitious -interest to any popular feeling. His pen had been made to serve as a -double-edged sword, which smote alike Whig and Tory, Pitt and Fox, -Castlereagh and Tierney, Canning and Brougham, Wellington and Grey, -even Hunt and Waithman. He had sneered at education, at philosophy, -and at negro emancipation. He had assailed alike Catholicism and -Protestantism; he had respected few feelings that Englishmen respect. -Nevertheless, by force of character, by abilities to which he had -allowed the full swing of their inclination, he had at last cut his -way, unpatronized and poor, through conflicting opinions into the great -council chamber of the British nation. He was there, as he had been -through life, an isolated man. He owned no followers, and he was owned -by none. His years surpassed those of any member who ever came into -Parliament for the first time expecting to take an active part in it. -He was stout and hale for his time of life, but far over sixty, and -fast advancing towards three score years and ten. - -It was an interesting thing to most men who saw him enter the House -to have palpably before them the real, living William Cobbett. The -generation amongst which he yet moved had grown up in awe of his name, -but few had ever seen the man who bore it. - -The world had gone for years to the clubs, on Saturday evening, to find -itself lectured by him, abused by him; it had the greatest admiration -for his vigorous eloquence, the greatest dread of his scar-inflicting -lash; it had been living with him, intimate with him, as it were, but -it had not seen him. - -I speak of the world’s majority; for a few persons had met him -at county and public meetings, at elections, and also in courts -of justice. But to most members of Parliament the elderly, -respectable-looking, red-faced gentleman, in a dust-coloured coat -and drab breeches with gaiters, was a strange and almost historical -curiosity. Tall and strongly built, but stooping, with sharp eyes, -a round and ruddy countenance, smallish features, and a peculiarly -cynical mouth, he realized pretty nearly the idea that might have -been formed about him. The manner of his speaking might also have -been anticipated. His style in writing was sarcastic and easy--such -it was not unnatural to suppose it might also be in addressing an -assembly; and this to a certain extent was the case. He was still -colloquial, bitter, with a dry, caustic, and rather drawling delivery, -and a rare manner of arguing with facts. To say that he spoke as well -as he wrote, would be to place him where he was not--among the most -effective orators of his time. He had not, as a speaker, the raciness -of diction, nor the happiness of illustration, by which he excels as -a writer. He wanted also some physical qualifications unnecessary -to the author, but necessary to the orator, and which he might as a -younger man have naturally possessed or easily acquired. In short, he -could not be at that time the powerful personage that he might have -been had he taken his seat on the benches where he was then sitting, -when many surrounding him were unknown--even unborn. Still, I know no -other instance of a man entering the House of Commons at his age, and -becoming at once an effective debater in it. Looking carelessly round -the assembly so new to him, with his usual self-confidence he spoke on -the first occasion that presented itself, proposing an amendment to the -Address; but this was not his happiest effort, and consequently created -disappointment. He soon, however, obliterated the failure, and became -rather a favourite with an audience which is only unforgiving when -bored. - -It was still seen, moreover, that nothing daunted him; the murmurs, -the “Oh!” or more serious reprehension and censure, found him shaking -his head with his hands in his pockets, as cool and as defiant as -when he first stuck up the picture of King George in his shop window -at Philadelphia. He exhibited in Parliament, too, the same want of -tact, prudence, and truth; the same egotism, the same combativeness, -and the same reckless desire to struggle with received opinions, that -had marked him previously through life, and shattered his career into -glittering fragments, from which the world could never collect the -image, nor the practical utility of a whole. - -A foolish and out-of-the-way motion, praying his Majesty to strike -Sir Robert Peel’s name off the list of the Privy Council, for having -proposed a return to cash payments in 1819. was his wildest effort and -most signal defeat, the House receiving Sir Robert, when he stood up in -his defence, with a loud burst of cheers, and voting in a majority of -298 to 4 in his favour. - -Cobbett, however, was nothing abashed; for this motion was rather a -piece of fun, in his own way, than anything serious; and in reality -he was less angry with Sir Robert Peel, on account of his financial -measures in 1819, than on account of his being the most able speaker in -Parliament in 1833. - - -VI. - -In the new Parliament elected in January 1835, and which met on the -19th February, Cobbett was again member for Oldham. But his health was -already much broken by the change of habits, the want of air, and the -confinement which weighs on a parliamentary life. He did not, however, -perceive this; it was not, indeed, his habit to perceive anything to -his own disadvantage. He continued his attendance, therefore, and was -in his usual place during the whole of the debate on the Marquis of -Chandos’s motion for a repeal of the Malt Tax, and would have spoken -in favour of the repeal but for a sudden attack of the throat, to -which it is said that he was subject. On the voting of Supplies, which -followed almost immediately afterwards, he again, notwithstanding his -indisposition, exerted himself, and on the 25th of May persisted in -voting and speaking in support of a motion on Agricultural Distress. -At last, he confessed he was knocked up, and retired to the country, -where for some little time he seemed restored. But on the night of the -11th of June, 1835, he was seized with a violent illness, and on the -two following days was considered in extreme danger by his medical -attendant. He then again rallied, and on Monday, the 15th, talked -(says his son in an account of his death, published on the 20th of -June), in a collected and sprightly manner, upon politics and farming, -“wishing for four days’ rain for the Cobbetts’ corn and root crops,” -and on Wednesday could remain no longer shut up from the fields, but -desired to be carried round the farm, and criticised the work which -had been done in his absence. In the night, however, he grew more and -more feeble, until it was evident (though he continued till within the -last half-hour to answer every question that was put to him) that his -agitated career was drawing to a close. At ten minutes after one P.M. -he shut his eyes as if to sleep, leant back, and was no more--an end -singularly peaceful for one whose life had been so full of toil and -turmoil. - -The immediate cause of his death was water on the chest. He was buried, -according to his own desire, in a simple manner in the churchyard of -Farnham, in the same mould as that in which his father and grandfather -had been laid before him. His death struck people with surprise, for -few could remember the commencement of his course, and there had seemed -in it no middle and no decline; for though he went down to the grave an -old man, he was young in the path he had lately started upon. He left -a gap in the public mind which no one else could fill or attempt to -fill up, for his loss was not merely that of a man, but of a habit--of -a dose of strong drink which all of us had been taking for years, most -of us during our whole lives, and which it was impossible for any one -again to concoct so strongly, so strangely, with so much spice and -flavour, or with such a variety of ingredients. And there was this -peculiarity in the general regret--it extended to all persons. Whatever -a man’s talents, whatever a man’s opinions, he sought the _Register_ -on the day of its appearance with eagerness, and read it with -amusement, partly, perhaps, if De la Rochefoucault is right, because, -whatever his party, he was sure to see his friends abused. But partly -also because he was certain to find, amidst a great many fictions and -abundance of impudence, some felicitous nickname, some excellent piece -of practical-looking argument, some capital expressions, and very often -some marvellously-fine writing,[108] all the finer for being carelessly -fine, and exhibiting whatever figure or sentiment it set forth, in the -simplest as well as the most striking dress. Cobbett himself, indeed, -said that “_his popularity was owing to his giving truth in clear -language_;” and his language always did leave his meaning as visible as -the most limpid stream leaves its bed. But as to its displaying truth, -that is a different matter, and would be utterly impossible, unless -truth has, at least, as many heads as the Hydra of fable; in which case -our author may claim the merit of having portrayed them all. - -This, however, is to be remarked--he rarely abused that which was -falling or fallen, but generally that which was rising or uppermost. -He disinterred Paine when his memory was interred, and attacked him -as an impostor amongst those who hailed him as a prophet. In the heat -of the contest and cry against the Catholics--whom, when Mr. Pitt was -for emancipating them, he was for grinding into the dust--he calls the -Reformation a devastation, and pronounces the Protestant religion to -have been established by gibbets, racks, and ripping-knives. When all -London was yet rejoicing in Wellington hats and Wellington boots, he -asserts “that the celebrated victory of Waterloo had caused to England -more real shame, more real and substantial disgrace, more debt, more -distress amongst the middle class, and more misery amongst the working -class, more injuries of all kinds, than the kingdom could have ever -experienced by a hundred defeats, whether by sea or by land.” He had -a sort of itch for bespattering with mud everything that was popular, -and gilding everything that was odious. Mary Tudor was with him -“Merciful Queen Mary;” Elizabeth, as I have already observed, “Bloody -Queen Bess;” our Navy, “the swaggering Navy;” Napoleon, “a French -coxcomb;” Brougham, “a talking lawyer;” Canning, “a brazen defender of -corruptions.” - -His praise or censure afforded a sort of test to be taken in an inverse -sense of the world’s opinion. He could not bear superiority of any -kind, or reconcile himself to its presence. He declined, it is said, to -insert quack puffs in his journal, merely, I believe, because he could -not bear to spread anybody’s notoriety but his own; while he told his -correspondents never to write under the name of subscriber--it sounded -too much like _master_. As for absurdity, nothing was too absurd -for him coolly and deliberately to assert: “The English government -most anxiously wished for Napoleon’s return to France.” “There would -have been no national debt and no paupers, if there had been no -Reformation.” “The population of England had not increased one single -soul since he was born.” Such are a few of the many paradoxes one could -cite from his writings, and which are now before me. - -Neither did his coarseness know any bounds. He called a newspaper -a “cut-and-thrust weapon,” to be used without mercy or delicacy, -and never thought of anything but how he could strike the hardest. -“There’s a fine Congress-man for you! If any d----d rascally rotten -borough in the universe ever made such a choice as this (a Mr. Blair -MacClenachan), you’ll be bound to cut my throat, and suffer the _sans -culottes_ sovereigns of Philadelphia--the hob-snob snigger-snee-ers of -Germanstown--to kick me about in my blood till my corpse is as ugly -and disgusting as their living carcases are.” “Bark away, hell-hounds, -till you are suffocated in your own foam.” “This hatter turned painter -(Samuel F. Bradford), whose heart is as black and as foul as the liquid -in which he dabbles.” - -“It is fair, also, to observe that this State (Pennsylvania) labours -under disadvantages in one respect that no other State does. Here is -precisely that climate which suits the vagabonds of Europe; here they -bask in summer, and lie curled up in winter, without fear of scorching -in one season, or freezing in the other. Accordingly, hither they come -in shoals, just roll themselves ashore, and begin to swear and poll -away as if they had been bred to the business from their infancy. She -has too unhappily acquired a reputation for the mildness or rather -the feebleness of her laws. There’s no gallows in Pennsylvania. These -glad tidings have rung through all the democratic club-rooms, all the -dark assemblies of traitors, all the dungeons and cells of England, -Scotland, and Ireland. Hence it is that we are overwhelmed with the -refuse, the sweeping, of these kingdoms, the offal of the jail and the -gibbet. Hence it is that we see so many faces that never looked comely -but in the pillory, limbs that are awkward out of chains, and necks -that seem made to be stretched.” - -It would be difficult to put together more pithy sentences, or more -picturesque abuse than is set forth in the scurrilous extracts I have -been citing; yet Cobbett’s virulence could be conveyed in a more -delicate way whenever he thought proper: - -“Since then, Citizen Barney is become a French commodore of two -frigates, and will rise probably to the rank of admiral, if contrary -winds do not blow him in the way of an enemy.” - -His mode of commencing an attack also was often singularly effective -from its humour and personality: “He was a sly-looking fellow, with a -hard, slate-coloured countenance. He set out by blushing, and I may -leave any one to guess at the efforts that must be made to get a blush -through a skin like his.” Again: “Having thus settled the point of -controversy, give me leave to ask you, my sweet sleepy-eyed sir!” - -The following picture is equal to anything ever sketched by Hogarth, -and is called “A Summary of Proceedings of Congress,” November, 1794: - -“Never was a more ludicrous farce acted to a bursting audience. Madison -is a little bow-legged man, at once stiff and slender. His countenance -has that sour aspect, that conceited screw, which pride would willingly -mould into an expression of disdain, if it did not find the features -too skinny and too scanty for its purpose. His thin, sleek air, and the -niceness of his garments, are indicative of that economical cleanliness -which expostulates with the shoeboy and the washerwoman, which flies -from the danger of a gutter, and which boasts of wearing a shirt for -three days without rumpling the frill. In short, he has, take him -altogether, precisely the prim, mean, prig-like look of a corporal -mechanic, and were he ushered into your parlour, you would wonder why -he came without his measure and his shears. Such (and with a soul which -would disgrace any other tenement than that which contains it) is the -mortal who stood upon his legs, confidently predicting the overthrow -of the British monarchy, and anticipating the pleasure of feeding its -illustrious nobles with his oats.” - -Again, let us fancy the following sentences, imitating what the -gentlemen of the United States call “stump speaking,” delivered with -suitable tone and gesture on the hustings: “The commercial connection -between this country (America) and Great Britain is as necessary as -that between the baker and the miller; while the connection between -America and France may be compared to that between the baker and -the milliner or toyman. France may furnish us with looking-glasses, -but without the aid of Britain we shall be ashamed to see ourselves -in them; unless the _sans culottes_ can persuade us that threadbare -beggary is--a beauty. France may deck the heads of our wives and -daughters (by the bye, she shan’t those of mine) with ribbons, gauze, -and powder; their ears with bobs, their cheeks with paint, and their -heels with gaudy parti-coloured silk, as rotten as the hearts of the -manufacturers; but Great Britain must keep warm their limbs and cover -their bodies. When the rain pours down, and washes the rose from the -cheek, when the bleak north-wester blows through the gauze, then it is -that we know our friends.” - -Cobbett’s talent for fastening his claws into anything or any one, -by a word or an expression, and holding them down for scorn or up -to horror--a talent which, throughout this sketch, I have frequently -noticed--was unrivalled. “Prosperity Robinson,” “Œolus Canning,” -“The Bloody _Times_,” “the pink-nosed _Liverpool_,” “the unbaptized, -buttonless blackguards” (in which way he designated the disciples of -Penn),[109] were expressions with which he attached ridicule where he -could not fix reproach, and it is said that nothing was more teasing -to Lord Erskine than being constantly addressed by his second title of -“Baron Clackmannan.” - - -VII. - -I have alluded, at the commencement of this sketch, to the fact that -if the life of Mackintosh was in contradiction to his instincts, and -forced to adapt itself to his wishes or ideas, that of Cobbett was -ruled by his instincts, to which all ideas and wishes were subordinate. -His inclinations were for bustle and strife, and he passed his whole -life in strife and bustle. This is why the sap and marrow of his -genius show themselves in every line he sent to the press. But at -the same time his career warns us how little talents of the highest -order, even when accompanied by the most unflagging industry, will do -for a man, if those talents and that industry are not disciplined by -stedfast principles and concentrated upon noble objects. It is not to -be understood, indeed, when I say that a man should follow his nature, -that I mean he should do so without sense or judgment; your natural -character is your force, but it is a force that you must regulate and -keep applied to the track on which the career it has chosen is to be -honourably run. I would not recommend a man with military propensities -to enter the church; I should say, “Be a soldier, but do not be a -military adventurer. Enlist under a lawful banner, and fight for a good -cause.” - -Cobbett acknowledged no banner; and one cannot say, considering the -variety of doctrines he by turns adopted and discarded, that he -espoused any cause. Nor did he consider himself bound by any tie of -private or political friendship. As a beauty feels no gratitude for the -homage which she deems due to her charms, so Cobbett felt no gratitude -for the homage paid to his abilities. His idea of himself was that -which the barbarian entertains of his country. Cobbett was Cobbett’s -universe; and as he treated mankind, so mankind at last treated him. -They admired him as a myth, but they had no affection for him as a -person. His words were realities, his principles fictions. - -It may indeed be contended that a predominant idea ran winding through -all the twistings and twinings of his career, connecting his different -inconsistencies together; and that this was “a hatred for tyranny.” “He -always took his stand,” say his defenders, “with the minority:” and -there is something in this assertion. But there is far less fun and -excitement in fighting a minority, with a large majority at one’s back, -than in coming out, at the head of a small and violent minority, to -defy and attack a body of greater power and of larger numbers. It was -this fun and excitement which, if I mistake not, were Cobbett’s main -inducements to take the side he took in all the contests he engaged -in, whether against the minister of the day, or against our favourite -daughter of the eighth Henry, who reigned some centuries before his -time. Still the tendency to combat against odds is always superior to -the tendency to cringe to them, and a weak cause is not unfrequently -made victorious by a bold assertion. - -It must be added also, in his praise, that he is always a hearty -Englishman. He may vary in his opinions as to doctrines and as to men, -but he is ever for making England great, powerful, and prosperous--her -people healthy, brave, and free. He never falls into the error of -mistaking political economy for the whole of political science. He does -not say, “Be wealthy, make money, and care about nothing else.” He -advocates rural pursuits as invigorating to a population, although less -profitable than manufacturing. He desires to see Englishmen fit for war -as well as for peace. There is none of that puling primness about him -which marks the philosophers who would have a great nation, like a good -boy at a private school, fit for nothing but obedience and books. To -use a slang phrase, there was “a go” about him which, despite all his -charlatanism, all his eccentricities, kept up the national spirit, and -exhibited in this one of the highest merits of political writing. The -immense number of all his publications that sold immediately on their -appearance, sufficiently proves the wonderful popularity of his style; -and it is but just to admit that many of his writings were as useful as -popular. - -A paper written in 1804, on the apprehended invasion, and entitled -“Important Considerations for the People of this Kingdom,” was placed -(the author being unknown) in manuscript before Mr. Addington, who -caused it to be printed and read from the pulpit in every parish -throughout the kingdom. For many years this paper was attributed to -other eminent men; and it was only when some one thought of attacking -Cobbett as an enemy of his country, that he confessed the authorship of -a pamphlet, to the patriotism of which every Englishman had paid homage. - -Again, in 1816, the people of the northern and midland counties being -in great distress, attributed their calamities to machinery, and great -rioting and destruction of property was the consequence. Cobbett came -forward to stop these vulgar delusions. But he knew the nature of the -public mind. It was necessary, in order to divert it from one idea, -to give it another. So, he ridiculed the idea of distress proceeding -from machinery, and attributed it to misgovernment. Of his twopenny -pamphlet, called “A Letter to Journeymen and Labourers,” 30,000 copies -were sold in a week, and with such advantage that Lord Brougham, in -1831, asked permission to republish it. Much in his exaggerations and -contradictions is likewise to be set down to drollery rather than to -any serious design to deceive. I remember the late Lady Holland once -asking me if I did not think she sometimes said ill-natured things; and -on my acquiescing, she rejoined: “I don’t mean to burn any one, but -merely to poke the fire.” Cobbett liked to poke the fire, to make a -blaze; but in general--I will not say always--he thought more of sport -than of mischief. - -At all events, this very spirit of change, of criticism, of -combativeness, is the spirit of journalism; and Cobbett was not only -this spirit embodied, but--and this renders his life so remarkable -in our history--he represented journalism, and fought the fight of -journalism against authority, when it was still a doubt which would -gain the day. - -Let us not, indeed, forget the blind and uncalculating intolerance with -which the law struggled against opinion from 1809 to 1822. Writers -during this period were transported, imprisoned, and fined, without -limit or conscience; and just when government became more gentle to -legitimate newspapers, it engaged in a new conflict with unstamped -ones. No less than 500 vendors of these were imprisoned within six -years. The contest was one of life and death. Amidst the general din -of the battle, but high above all shouts more confused, was heard -Cobbett’s bold, bitter, scornful voice, cheering on the small but -determined band, which defied tyranny without employing force. The -failure of the last prosecution against the _Register_ was the general -failure of prosecutions against the Press, and may be said to have -closed the contest in which government lost power every time that it -made victims. - -Such was Cobbett--such his career! I have only to add that, in his -family relations, this contentious man was kind and gentle. An -incomparable husband, an excellent father; and his sons--profiting by -an excellent education, and inheriting, not, perhaps, the marvellous -energies, but a great portion of the ability, of their father--carry -on with credit and respectability the name of a man, who, whatever -his faults, must be considered by every Englishman who loves our -literature, or studies our history, as one of the most remarkable -illustrations of his very remarkable time. - - - - -CANNING, THE BRILLIANT MAN. - - - - -PART I. - -FROM BIRTH AND EDUCATION TO DUEL WITH LORD CASTLEREAGH. - - Proper time for writing a biography.--Mr. Canning born - (1770).--Education at Eton and Oxford.--Early literary - performances.--Brought into Parliament by Mr. Pitt.--Politics - he espoused.--His commencement as a speaker.--Writes for the - _Anti-Jacobin_.--Quits office with Mr. Pitt.--Opposes Mr. - Addington.--Returns to office with Mr. Pitt.--Distinguishes - himself in opposition to “All the Talents.”--Becomes Minister - of Foreign Affairs on their fall.--Foreign policy.--Quarrel - with Lord Castlereagh, and duel. - - -I. - -There is no period at which an eminent person is so little considered, -so much forgotten and disregarded, as during the few years succeeding -his decease. His name, no longer noised above that of others by the -busy zeal of his partisans, or the still more clamorous energies of his -opponents, drops away suddenly, as it were, from the mouths of men. To -his contemporaries he has ceased to be of importance--the most paltry -pretender to his place is of more;--while posterity does not exist for -him, until the dead are distinctly separated from the living; until the -times in which he lived, and the scenes in which he acted, have become -as a distant prospect from which the eye can at once single out from -amidst the mass of ordinary objects, those which were the memorials of -their epoch, and are to become the beacons of after-generations. - -The French, who are as fond of putting philosophy into action as we are -coy of connecting theory with practice, marked out, at one moment, a -kind of intermediate space between the past and the present, the tomb -and the pantheon; but the interval of ten years, which they assigned -for separating the one from the other, is hardly sufficient for the -purpose. - -We are, however, now arrived at the period that permits our considering -the subject of this memoir as a character in history which it is well -to describe without further procrastination. Every day, indeed, leaves -us fewer of those who remember the clearly-chiselled countenance -which the slouched hat only slightly concealed,--the lip satirically -curled,--the penetrating eye, peering along the Opposition benches,--of -the old parliamentary leader in the House of Commons. It is but here -and there that we find a survivor of the old day, to speak to us of the -singularly mellifluous and sonorous voice, the classical language--now -pointed into epigram, now elevated into poesy, now burning with -passion, now rich with humour--which curbed into still attention a -willing and long-broken audience. - -The great changes of the last half-century have, moreover, created -such a new order of ideas and of society, that the years preceding -1830 appear as belonging to an antecedent century; and the fear now -is--not that we are too near, but that we are gliding away too far -from the events of that biography which I propose to sketch. And yet -he who undertakes the task of biographical delineation, should not be -wholly without the scope of the influences which coloured the career he -desires to sketch. The artist can hardly give the likeness of the face -he never saw, nor the writer speak vividly of events which are merely -known to him by tradition. - - -II. - -It is with this feeling that I attempt to say something of a man, -the most eminent of a period at which the government of England was -passing, imperceptibly perhaps, but not slowly, from the hands of an -exclusive but enlightened aristocracy, into those of a middle class, -of which the mind, the energy, and the ambition had been gradually -developed, under the mixed influences of a war which had called forth -the resources, and of a peace which had tried the prosperity, of our -country;--a middle class which was growing up with an improved and -extended education, amidst stirring debates as to the height to which -the voice of public opinion should be allowed to raise itself, and the -latitude that should be given, in a singularly mixed constitution, to -its more democratic parts. - -Mr. Canning was born on the 11th of April, 1770, and belonged to an -old and respectable family originally resident in Warwickshire.[110] -A branch of it, obtaining a grant of the manor of Garvagh, settled in -Ireland in the reign of James I., and from this branch Mr. Canning -descended; but the misfortunes of his parents placed him in a situation -below that which might have been expected from his birth. - -His father, the eldest of three sons--George, Paul, and Stratford--was -disinherited for marrying a young lady (Miss Costello) without fortune; -and having some taste for literature, but doing nothing at the bar, -he died amidst the difficulties incidental to idle habits and elegant -tastes. - -Mrs. Canning, left without resources, attempted the stage, but she had -no great talents for the theatrical profession, and never rose above -the rank of a middling actress. Her son thus fell under the care of -his uncle, Mr. Stratford Canning, a highly respectable merchant, and -an old Whig, much in the confidence of the leaders of the Whig party -and possessing considerable influence with them. A small inheritance -of 200_l._ or 300_l._ a year sufficed for the expenses of a liberal -education, and after passing through the regular ordeal of a private -school, young Canning was sent to Eton, and subsequently to Christ -Church, Oxford. At Eton no boy ever left behind him so many brilliant -recollections. Gay and high-spirited as a companion, clever and -laborious as a student, he obtained a following from his character, -and a reputation from his various successes. This reputation was the -greater from the schoolboy’s triumphs not being merely those of school. -Known and distinguished as “George Canning,” he was yet more known -and distinguished as the correspondent of “Gregory Griffin;”--such -being the name adopted by the fictitious editor of the _Microcosm_, -a publication in the style of the _Spectator_, and carried on solely -by Eton lads. In this publication, the graver prose of the young -orator was incorrect and inferior to that of one or two other juvenile -contributors, but some of his lighter productions were singularly -graceful, and it would be difficult to find anything of its kind -superior to a satirical commentary upon the epic merits of an old -ballad: - - “The queen of hearts - She made some tarts - _All on a summer’s day_,” &c[111] - -“I cannot leave this line,” says the witty commentator, “without -remarking, that one of the Scribleri, a descendant of the famous -Martinus, has expressed his suspicions of the text being corrupted -here, and proposes, instead of ‘All on,’ reading ‘Alone,’ alleging, -in the favour of this alteration, the effect of solitude in raising -the passions. But Hiccius Doctius, a High Dutch commentator, one -nevertheless well versed in British literature, in a note of his usual -length and learning, has confuted the arguments of Scriblerus. In -support of the present reading, he quotes a passage from a poem written -about the same period with our author’s, by the celebrated Johannes -Pastor (most commonly known as Jack Shepherd), entitled, ‘An Elegiac -Epistle to the Turnkey of Newgate,’ wherein the gentleman declares, -that, rather indeed in compliance with an old custom than to gratify -any particular wish of his own, he is going - - “‘_All hanged_ for to be - Upon that fatal Tyburn tree.’ - -“Now, as nothing throws greater light on an author than the concurrence -of a contemporary writer, I am inclined to be of Hiccius’ opinion, and -to consider the ‘All’ as an elegant expletive, or, as he more aptly -phrases it, ‘elegans expletivum.’” - -The other articles to which the boyish talent of the lad, destined -to be so famous, may lay claim, are designated in the will of the -supposed editor, Mr. Griffin (contained in the concluding number of the -_Microcosm_), which, amongst special bequests assigns to “Mr. George -Canning, now of the college of Eton, all my papers, essays, &c., signed -B.” - - -III. - -It is needless to observe that an Eton education is more for the man -of the world than for the man of books. It teaches little in the way -of science or solid learning, but it excites emulation, encourages and -gratifies a love of fame, and prepares the youth for the competitions -of manhood. Whatever is dashing and showy gives pre-eminence in that -spirited little world from which have issued so many English statesmen. -It developed in Canning all his natural propensities. He was the show -boy at Montem days with master and student. - -“Look, papa,--there, there;--that good-looking fellow is Canning--such -a clever chap, but a horrible Whig. By Jupiter, how he gives it to -Pitt!” - -Nor was this wonderful. The youthful politician spent his holidays with -his uncle, who only saw Whigs; and then, what clever boy would not -have been charmed by the wit and rhetoric of Sheridan--by the burning -eloquence of Fox? - -The same dispositions that had shown themselves at Eton, carried to -Oxford, produced the same distinctions. Sedulous at his studies, almost -Republican in his principles, the pride of his college, the glory of -his debating society, the intimate associate of the first young men in -birth, talents, and prospects, young Canning was thus early known as -the brilliant and promising young man of his day, and thought likely -to be one of the most distinguished of those intellectual gladiators -whom the great parties employed in their struggles for power; struggles -which seemed at the moment to disorder the administration of affairs, -but which, carried on with eloquence and ability in the face of the -nation, kept its attention alive to national interests, and could not -fail to diffuse throughout it a lofty spirit, and a sort of political -education. - - -IV. - -From the University Canning went to Lincoln’s Inn. It does not appear, -however, that in taking to the study of the law he had any idea of -becoming a Lord Chancellor. There was nothing of severity in his plan -of life--he dined out with those who invited him, and his own little -room was at times modestly lit up for gatherings together of old -friends, who enjoyed new jokes, and amongst whom and for whom were -composed squibs, pamphlets, newspaper articles, in steady glorification -of school and college opinions, which the Oxonian, on quitting the -University, had no doubt the intention to sustain in the great battles -of party warfare. - -But events were then beginning to make men’s convictions tremble under -them; and, with the increasing differences amongst veteran statesmen, -it was difficult to count on youthful recruits. - -At all events, it is about this time that Mr. Canning’s political -career begins. It must be viewed in relation to the particular state of -society and government which then existed. - -From the days of Queen Anne there had been a contest going on between -the two aristocratic factions, “Whig” and “Tory.” The principles -professed by either were frequently changed. The Tories, such as Sir -William Windham, under the guidance of Bolingbroke, often acting as -Reformers; and the Whigs, under Walpole, often acting as Conservatives. -The being in or out of place was in fact the chief difference between -the opposing candidates for office, though the Whigs generally passed -for being favourable to popular pretensions, and the Tories for being -favourable to Royal authority. - -In the meantime public opinion, except on an occasional crisis when -the nation made itself heard, was the opinion of certain coteries, and -public men were the men of those coteries. It not unfrequently happened -that the most distinguished for ability were the most distinguished -for birth and fortune. But it was by no means necessary that it should -be so. The chiefs of the two conflicting armies sought to obtain -everywhere the best soldiers. Each had a certain number of commissions -to give away, or, in other words, of seats in Parliament to dispose of. -They who had the government in their hands could count from that fact -alone on thirty or forty. It matters little how these close boroughs -were created. Peers or gentlemen possessed them as simple property, or -as the effect of dominant local influence. The Treasury controlled them -as an effect of the patronage or employments which office placed in its -hands. A certain number were sold or let by their proprietors, and even -by the Administration; and in this manner men who had made fortunes -in our colonies or in trade, and were averse to a public canvass, and -without local landed influence, found their way into the great National -Council. They paid their 5000_l._ down, or their 1000_l._ a year, and -could generally, though not always, find a seat on such terms. But a -large portion of these convenient entries into the House of Commons -was kept open for distinguished young men, who gave themselves up to -public affairs as to a profession. A school or college reputation, an -able pamphlet, a club, or county meeting oration, pointed them out. -The minister, or great man who wished to be a minister, brought them -into Parliament. If they failed, they sank into insignificance; if they -succeeded, they worked during a certain time for the great men of the -day, and then became great men themselves. - -This system had advantages, counterbalanced by defects, and gave to -England a set of trained and highly educated statesmen, generally -well informed on all national questions, strongly attached to party -combinations, connected by the ties of gratitude and patronage with the -higher classes, having a certain contempt for the middle: keenly alive -to the glory, the power, the greatness of the country, and sympathising -little with the habits and wants of the great masses of the people. - -They had not a correct knowledge of the feelings and wants of the poor -man,--they understood and shared the feelings of the gentleman. Bread -might be dear or cheap, they cared little about it; a battle gained -or lost affected them more deeply. A mob might be massacred without -greatly exciting their compassion; but the loss of a great general or -of a great statesman they felt as a national calamity. - -Such were the men who might fairly be called “political adventurers:” -a class to which we owe much of our political renown, much of our -reputation for political capacity, but which, in only rare instances, -won the public esteem or merited the popular affections. Such were our -political adventurers when Mr. Pitt sent for Mr. Canning, a scholar of -eminence and a young man of superior and shining abilities, and offered -him a seat in the House of Commons. - -The following is the simple manner in which this interview is spoken of -by a biographer of Mr. Canning:[112] - -“Mr. Pitt, through a private channel, communicated his desire to see -Mr. Canning; Mr. Canning of course complied. Mr. Pitt immediately -proceeded, on their meeting, to declare to Mr. Canning the object of -his requesting an interview with him, which was to state that he had -heard of Mr. Canning’s reputation as a scholar and a speaker, and that -if he concurred in the policy which the Government was then pursuing, -arrangements would be made to bring him into Parliament.” - -The person to whom this offer was made accepted it; nor was this -surprising. - -I have already said that events were about this period taking place, -that made men’s convictions tremble under them; and in fact the mob -rulers of Paris had in a few months so desecrated the name of Freedom, -that half of its ancient worshippers covered their faces with their -hands, and shuddered when it was pronounced. - -But there were also other circumstances of a more personal nature, -which, now that young Canning had seriously to think of his entry into -public life, had, I have been assured, an influence on his resolutions. - -The first incident, I was once told by Mr. John Allen, that disinclined -Mr. Canning (who had probably already some misgivings) to attach -himself irrevocably to the Whig camp, was the following one: Lord -Liverpool, then Mr. Jenkinson, had just made his appearance in the -House of Commons. His first speech was highly successful. “There is a -young friend of mine,” said Mr. Sheridan, “whom I soon hope to hear -answering the honourable gentleman who has just distinguished himself: -a contemporary whom he knows to possess talents not inferior to his -own, but whose principles, I trust, are very different from his.” - -This allusion, however kindly meant, was disagreeable, said Mr. Allen, -to the youthful aspirant to public honours. It pledged him, as he -thought, prematurely; it brought him forward under the auspices of a -man, who, however distinguished as an individual, was not in a position -to be a patron. Other reflections, it is added, followed. The party -then in opposition possessed almost every man distinguished in public -life: a host of formidable competitors in the road to honour and -preferment, supposing preferment and honour to be attainable by talent. -But this was not all. The Whig party, then, as always, was essentially -an exclusive party; its preferments were concentrated on a clique, -which regarded all without it as its subordinates and instruments. - -On the other side, the Prime Minister stood almost alone. He had -every office to bestow, and few candidates of any merit for official -employments. Haughty from temperament, and flushed with power, which he -had attained early and long exercised without control, he had not the -pride of rank, nor the aristocratic attachments for which high families -linked together are distinguished. His partisans and friends were his -own. He had elevated them for no other reason than that they were his. -By those to whom he had once shown favour he had always stood firm; -all who had followed had shared his fortunes; there can be no better -promise to adherents. - -These were not explanations that Mr. Canning could make precisely to -the Whig leaders, but he had an affection for Mr. Sheridan, who had -always been kind to him, and by whom he did not wish to be thought -ungrateful. He sought, then, an interview with that good-natured -and gifted person. Lord Holland, Mr. Canning’s contemporary, was -present at it, and told me that nothing could be more respectful and -unreserved than the manner in which the ambitious young man gave his -reasons for the change he was prepared to make, or had made; nothing -more warm-hearted, unprejudiced, and frank, than the veteran orator’s -reception of his retiring _protégé’s_ confession: nor, indeed, could -Mr. Sheridan help feeling the application, when he was himself cited as -an example of the haughtiness with which “the great Whig Houses” looked -down on the lofty aspirations of mere genius. The conversation thus -alluded to took place a little before Mr. Pitt’s proposals were made, -but probably when they were expected. Mr. Canning, his views fairly -stated to the only person to whom he felt bound to give them, and his -seat in Parliament secured, placed himself in front of his old friends, -whom Colonel Fitz-Patrick avenged by the following couplet: - - “The turning of coats so common is grown, - That no one would think to attack it; - But no case until now was so flagrantly known - Of a schoolboy turning his jacket.” - - -V. - -There was little justice in Colonel Fitz-Patrick’s satire. Nine-tenths -of Mr. Fox’s partisans, old and young, were deserting his standard -when Mr. Canning quitted him. The cultivated mind of England was, as -it has been said in two or three of these sketches, against the line -which the Whig leader persisted to take with respect to the French -Revolution--even after its excesses; and it is easy to conceive that -the cause of Liberty and Fraternity should have become unfashionable -when these weird sisters were seen brandishing the knife, and dancing -round the guillotine. Admitting, however, the legitimacy of the horror -with which the assassins of the Committee of Public Safety inspired the -greater portion of educated Englishmen, it is still a question whether -England should have provoked their hostility; for, after the recall -of our ambassador and our undisguised intention of making war, the -Republic’s declaration of it was a matter of course. - -“Where could be the morality,” said Mr. Pitt’s opponents, “of bringing -fresh calamities upon a land which so many calamities already -desolated? Where the policy of concentrating and consolidating so -formidable an internal system by an act of foreign aggression? And if -the struggle we then engaged in was in itself inhuman and impolitic, -what was to be said as to the time at which we entered upon it? - -“The natural motives that might have suggested a French war, were--the -wish to save an unhappy monarch from an unjust and violent death; the -desire to subdue the arrogance of a set of miscreants who, before -they were prepared to execute the menace, threatened to overrun the -world with their principles and their arms. If these were our motives, -why not draw the sword, before the Sovereign whose life we wished to -protect had perished? Why defer our conflict with the French army -until, flushed with victory and threatened with execution in the event -of defeat, raw recruits were changed into disciplined and desperate -soldiers? Why reserve our defence of the unhappy Louis till he had -perished on the scaffold--our war against the French Republic until -the fear of the executioner and the love of glory had made a nation -unanimous in its defence? Success was possible when Prussia first -entered on the contest: it was impossible when we subsidized her to -continue it.” - -The antagonists of the First Minister urged these arguments with -plausibility. His friends replied, “that Mr. Pitt had been originally -against all interference in French affairs; that the conflict was not -of his seeking; that the conduct of the French government and the -feelings of the English people had at last forced him into it; that he -had not wished to anticipate its necessity; but that if he had, the -minister of a free country cannot go to war at precisely the moment he -would select; he cannot guard against evils which the public itself -does not foresee. He must go with the public, or after it; and the -public mind in England had, like that of the Ministers, only become -convinced by degrees that peace was impossible. - -“As to neutrality, if it could be observed when the objects at stake -were material, it could not be maintained when those objects were -moral, social, and religious. - -“When new ideas were everywhere abroad, inflaming, agitating men’s -minds, these ideas were sure to find everywhere partisans or opponents, -and to attempt to moderate the zeal of one party merely gave power to -the violence of the other. - -“It was necessary to excite the English people against France, in order -to prevent French principles, as they were then called, from spreading -and fixing themselves in England.” - -Such was the language and such the opinions of many eminent men with -whom Mr. Canning was now associated, when, after a year’s preliminary -silence, he made his first speech in the House of Commons. - - -VI. - -This first speech (January 31, 1794), like many first speeches of -men who have become eminent orators, was more or less a failure. The -subject was a subsidy to Sardinia, and the new member began with a -scoff at the idea of looking with a mere mercantile eye at the goodness -or badness of the bargain we were making. Such a scoff at economy, -uttered in an assembly which is the especial guardian of the public -purse, was injudicious. But the whole speech was bad; it possessed in -an eminent degree all the ordinary faults of the declamations of clever -young men. Its arguments were much too refined: its arrangement much -too systematic: cold, tedious, and unparliamentary, it would have been -twice as good if it had attempted half as much; for the great art in -speaking, as in writing, consists in knowing what should not be said or -written. - -This instance of ill success did not, however, alienate the Premier; -for Mr. Pitt, haughty in all things, cared little for opinions which -he did not dictate. In 1795, therefore, the unsubdued favourite was -charged with the seconding of the address, and acquitted himself with -some spirit and effect. - -The following passage may be quoted both for thought and expression: - -“The next argument against peace is its insecurity; it would be the -mere name of peace, not a wholesome and refreshing repose, but a -feverish and troubled slumber, from which we should soon be roused -to fresh horrors and insults. What are the blessings of peace which -make it so desirable? What, but that it implies tranquil and secure -enjoyment of our homes? What, but that it will restore our seamen and -our soldiers, who have been fighting to preserve those homes, to a -share of that tranquillity and security? What, but that it will lessen -the expenses and alleviate the burdens of the people? What, but that it -explores some new channel of commercial intercourse, or reopens such -as war had destroyed? What, but that it renews some broken link of -amity, or forms some new attachment between nations, and softens the -asperities of hostility and hatred into kindness and conciliation and -reciprocal goodwill? And which of all these blessings can we hope to -obtain by a peace, under the present circumstances, with France? Can -we venture to restore to the loom or to the plough the brave men who -have fought our battles? Who can say how soon some fresh government may -not start up in France, which may feel it their inclination or their -interest to renew hostilities? The utmost we can hope for is a short, -delusive, and suspicious interval of armistice, without any material -diminution of expenditure; without security at home, or a chance -of purchasing it by exertions abroad; without any of the essential -blessings of peace, or any of the possible advantages of war: a state -of doubt and preparation such as will retain in itself all the causes -of jealousy to other states which, in the usual course of things, -produce remonstrances and (if these are answered unsatisfactorily) -war.” - - -VII. - -In 1796, Parliament was dissolved, and Mr. Canning was returned -to Parliament this time for Wendover. He had just been named -Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; and it has been usual -to refer to this appointment as a proof of his early parliamentary -success. He owed the promotion, however, entirely to the Prime -Minister’s favour; for though his late speech, better than the -preceding one, had procured him some credit, there was still a careless -impertinence in his manner, and a classical pedantry in his style, -which were unsuitable to the taste of the House of Commons. Indeed, so -much had he to reform in his manner, that he now remained, by, as it is -said, Mr. Pitt’s advice, silent for three years, endeavouring during -this time to correct his faults and allow them to be forgotten. - -It does not follow that he was idle. The _Anti-Jacobin_, started in -1797, under the editorship of Mr. Gifford, for the purpose which its -title indicates, was commenced at the instigation and with the support -of the old contributor to the _Microcosm_, and did more than any -parliamentary eloquence could have done in favour of the anti-Jacobin -cause. - -“Must wit,” says Mr. Canning, who had now to contend against the most -accomplished humorists of his day, “be found alone on falsehood’s -side?” and having established himself as the champion of “Truth,” he -brought, no doubt, very useful and very brilliant arms to her service. -The verses of “New Morality,” spirited, exaggerated, polished, and -virulent, satisfied the hatred without offending the taste (which does -not seem to have been at that time very refined) of those classes who -looked upon our neighbours with almost as much hatred and disgust as -were displayed in the verses of the young poet; while the “Friend of -Humanity and the Knife-grinder”--almost too trite to be quoted, and -yet too excellent to be omitted--will long remain one of the happiest -efforts of satire in our language: - - “IMITATION SAPPHICS. - - “THE FRIEND OF HUMANITY AND THE KNIFE-GRINDER. - - “_Friend of Humanity_: - - “Needy Knife-grinder, whither are you going? - Rough is the road,--your wheel is out of order; - Bleak blows the blast,--your hat has got a hole in’t, - So have your breeches. - - “Weary Knife-grinder, little think the proud ones, - Who in their coaches roll along the turnpike - Road, what hard work ’tis crying all day, ‘Knives and - Scissors to grind, O!’ - - “Tell me, Knife-grinder, how came you to grind knives? - Did some rich man tyrannically use you? - Was it the squire, or parson of the parish, - Or the attorney? - - “Was it the squire, for killing of his game? or - Covetous parson, for his tithes distraining? - Or roguish lawyer, made you lose your little - All in a lawsuit? - - “Have you not read the ‘Rights of Man,’ by Tom Paine? - Drops of compassion tremble on my eyelids, - Ready to fall as soon as you have told your - Pitiful story. - - “_Knife-Grinder_: - - “Story! God bless you, I have none to tell, sir; - Only last night, a-drinking at the ‘Chequers,’ - These poor old hat and breeches, as you see, were - Torn in a scuffle. - - “Constables came up for to take me into - Custody; they took me before the justice: - Justice Aldmixon put me in the parish - Stocks for a vagrant. - - “I should be glad to drink your honour’s health in - A pot of beer, if you will give me sixpence; - But, for my part, I never love to meddle - With politics, sir. - - “_Friend of Humanity_: - - “I give thee sixpence? I’ll see thee damn’d first. - Wretch, whom no sense of wrong can rouse to vengeance! - Sordid, unfeeling, reprobate, degraded, - Spiritless outcast!” - - [_Exit, kicking over the wheel, in a - fit of universal philanthropy._] - -An instance of the readiness of Mr. Canning’s Muse may be here related. - -When Frere had completed the first part of the “Loves of the -Triangles,” he exultingly read over the following lines to Canning, and -defied him to improve upon them: - - “Lo! where the chimney’s sooty tube ascends, - The fair Trochais from the corner bends! - Her coal-black eyes upturned, incessant mark - The eddying smoke, quick flame, and volant spark; - Mark with quick ken, where flashing in between, - Her much-loved _smoke-jack_ glimmers thro’ the scene; - Mark how his various parts together tend, - Point to one purpose,--in one object end; - The spiral grooves in smooth meanders flow, - Drags the long chain, the polished axles glow, - While slowly circumvolves the piece of beef below.” - -Canning took the pen, and added: - - “The conscious fire with bickering radiance burns, - Eyes the rich joint, and roasts it as it turns.” - -These two lines are now blended with the original text, and constitute, -it is said, the only flaw in Frere’s title to the sole authorship of -the first part of the poem, from which I have been quoting: the second -and third parts were both by Canning. - -In prose I cite the report of a peroration by Mr. Erskine, whose -egotism could hardly be caricatured, at a meeting of the Friends of -Freedom. - -“Mr. Erskine concluded by recapitulating, in a strain of agonizing and -impressive eloquence, the several more prominent heads of his speech: -He had been a soldier, and a sailor, and had a son at Winchester -School; he had been called by special retainers, during the summer, -into many different and distant parts of the country, travelling -chiefly in post-chaises; he felt himself called upon to declare that -his poor faculties were at the service of his country--of the free and -enlightened part of it, at least. He stood here as a man; he stood -in the eye, indeed in the hand, of God--to whom (in the presence of -the company, and waiters) he solemnly appealed; he was of noble, -perhaps royal blood; he had a house at Hampstead; was convinced of -the necessity of a thorough and radical reform; his pamphlet had gone -through thirty editions, skipping alternately the odd and even numbers; -he loved the Constitution, to which he would cling and grapple; and he -was clothed with the infirmities of man’s nature; he would apply to the -present French rulers (particularly _Barras_ and _Reubel_) the words of -the poet: - - “‘_Be to their faults a little blind;_ - _Be to their virtues ever kind,_ - _Let all their ways be unconfined,_ - _And clap the padlock on their mind!_’ - -and for these reasons, thanking the gentlemen who had done him the -honour to drink his health, he should propose ‘_Merlin_, the late -Minister of Justice, under the Directory, and Trial by Jury.’” - -I refer those who wish to know more of the literary merits of Mr. -Canning to an article, July, 1858, in the “Edinburgh Review,” in which -article the accomplished writer has exhausted the subject he undertook -to treat. - -Nor was Mr. Canning’s reputation for wit, at this time, gained solely -by his pen. Living with few, though much the fashion, who could be -more charming in his own accomplished circle--when, the pleasant -thought lighting up his eye, playing about his mouth, and giving an -indescribable charm to his handsome countenance, he abandoned himself -to the inspiration of some happy moment, and planned a practical joke, -or quizzed an incorrigible bore, or related some humorous anecdote? -No one’s society was so much prized by associates; no one’s talents -so highly estimated by friends; and his fame in the drawing-room, -or at the dining-table, was at least as brilliant as that which he -subsequently acquired in the senate. - -This, indeed, was the epoch in his life at which perhaps he had the -most real enjoyment; for though he felt conscious that his success in -Parliament had not yet been complete, the feeling of certainty that it -would become so, now began to dawn upon him, and the triumphs that his -ardent nature anticipated went probably even beyond those which his -maturer career accomplished. - - -VIII. - -On the 11th of December, 1798, Mr. Tierney made a motion respecting -peace with the French Republic. The negotiations at Lille, never -cordially entered into, were at this time broken off. We had formed -an alliance with Russia and the Porte, and were about to carry on the -struggle with new energies, though certainly not under very encouraging -auspices. The coalition of 1792-3 was completely broken up. Prussia -had for three years been at peace with France; nor had the Cabinet of -Vienna seen any objection to signing a treaty which, disgracefully to -all parties, sacrificed the remains of Venetian liberty. - -France, in the meanwhile, distracted at home, had, notwithstanding, -enlarged her empire by Belgium, Luxemburg, Nice, Savoy, Piedmont, -Genoa, Milan, and Holland. There were many arguments to use in -favour of abandoning the struggle we had entered upon: the uncertain -friendship of our allies; the increased force of our enemy; and the -exhausting drain we were maintaining upon our own resources. In six -years we had added one hundred and fifty millions to our debt, by which -had been created the necessity of adding to our annual burdens eight -millions, a sum equal to the whole of our expenditure when George III. -came to the throne. - -But the misfortunes which attend an expensive contest, though they -necessarily irritate and dissatisfy a people with war, are not always -to be considered irrefutable arguments in favour of peace. This -formed the substance of the speech which Mr. Canning delivered on Mr. -Tierney’s motion. Defective in argument, it was effective in delivery, -and added considerably to his reputation as a speaker. - -In the meantime, our sworn enmity to France and to French principles, -encouraged an ardent inclination to both in those whom we had offended -or misgoverned. The Directory in Paris and the discontented in Ireland -had, therefore, formed a natural if not a legitimate league. The result -was an Irish rebellion, artfully planned, for a long time unbetrayed, -and which, but for late treachery and singular accidents, would not -have been easily overcome. - -Mr. Pitt, taking advantage of the fears of a separation between Great -Britain and the sister kingdom, which this rebellion, notwithstanding -its prompt and fortunate suppression, had created, announced, in a -message from the Crown, a desire still further to incorporate and -consolidate the two kingdoms. Whatever may have been the result of the -Irish Union, the promises under which it was passed having been so long -denied, so unhappily broken, there was certainly at this period reason -to suppose that it would afford the means of instituting a fairer and -less partial system of government than that under which Ireland had -long been suffering. - -As for the wail which was then set up, and which has since been -re-awakened, for the independent Legislature which was merged into that -of Great Britain, the facility with which it was purchased is the best -answer which can be given to the assertions made of its value. - -The part, therefore, that Mr. Canning adopted on this question (if with -sincere and honest views of conferring the rights of citizenship on our -Irish Catholic fellow-subjects, and not with the intention, which there -is no reason to presume, of gaining their goodwill and then betraying -their confidence) is one highly honourable to an English statesman. But -another question now arose. That Catholic Emancipation was frequently -promised as the natural result of the Union, has never been disputed. -As such promises were made plainly and openly in Parliament, the King -could not be supposed ignorant of them. Why, then, if his Majesty had -such insuperable objections to their fulfilment, did he allow of their -being made? And, on the other hand, how could his Ministers compromise -their characters by holding out as a lure to a large majority of the -Irish people a benefit which they had no security for being able to -concede? Mr. Canning’s language is not ambiguous: - -“Here, then, are two parties in opposition to each other, who agree -in one common opinion; and surely if any middle term can be found to -assuage their animosities, and to heal their discords, and to reconcile -their jarring interests, it should be eagerly and instantly seized and -applied. That an union is that middle term, appears the more probable -when we recollect that the Popery code took its rise after a proposal -for an union, which proposal came from Ireland, but which was rejected -by the British government. This rejection produced the Popery code. -_If an union were therefore acceded to, the Popery code would be -unnecessary._ I say, if it was in consequence of the rejection of an -union at a former period that the laws against Popery were enacted, -it is fair to conclude that an union would render a similar code -unnecessary--that an union would satisfy the friends of the Protestant -ascendency, without passing new laws against the Catholics, and without -maintaining those which are yet in force.”[113] - -The Union, nevertheless, was carried; the mention of Catholic -Emancipation, in spite of the language just quoted, forbidden. Mr. Pitt -(in 1801) retired. - - -IX. - -There will always be a mystery hanging over the transaction to which -I have just referred,--a mystery difficult to explain in a manner -entirely satisfactory to the character of the King and his minister. -One can only presume that the King was willing to let the Union be -carried, on the strength of the Premier’s promises, which he did not -think it necessary to gainsay until he was asked to carry them into -effect; and that the Minister counted upon the important service he -would have rendered if the great measure he was bringing forward became -law, for the influence that would be necessary to make his promises -valid. It cannot be denied that each acted with a certain want of -candour towards the other unbecoming their respective positions, -and that both behaved unfairly towards Ireland. Mr. Pitt sought -to give consistency to his conduct by resigning; but he failed in -convincing the public of his sincerity, because he was supposed to have -recommended Mr. Addington, then Speaker of the House of Commons, and -the son of a Doctor Addington, who had been the King’s physician (to -which circumstance the son owed a nickname he could never shake off), -as his successor; and Mr. Addington was only remarkable for not being -remarkable either for his qualities or for his defects, being just that -staid, sober sort of man who, respectable in the chair of the House of -Commons, would be almost ridiculous in leading its debates. - -Thus an appointment which did not seem serious, perplexed and did not -satisfy the public mind; more especially as the seceding minister -engaged himself to support the new Premier, notwithstanding their -difference of opinion on the very question on which the former had -left office. The public did not know then so clearly as it does now -that the King, who through his whole life seems to have been on the -brink of insanity, was then in a state of mind that rendered madness -certain, if the question of the Catholics, on which he had morbid and -peculiar notions, was persistingly pressed upon him; and that Mr. Pitt -thus, rightly or wrongly, thought it was his duty, after sacrificing -office, to stop short of driving the master he had so long served into -the gloom of despair. This, however, was a motive that could not be -avowed, and consequently every sort of conjecture became current. Was -the arrangement made on an understanding with the King, and would Mr. -Pitt shortly resume the place he had quitted? Did Mr. Pitt, if there -was no such arrangement, really mean to retain so incapable a person as -Mr. Addington, at so important a time, at the head of the Government of -England, or was his assistance given merely for the moment, with the -intention of subsequently withdrawing it? - -At first the aid offered to the new Premier by the old one was -effective and ostentatious; but a great portion of the Opposition -began also to support Mr. Addington, intending in this way to allure -him into an independence which, as they imagined, would irritate his -haughty friend, and separate the _protégé_ from the patron. The device -was successful. The Prime Minister soon began to entertain a high -opinion of his own individual importance, Mr. Pitt to feel sore at -being treated as a simple official follower of the Government, which he -had expected unofficially to command, and ere long he retired almost -entirely from Parliament. He did not, however, acknowledge the least -desire to return to power. - -In this state of things, the conduct of Mr. Canning seemed likely to -be the same as Mr. Pitt’s, but it was not so. He did not, even for a -moment, affect any disposition to share the partiality which the late -First Lord of the Treasury began by testifying for the new one. Sitting -in Parliament for a borough for which he had been elected through -government influence, his conduct for a moment was fettered; but -obtaining, at the earliest opportunity, a new seat (in 1802) by his own -means--that is, by his own money--he then went without scruple into the -most violent opposition. - -His constant efforts to induce Achilles to take up his spear and issue -from his tent, are recorded by Lord Malmesbury, and though not wholly -disagreeable to his discontented chief, were not always pleasing to -him. He liked, no doubt, to be pointed out as the only man who could -direct successfully the destinies of England, and enjoyed jokes -levelled at the dull gentleman who had become all at once enamoured -of his own capacity; but he thought his dashing and indiscreet -adherent passed the bounds of good taste and decorum in his attacks, -and he disliked being pressed to come forward before he himself felt -convinced that the time was ripe for his doing so. Too strong a show -of reluctance might, he knew, discourage his friends; too ready an -acquiescence compromise his dignity, and give an advantage to his -enemies. - -He foresaw, indeed, better than any one, all the difficulties that lay -in his path. The unwillingness of the Sovereign to exchange a minister -with whom he was at his ease, for a minister of whom he always stood -in awe; the unbending character of Lord Grenville, with whom he must -of necessity associate, if he formed any government that could last, -and who, nevertheless, rendered every difficulty in a government more -difficult by his uncompromising character, his stately bearing, and -his many personal engagements and connections. More than all, perhaps, -he felt creeping over him what his friends did not see and would not -believe--that premature decrepitude which consigned him, in the prime -of life, to the infirmities of age. Thus, though he felt restless at -being deprived of the only employment to which he was accustomed, he -was not very eager about a prompt reinstatement in it, and preferred -waiting until an absolute necessity for his services, and a crisis, on -which he always counted, should float him again into Downing Street, -over many obstacles against which his bark might otherwise be wrecked. - -His real feelings, however, were matter of surmise; many people, not -unnaturally, imagined that Mr. Canning represented them; and the -energetic partisan, mixing with the world, derived no small importance -from his well-known intimacy with the statesman in moody retirement. -His marriage, moreover, at this time with Miss Joan Scott, one of the -daughters of General Scott, and co-heiress with her sisters, Lady Moray -and Lady Titchfield, brought him both wealth and connection, and gave a -solidity to his position which it did not previously possess. - - -X. - -In the meantime the Addington administration went on, its policy -necessarily partaking of the timid and half-earnest character of the -man directing it. Unequal to the burden and the responsibility of -war, he had concocted a peace, but a peace of the character which Mr. -Canning had previously described: “a peace without security and without -honour:” a peace which, while it required some firmness to decline, -demanded more to maintain, since the country was as certain to be at -first pleased with it as to be soon ashamed of it. No administration -would have had the boldness to surrender Malta; few would have been so -weak as to promise the cession. - -Indeed, almost immediately after concluding this halcyon peace, we -find the Secretary of War speaking of “these times of difficulty and -danger,” and demanding “an increased military establishment.” Nor was -it long before an additional 10,000 men were also demanded for our -naval service. On both these occasions Mr. Canning, supporting the -demand of the Minister, attacked the Administration; and after stating -his reasons for being in favour of the especial measure proposed, burst -out at once into an eloquent exhibition of the reasons for his general -opposition: - -“I do think that this is a time when the administration of the -Government ought to be in the ablest and fittest hands. I do not think -the hands in which it is now placed answer to that description. I -do not pretend to conceal in what quarter I think that fitness most -eminently resides. I do not subscribe to the doctrines which have been -advanced, that, in times like the present, the fitness of individuals -for their political situations is no part of the consideration to -which a Member of Parliament may fairly turn his attention. I know not -a more solemn or important duty that a Member of Parliament can have -to discharge than by giving, at fit seasons, a free opinion upon the -character and qualities of public men. _Away with the cant of measures, -not men--the idle supposition that it is the harness, and not the -horse, that draws the chariot along._ No, sir; if the comparison must -be made--if the distinction must be taken--measures are comparatively -nothing, men everything. I speak, sir, of times of difficulty and -danger--of times when systems are shaken, when precedents and general -rules of conduct fail. Then it is that not to this or that measure, -however prudently devised, however blameless in execution, but to the -energy and character of individuals a state must be indebted for its -salvation. Then it is that kingdoms rise and fall in proportion as they -are upheld, not by well-meant endeavours (however laudable these may -be), but by commanding, overawing talent--by able men. And what is the -nature of the times in which we live? Look at France, and see what we -have to cope with, and consider what has made her what she is--a man! -You will tell me that she was great, and powerful, and formidable -before the date of Bonaparte’s government--that he found in her great -physical and moral resources--that he had but to turn them to account. -True; and he did so. Compare the situation in which he found France -with that to which he has raised her. I am no panegyrist of Bonaparte; -but I cannot shut my eyes to the superiority of his talents--to the -amazing ascendency of his genius. Tell me not of his measures and his -policy. It is his genius, his character, that keeps the world in awe. -Sir, to meet, to check, to curb, to stand up against him, we want -arms of the same kind. I am far from objecting to the large military -establishments which are proposed to you. I vote for them with all -my heart. But, for the purpose of coping with Bonaparte, one great -commanding spirit is worth them all!”[114] - -Mr. Canning was right. No cant betrays more ignorance than that -which affects to undervalue the qualities of public men in the march -of public affairs. However circumstances may contribute to make -individuals, individuals have as great a share in making circumstances. -Had Queen Elizabeth been a weak and timid woman, we might now be -speaking Spanish, and have our fates dependent on the struggle between -Prim and Narvaez. Had James II. been a wise and prudent man,--instead -of the present cry against Irish Catholics, our saints of the day would -have been spreading charges against the violence and perfidy of some -Puritan Protestant, some English, or perhaps Scotch, O’Connell. Strip -Mirabeau of his eloquence, endow Louis XVI. with the courage and the -genius of Henry IV., and the history of the last eighty years might be -obliterated. - -Mr. Canning, I repeat, was right; the great necessity in arduous times -is a man who inspires other men; and the satirist, in measuring the two -rivals for office, was hardly wrong in saying: - - “_As London to Paddington,_ - _So Pitt is to Addington._” - - -XI. - -Well-adapted ridicule no public man can withstand, and there seems -to have been something peculiar to Mr. Addington that attracted it. -Even Mr. Sheridan, his steady supporter to the last (for the main -body of the Whigs, under Mr. Fox, when they saw a prospect of power -for themselves, uniting with the Grenvillites, went into violent -opposition)--even Mr. Sheridan, in those memorable lines: - - “I do not love thee, Doctor Fell, - The reason why I cannot tell; - But this I know, and know full well, - I do not love thee, Doctor Fell”: - -quoted in defence of the Minister whom so many attacked without saying -why they disapproved, furnished a nickname that too well applied to -him, and struck the last nail into the coffin that a mingled cohort of -friends and enemies bore--a smile on their faces--to the tomb. - -Previous to this, the war, which had been suspended by mutual bad -faith, was recommenced, each party complaining of the other. - -_The man_ to whom Mr. Canning had been so long pointing now came -into power, but was not precisely the man, in spite of Mr. Canning’s -eulogium, for the sort of crisis in which he assumed it. There was, -indeed, a singular contrast in the life of Lord Chatham and that of -his son. The first Pitt was essentially a war minister; he seemed -to require the sound of the clarion and trumpet and of the guns -proclaiming victory from the Tower, to call forth the force and -instincts of his genius. In peace he became an ordinary person. The -second Pitt, on the contrary, was as evidently a peace minister. In -quiet times his government had been eminently successful. Orderly, -regular, methodical, with a firm and lofty soul, and the purest -motives for his guides, he had carried on the business of the country, -steadily, prudently, and ably--heedless of the calumnies of envy, or -the combinations of factions: but he wanted that imagination which -furnishes resources on unexpected occasions. The mighty convulsion -which made the world heave under his feet did not terrify him, but it -bewildered him; and nothing could be more unfortunate, or even more -wavering, than his conduct when he had to deal with extraordinary -events. Still, in one thing he resembled his father--he had unbounded -confidence in himself. This sufficed for the moment to give confidence -to others; and his stately figure, standing, in the imagination of the -nation, by the side of Britannia, added to the indomitable courage of -our mariners, and shed a kindred influence over the heroic genius of -their chief. But though Mr. Pitt had in a supreme degree the talent of -commanding the respect of his followers and admirers, he had not the -genial nature which gives sway over equals; and Mr. Fox had of late won -to himself many eminent persons who by their opinions and antecedents -were more naturally disposed to join his rival. The Premier felt this -difficulty, and being wholly above jealousy, would have coalesced with -Mr. Fox, and formed a ministry strong in the abilities which at that -critical time were so required. But George III., with a narrowness -of mind that converted even his good qualities into defects, said, -“Bring me whom you please, Mr. Pitt, except Fox.” This exception put an -end to the combination in view; for, in spite of Fox’s disinterested -remonstrances, or, perhaps, in consequence of them, none of his friends -would quit his side. - -Nevertheless, proud, accustomed to power, careless of responsibility, -defying all opponents, inspiring awe by his towering person and -sonorous voice, as well as by the lofty tone of his eloquence and the -solitary grandeur of his disposition, alone in front of a stronger -phalanx of adversaries than ever, perhaps, before or since, were -marshalled against a minister,--Mr. Fox, Mr. Sheridan, Mr. Windham, -the Grenvilles, Mr. Grey, Mr. Tierney--as daring and undaunted in -appearance as in the first flush of his youthful glory, stood this -singular personage, honoured even in his present isolation with -the public hopes. But Fortune, which in less eventful moments had -followed, chose this fatal moment for deserting him. In vain he turned -to his most able supporter for assistance; that early friend, more -unfortunate than himself, stood disabled, and exposed to a disgraceful -impeachment. The struggle was too severe; it wore out a spirit which -nothing could bend or appal. On the 23rd of January, 1806, immediately -after the news of the fatal battle of Austerlitz, which chilled the -remains of life within him, and on the anniversary of the day on which, -twenty-five years before, he had been returned to Parliament, Mr. Pitt -died. - - -XII. - -Lord Grenville and Mr. Fox (the King’s antipathy was this time -overborne by necessity) formed the new Ministry, in which Lord Sidmouth -(late Mr. Addington), who, Mr. Canning said, “was like the small-pox, -since everybody must have him once in their lives,” was also included. - -During the short time that Mr. Canning had lately held office, his -situation as Treasurer of the Navy had invested him with the defence -of Lord Melville, a defence which he conducted with much tact and -ability, and to this his parliamentary labours had been confined. The -employment of “All the Talents” (as the new Administration, comprising -men of every party, was called) now left him almost alone amongst the -parliamentary debaters in opposition. This position was a fortunate one. - -In the most formidable and successful attacks against Lord -Ellenborough’s seat in the Cabinet, which was indefensible--against -Mr. Windham’s Limited Service Bill, of which party spirit denied the -merits--he led the way. His success on all these occasions was great, -and the style of his speaking now began to show the effects of care -and experience. A less methodic mode of arguing, a greater readiness -in replying, had removed the unprepossessing impression of previous -study; while an artful rapidity of style permitted that polish of -language which is too apt, when unskilfully employed, to become prolix, -monotonous, and languid. It was this peculiar polish, accompanied by -a studied though apparently natural rapidity, which, becoming more -and more perfect as it became apparently more natural, subsequently -formed the essential excellence of Mr. Canning’s speaking; for his -poetical illustrations required the charm of his delivery, and his -jokes, imitated from Mr. Sheridan, were rarely so good as their model; -although, even in his manner of introducing and dealing with these, we -may trace, as he advanced, a very marked improvement. - -The coalition between parties at one time so adverse as those enlisted -under the names of Fox, Grenville, and Addington, could only be -maintained by the ascendency of that master-spirit which had been so -long predominant in the House of Commons. But when Mr. Fox undertook -the arduous duties of the Foreign Office, his health (that treasure -which statesmen often spend with improvidence, and which he had wasted -more than most men) was already beginning to fail, rendering heavy the -duties of public life; and in 1806--while our diplomacy at Paris was -making a last attempt to effect that honourable peace which had so -long been the object of the worn-out minister’s desires--that great -statesman, whose generous and noble heart never deceived him, but whose -singular capacity in debate was often marred by a remarkable want of -judgment in action, followed his haughty predecessor to an untimely -grave. - -The Grenville Administration, after the death of Mr Fox, was no -more the former Administration of Lord Grenville than the mummy, -superstitiously presumed to preserve the spirit of the departed, -is the real living body of the person who has been embalmed. It -avoided, however, the ignominy of a natural death, by being the first -Administration which, according to Mr. Sheridan, “not only ran its head -against a wall, but actually built a wall for the purpose of running -its head against it.” This instrument of suicide was the well-known -bill “for securing to all his Majesty’s subjects the privilege of -serving in the Army and Navy.” A measure which, by permitting Irish -Catholics to hold a higher military rank than the law at that time -allowed them, showed the Whig government to be true to its principles, -but without tact or ability in carrying them out; for this bill, -brought forward honourably but unadvisedly, withdrawn weakly, alarming -many, and never granting much, dissatisfied the Catholics, angered the -Protestants, and gave the King the opportunity of sending a ministry he -disliked about their business, on a pretext which there was sufficient -bigotry in the nation to render popular. A dissolution amidst the yell -of “No Popery!” took place; and it was by this cry that the party with -which Mr. Canning now consented to act reinstalled itself in power. - - -XIII. - -A person well qualified to know the facts of that time, once told me -that, not very long before the dissolution of the Ministry to which -he succeeded, at a time certainly when that dissolution was not so -apparent, Mr. Canning had privately conveyed to Lord Grenville, who -had previously made him an offer, his wish to secede from opposition, -and had even received a promise that a suitable place (Mr. Windham’s -dismissal was at that time arranged) should be reserved for him. -Reminded of this when affairs had become more critical, he is said to -have observed, “it was too late.” Whatever may be the truth as to this -story--and such stories are rarely accurate in all their details--one -thing is certain, the brilliant abilities of the aspiring orator, -though then and afterwards depreciated by the dull mediocrity which -affects to think wit and pleasantry incompatible with the higher and -more serious attributes of genius, now became apparent, and carried him -through every obstacle to the most important political situation in the -country. - -LIST OF MINISTERS. - - ------------------------+--------------------+--------------------- - | In March, 1807. | In April, 1807. - | | - President of the } | Viscount Sidmouth | Earl Camden. - Council } | | - | | - Lord High Chancellor | Lord Erskine | Lord Eldon. - | | - Lord Privy Seal | Lord Holland | Earl of Westmoreland. - | | - First Lord of the } | Lord Grenville | Duke of Portland. - Treasury } | | - | | - First Lord of the } | Right Hon. T. } | Lord Mulgrave. - Admiralty } | Grenville } | - | | - Master-General of } | Earl of Moira | Earl of Chatham. - the Ordnance } | | - | | - Secretary of State } | Earl Spencer | { Lord Hawkesbury - for the Home Office } | | { (afterwards Lord - | | { Liverpool). - | | - Secretary of State } | Lord Howick | Mr. Canning. - for Foreign Affairs } | | - | | - Secretary for War } | Right Hon. W. } | Lord Castlereagh. - and the Colonies } | Windham } | - | | - President of the } | Lord Auckland | Earl Bathurst. - Board of Trade } | | - | | - Lord Chief Justice | Lord Ellenborough. | - | | - Chancellor of the } | Lord H. Petty } | Hon. Spencer Perceval. - Exchequer } | (afterwards } | - | Marquis of } | - | Lansdowne) } | - | | - A seat in the Cabinet } | Earl Fitzwilliam. | - without office } | | - ------------------------+--------------------+----------------------- - -It is remarkable enough that in the Whig or popular cabinet there was -only one person (Mr. Windham)--a gentleman of great landed property, as -well as of remarkable ability--who was not a lord or a lord’s son. In -the Tory cabinet Mr. Canning formed the only similar exception. - -The principles on which the new Government stood in respect to the -Irish Catholics were soon put to the test by Mr. Brand, afterwards Lord -Dacre, who moved: - -“That it is contrary to the first duties of the confidential servants -of the Crown to restrain themselves by any pledge, expressed or -implied, from offering to the King any advice which the course of -circumstances may render necessary for the welfare and security of any -part of his Majesty’s extensive empire.” - -This motion was caused by the King having required the late Government -to pledge itself not to bring forward any future measure of Catholic -relief, and having dismissed it when it refused thus to fetter its -judgment. - -Mr. Canning rose amidst an unwilling audience. The imputations to which -his early change of principles had exposed him were rather vividly -confirmed by the recklessness with which he now appeared to be rushing -into office amongst colleagues he had lately professed to despise, and -in support of opinions to which he was known to be opposed. The House -received him coldly, and with cries of “Question,” as he commenced an -explanation or defence, marked by a more than usual moderation of tone -and absence of ornament. The terms on which he had been with the former -Administration were to a great degree admitted in the following passage: - -“For myself, I confidently aver that on the first intimation which I -received, from authority I believed to be unquestionable, of the strong -difference of opinion subsisting between the King and his Ministers, I -took the determination of communicating what I had learnt, and I did -communicate it without delay to that part of the late Administration -with which, in spite of political differences, I had continued, and -with which, so far as my own feelings are concerned, I still wish to -continue in habits of personal friendship and regard. I communicated -it, with the most earnest advice and exhortation, that they should -lose no time in coming to such an explanation and accommodation on the -subject at issue as should prevent matters from going to extremities.” - -This statement, it is acknowledged, was perfectly correct; but it -leaves untouched the tale just alluded to, and which represented the -Minister, who was then making his explanations, as having been ready -to join an Administration favourable to the Catholic claims, previous -to his joining an Administration hostile to those claims. But though -I have related this tale as I heard it, I do not pretend to vouch for -its accuracy. But without denying or vouching for the truth of this -tale (though the authority on which it rests is highly respectable), I -may observe, it may be said that “no coalition can take place without -previous compromise or intrigue,” and that almost every Administration -is formed or supported by coalition. - -How, indeed, had the Administration which now gave way been originally -composed? Of Mr. Windham, the loudest declaimer for war; of Mr. Fox, -the most determined advocate of peace; of Lord Sidmouth, the constant -subject of ridicule to both Mr. Windham and Mr. Fox. There was Mr. -Sheridan, the champion of annual Parliaments; Lord Grenville, opposed -to all reform! Besides, it was at that time accepted as an axiom by a -large number of the supporters of the Catholics, that the Sovereign’s -health created a justifiable reason for leaving the Catholic question -in abeyance, and that the attempt to push it forward at an untimely -moment would not really tend to its success. - -Nor did Lord Castlereagh, who had always shown himself an honest -champion of the Catholic cause, evince more scruples on this matter -than the new Foreign Secretary. But if Mr. Canning’s friends made -excuses for him, Mr. Canning himself, always saying “that a thrust was -the best parry,” felt more disposed to attack the enemy than to defend -himself; and many of the political squibs which turned the incapable -Administration of “All the Talents” into ridicule, were attributed to -his satirical fancy. From 1807 to 1810, he remained in office. - - -XIV. - -The period just cited was marked by our interference in Spain, our -attack on Copenhagen, and that expedition to the Scheldt, which hung -during two years over the debates in Parliament, like one of the dull -fogs of that river. - -Our foreign policy, though not always fortunate, could no longer -at least be accused of want of character and vigour. As to the -intervention in Spain, though marked by the early calamity of Sir John -Moore, it was still memorable for having directed the eye of our nation -to the vulnerable point in that Colossus whom our consistency and -perseverance finally brought to the ground. - -The Danish enterprise was of a more doubtful character, and can only be -judged of fairly by carrying our minds back to the moment at which it -took place. That moment was most critical; every step we took was of -importance. Before the armies of France, and the genius of her ruler, -lay the vanquished legions of the north and south of Germany. From the -House of Hapsburg the crown of Charlemagne was gone; while the throne -of the Great Frederick was only yet preserved in the remote city of -Königsberg. In vain Russia protracted an inauspicious struggle. The -battle of Friedland dictated peace. There remained Sweden, altogether -unequal to the conflict in which she had plunged: Denmark protected -by an evasive neutrality, which it was for the interest of neither -contending party to respect. On the frontiers of Holstein, incapable -of defence, hung the armies of France. Zealand and Funen, indeed, -were comparatively secure, but people do not willingly abandon the -most fertile of their possessions, or defy an enemy because there are -portions of their territory which will not sink before the first attack. - -Ministers laid some stress on their private information, and it is -said that Sir R. Wilson, returning, perhaps it may be said escaping, -with extraordinary diligence from Russia after the Peace of Tilsit, -brought undeniable intelligence as to the immediate intentions of our -new allies. But private information was useless. We do not want to -know what a conqueror intends to do, when we know what his character -and interests imperatively direct him to do. It would have been -absurd, indeed, not to foresee that Napoleon could not rest in neutral -neighbourhood on the borders of a country, the possession of which, -whether under the title of amity or conquest, was eminently essential -to his darling continental system, since through Tonningen were passed -into Germany our manufactures and colonial produce. Had this, indeed, -been disputable before the famous decree of the 21st of November,[115] -that decree removed all doubts. - -Denmark, then, had no escape from the mighty war raging around her, and -had only to choose between the tyrant of the Continent or the mistress -of the seas. If she declared against us, as it was likely she would -do, her navy, joined to that of Russia, and, as it soon would be, to -that of Sweden, formed a powerful force--not, indeed, for disputing -the empire of the ocean; there we might safely have ventured to meet -the world in arms; but for assisting in those various schemes of sudden -and furtive invasion which each new continental conquest encouraged and -facilitated--encompassed, as we became, on all sides by hostile shores. -But if the neutrality of the Danes was impossible, if their fleet, -should they become hostile to us, might add materially to our peril, -was it wrong to make them enter frankly into our alliance, if that were -possible, or to deprive them of their worst means of mischief, if they -would not? - -After all, what did we say to Denmark?--“You cannot any longer retain a -doubtful position; you must be for us, or we must consider you against -us. ‘_If a friend, you may count on all the energy and resources of -Great Britain._’” Denmark had offered to sell a large portion of -her marine to Russia, and we offered to purchase it manned. It was -required, she said, to defend Zealand; we offered to defend Zealand for -her. - -But our negotiation failed, and finally we seized, as belonging to a -power which was certain to become an enemy, the ships with which she -refused to aid us as an ally. A state must be in precisely similar -circumstances before it can decide whether it ought to do precisely a -similar thing. - -Some blamed our conduct as unjust, whilst others praised it as bold. -What perhaps may be said is, that if unjust at all, it was not bold -enough. War once commenced, Zealand should have been held; the stores -and supplies in the merchant docks not left unnoticed; the passage -of the Sound kept possession of. In short, our assault on Copenhagen -should have been part of a permanent system of warfare, and not -suffered to appear a mere temporary act of aggression. - -Still it showed in the Minister who planned and stood responsible -for it, three qualities, by no means common: secrecy, foresight and -decision. - - -XV. - -But if our conduct towards the Danes admits of defence, luckily for Mr. -Canning the odium of that miserable expedition against Holland--in which - - “Lord Chatham, with his sword undrawn, - Stood waiting for Sir Richard Strachan; - Sir Richard, longing to be at ’em, - Stood waiting for the Earl of Chatham;” - -an expedition equally disgraceful to ministers and commanders--fell -chiefly on his colleague, who had originated and presided over it, -having himself been present at the embarkation. - -It is necessary here to say a word or two concerning that statesman, -who, though agreeing with Mr. Canning upon the principal question of -their time, was never cordially united with him. Lord Castlereagh -joined to great boldness in action,--great calm and courtesy of manner, -long habits of official routine, and a considerable acquaintance with -men collectively and individually. He lived in the world, and was -more essentially a man of the world than his eloquent contemporary; -but, on the other hand, he was singularly deficient in literary -accomplishments, and this deficiency was not easily pardoned in an -assembly, the leading members of which had received a classical -education, and were as intolerant to an ungrammatical phrase as to a -political blunder. His language--inelegant, diffuse, and mingling every -variety of metaphorical expression--was the ridicule of the scholar. -Still the great air with which he rose from the Treasury Bench, threw -back his blue coat, and showed his broad chest and white waistcoat, -looking defiance on the ranks of the Opposition, won him the hearts -of the rank and file of the government adherents. In affairs, he got -through the details of office so as to satisfy forms, but not so as to -produce results: for if the official men who can manufacture plans on -paper are numerous, the statesmen who can give them vitality in action -are rare; and Lord Castlereagh was not one of them. - -There was never, as I have just said, any great cordiality or intimacy -between two persons belonging to the same party and aspiring equally to -play the principal part in it. The defects of each, moreover, were just -of that kind that would be most irritating to the eye of the other; -but they would probably have gone on rising side by side, if they had -not now been thrown together and almost identified in common action. -The success of most of Mr. Canning’s schemes as Minister of Foreign -Affairs depended greatly upon the skill with which Lord Castlereagh, -as Minister of War, carried them into execution; any error of the -latter affected the reputation of the former; thus the first difficulty -was sure to produce a quarrel. Mr. Canning indeed was constantly -complaining that every project that was conceived by the Foreign Office -miscarried when it fell under the care of the War Office; that all -the gold which he put into his colleague’s crucible came out, somehow -or other, brass; and these complaints were the more bitter, since, -involuntarily influenced by his rhetorical predilections, he could not -help exaggerating the consequences of mistakes in conduct, which were -aggravated by mistakes in grammar. - -Nevertheless, wishing, very probably, to avoid a public scandal, he -merely told the head of the Government privately that a change must -take place in the Foreign or in the War Department, and, after some -little hesitation, the removal of Lord Castlereagh was determined on; -but some persons from whom, perhaps, that statesman had no right to -expect desertion, anxious to keep their abandonment of him concealed -as long as possible, requested delay; and the Duke of Portland, a man -of no resolution, not daring to consent to the resignation of one of -the haughty gentlemen with whom he had to deal, was glad to defer the -affront that it was intended to put on to the other. Such being the -state of things, Mr. Canning was prevailed upon to allow the matter to -stand over for a while, receiving at the same time the most positive -assurances as to his request being finally complied with. At the end -of the session and the conclusion of the enterprise (against Flushing) -already undertaken, some arrangement was to be proposed, “satisfactory, -it was hoped, to all parties.” Such is the usual hope of temporising -politicians. But, in the meantime, the Secretary of War was allowed to -suppose that he carried into the discharge of the duties of his high -post, all the confidence and approbation of the Cabinet. - -This was not a pleasant state of things to discover in the moment of -adversity; when the whole nation felt itself disgraced at the pitiful -termination of an enterprise which had been very lavishly prepared and -very ostentatiously paraded. Yet such was the moment when Mr. Canning, -fatigued at the Premier’s procrastination, disgusted by the calamity -which he attributed to it, and resolved to escape, if possible, from a -charge of incapacity, beneath which the whole Ministry was likely to be -crushed, threw up his appointment, and the unfortunate Secretary of War -learnt that for months his abilities had been distrusted by a majority -of the Cabinet in which he sat, and his situation only provisionally -held on the ill-extorted acquiescence of a man he did not like, and who -underrated and disliked him. His irritation vented itself in a letter -which produced a duel--a duel that Mr. Canning was not justly called -upon to fight; for all that he had done was to postpone a decision -he had a perfect right to adopt, and which he deferred expressly in -order to spare Lord Castlereagh’s feelings and at the request of Lord -Castlereagh’s friends. But the one of these gentlemen was quite as -peppery and combative as the other, though it appeared he was not quite -so good a shot, for Mr. Canning missed his opponent and received a -disagreeable wound, though not a dangerous one; the final result of -the whole affair being the resignation of the Premier and of the two -Secretaries of State, the country paying twenty millions (the cost of -the late barren attempt at glory) because the friends of a minister had -shrunk from saying anything unpleasant to him until he was prostrate. - - - - -PART II. - -FROM MR. PERCEVAL’S ADMINISTRATION TO ACCEPTANCE OF THE -GOVERNOR-GENERALSHIP OF INDIA. - - Mr. Perceval, Prime Minister.--Lord Wellesley, Minister of - Foreign Affairs.--King’s health necessitates regency.--The - line taken by Mr. Canning upon it.--Conduct with respect to - Mr. Horner’s Finance Committee.--Absurd resolution of Mr. - Vansittart.--Lord Wellesley quits the Ministry.--Mr. Perceval - is assassinated.--Mr. Canning and Lord Wellesley charged to - form a new Cabinet, and fail.--Further negotiations with Lords - Grey and Grenville fail.--Lord Liverpool becomes head of an - Administration which Mr. Canning declines to join.--Accepts - subsequently embassy to Lisbon, and, in 1816, enters the - Ministry.--Supports coercive and restrictive measures.--Resigns - office at home after the Queen’s trial, and accepts the - Governor-Generalship of India. - - -I. - -A new Administration brought Lord Wellesley to the Foreign Office, and -Mr. Perceval to the head of affairs. - -In 1810 the state of the King’s health came once more before the -public. Parliament met in November; the Sovereign was this time -admitted by his courtiers to be unmistakedly insane. A commission had -been appointed, but there was no speech with which to address the -Houses; no authority to prorogue them. Mr. Perceval moved certain -resolutions. These resolutions were important, for they furnished a -text for debate, and settled the question so much disputed in 1788-9, -deciding (for no one was found to take up the old and unpopular -arguments of Mr. Fox) that Parliament had the disposal of the Regency; -and that the Heir-apparent, without the sanction of the Legislature, -had no more right to it than any other individual. These first -resolutions were followed by others, expressive of a determination to -confer the powers of the Crown on the Prince of Wales, but not without -restrictions. Here arose a new question, and of this question Mr. -Canning availed himself. Interest and consistency alike demanded that -he should stand fast to the traditions of Mr. Pitt, whose name was -still the watchword of a considerable party. But Mr. Pitt had alike -contended for the right of Parliament to name the Regent, and for the -wisdom of fettering the Regency by limitations. Whereas Mr. Canning, -though advocating the powers of Parliament to name the Regent, was not -in favour of limiting the Regent’s authority. Through these confronting -rocks the wary statesman steered with the skill of a veteran pilot:[116] - -“The rights of the two Houses,” said he, “were proclaimed and -maintained by Mr. Pitt; that is the point on which his authority is -truly valuable. The principles upon which this right was affirmed -and exercised are true for all times and all occasions. If they were -the principles of the Constitution in 1788, they are equally so in -1811; the lapse of twenty-two years had not impaired, the lapse of -centuries could not impair them. But the mode in which the right so -asserted should be exercised, the precise provisions to be framed -for the temporary substitution of the executive power--these were -necessarily then, as they must be now, matters not of eternal and -invariable principle, but of prudence and expediency. In regard to -these, therefore, the authority of the opinion of any individual, -however great and wise and venerable, can be taken only with reference -to the circumstances of the time in which he has to act, and are -not to be applied without change or modification to other times and -circumstances.”[117] - - -II. - -Thus, all that partisanship could demand in favour of an abstract -principle, was religiously accorded to the _manes_ of the defunct -statesman; and a difference as wide as the living Prince of Wales could -desire, established between the theory that no one any longer disputed, -and the policy which was the present subject of contention. Here Mr. -Canning acted with tact and foresight if he merely acted as a political -schemer. The Royal personage on whom power was about to devolve -had always expressed the strongest dislike, not to say disgust, -at any abridgment of the Regal authority. He was likely to form a -new Administration. The Whigs, it is true, were then considered the -probable successors to power; but the Whigs would want assistance; and -subsequent events showed that a general feeling had begun to prevail -in favour of some new combination of men less exclusive than could be -found in the ranks of either of the extreme and opposing parties. But -it is fair to add that the course which Mr. Canning might have taken -for his private interest, he had every motive to take for the public -welfare. - -Beyond the personal argument of the sick King’s convenience--an -argument which should hardly guide the policy or affect the destinies -of a mighty kingdom--Mr. Perceval had not, for the restrictions he -proposed, one reasonable pretext. It might, indeed, be agreeable to -George III., if he recovered from his sad condition, to find things and -persons as he had left them; and to recognise that all the functions -of Government had been palsied since the suspension of his own power. -But if ever the hands of a sovereign required to be strongly armed, it -was most assuredly in those times. They were no times of ease or peace -in which a civilized people may be said to govern themselves; neither -were we merely at war. The war we were waging was of life or death; -the enemy with whom we were contending concentrated in his own mind, -and wielded with his own hand, all the force of Europe. This was not a -moment for enfeebling the Government that had to contend against him. -The power given to the King or Regent in our country is not, let it be -remembered, an individual and irresponsible power. It is a National -power devolving on responsible Ministers, who have to account to the -nation for the use they make of it. - -“What,” said Mr. Canning (having assumed and asserted the right -of the two Houses of Parliament to supply the incapacity of the -sovereign)--“what is the nature of the business which through -incapacity stands still, and which we are to find the means of carrying -on? It is the business of a mighty state. It consists in the exercise -o£ functions as large as the mind can conceive--in the regulation and -direction of the affairs of a great, a free, and a powerful people: -in the care of their internal security and external interests; in -the conduct, of foreign negotiations; in the decision of the vital -questions of peace and war; and in the administration of the Government -throughout all the parts, provinces, and dependencies of an empire -extending itself into every quarter of the globe. This is the awful -office of a king; the temporary execution of which we are now about to -devolve upon the Regent. What is it, considering the irresponsibility -of the Sovereign as an essential part of the Constitution,--what is -it that affords a security to the people for the faithful exercise of -these all-important functions? The responsibility of Ministers. What -are the means by which these functions operate? They are those which, -according to the inherent imperfection of human nature, have at all -times been the only motives to human actions, the only control upon -them of certain and permanent operation, viz., the punishment of evil, -and the reward of merit. Such, then, being the functions of monarchical -government, and such being the means of rendering them efficient to the -purposes of good government, are we to be told that in providing for -its delegation, while it is not possible to curtail those powers which -are in their nature harsh and unpopular, it is necessary to abridge -those milder, more amiable and endearing prerogatives which bear an -aspect of grace and favour towards the subject?” - - -III. - -There was no answer to Mr. Canning, but a very practical one. Mr. -Perceval thought that the King would shortly recover and keep him in -office--and that the Regent, if his Royal Highness had but the power, -would forthwith turn him out of it. Such an argument might satisfy a -more scrupulous minister. In vain, therefore, was it urged, “If the -powers of a monarch are not necessary now, they are never necessary. In -consulting the possible feelings of the sick King, you are injuring the -certain interests of kingly authority.” - -The passions or interests of a faction will ever ride high over its -principles; and for a second time within half a century the theory -of monarchy received the greatest practical insult from a high Tory -minister. That the House of Commons thought a new era at hand was seen -by its divisions. On the motion of Mr. Lamb (afterwards Lord Melbourne) -against the “Restrictions,” the majority in favour of Government was -but 224 to 200. - -A variety of circumstances, however, to which allusion will presently -be made, prevented the general expectation from being realized. The -Government remained, but it was not a Government that seemed likely -to be of long duration. On one important question Mr. Canning almost -immediately opposed it. - - -IV. - -The report of a committee, distinguished for its ability, had -attributed the depreciation in the value of bank-notes to their -excessive issue, and recommended a return, within two years, to cash -payments. Mr. Canning had belonged to this committee, and had given the -subject, however foreign to his customary studies, much attention. The -view which he took upon the sixteen resolutions moved by Mr. Horner, -May 8, 1811, was, perhaps, the best. To all those resolutions, which -went to fix as a principle that a real value in metal should be the -proper basis for a currency--a general landmark, by which legislation -should, as far as it was practicable, be guided--he assented; that -particular resolution, which, under the critical circumstances of -the country, went to fetter and prescribe the moment at which this -principle should be resumed, he opposed. - -Such opposition was unavailing; and History instructs us, by the -resolution which Mr. Vansittart then proposed, that no absurdity is so -glaring as to shock the eye of prejudiced credulity. - - “May 13, 1811. - - “Resolution III.--‘_That it is the opinion of this committee_ - (a committee of the whole House) _that the promissory notes of - the company_ (the Bank) _have hitherto been, and are at this - time, held in public estimation to be equivalent to the legal - coin of the realm, and generally accepted as such._’” - -The Chancellor of the Exchequer thus called upon the House of Commons -to assert, that the public esteemed, a twenty shilling bank-note as -much as twenty shillings; and it had just been necessary to frame a law -to prevent persons giving more than £1 and 1 shilling for a guinea, and -all the guineas had disappeared from England. It had just been found -expedient to raise the value of crown-pieces from 5_s._ to 5_s._ 6_d._ -(which was, in fact, to reduce £1 in paper to the value of 18_s._), in -order to prevent crown-pieces from disappearing also. Persons were in -prison for buying guineas at a premium; whilst pamphlets and papers -were universally and daily declaring that the notes of the company were -not at that time held in public estimation to be equivalent to the -legal coin of the realm. - -“When Galileo,” said Mr. Canning, “first promulgated the doctrine that -the earth turned round the sun, and that the sun remained stationary -in the centre of the universe, the holy father of the Inquisition took -alarm at so daring an innovation, and forthwith declared the first -of these propositions to be false and heretical, and the other to be -erroneous in point of faith. The holy office pledged itself to believe -that the earth was stationary and the sun movable. But this pledge had -little effect in changing the natural course of things: the sun and the -earth continued, in spite of it, to preserve their accustomed relations -to each other, just as the coin and the bank-note will, in spite of -the right honourable gentleman’s resolution.”--[Report of Bullion -Committee.] - -But if the opposition had the best of the debate, the minister -triumphed in the division; nevertheless so equivocal a success, whilst -lowering the character of Parliament, did not heighten that of the -Ministry. - -Mr. Perceval, indeed, though possessing the quick, sharp mind of a -lawyer, and the small ready talent of a debater, was without any of -those superior qualities which enable statesmen to take large views. -Great as an advocate, he was small as a statesman. Lord Wellesley at -last revolted at his supremacy, and, quitting the government, observed -that “he might serve _with_ Mr. Perceval, but could never serve _under_ -him again.” - - -V. - -About this time expired the period during which the Regency -restrictions had been imposed; and not long after, the Premier (being -confirmed in office by new and unsuccessful attempts to remodel the -Administration) was assassinated by a madman (11 May, 1812). - -The cabinet, which with Mr. Perceval was weak, without Mr. Perceval -seemed impossible; and all persons at the moment were favourable to -such a fusion of parties as would allow of the formation of a Cabinet, -powerful and efficient. - -Lord Wellesley, a man who hardly filled the space in these times for -which his great abilities qualified him (co-operating with Mr. Canning, -who was to be leader in the House of Commons), was selected as the -statesman through whom such a Cabinet was to be formed. But Lord -Liverpool, from personal reasons, at once declined all propositions -from Lord Wellesley. Another negotiation was then opened, the basis -proposed for a new ministry being that four persons should be returned -to the Cabinet by Lord Wellesley and Mr. Canning; four (of whom Lord -Erskine and Lord Moira were two) by the Prince Regent; and five by -Lords Grey and Grenville, whilst the principles agreed to by all, -were to be the vigorous prosecution of the war, and the immediate -conciliation of the Catholics. The vigorous prosecution of the war and -the conciliation of the Catholics were assented to; nor was it stated -that the other conditions were inadmissible, though it was suggested -that there would be a great inconvenience in making the Cabinet Council -a debating society, and entering it with hostile and rival parties. -Lord Wellesley returned to the Regent for further orders. But his -Royal Highness deemed it expedient to consider that Lord Wellesley’s -attempt had been a failure, and the task which had been given to him -was transferred to Lord Moira. This nobleman, vain, weak, and honest, -undertook the commission, and a new treaty was commenced with Lords -Grey and Grenville, whose conduct at this time, it must be added, seems -at first sight unintelligible; for they were granted every power they -could desire in political matters. But there were various personal -and private reasons which rendered all arrangements difficult. In the -first place, Lord Grey is said to have despised, and never to have -trusted the Prince, who, as he believed, was merely playing with the -Whig party. In the next, Lord Grenville could not make up his mind to -resign the auditorship of the exchequer, a certain salary for life, nor -to accept a lower office than that of First Lord of the Treasury, while -the union of the two offices, the one being a check upon the other, -was too evident a job to escape observation; indeed, Mr. Whitbread had -positively said that he could never support such a combination. - -Thus, a variety of petty interests made any pretext sufficient to -interfere with the completion of a scheme which every one was eager -to counsel, no one ready to adopt. The most ungracious pretext, that -of dictating the Regent’s household, was chosen for a rupture; but it -happened to chime in with the popular cry, which was loud against the -influence of Hertford House; as may be seen by the speeches of the day, -and particularly by a speech from Lord Donoughmore, in which he talks -of the Marchioness of Hertford, to whose veteran seductions the Regent -was then supposed to have fallen a victim, as “a matured enchantress” -who had by “potent spells” destroyed all previous prepossessions, and -taken complete possession of the Royal understanding. - - -VI. - -There was as much bad taste as impolicy in these attacks; and the -long-pending struggle terminated at last in favour of Lord Liverpool, -who on June 8, 1812, declared himself Prime Minister. Why did Mr. -Canning, who was solicited at the close of the session to join Lord -Liverpool’s Administration, decline to do so? Not because he was -personally hostile to Lord Liverpool: he was warmly attached to that -nobleman; not because the Administration was exclusive, and only -admitted those who were hostile to the Catholic Question; for he -subsequently says (May 18, 1819): “I speak with perfect confidence when -I assert that those who gave their support to the present Ministry -on its formation, did so on the understanding that every member of -it entered into office with the _express stipulation_ that he should -maintain his own opinion in Parliament on the Catholic Question.” - -Mr. Stapleton says it was because his friends thought that to the -Foreign Office, which he was offered, ought to have been added the -lead in the House of Commons, which Lord Liverpool would not withdraw -from Lord Castlereagh. But Mr. Canning eventually became a member of -the Government whose fate he now declined to share, leaving to Lord -Castlereagh the lead in the House of Commons. How, then, are we to -account for this difference of conduct at two different epochs? - -An explanation may thus be found: During the years 1810 and 1811, our -continental policy had still remained unfortunate. True it was that, -by the unexpected skill and unexampled energy of our new commander, -we gained, during 1811, the possession of Portugal, driving from that -country a general who had hitherto been equally conspicuous for his -talents and his fortune. But the whole of the Spanish frontier, and the -greatest part of Spain itself, was held by the French armies; while the -victory of Wagram, the revolution in Sweden, the marriage of Napoleon, -the birth of the King of Rome, had greatly added to the weight and -apparent stability of the French empire. - -Our differences with the United States had also continually increased; -and in 1812, war, which had long been impending, was declared and -justified in an eloquent and able statement by Mr. Madison. - -In the meantime Napoleon, surrounded by that luminous mystery which -gave a kind of magic to his actions, was marching in all the pomp of -anticipated triumph against the remote and solitary state which alone, -on the humbled and subjugated continent, had yet the means and the -courage to dispute his edicts and defy his power. Up to the 14th of -September, when he entered Moscow, his career was more marvellous, his -glory more dazzling than ever. - - -VII. - -Such was the state of foreign affairs when Mr. Canning and his friends -refused to connect themselves with a feeble and self-mistrusting -administration. But the year following things were strangely altered. -The retreat from Russia had taken place; the battle of Leipsic had been -fought. Russians, Austrians, Saxons, Swedes, Bavarians, Spaniards, -Portuguese, the people of those various nations, who had formerly to -defend their own territory, were now pouring into France. - -The first gleams of victory shone over the gloomy struggle of twenty -years. An accident yet unexplained--the burning of a city on the -farthest confines of the civilized world--had changed the whole face of -European affairs. “The mighty deluge,” to use Mr. Canning’s poetical -language, “by which the Continent had been so long overwhelmed, began -to subside. The limits of nations were again visible, and the spires -and turrets of ancient establishments began to re-appear from beneath -the subsiding wave.”[118] - -From this moment Mr. Canning began to show confidence in a ministry -which he had hitherto more or less despised. The desire of sustaining -it in this crisis of the terrible conflict in which we were engaged, -had no doubt some influence over his conduct; but I venture to add that -there are natures which, without being instigated by low and vulgar -motives, have a propensity to harmonize with success. Mr. Canning’s -nature was of this description. It loved the light to shine on its -glittering surface; and he began to feel a sympathy for the Government, -bright with the rays of anticipated fortune, which in darker moments he -had shrunk from with antipathy and mistrust. - - -VIII. - -Napoleon fell shortly afterwards, and Mr. Huskisson, the most -celebrated of Mr. Canning’s followers, was gazetted as Commissioner -of Woods and Forests; Mr. Canning himself (who at the last general -election had been honoured by the unsolicited representation of -Liverpool) accepting an embassy to Lisbon. His acceptance of this -office was one of the actions of his life for which he was most -attacked; it was considered a job; for an able minister (Mr. Sydenham), -on a moderate salary, was recalled, in order to give the eminent -orator, whose support the Government wished to obtain, the appointment -of ambassador on a much larger salary: and although, when Mr. Lambton -(afterwards Lord Durham) brought forward a motion on the subject, -Mr. Canning made a triumphant reply to the specific charges brought -against his nomination, and although he was altogether above the -accusation of accepting any post for the mere sake of its emoluments, -it was nevertheless clear that it was because he was going to Lisbon -for the health of his son, and that it was more agreeable to him to -go in an official position than as a simple individual, that he had -been employed, and his predecessor removed. It is needless to add he -would have acted more wisely had he not accepted a post in which little -credit was to be gained and much censure was to be risked. - -On his return from Portugal he entered the Cabinet at the head of the -Board of Control. - -During his absence many events had occurred to characterize the -Administration he joined. Peace finally established on the prostrate -armies of France, which at Waterloo had made their last struggle, left -the war which we had pursued with so lavish an expenditure, and so -desperate a determination, to be estimated by its results. Whatever the -necessity of this war at its commencement, the cause under which it had -been continued for the last fourteen years was sacred. - -A military chief at the head of a valorous soldiery, had during this -time trampled on the rights and feelings of almost every people in -Europe. The long-established barriers of independent states had been -shifted or pulled down like hurdles, to make them fit the increasing or -diminishing drove of cattle which it suited the caprices of the French -ruler that they should contain. The inhabitants of such states, treated -little better than mere cattle, had been seized, sold, bartered, -given away. It was no marvel, then, that the conquerors became in the -end the conquered; for the struggle was one which commenced by all -the kings marching against one people, and concluded by every people -marching against one warrior. They invoked--these new assailants--what -is best in philosophy, morality, policy; they conquered, and what did -philosophy, morality, policy gain? Were rights and natural sympathies -respected? Were old landmarks restored? - -The peace alluded to was said to be a peace founded on justice, and -justice never deserts the weak; yet Genoa was gone; Venice was no more; -Poland remained partitioned; Saxony had been plundered by Prussia with -as unsparing a hand as that by which she herself had been despoiled -during the conquests of France. Norway, by a treaty, which Mr. Canning -had said, in 1813, when still unshackled by office, “filled him with -shame, regret, and indignation,” was become the unwilling recompense -to Sweden for the loss of a province of which a mightier power had -taken possession. A struggle of the fiercest nature had been steadily -maintained merely for the sake of restoring things to their old -condition; and no nation not pre-eminent in power got back its own, -except Spain, which recovered the Inquisition.[119] Even Holland was -not re-invested with her ancient liberties, her old noble republican -name. Stripped of her glorious history, and weakened by the addition -of four millions of discontented subjects, the statesmen of the day -fancied her more august and more secure. The errors committed at this -time were those of a system; for there were two courses to pursue in -the re-settlement of Europe. Had it appeared that, after a conflict -of nearly thirty years, during which violence had held unlimited -sway, everything which was dear to the people it concerned, and which -still stood forth vivid in history, was endowed with a new reality; -that at the overthrow of wrongful power, the right of the meanest -was everywhere weighed, and the right of the weakest everywhere -established: had it appeared that the mightiest captain of modern times -had only been vanquished by a principle--which, if the general interest -could predominate, would regulate the destinies of the world--then -indeed a lesson, of which it is impossible to calculate the effects, -would have been given to all future ambitious disturbers of mankind: -while the lovers of peace and virtue in every portion of the globe, -even in France, would have seen something holy in the triumph which had -been gained, and gathered round the cause of the allies. But if this -was one policy, there was also another, and that other was adopted. - - -IX. - -As Bonaparte had cut up and parcelled out nations for the purpose of -enlarging the boundaries and strengthening the dominions of France, so -the conquerors of Bonaparte spoiled and partitioned with equal zeal, -in order to control the boundaries and restrain the dominion of the -warlike people they had defeated. The limits imposed by right, justice, -antiquity, custom, were all disregarded, and an attempt, by preference, -made to throw up against all future schemes of conquest the patchwork -barrier of ill-united and discordant populations. - -Such had been the termination of affairs in Europe; but our -contest with America was also over. We had made a treaty with that -Power--a treaty so contrived that it did not settle a single one -of those questions for which we had engaged in war. Nor were the -circumstances under which this singular arrangement was completed -such as compelled us to accede to it. The whole force of the British -empire was disengaged; we could no longer say that our fleets were -not invincible in one quarter of the world because their strength was -exerted in another; whilst, if we meant to keep the dominion of the -seas--more important to us than the whole of that continent we had been -subsidizing and contending upon--there was every peril to apprehend -from leaving unchecked the spirit of a rising rival, who had lately -fought and frequently vanquished us on our own element, and who -during a long peace would have the opportunity to mature that strength -of which she was already conscious and proud. In short, the peace of -Europe affected our character for morality, that of America weakened -the belief in our power. - -Mr. Canning would hardly have joined an Administration which had so -mismanaged our foreign affairs, if the glory of our arms had not -gilded in some degree the faults of our diplomacy. But the part which -that diplomacy had played on the Continent was not without its effect -upon things at home. We had become each year more and more alienated -from our military allies, who having triumphed by the enthusiasm of -their people, seemed disposed to govern by the bayonets of their -troops. The Holy Alliance--that singular compact, invented partly by -the superstition, partly by the policy of the Emperor Alexander--an -alliance by which three sovereigns, at the head of conquering armies, -swore in very mystical language to govern according to the doctrines -of Christian charity, swearing also (which was more important) to -lend each other assistance on all occasions, and in all places--this -alliance, which no one could clearly understand, and which our -Government refused to join, excited all the suspicion and all the -apprehension which mystery never fails to produce, and made Englishmen, -while they were rejoicing at having subdued an overgrown and despotic -tyranny in one quarter of the world, doubt whether they might not have -created as dangerous a one in another. - - -X. - -Nor was this all. They who begin to be dissatisfied with the fruits of -victory, soon grow more and more dissatisfied with what victory has -cost. Moreover, this period, from a variety of circumstances, some of -them inseparable from the sudden transition from active war to profound -peace, was one of great uncertainty and distress; whilst the public -mind, no longer excited by military conflict, was the more disposed to -political agitation. A demand for diminished imposts, and a demand for -political reform, are always to be expected at such moments. Our form -of government led more naturally to these demands, for the theory of -the constitution was at variance with its practice; the one saying that -Englishmen should be taxed by their representatives, the other proving -that they were in many instances taxed by persons who represented a -powerful patron or a petty constituency, and not the people of England. -The evils complained of were exaggerated; there were exaggerations -also as to the remedies for which the most violent of the clamorous -called. But the thoughts of the nation were directed to economy as -a relief from taxation, and to parliamentary reform as a means of -economy. Public meetings in favour of parliamentary reform were held; -resolutions in favour of parliamentary reform were passed; petitions -praying for it were presented; the energies of a free people, who -thought themselves wronged, were aroused: great excitement prevailed. - - -XI. - -The vessel of the state in these sudden squalls requires that those at -the helm should govern it with a calm heart and a steady hand. Anger -and fear are equally to be avoided, for they lead equally to violent -measures, and the excitement of one party only feeds the excitement of -the other. - -Lord Castlereagh, the leading spirit at this time in the Cabinet, vapid -and incorrect as an orator, inefficient as an administrator, was still, -as I have elsewhere said, not without qualities as a statesman--for -he was cool and he was courageous; and, therefore, if we now see him -acting as if under the influence of the most slavish apprehension, we -must look for some reasonable motive for his appearing to entertain -fears which he could not have really felt. - -Now, the fact is, that he had but two things to do--to satisfy the -discontented as aggrieved, or to rally the majority of the country -against them as disaffected. The first policy would not keep his party -in power; the second, therefore, was the one he preferred. The terrors -of the timid were to be awakened; the passions of the haughty were to -be aroused; the designs of the malcontents were to be darkened--their -strength increased--in short, to save the Ministry, it was essential -that the State should be declared in danger. This is an old course; it -has been tried often: it was tried now. - -Thus Government opened the Session of 1817 with a “green bag.” -This bag, a true Pandora’s box, contained threats of every -mischief--assassination, incendiarism, insurrection, in their most -formidable and infuriated shapes. One conspiracy, indeed, was a model -that deserves to be set apart for the use of future conspirators -or--statesmen. It comprehended the storming of the Bank and the Tower, -the firing the different barracks, the overthrow of everybody and -everything, even the great and massive bridges which cross the Thames, -and which were to be blown up as a matter of course; but the traitors -were pious and brave men, relying almost wholly on Providence and their -courage, so that only two hundred and fifty pikes and some powder -in an old stocking had been provided to secure the success of their -undertaking. - - -XII. - -Many schemes equally plausible were attributed to, and perhaps -entertained by, a few unhappy men in the manufacturing districts; while -the well-known doctrines of an enthusiast named Spence[120]--doctrines -which inculcate the necessity of property being held in common, and -which under different names have been continually put forward at every -period of the world--found amongst the poor and starving, as they will -ever find in times of distress and difficulty, a ready reception. -“These doctrines,” said Lord Castlereagh, “contain in themselves a -principle of contradiction;” but he was not willing to trust to this -principle alone! - -Various laws were passed, tending to limit the right of discussion: men -were forbidden to co-operate or correspond for the purpose of amending -the existing constitution. Public meetings were placed at the disposal -of a magistrate, who could prevent or disperse them as he thought -proper. Finally, the “Habeas Corpus” Act was suspended. - -Nothing could be more wanton or absurd than this last outrage on public -freedom. The Ministers who were calling upon the country to defend our -institutions, were for sweeping away their very foundations. In vain -did Lord Grey, with even more than his usual eloquence, exclaim, “We -are warned not to let any anxiety for the security of liberty lead to a -compromise of the security of the State; for my part, I cannot separate -these two things; the safety of the State can only be found in the -protection of the liberties of the people.” - -Having entered upon a career of terror, a new violence is daily -necessary in order to guard against the consequences of the last; nor -was the addition of 3,000,000_l._ of taxes, imposed at the close of -1819, well adapted to soothe popular irritation. In the meantime the -meeting at Manchester, foolishly got up, and foolishly and barbarously -put down, aroused a cry which only the utmost severity could hope -to quell. Such severity was adopted in the Acts which prevented -public and parish meetings; which punished offences of the press with -transportation; which exposed the houses of peaceable inhabitants to -midnight search, and deprived an Englishman of what was once considered -his birthright--the right of keeping arms for his own defence. At the -same time the bulk of the nation was declared to be sound and loyal, -the country prosperous; and as a note which may perhaps be considered -somewhat explanatory of these different declarations, came a demand for -10,000 additional troops. It was of no use to argue that the nation -was quiet, and resolved only on constitutional means of redress. “Yes, -sir,” said the figurative seconder of the Address (1819)--“yes, sir, -there has undoubtedly been an appearance of tranquillity, but it _is -the tranquillity of a lion waiting for his prey_. There has been the -apparent absence of danger, but it is that of a fire half-smothered -by the weight of its own combustible materials.” “The meeting at -Manchester,” argued Lord Lansdowne (Nov. 30, 1819), “if it had not -been disturbed by the magistrates, would have gone off quietly.” -“Perhaps,” replied an orator who defended the Government, “that might -have been the case; but why? in the contemplation of things to come, -the peaceable and quiet demeanour of the disaffected, instead of -lessening the danger, ought to aggravate the alarm--_ipsa silentia -terrent_.” - - -XIII. - -So because people assembled at a meeting which was likely to disperse -peaceably might at some future time (and this was conjecture) act -less peaceably, they were to be charged and sabred; while their -constitutional conduct neither at this nor at any other period could be -of the least avail; heat of language was not even necessary to procure -them the treatment of rebels; for if men met and were _silent_, if they -met and never uttered a word, their very silence, under the classical -authority of three Latin words, was to be considered full of awful -treason. Jury after jury denounced the conduct of the Government by -returning verdicts which were accusations against it. Still the same -system was persevered in. Ministers went through the country with a -drag net, hauling up--not one or two influential persons (such, indeed, -they could not find)--but whole classes of men. Spies also, as it -appeared from the different trials, acted as incendiaries, contributing -in no small degree to the marvellous plots that they discovered. In one -instance, a fellow of the name of Oliver had gone about to all whom he -imagined ill disposed, presenting Sir Francis Burdett’s compliments; -a circumstance the more remarkable, since the only decent colour ever -attempted to be given to these notions of insurrection was, that the -names of respectable persons had been used in connection with them. In -another case a government creature, by the name of Edwards, actually -advanced money to a gentleman who may be considered the arch-traitor -of the epoch, since he was the author of that famous conspiracy which -included in its programme cutting off all the ministers’ heads. - -This conspiracy--of which Mr. Thistlewood, supported by the aforesaid -Mr. Edwards, Mr. Davidson, a man of colour, and Messrs. Tidd and -Brunt, two shoemakers, were the leaders--closed the series of those -formidable plots for putting an end to King, Lords, and Commons, which -for three years disturbed the country; the Ministers affecting to -consider that the wisdom of the policy they pursued was proved by the -folly of those wretched men whom they delivered to the executioner. - -Another circumstance is to be remarked in reviewing these times, and -attempting to portray their spirit. The Government had not only been -tyrannical at home, it had afforded all the assistance in its power -to foreign tyrants. First was passed the Alien Bill; a measure which -might have been defended in 1793, when France was sending out her -revolutionary apostles; which might, with a certain plausibility, have -been asked for in 1814, when, if the war were concluded, peace could -hardly be considered as established; but which in 1816 could have no -other pretext than that of enabling the minister of the day to refuse a -refuge to any unhappy exile from the despotism of the Continent. - -Shortly afterwards (1819) came the Foreign Enlistment Bill. That which -Queen Elizabeth refused to Spain when Spain was in the height of her -power, was conceded to Spain, now fallen into the lowest state of -moral as well as political degradation. It was true that during the -Administration of Sir Robert Walpole, and under the natural fears -of Jacobite armies, formed on foreign shores, laws had been passed -prohibiting British subjects, except upon special permission, from -engaging in foreign service; and the pretext now put forward was -insomuch plausible, that it pretended to place service in the armies -of recognised and unrecognised states on the same footing--no law -existing in respect to the last. But the law in existence had not been -enforced. Spain, which had been hasty in recognising the independence -of the United States, could not ask us to defeat rebellion in her own -colonies. Those colonies had, in fact, been first instigated by us to -revolt. The regulation, professing to be impartial, would only operate -in reality against one of the parties; and with that party all our -commercial interests were connected. - - -XIV. - -It is impossible to look back to these years, and to consider the -conduct of Mr. Canning without deep regret. The most eloquent and -plausible defences of the un-English policy which prevailed were -made by him. In his speech in favour of the Seditious Meetings Bill -(Feb. 24, 1817), may be seen wit supplying the place of argument; -argument rendered attractive by the graces of rhetoric, and forcible -by the appearance of passion. He had now, indeed, nearly attained the -perfection of his own style, a style which, as it has been said, united -the three excellences of--rapidity, polish, and ornament; and it was -the first of these qualities, let it be repeated, which, though perhaps -the least perceivable of his merits, was the greatest. - -“What is the nature of this danger? Why, sir, the danger to be -apprehended is not to be defined in one word. It is rebellion; it -is treason, but not treason merely; it is confiscation, but not -confiscation within such bounds as have usually been applied to the -changes of dynasties, or the revolution of states; it is an aggregate -of all these evils; it is that dreadful variety of sorrow and suffering -which must invariably follow the extinction of loyalty, morality, and -religion; the subversion, not only of the constitution of England, but -of the whole frame of society. Such is the nature and extent of the -danger which would attend the success of the projects developed in the -report of the committee. But these projects would never have been of -importance, it is affirmed, had they not been brought into notice by -persecution. Persecution! Does this character belong to the proceedings -instituted against those who set out on their career in opposition -to all law; and who, in their secret cabals, and midnight counsels, -and mid-day harangues, have been voting for destruction of every -individual, and every class of individuals, which may stand in their -way? But the schemes of these persons are visionary. I admit it. They -have been laid by these twenty years without being found to produce -mischief. Be it so. Such doctrines when dormant may be harmless -enough, and their intrinsic absurdity may make it appear incredible -that they should ever be called up into action. But when the incredible -resurrection actually takes place, when the votaries of these doctrines -actually go forth armed to exert physical strength in furtherance of -them, then it is that I think it time to be on my guard--not against -the accomplishment of such plans (that is, I am willing to believe, -impracticable), but against the mischief which must attend the attempt -to accomplish them by force.” - -Throughout the whole of this passage it can hardly be said that there -is a full stop. However studiously framed, not a period lingers; -a rush of sentences gives the audience no time to pause. Abruptly -framed, rapidly delivered, the phrases which may have been for hours -premeditated in the Cabinet, could not, in the moment of delivery, -have the least appearance of art. The oratory of Mr. Canning was also -remarkable for a kind of figurative way of stating common-places, which -good taste may not approve, but which, nevertheless, is well calculated -to strike and inflame a popular assembly. - -“The honourable gentleman,” Mr. Canning says of Mr. Calcraft (March -14, 1817), “attempts to ridicule these proceedings. He is in truth -rather hard to be satisfied on the score of rebellion; to him it is not -sufficient that the town had been summoned [N.B. it had been summoned -by _one_ man], it ought to have been taken; the metropolis should not -merely have been attacked, but in flames. He is so difficult in regard -to proof that he would continue to doubt until all the mischief was not -only certain but irreparable. For my part, however, I am satisfied when -I hear the trumpet of rebellion sounded; I do not think it necessary -to wait the actual onset before I put myself on my guard. I am content -to take my precautions when I see the torch of the incendiary lighted, -without waiting till the Bank and the Mansion House are blazing to the -sky.” - - -XV. - -But if there was much of eloquence, there was more of sophistry, -in these pointed and painted harangues. The designs on foot were -represented as so formidable that they required the utmost rigour to -suppress them; and yet they were the designs of a few, of a very few, -against whom millions were arrayed. These few were to be struck down at -all hazards and by all means, in order that the millions might be in -security. The anti-revolutionary statesman was simply borrowing from -the revolutionary apostle. “What are a few aristocrats,” would Danton -say, “to the safety of a nation? Strike! strike! It is only terror -that can save the Republic!” For such principles, destructive of all -liberty, peace, and order, every just man must entertain the deepest -horror; and the dark shadow of those days still hangs over the party -to whose excesses they are attributable, and obscures this part of the -career of the statesman who defended them. - -I do not, however, think that Mr. Canning acted on the cool systematic -calculation by which I do think Lord Castlereagh might have been -guided. Looking at all affairs with the excitable disposition of the -poet and the orator, and having his attention more called by his office -to the affairs of India than to those at home, it is not improbable -that he allowed himself to be carried into the belief of dangers which -the Government he belonged to had in a certain degree created, and in -an enormous degree exaggerated; whilst the manner in which even calm -and sensible men had their heads confused and their judgment biassed -by the alarming reports put in circulation, and the constant arrests -that were taking place, reacted upon the Government itself, and -made it fancy that the fictions reflected from its fear were truths -established by facts. At all events, whatever were the real opinions -and convictions of Mr. Canning, as he was the most eloquent supporter -of the policy in vogue, he gathered round himself the greatest portion -of the unpopularity that attended it. Nor, though he assumed the air of -defying this unpopularity, was he pleased with it. - - -XVI. - -The very bitterness, indeed, which he manifested towards his opponents -at this time, shows that he was ill at ease with himself. Linked -with a set of men whom in general he despised, and by whom he was -in a certain degree mistrusted, and accused, as he well knew, of -accepting this alliance merely for the love of “office,” which the -vulgar made to signify the mere “emoluments of place;”--possessing -a mind, which, elevated by education, was inclined to liberality; -careless of the praise of the fanatics of his own party, and careless -also of the applause of those timorous spirits amongst the nation -with whom he could feel no sympathy;--knowing he was detested by the -great masses of the people, whose applause he could not with his -temperament refrain from coveting;--knowing also that though supported -by the love and admiration of a few able friends, he was confided -in by no great political party, and that even if his duties imposed -on him the necessity of struggling against existing difficulties, -those difficulties might have been avoided or palliated by a more -conciliatory and prudent policy; writhing under all these circumstances -and agitated by all these feelings,--this able, ambitious, and -excitable man may now be seen listening with ears almost greedy of a -quarrel, for reproaches he could retort, and insults he could avenge. -Mr. Hume, not very cautious in these matters, was called to account: -Sir Francis Burdett, who had spoken disrespectfully, was made to -explain; while to the author of an anonymous libel, in which the style -and invectives of “Junius” were copied with doubtful success, was sent -a note, eminently characteristic of the galled feelings and gallant -spirit of the writer: - - “SIR, - - “I received early in the last week the copy of your pamphlet, - which you, I take for granted, had the attention to have - forwarded to me. Soon after I was informed, on the authority of - your publisher, that you have withdrawn the whole impression - from him, with the view (as was supposed) of suppressing - the publication. I since learn, however, that the pamphlet, - though not sold, is circulated under blank covers. I learn - this from (among others) the gentleman to whom the pamphlet - is industriously attributed, but who has voluntarily and - absolutely denied to me that he has any knowledge of it or its - author. - - “To you, sir, whoever you may be, I address myself thus - directly for the purpose of expressing my opinion that _you - are a liar and a slanderer, and want courage only to be an - assassin_. I have only to add that no man knows of my writing - to you, and that I shall maintain the same reserve as long as I - have an expectation of hearing from you in your own name.” - -To this letter there was no reply. - - -XVII. - -During the eventful years over which this narrative has been rapidly -gliding, the Heiress to the crown, who had already possessed herself -of the affections of the British people, had expired (it was in Nov. -1817); and in 1820, as the Ministers, fatigued by their laborious -efforts to excite alarm, began to allow the nation to recover its -tranquillity, George III. (two years after his young and blooming -grandchild) died also. The new King’s hatred, and Queen Caroline’s -temper, rendering a more decent and moderate course impossible, -occasioned the unhappy trial which scandalized Europe. - -Nor was the question at issue merely a question involving the Queen’s -innocence or guilt. The people, comparatively calm, as well on account -of the recent improvement in trade, as in consequence of the cessation -of that system of conspiracy-making or finding, which had so long -kept them in a state of harassed irritation, were still for the main -part thoroughly disgusted with the exhibition of fear, feebleness, -and violence which, under the name of Lord Liverpool, and through -the influence of Lord Castlereagh, had for the last three years been -displayed. They detested the ministers of the Crown, and they were -alienated from the Crown itself, which had been perpetually arrayed -against them in prosecutions and almost as often stigmatised by defeat. - -It was thus that Queen Caroline appeared as a new victim--as another -person to be illegally assailed by the forms of law, and unjustly dealt -with in the name of justice. Besides, she was a woman, and the daughter -of a Royal house, and the mother of that ill-fated princess, whose -early death the nation still deeply mourned. The people, then, took up -her cause as their own, and rallied at once round a new banner against -their old enemies. - -On the other hand, the Government, urged by the wounded pride and -uncontrollable anger of the Sovereign, consented to bring the -unfortunate lady he denounced before a public tribunal, and were thus -committed to a desperate career, of which it was impossible to predict -the result. - -Mr. Canning had long been the unhappy Queen’s intimate friend; but in -adopting her cause, he must, as we have been showing, have adopted her -party--the party of discontent, the party of reform--a party against -which he had, during the last few years, been fiercely struggling. -Here, as far as the public can judge from the information before it, -lies the only excuse or explanation of his conduct; for it was hardly -sufficient to retire (as he did) from any share in the proceedings -against a friend and a woman, in whose innocence he said that he -believed, when her honour and life were assailed by the most powerful -adversaries, and by charges of the most degrading character. - -He refused, it is true, to be her active accuser; but neither was he -her active defender. He remained silent at home or stayed abroad during -the time of the prosecution, and resigned office when, that prosecution -being dropped, the Cabinet had to justify its proceedings. - -The following letter to a constituent contains the account he thought -it necessary to give of his conduct: - - “Tuddenham, Norfolk, Dec. 22, 1820. - - “MY DEAR SIR, - - “I left town on Wednesday, a few minutes after I had written - to you, not thinking I should be quite so soon set at liberty - to make you the communication promised in my letter of that - morning. I had hitherto forborne to make the communication, - in order that I might not in any way embarrass others by a - premature disclosure; and I sincerely expected in return due - notice of the time when it might suit them that the disclosure - should be made. I have no doubt that the omission of such - notice has been a mere oversight. I regret it only as it has - prevented me from anticipating with you, and the rest of my - friends at Liverpool, the announcement in a newspaper of an - event in which I know your kind partiality will induce you to - feel a lively interest. The facts stated in the _Courier_ of - Wednesday evening, are stated in substance correctly. I have - resigned my office. My motive for separating myself from the - Government (however reluctantly at a conjuncture like the - present) is to be found solely in the proceedings and pending - discussions respecting the Queen. There is (as the _Courier_ - justly assumes) but this one point of difference between - my colleagues and myself. Those who may have done me the - honour to observe my conduct in this unhappy affair from the - beginning, will recollect that on the first occasion on which - it was brought forward in the House of Commons, I declared - my determination to take as little part as possible in any - subsequent stage of the proceedings. The declaration was made - advisedly. It was made, not only after full communication - with my colleagues, but as an alternative suggested on their - part for my then retirement from the Administration. So long - as there was a hope of amicable adjustment, my continuance in - the Administration might possibly be advantageous; that hope - was finally extinguished by the failure of Mr. Wilberforce’s - address. On the same day on which the Queen’s answer to that - address was received by the House of Commons, I asked an - audience of the King, and at that audience (which I obtained - the following day) after respectfully repeating to his Majesty - the declaration which I had made a fortnight before in the - House of Commons, and stating the impossibility of my departing - from it, I felt it my duty humbly to lay at his Majesty’s feet - the tender of my resignation. The King, with a generosity which - I can never sufficiently acknowledge, commanded me to remain in - his service, abstaining as completely as I might think fit from - any share in the proceedings respecting the Queen, and gave - me full authority to plead his Majesty’s express command for - so continuing in office. No occasion subsequently occurred in - Parliament (at least no adequate occasion) for availing myself - of the use of this authority, and I should have thought myself - inexcusable in seeking an occasion for the purpose; but from - the moment of my receiving his Majesty’s gracious commands, I - abstained entirely from all interference on the subject of the - Queen’s affairs. I did not attend any meetings of the Cabinet - upon that subject; I had no share whatever in preparing or - approving the Bill of Pains and Penalties. I was (as you know) - absent from England during the whole progress of the bill, and - returned only after it had been withdrawn. - - “The new state in which I found the proceedings upon my return - to England, required the most serious consideration; it was one - to which I could not conceive the King’s command in June to be - applicable. For a minister to absent himself altogether from - the expected discussions in the House of Commons, intermixed - as they were likely to be with the general business of the - session, appeared to me to be quite impossible. To be present - as a minister, taking no part in these discussions, could only - be productive of embarrassment to myself, and of perplexity to - my colleagues; to take any part in them was now, as always, out - of the question. - - “From these difficulties I saw no remedy except in the humble - but earnest renewal to my Sovereign of the tender of my - resignation, which has been as graciously accepted, as it was - in the former instance indulgently declined. - - “If some weeks have elapsed since my return to England, before - I could arrive at this practical result, the interval has been - chiefly employed in reconciling, or endeavouring to reconcile, - my colleagues to a step taken by me in a spirit of the most - perfect amity, and tending (in my judgment) as much to their - relief as to my own. - - “It remains for me only to add that having purchased, by the - surrender of my office, the liberty of continuing to act - in consistency with my original declaration, it is now my - intention (but an intention perfectly gratuitous, and one which - I hold myself completely free to vary, if I shall at any time - see occasion for so doing) to be absent from England again - until the agitation of this calamitous affair shall be at an - end. - - “I am, Sir, &c., - - “GEORGE CANNING.” - -Thus in the years 1821-22, Mr. Canning took little part in the business -of the House of Commons, residing occasionally near Bordeaux or in -Paris. - -He came to England, however, to speak on Mr. Plunkett’s motion for a -committee to consider the Catholic claims (February 28, 1821), and in -1822 also he made two memorable speeches--one on Lord John Russell’s -motion for Parliamentary Reform, and another in support of his own -proposition to admit Catholic peers into the House of Lords. - -These last speeches were made in the expectancy of his speedy departure -from England; the Directors of the East India Company, in testimony -of their appreciation of the zeal and intelligence with which he had -discharged his duties as President of the Board of Control, having -selected him as Governor-General of India, a situation which he had -accepted. - - - - -PART III. - -FROM DEATH OF LORD LONDONDERRY TO PORTUGUESE EXPEDITION. - - Lord Castlereagh’s death.--Mr. Canning’s appointment as - Foreign Secretary.--State of affairs.--Opposition he - encountered.--Policy as to Spain and South America.--Commencing - popularity in the country, and in the House of - Commons.--Affairs of Portugal and Brazil.--Recognition of - Brazilian empire.--Constitution taken by Sir Charles Stuart to - Portugal,--Defence of Portugal against Spanish treachery and - aggression.--Review of policy pursued thus far as a whole. - - -I. - -At this critical moment Lord Castlereagh, who had now succeeded to -the title of Lord Londonderry, worn out by a long-continued series -of struggles with the popular passions--placed in a false position -by the manner in which the great military powers had at Troppau -and Laybach announced principles which no English statesman could -ever sanction,--too high-spirited to endure defeat, and without the -ability requisite for forming and carrying on any policy that might be -triumphant,--irritated, overworked, and about to depart for Verona with -the intention of remonstrating against acts which he had been unable to -prevent,--having lost all that calm and firmness with which his proud -but cheerful nature was generally armed,--and overpowered at last by -an infamous conspiracy to extort money, with the threat that he should -otherwise be charged with a disgraceful and dishonouring offence--put -an end to his existence. - -Fate looked darkly on the Tory party. Ever since 1817, it had excited -one half of the community by fear, as a means of governing the other -half by force. But the machinery of this system was now pretty well -used up. Moreover the result of Queen Caroline’s trial was a staggering -blow to those who had been its advisers; and though this unhappy and -foolish lady did all she could to destroy the prestige which had once -surrounded her--and it was only unexpected decease that rescued her -from approaching contempt--even her death gave the authorities a new -opportunity of injuring themselves by an idle and offensive conflict -with her hearse. - -Meanwhile the affairs in the Peninsula were becoming more and more -obscured, whilst through the clouds which seemed everywhere gathering, -some thought they could perceive the fatal hour in which a terrible -despotism and an ignorant and equally terrible democracy were to -dispute for the mastery of the world. In France the Bourbons trembled -on their throne, and petty cabals and paltry conflicts amongst -themselves rendered their rule at once violent, feeble, and uncertain. -The volcanic soil of Italy was covered with ashes from a recent -conflagration--some embers might yet be seen alive. Over the whole of -Germany reigned a dreamy discontent which any accident might convert -into a practical revolution. - - -II. - -What part could the baffled and unpopular Ministers of England take -amidst such a state of things as I have been describing? To the -advocacy of democratic principles they were of course opposed. With -the advocates of absolute power they dared not, and perhaps did not -feel disposed to, side. Neutrality was their natural wish, since to be -neutral required no effort and demanded no declaration of opinion. But -it is only the strong who can be really neutral; and the Government -of the day was too conscious of weakness to hold with confidence the -position which, if powerful, it could have preserved with dignity. -Such being the miserable condition of the British cabinet when Lord -Londonderry was alive, it became yet more contemptible on losing -that statesman’s energy and resolution. Mr. Canning was its evident -resource. Yet the wish to obtain Mr. Canning’s services was by no -means general amongst those in power, for the ministry was divided -into two sections: one, hostile to Catholic Emancipation, to any -change in, and almost any modification of, our long-standing system -of high duties and commercial protection, and hostile also to all -those efforts in favour of constitutional liberty which had lately -agitated the Continent; the other, which, though opposed to any -constitutional change that tended to increase the democratic element -in our institutions, was still favourable to Catholic Emancipation as -a means of conciliating the large majority of the Irish people--to the -development of the principles of Free Trade, as a means of augmenting -our national wealth--and to the spread of our political opinions, under -the idea that we should thus be extending our commercial, moral, and -political power. - -These two parties, forced to combine under the common battle-cry of “no -parliamentary reform,”--a reform which both opposed (in order to get -a parliamentary majority for their united force)--were nevertheless -jealous of each other, and in constant struggle for the predominant -influence. Mr. Canning out of office, and away in India, there could -be no doubt that the more Conservative section of the Administration -would occupy the highest ground; Mr. Canning not going to India, and -coming into office, the more liberal party, of which he was universally -considered the chief, might overtop its rival. Lord Liverpool, however, -was himself in a peculiar position. He agreed with Mr. Canning’s -opponents as to the Catholic Emancipation question, but with Mr. -Canning on all other questions. His policy, therefore, was to rule a -pretty equally balanced cabinet, and not to have one half too strong -for the other. With this object he had lately given office to two or -three followers of Lord Grenville, who, though himself retired from -affairs, had still a party favourable to Catholic Emancipation, and -hostile to constitutional innovations. For the same reason he now -insisted on the necessity of offering the Secretaryship of Foreign -Affairs to Mr. Canning, and impressed his opinions on this subject so -strongly on the Duke of Wellington, that his Grace, though he had some -prejudices of his own to conquer, undertook to vanquish those of his -Majesty, against Mr. Canning’s appointment. A lady who was an intimate -friend of George IV., and at that moment of the Duke also, and who was -then staying at Brighton, told me that the Duke went down to Brighton, -and held an interview with the King, and she related to me parts of a -conversation which, according to her, took place on this occasion. - -“Good God! Arthur, you don’t mean to propose that fellow to me as -Secretary for Foreign Affairs; it is impossible! I said, on my honour -as a gentleman, he should never be one of my ministers again. You hear, -Arthur, on my honour as a gentleman. I am sure you will agree with me, -that I can’t do what I said on my honour as a gentleman I would not do.” - -“Pardon me, Sire, I don’t agree with you at all; your Majesty is not a -gentleman.” - -The King started. - -“Your Majesty, I say,” continued the imperturbable soldier, “is not a -gentleman, but the Sovereign of England, with duties to your people far -above any to yourself; and these duties render it imperative that you -should at this time employ the abilities of Mr. Canning.” - -“Well!” drawing a long breath, “if I must, I must,” was finally the -King’s reply.[121] - - -III. - -Mr. Canning thus entered the Cabinet; and under ordinary circumstances -his doing so at such a crisis would have been hailed with general -satisfaction. It so happened, however, that some time had elapsed -between the death of Lord Castlereagh and any offer to his successor; -and during this interval, Mr. Canning, then on the verge of departure -for the East, made a speech at Liverpool, which, from its remarkable -moderation, was considered by many as the manifestation of a wish to -purchase place by a sacrifice of opinion. The words most objected to -were these: - -“Gentlemen, if I were remaining in this country, and continuing to take -my part in Parliament, I should continue, in respect to the Catholic -Question, to walk in the same direction that I have hitherto done. But -I think (and as I may not elsewhere have an opportunity of expressing -this opinion, I am desirous of expressing it here)--I think that -after the experience of a fruitless struggle for more than ten years, -I should, as an individual (speaking for none but myself, and not -knowing whether I carry any other person’s opinion with me) be induced -henceforth, or perhaps after one more general trial, to seek upon that -question a _liberal compromise_.” Thus, when instead of going to India -the Governor-General, already named, came into office at home, it was -said at once that he had done so on a _compromise_. - -The accusation was false, but there was some appearance of its being -true, and those amongst the Opposition who believed it, were the -more enraged, since they thought that if the Ministry had not been -strengthened by the new Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, it -could not have sustained itself, in which case they themselves would -have been called to power. - -The speeches made against Mr. Canning were consequently of the -bitterest kind. One, by Lord Folkestone, on a motion for the repeal of -the Foreign Enlistment Bill, delivered with extraordinary vehemence, -accused him of truckling to France. - -“Sir,” said Mr. Canning, in reply, “I will not follow the noble -lord through a speech of which it would be impossible to convey the -impression by a mere repetition of language. The Lacedæmonians, -with the desire of deterring their children from the vice of -intoxication, used occasionally to expose their slaves in a state -of disgusting inebriety. But, sir, there is a moral as well as a -physical intoxication; and never before did I behold so complete a -personification of the character which I have somewhere seen described -as _exhibiting the contortions of the sibyl without her inspiration_. -I will not on this occasion reply to the noble lord’s speech, being -of opinion that this is not a fit opportunity for entering into the -discussion it would provoke; but let it not be supposed that I shrink -from the noble lord; for he may believe me when I say that however I -may have truckled to France, I will never truckle to him.” - - -IV. - -This speech was delivered April 16, 1823. On the 17th another important -discussion occurred in Parliament. Mr. Plunkett, who had joined the -Administration with Mr. Canning, bringing forward on that day the -claims of the Catholics, as a sort of token that he and those who -thought with him had not, on taking office, abandoned the question -of which they had so long been the most eminent supporters,--Sir -Francis Burdett accused both the Attorney-General for Ireland and the -Secretary for Foreign Affairs of seeking to make an idle parade of fine -sentiments, which they knew would be practically useless. Mr. Canning -defended himself, and, as he sat down, Mr. Brougham rose: - -“If,” said he, “the other ministers had taken example by the -single-hearted, plain, manly, and upright conduct of the right -honourable Secretary for the Home Department (Mr. Peel), who has -always been on the same side on this question, never swerving from -his opinions, but standing uniformly up and stating them--who had -never taken office on a secret understanding to abandon the question -in substance while he contrived to sustain it in words--whose mouth, -heart, and conduct have always been in unison; if such had been the -conduct of all the friends of emancipation, I should not have found -myself in a state of despair with regard to the Catholic claims. Let -the conduct of the Attorney-General for Ireland (Mr. Plunkett) have -been what it might--let him have deviated from his former professions -or not--still, if the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs had only -come forward at this critical moment, when the point was whether he -should go to India into honourable exile, or take office in England -and not submit to his sentence of transportation, but be condemned to -hard labour in his own country--doomed to the disquiet of a divided -council, sitting with his enemies, and pitied by his friends, with his -hands chained and tied down on all those lines of operation which his -own sentiments and wishes would have led him to adopt--if, at that -critical moment, when his fate depended on Lord Chancellor Eldon, and -on his sentiments with respect to the Catholic cause--if, at that -critical moment, he who said the other night that he would not truckle -to a noble lord, but who then exhibited the most incredible specimen of -monstrous truckling for the purpose of obtaining office that the whole -history of political tergiversation could furnish.…” - -At these words, Mr. Canning, labouring to conceal emotion which his -countenance had long betrayed, started up, and, in a calm voice, with -his eye fixed on Mr. Brougham, said, “Sir, I rise to say that that is -false.” A dead silence of some minutes ensued; the Speaker interfered; -neither party would retract, and both gentlemen were ordered into -custody; but at last the matter was arranged through Sir R. Wilson’s -mediation. - - -V. - -Without going into many details, I have thus said enough to show -that Mr. Canning had, in his new post, to contend--first, against -the disfavour of the Crown; secondly, against the dislike, jealousy, -and suspicion of a large portion of his colleagues; thirdly, against -the bitterest hostility of the most able and eloquent amongst his -parliamentary opponents. - -It is necessary to take into consideration all these difficulties -in order to appreciate the rare abilities, the adroit adaptation of -means to ends, the clever profiting by times and occasions, the bold -bearing-up against powerful antagonists, the conquest over personal -antipathies, which in a few years placed England--humbled to the -lowest degree when Lord Castlereagh expired--in the highest position -she ever occupied since the days of Lord Chatham; and, at the same -time, ended by making the most unpopular man with the nation, and the -most distasteful minister to the Sovereign, the people’s idol and the -monarch’s favourite. - -I have asserted that England was never in a more humbled position than -at the death of Lord Castlereagh. I had myself the opportunity of -seeing this illustrated in a private and confidential correspondence -between Prince Metternich and a distinguished person with whom he was -on terms of great intimacy, and to whom he wrote without reserve;--a -correspondence in which the Prince, when alluding to our great warrior, -who represented England at the Congress of Verona, spoke of him as -“the great Baby,” and alluded to the power and influence of England as -things past and gone. - -It was, in fact, too true that all memory of the long efforts of twenty -years, eventually successful in liberating Europe, had wholly lapsed -from the minds of those military potentates, who having during war -experienced every variety of defeat, appeared at the conclusion of -peace to have recovered unbounded confidence in their arms. - -The institutions which had nourished the pride and valour to which -we had owed our victories, were daily denounced by the sovereigns in -whose cause we had fought; and every new expression of opinion that -came to us from the Continent, manifested more and more that Waterloo -was forgotten by every nation but the French. Nothing, in short, was -wanting to complete our degradation after the false and impudent -conduct of M. de Villèle, but its disrespectful avowal; and painful and -humiliating must have been the sentiments of an English statesman, when -he read the speech of the French minister in the Chamber of Deputies, -and found him boast of having amused our Government by misrepresenting -the force on the Spanish frontier as merely a _cordon sanitaire_, until -it was made to act as _army of invasion_. - - -VI. - -The ground, however, which the sovereigns forming the Holy Alliance had -now chosen for fighting the battle of principles, was not well selected -by them for the conflict. - -During the despotism of Ferdinand, it was never forgotten in this -country, that those with whom he filled his prisons, those whose -blood he shed, those of whose hopeless exile he was the cause, had -fought side by side with our own gallant soldiers; were the zealous -and valiant patriots who had delivered the land from which they were -driven, and re-established the dynasty which their tyrant disgraced. -Many, then, who disapproved of the new Spanish constitution, were -disposed to excuse the excesses of freedom as the almost natural -reaction from the abuses of absolute power. - -Nor was this all. There has always been a strong party in England -justly in favour of a good understanding with the French nation. On -such an understanding is based that policy of peace which Walpole -and Fox judiciously advocated--the first more fortunately and more -opportunely than the last. But as no policy should ever be carried -to the extreme, we have on the other hand to consider that the only -serious danger menacing to England is the undue aggrandisement of -France. Her proximity, her warlike spirit, her constant thirst for -glory and territory, the great military and naval armaments at her -disposal, the supremacy amongst nations which she is in the habit of -affecting, are all, at certain times, threatening to our interests and -wounding to our pride; and when the French nation, with the tendency -which she has always manifested to spread her opinions, professes -exaggerated doctrines, whether in favour of democracy or despotism, -the spirit of conquest and proselytism combined with power makes her -equally menacing to our institutions and to our independence. Her -predominance in Spain, moreover, which unites so many ports to those -of France--ports in which, as we learnt from Napoleon I., armaments -can be fitted out, and from which expeditions can be sent against our -possessions in the Mediterranean, or our empire in the Channel, or -against Egypt, on the high road to our Indian dominions, has always -been regarded by English statesmen with a rational disquietude, and on -various occasions resisted with boldness, perseverance, and success; -nor did it matter to us whether it was the white flag or the tricolour -which crossed the Bridassoa when either was to be considered the symbol -of ambition and injustice. - - -VII. - -Thus, Spain became, not inauspiciously, the spot on which a liberal -English minister had to confront the despotic governments of the -Continent. But for war on account of Spain, England was not prepared; -and, indeed, the treachery which we knew existed in the Spanish -counsels, rendered war on account of that divided country out of the -question. The only remaining means of opposition was protestation, -and Mr. Canning at once protested against the act of aggression which -France was committing, and against the principles put forth in its -justification. The mode of doing this was rendered easy by the speech -from the French throne, which was inexplicable, except as a bold -assertion of the divine rights of kings; and for that slavish doctrine -Mr. Canning, who, whichever side he took, was not very guarded in his -expressions, roundly stated that “he felt disgust and abhorrence.” - -The gauntlet of Legitimacy having been thus thrown down, and being in -this manner taken up, it only remained to conduct the contest. - -Caution was necessary in the selection of an opportunity where a stand -should be made. Boldness was also necessary in order to make that stand -without fear or hesitation, when the fitting occasion arrived. - - * * * * * - -France, therefore, was permitted to overrun the Spanish territory -without resistance. But Mr. Canning declared that, whilst England -adopted, thus far, a passive attitude, she could not permit the -permanent occupation of Spain, or any act of aggression against -Portugal. At the same time he alluded to the recognition of the -revolted provinces in South America, which provinces France was -expecting to gain in compensation for her expenses, as an event merely -dependent upon time, and protested against any seizure by France, or -any cession by Spain of possessions which had _in fact_ established -their independence. In these expressions were shadowed out the whole -of that course subsequently developed. They were little noticed, it -is true, at the time, because they did not interfere with the plan of -the moment, viz., the destruction of a constitutional government at -Madrid; but they became a text to which our Minister could subsequently -refer as a proof of the frankness and consistency of the policy that -from the commencement of the French campaign he had been pursuing. No -one, however, understood better than the statesman who had resolved on -this policy, that to be powerful abroad you must be popular at home. -Thus at the close of the session in which he had denounced the absolute -doctrines of the French Legitimists, we see him passing through the -great mercantile and manufacturing towns, and endeavouring to excite -amidst the large and intelligent masses of those towns an enthusiasm -for his talents, and that attachment to his person, which genius, when -it comes into contact with the people, rarely fails to inspire. - - -VIII. - -On one of these occasions it was that he delivered the memorable -speech, meant to resound throughout Europe, and spoken with exquisite -propriety in sight of the docks at Plymouth. - -“Our ultimate object, no doubt, is the peace of the world, but let it -not be said that we cultivate it either because we fear, or because -we are unprepared for war. On the contrary, if eight months ago the -Government did not proclaim that this country was prepared for war, -this was from causes far other than those produced by fear; and if war -should at last unfortunately be necessary, every intervening month of -peace that has since passed has but made us so much the more capable -of warlike exertion. The resources created by peace are indeed the -means of war. In cherishing these resources, we but accumulate these -means. Our present repose is no more a proof of incapability to act, -than the state of inertness and inactivity in which I have seen those -mighty masses that float on the waters above your town, is a proof that -they are devoid of strength, and incapable of being fitted for action. -_You well know, gentlemen, how soon one of those stupendous masses, -now reposing on their shadows in perfect stillness--how soon upon any -call of patriotism, or of necessity, it would assume the likeness of -an animated thing, instinct with life and motion; how soon it would -ruffle, as it were, its swelling plumage; how quickly it would put -forth all its beauty and its bravery; collect its scattered elements -of strength, and awaken its dormant thunder! Such as is one of those -magnificent machines when springing from inaction into a display of -its might, such is England herself; while apparently passionless and -motionless, she silently concentrates the power to be put forth on an -adequate occasion._” - - * * * * * - -Luckily for Mr. Canning, the circumstances of the country in 1824 -enabled him to maintain and increase that popularity which he was -desirous to acquire. Trade had begun to thrive, the revenue to -increase, taxation to diminish; nor were these facts merely valuable -in themselves, they were also valuable in affording a facility for -entering more freely upon that large and comprehensive system of -commerce which was the best adapted to a country that combined great -maritime power with great manufacturing capacity. - -Besides, by entering frankly upon this system, Mr. Canning was giving -strength to one of those links which now began to unite him to the -Opposition, and thus to rally round him by degrees nearly the whole -liberal force of the House of Commons. Already, indeed, many of his -opponents had softened in their tone, and Sir James Mackintosh (June -25, 1824), referring to papers that had been laid before Parliament, -passed the highest eulogy on the conduct which the Foreign Secretary -was adopting in respect to the South American question. - - -IX. - -The time is now arrived for speaking of that question. From the first -moment that the intentions of the French government towards Spain were -known, Mr. Canning, as it has been seen, hinted at the recognition of -the Spanish colonies, and protested against any proceeding which either -directly or indirectly should bring them under the authority of France. -A variety of projects,--amongst which that of holding a congress of -the Great Powers at Paris, for the purpose of considering how it might -be most expedient to assist Spain in adjusting her differences with -the revolted colonies, was the most significant,--all tended to show -the necessity of some immediate step for placing beyond dispute the -condition of those colonies. - -By a series of measures, each in advance of the preceding one, none -going so far as to excite any burst of resentment, Mr. Canning went on -gradually towards the ultimate decision he had in view. - -A warning to Spain that unless she forthwith effected an accommodation -with her former subjects, their independence would be recognised, was -given and repeated; a warning to France that the cession to any other -power of the Spanish possessions in America would not be allowed, had -also been once given, and was now formally renewed. The project of -interfering for their conquest with foreign troops, whatever might be -decided by any congress, was boldly forbidden. Consuls had already -been appointed to attend to the interests of British commerce in those -parts, and commissioners had been sent out to Columbia and Mexico -(the emancipation of Buenos Ayres was undisputed) to report on their -condition. The memorable declaration of the United States, frequently -referred to since--as the Munroe Doctrine,--and to which our foreign -minister, by his communications with the United States Envoy in London, -had in no small degree contributed;--a declaration to the effect that -the United States would not see with indifference the attempt of any -European power to establish itself on the American continent, was a -positive assurance of the only alliance that might be important, -should England have to contend by force of arms against a French and -Spanish expedition. - -At last, strong in popularity at home, having by previous measures, -difficult to be opposed, lessened the shock that might have been -produced abroad, Mr. Canning put the seal to this portion of his plans, -and announced his recognition of three of the most powerful of the new -republics. - -This recognition, however justifiable on its proper merits, is not -merely to be considered on such isolated grounds. It formed a part, -and an important part, of European policy; it altered the position -in which this country stood towards those powers who had declared -their principles to be in opposition to our own. Now it was the turn -of Austria, Prussia, and Russia to _remonstrate_, and to have their -_remonstrances_ treated as those of England had been by them on former -occasions. Thus, the part which Great Britain had hitherto played -was for the first time reversed; and her character, which at each -late congress had been sinking lower and lower in the scale of public -opinion, rose at once in the balance. This is the first important epoch -in Mr. Canning’s foreign administration. - - -X. - -The affairs of Portugal next demand attention. That country, from the -commencement of the new conflict in the Peninsula, had been the scene -of French intrigues for the purpose of destroying English interests; -and of court cabals, with the object of favouring Don Miguel’s -pretensions. The Queen, a violent and profligate old woman, who had -never kept any terms with her passions, countenanced the most desperate -schemes; and King John VI., a weak but not unamiable monarch, was even -obliged on one occasion to seek safety on board a British frigate. -The defeat of the conspiracy which occasioned this alarm banished -Don Miguel; but M. Subserra, the King’s minister and favourite, and -a mere tool in the hands of France, still remained; so that although -the Portuguese government never took any open part against the Spanish -Cortes, the King would never concede a constitution to his people -(this being very strenuously opposed by the French Government and -its allies), nor unite himself cordially with England, by giving Lord -Beresford the command of his army, and conferring on M. Palmella the -chief influence in his cabinet. Our situation in respect to Portugal -was moreover complicated by the state of Brazil. Don Pedro, King -John’s eldest son, had been left Regent in that colony by his father, -when the latter returned to his more ancient dominions. The King’s -secret instructions were that the Prince should adopt any course that -circumstances might render necessary, rather than allow so important a -possession to pass from the family of Braganza. But the spirit of the -Brazilians, who from the long residence of their monarch amongst them -had for some time enjoyed the privileges of a Metropolitan State, would -not submit to a renewal of their old dependence on the mother country; -and the Regent was forced, in obedience to the injunctions just -mentioned, to place himself at the head of a revolt, and to become, -under the title of “Emperor,” sovereign of a new kingdom. - -It may be doubtful whether Don Pedro’s father was quite pleased at -an act of which (whatever might be his commands in the case of a -supposed contingency) it might always have been difficult to prove the -necessity by formal and unpalatable explanations; but the Portuguese -in general were at all events far more violent than their monarch, -and would at once have attempted the conquest of their rebellious but -distant province if they had possessed any of the means requisite for -such an undertaking. Mr. Canning, on the other hand, not only saw -that Portugal, for her own sake, should endeavour to enter into some -arrangement, admitting a fact which it was impossible to alter; he -was also obliged, in consequence of the policy which he was elsewhere -pursuing, to endeavour to obtain for Brazil an independent position. - -It became desirable, then, on every account, to settle as soon as -possible the differences between the colony and the mother country; -and, having vainly attempted to do this in other ways, it was resolved -at last, as the best and promptest course, to send some superior -Diplomatist to Lisbon, who, if he succeeded in obtaining the consent -of the Portuguese government to a moderate plan of accommodation, -might proceed at once to Rio Janeiro, and urge Don Pedro and his -government to accept it. Sir Charles Stuart (afterwards Lord Stuart de -Rothsay), was selected for the double mission, and succeeded, after -some difficulty, in accomplishing its object. He then, however, being -in Brazil, undertook the arrangement of a commercial treaty between the -newly emancipated colony and Great Britain, and some singular errors -into which he fell delaying the completion of his business, he was -still at Rio when King John died. - - -XI. - -The Emperor of Brazil, Don Pedro, then became King of Portugal; and -having to decide on the relinquishment of one of these kingdoms, it -seeming impossible to keep them permanently united, he assumed that, -in abdicating the throne of Portugal, he had the right of dictating -the method and terms of his abdication. He proposed, then, first, to -take upon himself the crown to which he had succeeded; secondly, in -his capacity of sovereign of Portugal, to give a constitution to the -Portuguese; thirdly, if that constitution were accepted, and that Don -Miguel, his brother, were willing to espouse Donna Maria, his (Don -Pedro’s) daughter, to place the ancient sceptre of Portugal in that -daughter’s hands. - -The apparent countenance of Great Britain, however obtained, was no -doubt of consequence to the success of this project, and Sir Charles -Stuart was prevailed upon to accept the title of Portuguese ambassador, -and in such capacity to be the bearer of the new constitutional -charter to Portugal. He thus, it is true, acted without Mr. Canning’s -authority, for the case was one which could hardly have been foreseen, -and it may be doubted whether his conduct was well advised; but still -no experienced Diplomatist would have taken upon himself so important -a part as Sir Charles Stuart assumed, unless he had pretty fair -reasons to suppose that he was doing that which would be agreeable to -his chief; and when Mr. Canning gave his subsequent sanction to Sir -Charles’s conduct, by declaring in a despatch, dated July 12, 1826, -that the King entirely approved of the ambassador’s having consented -(under the peculiar circumstances of his situation in Brazil) to be -the bearer of the Emperor’s decrees to Lisbon, the world in general -considered the whole affair, as in fact it had become, the arrangement -of Great Britain. - -In this manner did we appear as having recognised the South American -Republics, as having arranged the separation and independence of the -great Portuguese colony; and, finally, as having carried a constitution -into Portugal itself. All the Powers leagued in favour of despotism, -protesting at this time against the recognition of any colony, and -France being then as their deputed missionary in Spain, for the express -purpose of putting down a constitution in that country. - -This is the second memorable epoch in Mr. Canning’s foreign policy--the -second period in that diplomatic war which at Troppau and Verona -had been announced, and which when the Duc d’Angoulême crossed the -Pyrenees, had been undertaken against Liberal opinions. - - -XII. - -If our government at last stood in a position worthy of the strength -and the intellect of the nation it represented, that position was, -nevertheless, one that required for its maintenance the nicest -tempering of dignity with forbearance; no offence was to be heedlessly -given, none timidly submitted to. Spain and Portugal, long jealous -and hostile, were marshalled under two hostile and jarring opinions. -The most powerful, backed by friendly and kindred armies, was likely -to invade the weaker; and that weaker we were bound to defend by an -indissoluble alliance. - -The first step manifesting the feelings of King Ferdinand’s government -was a refusal to recognise the Portuguese Regency established at King -John’s death; but matters were certain not to stop here. Portuguese -deserters were soon received in Spain, and allowed to arm; nay, were -furnished with arms by Spanish authority, for the purpose of being sent -back as invaders into their native country. Even Spanish troops, in -more than one instance, hostilely entered Portugal, while the Spanish -ministry scrupled at no falsehoods that might stretch a flimsy covering -over their deceitful assurances and unfriendly designs. - -Things were in this state, peace rested upon these hollow and uncertain -foundations, when Mr. Canning received at the same time the official -news that the rebel troops which had been organised in Spain were -marching upon Lisbon; and the most solemn declarations from Spain -herself that these very troops should be dispersed, and their chief -arrested. The crisis for action seemed now to have arrived; for England -was bound, as I have said, by treaty, to defend Portugal against a -foreign power, and a foreign power was in this instance clearly, though -meanly, indirectly, and treacherously assailing her. To shrink from -the dangerous obligation to which we stood pledged, or even to appear -so to shrink, was to relinquish that hold upon public opinion, both at -home and abroad, which hold we had at last obtained, and to abandon the -moral power which, if a contest did arise, would be the main portion -of our strength. On the other hand, to comply with the request of -the Portuguese government for succour (that request was now formally -made), and to send a British force to Portugal was, no doubt, an event -that might be the commencement of a general war. Of all policies, a -hesitating, shuffling policy would have been the worst. Had it been -adopted, Spain, or those who then governed Spain, would have proceeded -to more violent and irremediable acts--acts to which we must have -submitted with the grossest dishonour, or resented with the smallest -chances of success. - - -XIII. - -At this moment, 12th December, 1826, Mr. Canning came down to the House -of Commons, his fine eye kindling with a sense of the magnitude of the -transactions in which he was called upon to play so important a part; -and having described the circumstances in which England was placed, and -the obligations to which she was pledged, stated the manner in which -the duty of the English government had been fulfilled: - -“I understand, indeed, that in some quarters it has been imputed to -his Majesty’s ministers that an extraordinary delay intervened between -the taking up the determination to give assistance to Portugal and the -carrying of that determination into effect. But how stands the fact? -On Sunday, the 3rd of this month, we received from the Portuguese -ambassador a direct and formal demand of assistance against a hostile -aggression from Spain. Our answer was, that although rumours had -reached us through France of this event, his Majesty’s government had -not that accurate information--that official and precise intelligence -of facts on which it could properly found an application to Parliament. -It was only on last Friday night that this precise information -arrived--on Saturday his Majesty’s confidential servants came to a -decision. On Sunday that decision received the sanction of his Majesty; -on Monday it was communicated to both Houses of Parliament; and this -day, sir, at this hour in which I have the honour of addressing you, -the troops are on their march for embarkation.” - -This passage possesses all the qualities of oratory, and could hardly -have been delivered without exciting a burst of applause. So again, -when the Minister, his voice swelling, his arm outstretched, and his -face turned towards the benches where sat the representatives of the -great monarchs who, but a short time before, derided our power and -denounced our principles, said, “We go to plant the standard of England -on the _well-known heights_ of Lisbon. Where that standard is planted, -foreign dominion _shall not come_,” a thrill ran through the assembly -at these simple but ominous words. My conviction, indeed, was that this -speech must throughout have produced as great an effect in delivery as -it does, even now, in reading; but I was talking the other day with a -friend who, then being a Westminster boy, was present at the debate; -and he told me I was mistaken, and that with the exception of one or -two passages such as those I have cited, there was a want of that -elasticity and flow which distinguished Mr. Canning’s happier efforts. - -It is probable that not having had time, amidst the business which -the step he was taking had created, to prepare himself sufficiently, -he had the air of being over-prepared, and, according to my friend, -only rose to his full height as an orator, when he made that famous -allusion to the position which England then held between conflicting -principles, like Œolus between conflicting winds; and when again, in -reply, defending the course he had adopted during the recent French -expedition, he thus elevated his hearers to a conception of the -grandeur of his views, and the mingled prudence and audacity of his -conduct. “If France occupied Spain, was it necessary, in order to avoid -the consequences of that occupation, that we should blockade Cadiz? No: -I looked another way; I sought the materials of occupation in another -hemisphere. Contemplating Spain such as her ancestors had known her, -I resolved that, if France had Spain, it should not be Spain with the -Indies; I called the New World into existence to redress the balance of -the old.” - - -XIV. - -But the Minister of Foreign Affairs displayed talents far beyond those -of the mere orator on this occasion. He took a step which was certain -to incur the displeasure and excite the open hostility of a powerful -party throughout Europe. Many who might have felt themselves obliged by -honour to take this step would have done so with a timid and downcast -air, endeavouring by an affectation of humanity to deprecate the -anger of the high personages they were offending. Such men, exciting -no sympathy, creating and maintaining no allies, encouraging the -attacks and justifying the insults of all enemies, would have placed -their country in a false and pitiful position, where, powerless and -compromised, she would have stood before her opponents, exposed by -her advance, tempting by her weakness. But the sagacious know that a -bold game must be played boldly, and that the great art of moderating -opponents consists in gaining friends. - - * * * * * - -Mr. Canning, then, neither flinched nor faltered. In venturing upon -a measure which aroused the anger of so many powerful foes, he made -those foes aware that if we were assailed because, in fulfilment of -treaties, we marched to the defence of a country which was attacked on -account of its liberal institutions, England would gather beneath her -standard all those who loved liberty throughout Europe. Our country was -on the verge of a contest with the most potent sovereigns. Our minister -neither provoked nor quailed before those sovereigns, but plainly told -them, that if such a contest did arise, it would be a contest in which -many of the governments eager to provoke it might expect to find, side -by side with our soldiers, not a few of their own people--a contest in -which, were Englishmen forced to take a part, they would not shrink -from taking the part that befitted the brave and free descendants of -men who had suffered for their religion at the stake, and adjudged -their monarch to the scaffold. - - -XV. - -British troops, then, were at last sent in aid of Portugal; no other -troops opposed them; the expedition was successful; and from that -moment Mr. Canning was pointed to as the first statesman of his time; -and Great Britain--without having excited war or produced revolutions, -following a course conformable to her interests, her history, and her -character, backed by the sympathy of the free, and guarded by the -reverence and affection of the intelligent; having shed no blood, -having exhausted no treasure, having never uttered a word that our -nation did not echo, nor shrunk from supporting a word that had been -uttered--stood before the world in a yet more exalted and noble -situation than even at that moment when Napoleon fled from Waterloo, -and the British drum was beating in the streets of Paris. - -This is the third epoch in Mr. Canning’s conflict with the crusaders -against constitutional principles. I have described the measures by -which that conflict had been supported. It would be difficult to -point out any stronger measures that a country, placed in similar -circumstances, could have taken. But Mr. Canning, acting with force and -spirit, had acted without exaggeration. He had not said, “I will wage -war with certain opinions;” he had not told the sovereigns of Troppau, -Laybach, and Verona, “Because you commit aggression and injustice, -I will do the same; because you enter into a war against Liberal -governments, I will forthwith arm the people of my country against all -governments of a despotic nature.” - -Representing a state which did not wish to give the law, but which -would not receive it, he neither cringed nor threatened. “Publish what -doctrines and take what course you may,” was the language of England’s -great statesman, “I will shape my way according to the interests and -treaties of my country with equal independence.” - -With such language the Spanish colonies were recognised, because -Spain could be no longer responsible for their conduct; because -France maintained herself in Spain under the hope that those -colonies would furnish an indemnity for the money she had spent in -re-establishing despotism in Spain itself; because England, at the head -of constitutional governments, found it necessary to check the moral -influence of the Holy Alliance, at the head of absolute governments. - -Thus the separation of Brazil from Portugal was negotiated, since the -struggle between the mother country and her ancient but emancipated -possession, was unfavourable to British commerce, embarrassing to -British influence, and adverse to the general policy it was found -expedient, as I have said, to pursue in Spanish America. - -Thus British troops were sent even ostentatiously to Lisbon, since Mr. -Canning would not for a moment countenance the belief that England -would shrink from her engagements to the weakest ally, although the -form of government adopted by that ally was contrary to the particular -opinions of the most powerful confederacy in the world. - -And here it is especially to be remarked that a policy which, regarded -as a whole, bears so decided an appearance, and which was certain to -produce so considerable an effect, offers hardly a single point where -the success was doubtful, or the peril great. Developing itself, like -that game where the skilful winner advances gradually but surely, each -piece protected by another through a series of moves, our policy had -only become conspicuous by the last move which obtained its victory. - -Our treaties with Buenos Ayres, with Mexico, and Columbia, guarded as -they were by our own previous declarations, and also by the important -declaration of the American President, could only expose us to a -useless and insignificant exhibition of displeasure. - -The severance of Brazil from Portugal, as long as Portugal was a -consenting party, could with little decency be objected to by an -indifferent power; the concession of a charter to Portugal, coming -from the sovereign of Portugal himself, was an act which those who -contended for the divine right of kings to do what they thought -proper, could not well oppose: and finally, the expedition of British -troops to Lisbon--sent out at the time when the name of “Mr. Canning” -had become the rallying word of England, and “England” herself the -rallying word of the free and the intelligent throughout the world, -demanded also under circumstances too well known to be disputed, and -authorised by treaties which had always been acknowledged, and to -which, from the very commencement of his administration, Mr. Canning -had called attention--resolutely as it was announced, gallantly as it -was made, and important as its impression on the public mind was sure -to be--could hardly have been resented with propriety or advantage. -On each occasion the minister had made his stand at the happiest -opportunity and on the strongest grounds. Abandoning, it is true, all -direct resistance to France and to the principles she maintained--where -such resistance must have been made with great peril, and with but -small chance of success--he had adopted towards both France and her -principles a system of opposition which exhibited itself by a variety -of successive acts each by itself little likely to be dangerous, and -all in their combination certain to be effective. In the first place, -instead of meeting the enemy on a ground undermined by factions, and -where a large military force, inconsistent with the nature of our -means, would have been necessary, he carried the quarrel into a new -hemisphere, and placed it on a question which, mistress of the seas, -England had the undoubted power of deciding. Lastly, when a British -army was sent to the continent, it was sent not on grounds which might -merely be justifiable, but for reasons which were obligatory; while -the people to whose aid it marched--open to the ocean, animated by -hereditary jealousy against their neighbours, accustomed to British -command, and confident in British assistance--were the people whom -we were most likely to be allowed to succour with impunity, and most -certain, should war ensue, of triumphantly defending. - -Something of chance and fortune, no doubt, was mingled in the happy -conduct of these events, as is the case in all human affairs; but -there is visible a steady and impressive will, tempering and ruling -them throughout; the mind and spirit of a man, who was capable of -forethought, governed by precaution, and prompt in decision. - - - - -PART IV. - -FROM THE BEGINNING OF MR. CANNING’S POPULARITY AS FOREIGN MINISTER TO -HIS DEATH. - - Mr. Canning’s position.--Altered tone of opposition.--Favour of - King.--Death of Duke of York and of Lord Liverpool.--Struggle - for the Premiership.--Nomination of Mr. Canning.--Secession - of Duke of Wellington and Anti-Catholic party.--Junction with - Whigs.--Formation of Cabinet.--Effect of Canning on the men - of his time, and their effect on a subsequent one.--Eastern - affairs.--Treaty concerning Greece with Russia and - France.--Sickness.--Death. - - -I. - -It is needless to say that a policy which raised England so high in -the world’s consideration was popular with Englishmen; they were proud -of their country and of their minister. The Whig opposition, moreover, -which at first depreciated that minister and praised his colleagues, -soon began to depreciate his colleagues and to praise him. But Mr. -Canning’s most extraordinary and unexpected triumph was at court. From -being the man in the Cabinet the most odious to the King, he had become -the King’s pet minister, and one of the most intimate of his chosen -circle. - -The leader of the House of Commons had one peculiar mode of obtaining -his Majesty’s confidence, and cultivating his intimacy. It was his -arduous duty to send to the Sovereign every night a written account of -that night’s proceedings in the assembly to which he belonged. It is -easy to see the advantage which this established custom may give to a -writer who expresses himself with tact and clearness. A minister of -foreign affairs has also more opportunities than any other minister of -captivating the Royal attention. Foreign politics, which constitute the -arena in which kings are pitted against kings, are the politics which -most interest royal personages. A monarch there represents before -other monarchs the fame, the power, the character of the nation he -rules; he rises as it rises, he falls as it falls. - -George IV., whatever his faults, was not without talent or ambition. -In early life he wished to distinguish himself in military service -abroad, and when, on this being denied him, he entered more deeply than -discreetly into politics at home, it was the desire for popularity -which connected him with the Opposition. He still remembered the -high position which after the battle of Waterloo he held, as Regent -of England, amongst the great potentates of the earth; and though -personally attached to Lord Castlereagh, and unwilling to sever himself -altogether from the sovereigns who had formerly been his allies, -and who now in confounding Liberty with Anarchy came forward as the -champions of Royalty and order, still he was not insensible to the -fact that he had become, little by little, a nonentity in the councils -of his peers, and that his advice and opinions, even when expressed -by the great warrior who had vanquished Napoleon, were treated with -a disregard which was galling to his pride as a monarch, and painful -to his feelings as an Englishman. He experienced no small exultation, -then, when he saw this state of things reversed, and that the King of -England was once more a personage whose policy created hope and alarm. -He had, moreover, a singular propensity, which was in fact a sort of -madness, for conceiving that he had played a personal part in all the -events which had passed in his reign. Amongst other fancies of this -kind, he believed, or at least often spoke as if he believed, that he -had been on the great battle-field which had terminated the war in -1815; and I have been told by two persons who were present, that one -day at dinner, after relating his achievements on this occasion, he -turned round to the Iron Duke and said: - -“Was it not so, Duke?” - -“I have heard your Majesty often say so,” replied the Duke, drily.[122] -It was easy, then, for Mr. Canning to make George IV. consider Mr. -Canning’s policy his policy, Mr. Canning’s successes his successes, and -indeed Mr. Canning always spoke to his Majesty, when the popularity -of his administration became apparent, as if he had only followed the -inspiration of a prescient and intelligent master. - -I should omit more trifling causes of favour, if I did not think them -necessary to illustrate the character of the parties, and of the times -of which I am speaking, and to show the attention which Mr. Canning, -once engaged in the task of recasting our foreign policy, gave to the -smallest circumstances which might facilitate it. In the ordinary -acceptation of the word, he was not a courtier, or a man of the world. -Living, as I have already stated, in the midst of a small clique of -admirers, and little with society at large, he confined his remarkable -powers of pleasing to his own set. He had determined, however, on -gaining George IV.’s goodwill, or, at all events, on vanquishing his -dislike, and he saw at once that this was to be done rather indirectly -than directly, and that it could best be done by gaining the favour -of those ladies of the court whom the King saw most frequently, and -spoke to most unreservedly. These were Lady Conyngham and Madame de -Lieven. For Lady Conyngham George IV. had a sort of chivalric devotion -or attachment; Madame de Lieven he liked and appreciated as the lady -who had the greatest knack of seizing and understanding his wishes, -and making his court agreeable. She was a musician, and he was fond of -music; she had correspondents at every capital in Europe, and knew all -the small gossip as well as the most important affairs that agitated -Paris, St. Petersburg, and Vienna, and he was amused by foreign gossip -and interested in foreign affairs. Her opinion, moreover, as to the -position of any one in the world of fashion was law, and George IV. -piqued himself especially on being the man of fashion. Mr. Canning -resolved, then, on pleasing this remarkable lady, and completely -succeeded. She became, as she afterwards often stated, subjugated by -the influence of his natural manner and brilliant talents; and the -favour of Madame de Lieven went the further in this instance with the -King, since he had previously a sort of prejudice against Canning, -as being too much the man of letters, and not sufficiently the fine -gentleman. This prejudice once removed, a man of wit, genius, and -information, had no inconsiderable hold on a prince whose youth had -been passed in the most brilliant society of his time, and who was -still alive to the memory of the sparkling wit of Sheridan and the easy -and copious eloquence of Fox. Lady Conyngham’s alliance was still more -important than that of Madame de Lieven, and one of Mr. Canning’s first -acts was to name Lord Francis Conyngham Under Secretary of State, it is -said at the King’s desire. At all events, Lord Francis’s appointment, -which was in every respect a good one, pleased the Marchioness, and -satisfied his Majesty, who saw in it the willingness of his Minister to -bring even the most private acts of his administration under the Royal -cognisance. - - -II. - -An anecdote of the time is worth recording, since it connected itself -with the recognition of the Spanish colonies, and the subsequent -elevation of the minister to whom this important act was due. - -Lady Conyngham had been supposed in early life to have greatly admired -(there was no scandal, I should say, attached to this admiration) Lord -Ponsonby, then the finest gentleman of his day. Lord Ponsonby, who -had long been absent from England, returned from the Ionian Islands, -where he had held a small office, not a little desirous to get a better -place than the one he had quitted. He met Lady Conyngham at Lady -Jersey’s, and (so went the story of the day) Lady Conyngham fainted. So -interesting a piece of gossip soon reached the ear of the monarch: the -friendship of old men is very often as romantic as the love of young -men. His Majesty took to his bed, declared himself ill, and would see -no one. All business was stopped. After waiting some time, Mr. Canning -at last obtained an interview. George IV. received him lying on a couch -in a darkened room, the light being barely sufficient to read a paper. - -“What’s the matter? I am very ill, Mr. Canning.” - -“I shall not occupy your Majesty for more than five minutes. It is very -desirable, as your Majesty knows, to send Envoys, without delay, to the -States of South America, that are about to be recognised.” - -The King groaned, and moved impatiently. - -“I have been thinking, Sire, it would be most desirable to select a -man of rank for one of these posts (another groan), and I thought of -proposing Lord Ponsonby to your Majesty for Buenos Ayres.” - -“Ponsonby!” said the King, rising a little from his reclining -position--“a capital appointment! a clever fellow, though an idle one, -Mr. Canning. May I ask you to undraw that curtain a little? A very -good appointment: is there anything else, Canning, that you wish me to -attend to?” - -From that moment, said the person who told me this story, Mr. Canning’s -favour rose more and more rapidly.[123] - -But in mentioning Lady Conyngham and Madame de Lieven, as having been -of much use to Mr. Canning, I should also mention Doctor Sir Wm. -Knighton. Yet, I would not have it thought that I intend in any way to -take from Mr. Canning’s character as a great minister by showing that -he adopted the small means necessary to rule a court. George IV.’s -habits were such that without some aid of this kind no statesman could -have got current affairs carried on with due regularity, or initiated -any policy that required the Royal support. - - -III. - -The moment was now at hand, when the extent of this Royal support was -to be tested; when, in short, it was to be decided whether the Canning -party or the Wellington and Eldon party was to be predominant in the -Cabinet. The difference in feeling and opinion between the two sections -was, as I have said, more or less general; but as the only question -on which the members of the same government were allowed to disagree -(according to the principle on which the Cabinet had been founded) was -Catholic Emancipation, so it was on the Catholic Emancipation question -that each tried its strength against the other. In the preceding year -the Emancipationists had obtained a majority in the House of Commons, -and would have had only a small majority against them in the House of -Lords, but for the speech of the Duke of York, heir-presumptive to -the throne, who declared that he was, and ever would be, a determined -supporter of the Protestant principles of exclusion, maintained by -his late father. There is reason to suppose that this declaration was -made on an understanding with the King, who thought that he would thus -fortify his own opinions, which had become for the last twenty years -hostile to the Catholics, and also deter Canning and his friends from -pushing forward too eagerly a matter on which they must expect to -encounter the opposition of two successive sovereigns. - -On the 5th of January, 1827, however, the Duke of York died; and -though during his illness he strongly advised his brother to form -an anti-Catholic Administration--without which, he said, Catholic -Emancipation must ere long be granted--the counsel, though it had -distressed George IV. considerably, had not decided him; for his -Majesty preferred his ease, as long as he could enjoy it, to facing -difficulties which would disorder the ordinary routine of his social -life, as well as that of public affairs. The Duke of York’s influence -on George IV., moreover, was that of personal contact, of a living -man of honest and sterling character, over a living man of weaker -character; it expired, therefore, when he expired. - -Another death soon afterwards occurred. Lord Liverpool was taken ill -in February, 1827, and he died in March. This left the first situation -in the Government vacant. The moderator between the two conflicting -parties was no more, and a struggle as to the Premiership became -inevitable. - -Mr. Canning was at this crisis seriously ill at Brighton: and we -may conceive the agitation of his restless mind, since Sir Francis -Burdett’s annual motion on the Catholic claims was just then coming on. -His absence would, he knew, be misinterpreted; and literally rising -from his bed, and under sufferings which only ambition and duty could -have rendered supportable, he appeared to confront his enemies and -encourage his followers in his place in the House of Commons. - -The debate was more than warm, and an encounter between the Master of -the Rolls, Sir J. Copley, afterwards Lord Lyndhurst, and the Secretary -of State for Foreign Affairs, was such as might rather be expected -from rival chiefs of hostile factions, than from men belonging to the -same government, and professing to entertain on most subjects the same -opinions. Finally, a majority of four decided against Sir Francis -Burdett. - -After this trial of strength, it was difficult for the Minister of -Foreign Affairs to insist upon the first place in a balanced cabinet, -with a majority in both Houses of Parliament against the party which he -represented. When, therefore, the King consulted him subsequently as to -a new Administration, he said: - -“I should recommend your Majesty to form an Administration wholly -composed of persons who entertain, in respect to the Roman Catholics, -your Majesty’s own opinions.” - -This counsel could not be carried out; but it seemed disinterested, -and forced George IV. to allow, after making the attempt, that it was -impracticable. The formation of a Cabinet on the old terms of general -comprehension thus became a necessity, and to that Government Mr. -Canning was indispensable. But his Majesty naturally wished to retain -him in a position that would not offend the rest of his colleagues, -and to place some person opposed to the Catholics in Lord Liverpool’s -vacant situation. This Mr. Canning would not consent to. In serving -under Lord Liverpool, he had served under a man highly distinguished -from his youth, offered, as early as the death of Mr. Pitt, the first -situation in the State, and who, as the head of a government retaining -possession of power for many years, had enjoyed the good fortune of -holding it at one of the most glorious epochs in British history. -That nobleman left no one behind him entertaining his own opinions, -and on whom his own claims of precedency could be naturally supposed -to descend. Besides, he was Mr. Canning’s private friend, and agreed -with him on almost every question, except the solitary one of Catholic -Emancipation. - -It was clear, then, that if the successor to Lord Liverpool shared Lord -Liverpool’s opinions on Catholic Emancipation, but did not share Lord -Liverpool’s other opinions, and was more or less adverse to Mr. Canning -instead of being particularly attached to him, this would make a great -change as to Mr. Canning’s position in the Administration, and a great -change as to the general character of the Administration itself. Mr. -Canning, therefore, could not submit to such a change without damaging -his policy and damaging himself. He was to be Cæsar or nobody; the -man to lead a party, not the hack of any party that offered him the -emoluments of place, without the reality of power. - - -IV. - -But if Mr. Canning was determined to be Head of the Government, or -not to belong to it at all, his rivals were equally determined not to -belong to a government of which he was to be the head. - -In this dilemma George IV. fixed his eyes on the Duke of Wellington. -Few at that period considered the duke fit for the management of civil -affairs; but George IV. had great confidence in his general abilities, -and thought that with his assistance it might be possible to conciliate -a minister whom he was disposed to disappoint, and did not wish to -displease. But the Duke of Wellington was the very last man under whom -it was Mr. Canning’s interest to place himself. That he refused to -do so is therefore no matter of surprise; his refusal, however, was -skilfully framed, and in such terms as were most likely to catch the -ear of the nation, “_he could never consent to a military Premier_.” -In the meantime, the struggle that had been going on in the Cabinet -and the Court was pretty generally known in the country, and such -steps were taken by the two conflicting parties as were most accordant -with their several principles and desires. The Duke of Newcastle, on -the one hand, claimed the privilege of a Royal audience, and spoke in -no measured terms of the parliamentary influence he possessed, and -the course he should pursue if Mr. Canning attained his wishes. Mr. -Brougham, on the other hand, wrote to Mr. Canning, offering him his -unqualified support, and saying that this offer was unconnected with -any desire for office, which, indeed, nothing would then tempt him to -accept. - - -V. - -A serious contest thus commenced. The different epochs through which -this contest was conducted may thus be given. On the 28th of March, -the King first spoke to Mr. Canning in a direct and positive manner as -to filling up Lord Liverpool’s vacancy. Between the 31st of March and -the 6th of April affairs remained in suspense. On the 3rd and 4th Mr. -Canning and the Duke of Wellington met; and on the 5th, by the desire -of the latter, Mr. Canning saw Mr. Peel; the result of these three -different interviews being a persuasion on the part of Mr. Canning that -it was hoped he would himself suggest that the Premiership should be -offered to the Duke of Wellington. On the 9th Mr. Peel again saw Mr. -Canning, by the King’s desire, and openly stated that “the Duke of -Wellington’s appointment would solve all difficulties.” On the 10th Mr. -Canning, not having assented to this suggestion, was empowered to form -the new Administration. - -The events which followed are well known. On receiving the King’s -commands, Mr. Canning immediately requested the services of all his -former colleagues, to some of whom his application could only have been -a mere matter of form. For this reason the surprise affected at many -of the answers received appears to me ridiculous. Mr. Canning and his -friends would have retired, if the Duke of Wellington had been made -Premier; and the Duke of Wellington and his friends retired when Mr. -Canning was made Premier. - -Nothing was more simple than the tender of those resignations which -were received with such artificial astonishment; and nothing more -absurd than the cant accusations which were made against those who -tendered them of abandoning the King, &c. &c. Nor was the refutation of -such accusations less idle than their propagation. It might not be true -that the seceding Ministers met in a room, and said, “We will conspire, -and you shall send in your resignation, and I will send in mine.” But -it is quite clear that they had common motives of action, that each -understood what those motives were, that as a body they had long acted -in unison, that as a body they intended to continue so to act. In every -representative government men constantly band in this manner together, -often denying uselessly that they do so; and we have only to refer to -a memorable instance of Whig secession, in 1717, in order to find the -same accusation as foolishly raised, and the same denial as falsely -given.[124] - - * * * * * - -But although the resignation of the Duke of Wellington and his friends -was almost certain, when the nature of the new arrangement became fully -known, the mere fact of Mr. Canning having been commissioned to form a -government was not at once taken as the proof that he would possess the -power and dignity of Prime Minister. - -The Duke of Wellington more particularly seemed determined to consider -that nothing as to a Premier was yet decided, and replied to Mr. -Canning’s announcement that he was charged to form an Administration, -by saying: - -“I should wish to know who the person is whom you intend to propose to -his Majesty as the head of the Government.” - -To this question Mr. Canning replied at once: - - “Foreign Office, April 11, 1827. - - “MY DEAR DUKE OF WELLINGTON, - - “I believed it to be so generally understood that the King - usually entrusts the formation of an Administration to the - individual whom it is his Majesty’s gracious pleasure to - place at the head of it, that it did not occur to me, when I - communicated to your Grace yesterday the commands which I had - just received from his Majesty, to add that in the present - instance his Majesty does not intend to depart from the usual - course of proceeding on such occasions. I am sorry to have - delayed some hours the answer to your Grace’s letter; but - from the nature of the subject, I did not like to forward it, - without having previously submitted it (together with your - Grace’s letter) to his Majesty. - - “Ever, my dear Duke of Wellington, your Grace’s sincere and - faithful servant, - - (Signed) - - “GEORGE CANNING.” - -The Duke of Wellington’s retirement from office and from the command of -the army immediately followed, and now the whole anti-Catholic party -definitely seceded. - - -VI. - -At a cooler moment such an event might have seriously startled George -IV., but the pride of the Sovereign overcame the fears and doubts of -the politician. “He had not altered his policy; he had merely chosen -from amongst his Ministers, a vacancy occurring in the Premiership, a -particular individual to be Prime Minister. It was his clear right to -select the Prime Minister. Who was to have this nomination? The Duke of -Newcastle forsooth!” Thus spoke those of his circle whom Mr. Canning -had had the address to gain. - -Nor did he himself shrink from his new situation. His appointment was -announced on the very night it took place, and another writ issued for -the borough of Harwich, amidst cheers that rang through the House of -Commons. Thus he became at once the Minister of the people of England. -They anxiously asked themselves whether he could maintain himself in -this position? - - * * * * * - -A circumstance occurred which went far towards settling opinions on -this subject. Almost immediately after the official retreat of the -anti-Catholic party, Lord Melville, First Lord of the Admiralty, though -in favour of the Catholic claims, sent in his resignation, assigning -what in the reign of James I. would have been called a good _Scotch -reason_ for doing so, namely, _he did not think the Government could -last_. - -The manner of filling up the situation thus vacated might also have -satisfied Lord Melville’s scruples. On the 12th his lordship resigned; -on the 18th Mr. Canning informed him that the Duke of Clarence, -heir-presumptive to the crown, had accepted the office of Lord High -Admiral, and would receive Sir George Cockburn and the other Lords -of the Admiralty at twelve on the following day. This selection, -suggested, it was said, by Mr. Croker, was a decisive blow, and -announced the Royal feelings, as far as Mr. Canning was concerned, for -two reigns at least. There was still, however, the highest office in -the gift of a Minister to fill, that of Lord Chancellor. A supporter -of the Catholic claims could hardly at that moment be selected to -fill it. Amongst the opponents of those claims there was an eminent -lawyer in Parliament, who, if placed on the Woolsack, would become a -most valuable ally in the Lords, instead of being a most formidable -antagonist in the Commons. Sir John Copley, whose recent altercation -with the new Premier on the Catholic question was not forgotten, was -the eminent lawyer alluded to; and hardly was it known that the Duke -of Clarence was Lord High Admiral, when it was likewise officially -promulgated that Sir John Copley, under the title of Lord Lyndhurst, -had accepted the Great Seal. The other appointments immediately made -known were those of Mr. Sturges Bourne (a friend of Mr. Canning) as -Minister for Home Affairs; of Lord Dudley, a Tory who often voted with -Whigs, as Minister of Foreign Affairs; of Mr. William Lamb (after Lord -Melbourne), a Whig who often voted with the Tories, as Secretary for -Ireland; and of Mr. Scarlett, a Whig, as Attorney-General. The Duke -of Portland had accepted the Privy Seal, the Duke of Devonshire the -highest court office, Mr. Robinson, resigning the Chancellorship of -the Exchequer to Mr. Canning, became Lord Goderich, and Leader in the -House of Lords. Lord Palmerston acquired a seat in the Cabinet. Lord -Harrowby, Mr. Wynn, and Mr. Huskisson retained their former offices. - -A private arrangement was also made for admitting into the Cabinet, at -the end of the session, Lord Lansdowne (who was to take the place of -Mr. Sturges Bourne), as well as Lord Carlisle and Mr. Tierney. - - -VII. - -In this way commenced that new period in our history, which finally -led to the forming of a large Liberal party, capable of conducting -the affairs of the country, and to a series of divisions in that Tory -party which had so long governed it. I have said that this party was -already divided before the death of Lord Castlereagh; for it then -contained some influential, well-educated men of Whig opinions, though -of Tory alliances, who, whilst opposed to democratic innovations, were -dissatisfied with the unpopular resistance to all changes, which was -the peculiar characteristic of the Lord Chancellor. - -Mr. Canning’s junction with this section of politicians brought to it a -great additional force. - -Nor was this all. His brilliant genius rallied round him all those -in Parliament and the country who had enlightened ideas and generous -feelings, and were desirous to see England at the head of civilization, -and, whether in her conduct towards foreign nations or at home, -exhibiting an interest in the well-being and improvement of mankind. -Mr. Canning’s feelings on this subject were in no wise disguised by his -language. - -“Is it not,” said he on one occasion, when defending Mr. Huskisson’s -Free Trade policy--“is it not the same doctrine and spirit now -persecuting my right honourable friend which in former times stirred -up persecution against the best benefactors of mankind? Is it not -the same doctrine and spirit which embittered the life of Turgot? Is -it not a doctrine and a spirit such as those which have at all times -been at work to stay public advancement and roll back the tide of -civilization? A doctrine and a spirit actuating the minds of little -men who, incapable of reaching the heights from which alone extended -views of human nature can be taken, console and revenge themselves -by calumniating and misrepresenting those who have toiled to such -heights for the advantage of mankind. Sir, I have not to learn that -there is a faction in this country--I mean, not a political faction; -I should rather perhaps have said a sect, small in numbers and -powerless in might, who think that all advances towards improvement are -retrogradations towards Jacobinism. These persons seem to imagine that -under no possible circumstances can an honest man endeavour to keep -his country upon a line with the progress of political knowledge, and -to adapt its course to the varying circumstances of the world. Such -an attempt is branded as an indication of mischievous intentions, as -evidence of a design to sap the foundations of the greatness of the -country.” - - * * * * * - -Again, whilst avowing himself the pupil and disciple of Mr. Pitt, he -thus beautifully expresses himself: - -“It is singular to observe how ready some people are to admire in a -great man the exceptions to the general rule of his conduct rather -than the rule itself. Such perverse worship is like the idolatry of -barbarous nations, who can see the noonday splendour of the sun without -emotion, but who, when he is in eclipse, come forward with hymns and -cymbals to adore him. Thus there are those who venerate Mr. Pitt less -in the brightness of his meridian glory, than under his partial -obscurity, and who gaze on him with the fondest admiration when he has -ceased to shine.” - -In this manner, by his spirit, eloquence, and abilities, he brought -public opinion round in such a manner that it even accommodated itself -to his personal position, bringing forward into the light his personal -views as the popular ones, and throwing those which had formerly been -popular, but which he did not support, into the shade. The great -constitutional questions hitherto debated were for a time lost sight -of, and party spirit, as Mr. Baring stated, leaving its other and more -accustomed topics, seemed for the first time to display itself on -subjects simply relating to the commerce and mercantile policy of the -country. - - -VIII. - -At first the adherents of the Duke of Wellington were like the -Royal emigrants from the old French army at the period of the great -Revolution. They thought no officers could be found fitted to take -their places. But when they saw another government formed, and formed -of materials which, if they could be gradually moulded together, would -constitute a composition of solid and perhaps permanent endurance, -their feelings were marked by all that violence and injustice which -are invariably displayed by men who unexpectedly lose power. Mr. -Canning was a renegade for quitting his old political friends to -join the Whigs; the Whigs were renegades for abandoning their old -political principles to join Mr. Canning. Party rancour had not -the candour to acknowledge that if the opinions of Mr. Canning on -Catholic Emancipation were sufficient to alienate from him the great -bulk of the Conservatives, it was natural that those opinions should -attach to him the great bulk of the Liberals. To the attacks of his -own party, which he called “the barking of his own turnspits,” Mr. -Canning was sufficiently indifferent; but there was one voice lifted -up against him, the irony of which pierced his proud heart deeply. -Alone and stately, Lord Grey, who had long considered himself the great -Whig leader, now stood stripped of his followers, and with little -disposition to acknowledge the ascendency of another chieftain. -Contempt was the terrible weapon with which he assailed his brilliant -rival, whom from the height of a great aristocratic position and a long -and consistent public career, he affected to look down upon as a sort -of political adventurer; now carrying out measures the most oppressive -to the civil liberties of the people; now spouting liberal phrases -which he had no intention to realise; now advocating the claims of the -Catholics in glowing words; and now abandoning them when called upon -for practical deeds; and finally dressing himself up in borrowed plumes -and strutting before the public as the author of a foreign policy the -errors of which he cast off upon his colleagues, the merits of which, -with equal meanness and unfairness, he took wholly to himself. - -If all that Lord Grey said could have been completely justified (which -it could not); if all that Lord Grey said, I repeat, had been entirely -just (which it was not), the speech which contained it would still have -been ill-timed, and impolitic. Mr. Canning represented at that moment -those liberal ideas which the public were prepared to entertain. He was -encircled by the general popular sympathy, and was therefore in his -day, and at the hour I am speaking of, the natural head of the Liberal -party. The great necessity of the moment was to save that party from -defeat, and give it an advanced position, from which it might march -further forward in the natural course of events. If Mr. Canning’s party -had not obtained power, Lord Grey would never have had a party capable -of inheriting it. If Mr. Canning had not become Prime Minister when -he did, Lord Grey would not have become Prime Minister three years -afterwards. - -The public, with that plain common sense which distinguishes most -of its judgments, made allowances for the haughty nobleman’s anger, -but condemned its exhibition. Moreover, the formal charge of Lord -Londonderry, who, as his brother’s representative, accused Mr. Canning -of having forsaken that brother’s policy, was more than a counterpoise -to Lord Grey’s accusation that one Foreign Secretary was no better than -the other. Nor did people stop to examine with minute criticism every -act of a statesman who had lived in changeful times, and who was then -supporting a policy at home favourable to our trade, and carrying out a -policy abroad which inspired affection for our name and reverence for -our power. - -I have as yet purposely confined my observations to those events which -were connected with Spain and Portugal, and the struggle we had entered -into against the Holy Alliance in regard to those countries; because it -was there that Mr. Canning’s talents had been most displayed, and that -their consequences had been most important. But we are not to limit our -review of his conduct merely to these questions. - -It was not merely in Spain or in Portugal that England justified her -statesman’s proud pretension to hold over nations the umpire’s sceptre, -and to maintain, as the mediatrix between extremes, the peace of the -world. Such was the reputation which this statesman had obtained, even -amongst those against whom his policy had been directed, that the -Emperor Alexander, disgusted with the irresolution of all his other -long, credited allies, turned at last to Mr. Canning, as the only one -capable of taking a manly and decided part in the settlement of a -question in which his power was to be guarded against on the one hand, -and the feelings of his subjects, and the traditions of his empire, -were to be considered on the other. - - -IX. - -The affairs in the East during the last few years require a narrative -which, though rapid, may suffice to account for the alliance into which -at this time we entered. - -In 1821 broke out the Greek insurrection. Suppressed in Moldavia and -Wallachia, where it originated, it soon acquired strength in the -Greek islands and the Morea. Excesses were natural on both sides, and -committed by the conquering race, determined to maintain its power, -and by the subjugated one, struggling to throw off its chains. The -Greek Patriarch was murdered at Constantinople, and a series of savage -butcheries succeeded and accompanied this act of slaughter. - -By these events Russia was placed in a peculiar and embarrassing -position. She could not countenance insurrection; her system of -policy just displayed in Italy could not be reversed in Greece. But -the sympathies of religion, and the policy she had long pursued -(that of placing herself at the head of the Christian subjects of -the Porte by always assuming the air of their protectress), demanded -some manifestation of interest in the cause of the rebels. She came -forward, then, denouncing the attempt at revolution on the one hand, -but protesting on the other against the feelings which this attempt -had excited, and the means which had been taken to suppress it. -The re-establishment of the Greek Church, the safe exercise of the -Christian religion, were insisted upon. The indiscriminate massacre of -Christians, and the occupation of Moldavia and Wallachia by Turkish -troops, were loudly condemned. A reply within the time fixed not having -been given to the note in which these remonstrances were expressed the -Russian Ambassador quitted Constantinople, and war seemed imminent. - -But it was the desire of Austria and England especially to prevent war, -and their joint representations finally succeeded in persuading the -Sultan to satisfy the Russian demands; consequently, shortly after Mr. -Canning’s accession to office, the Greek churches were rebuilt, and -the Principalities evacuated, while wanton outrages against the Rayah -population were punished with due justice and severity. - -Russia, however, now made new requests; even these, through the -negotiations of the British ambassador at Constantinople, were complied -with; and, finally, after some hesitations and prevarications, the -cabinet of St. Petersburg renewed its diplomatic relations with the -Porte. - - * * * * * - -Still it was not difficult to perceive that all the differences -hitherto arranged were slight in comparison with those which must arise -if the Greek struggle long continued unsettled. In ordinary times, -indeed, we shrink before the possibility of a power (whose empire, -however wide, conquest would long keep cemented) establishing itself -across the whole of Europe, and holding on either side, here at the -Straits of the Baltic, there on those of the Mediterranean, the means -of carrying on war, or securing safety and peace as it might seem easy -to obtain victory, or advisable to avoid defeat; a power which, placed -in this position, would demand the constant vigilance of our fleets, -establish an enormous and perpetual drain upon our resources, and which -appeared not unlikely to carry through Persia (the governor of which -would be merely one of her satraps) disorder and destruction to our -Indian empire. In ordinary times this gigantic vision, when seen but -dimly and at a distance, has more than once alarmed our government -and excited our nation. But the tardy struggle of that race for -independence, to whose genius and spirit we owe our earliest dreams of -freedom--a struggle in which we were called upon to side with Greeks -fighting for Liberty, with Christians contending for Christianity, had -awakened feelings which overwhelmed all customary considerations. A -paramount enthusiasm, to which a variety of causes, and especially the -verses of our great and fashionable poet, were contributing, had seized -upon the public mind, and was destined for a while to be omnipotent. -Guarded by that enthusiasm, Russia might have planted her eagles upon -the walls of Constantinople, if she had appeared as the champion of -that land - - ----“of gods, and godlike men,” - -which had at last “exchanged the slavish sickle for the sword,” and it -is doubtful whether an English Minister could have found a Parliament -that would at that moment have sanctioned his defence of the Mahometan -power. - - -X. - -Mr. Canning, then, had either to allow the Russian cabinet to -pursue its unavowed policy uncontrolled, or to limit its action by -connecting himself with the policy which it professed. The contest, -it was evident, after the first successes that had attended the -Porte’s revolted subjects, would not be allowed to terminate in their -subjugation. With the co-operation, or without the co-operation of -Great Britain, the Morea was certain to be wrested from the Turks. To -stand by neutral, calm spectators of what was certain to take place -was to lose our consideration equally with the Ottoman empire and with -Christian Europe, and to give to the Government which acted alone in -this emergency, as the representative of an universal feeling, an -almost universal prestige. But if our interference was expedient, the -only question that could arise was as to the time and manner of our -interfering. - -As early as 1824 Count Nesselrode had had a plan for placing Greece -in the situation of the Principalities of the Danube, and the -great powers of Europe were invited to consider the subject. Mr. -Canning was not averse to this project; but he hoped little from -the discordant counsels of the five or six governments called upon -to accept it; more especially as both Greece and Turkey, to whom it -had become accidentally known, were equally dissatisfied; and he was -therefore very properly unwilling to bind his government by a share in -conferences which he foresaw were doomed to be fruitless. In short, the -negotiators met and separated, and the negotiation failed. - - * * * * * - -But, in the meantime, affairs had been becoming every day more and more -interesting and critical. On the one hand the sympathy for the Greeks -had been increased by the unexpected resolution they had displayed; -they had a loan, a government, and able and enterprising foreigners -had entered into their service. So much was encouraging for their -cause. But on the other hand the Egyptian army of Ibrahim Pasha had -achieved cruel triumphs, and a great part of the Morea, devastated and -depopulated, had submitted to his arms. - -During these events the Czar Alexander died; and for some little time -there was hesitation in the Imperial counsels. Alexander’s successor, -however, soon pursued the policy which his accession to the empire had -interrupted, and propositions (not unlike those formerly contemplated) -were now submitted to our Minister, propositions in the carrying out -of which Great Britain and Russia were alone to be combined. The -circumstances of the moment showed that the period of action had -arrived, and Mr. Canning no longer shrank from accepting a part which -there appeared some hope of undertaking with success. - -An alliance between two powers, indeed, afforded a fairer chance of -fixing upon a definite course, and maintaining a common understanding, -than the various counsels amongst which union had previously been -sought. The Greeks also, who had formerly rejected all schemes of -compromise (May, 1826), now requested the good offices of England -for obtaining a peace upon conditions which would have recognised -the supremacy of the Sultan, and entailed a tribute upon his former -subjects. Finally (and this affords an interpretation to the whole of -that policy which prevailed in the British counsels, from the first to -the last moment of negotiation), the treaty of alliance into which Mr. -Canning felt disposed to enter, contained this condition: - -“That neither Russia nor Great Britain should obtain any advantage for -themselves in the arrangement of those affairs which they undertook to -settle.” - -France became subsequently a party to this scheme of intervention, and -it was hoped that a confederacy so powerful would induce the Turks to -submit quietly to the measures which it had been determined, at all -events (by a secret article), if necessary, to enforce. - -But whilst these projects were being carried out, these hopes -entertained, that dread King, more potent than all others, held -his hand uplifted over the head of the triumphant and still ardent -statesman. - - -XI. - -On the 2nd of July Parliament had been prorogued; on the 6th the triple -alliance was signed. This celebrated treaty was the last act of Mr. -Canning’s official life. The fatigues of the session, short as it had -been, had brought him near the goal to which the enterprising mind and -assiduous labours of our most eminent men have too often prematurely -conducted them. Of a susceptibility which the slightest word of good or -evil keenly affected, and of that sanguine and untiring temperament -which would never suffer him to repose during circumstances in which he -thought his personal honour, his public opinions, and the welfare of -his political friends required his exertions: tortured by every sneer, -irritated by every affront, ready for every toil; in the last few -months in which he had risen to the heights of power and ambition--such -are human objects--was concentrated an age of anxiety, suffering, and -endurance. His countenance became more haggard, his step more feeble, -and his eye more languid. Yet at this moment, jaded, restless, and -worn, he held in the opinion of the world as high and enviable a -position as any public man ever enjoyed. All his plans had succeeded; -all his enemies had been overthrown. By the people of England he was -cherished as a favourite child; on the Continent he was beloved as the -tutelary guardian of Liberal principles, and respected as the peaceful -and fortunate arbiter between conflicting interests. Abroad, one of the -most formidable alliances ever united against England had been silently -defeated by his efforts. At home, the most powerful coalition that a -haughty aristocracy could form against himself had been successfully -defied by his eloquence and good fortune. The foes of Don Miguel, in -Portugal; the enemies of the Inquisition in Spain; the fervent watchers -after that dawn of civilization, which now opened on the vast empires -of the New World, and which promised again to shine upon the region -it most favoured in ancient times; the American patriot, the Greek -freedman, and last of all, though not the least interested (whether we -consider the wrongs he had endured, the rights to which he was justly -born, the links which should have joined him to, and the injustice -which had severed him from, the national prosperity of Great Britain), -last of all, the Irish Catholic, dwelt fondly and anxiously on the -breath of the aspiring statesman at the head of affairs. His health was -too precious, indeed, for any one to believe it to be in danger. - -The wound, notwithstanding, was given, which no medicine had the power -to cure. On the 1st of August the Prime Minister gave a diplomatic -dinner; on the 3rd he was seized with those symptoms which betokened -a fatal crisis to be at hand. At this time he was at the Duke of -Devonshire’s villa at Chiswick, where he had resided since the 20th of -July, for the sake of greater quiet and purer air. The room in which he -lay, and in which another as proud and generous a spirit, that of Mr. -Fox, had passed away, and towards which the eyes of the whole Liberal -world were now turned with agonizing suspense for five days, has since -become a place of pilgrimage. It is a small low chamber, once a kind of -nursery, dark, and opening into a wing of the building, which gives it -the appearance of looking into a courtyard. Nothing can be more simple -than its furniture or decorations, for it was chosen by Mr. Canning, -who had always the greatest horror of cold, on account of its warmth. -On one side of the fireplace are a few bookshelves; opposite the foot -of the bed is the low chimneypiece, and on it a small bronze clock, to -which we may fancy the weary and impatient sufferer often turning his -eyes during those bitter moments in which he was passing from the world -which he had filled with his name, and was governing with his projects. -What a place for repeating those simple and touching lines of Dyer: - - “A little rule, a little sway, - A sunbeam on a winter’s day, - Is all the proud and mighty have - Between the cradle and the grave.” - -After passing some time in a state of insensibility, during which the -words “Spain and Portugal” were frequently on his lips, on the 8th of -August Mr. Canning succumbed. His remains sleep in Westminster Abbey; -a peerage and a pension were granted to his family; and a statue is -erected to his memory on the site of his parliamentary triumphs. - - * * * * * - -The generation amidst which Mr. Canning died, attended his hearse, and -crowned his funeral with honours. What is the place he ought to hold in -the minds of future generations of his countrymen? - - - - -PART V. - - One must judge men by a real and not ideal standard of - mankind.--Criticisms on Mr. Canning’s conduct.--His faults when - in a subordinate position.--His better qualities developed in a - superior one.--Nature of faculties.--Influence on his own time - and the succeeding one.--Foreign policy considered.--Person; - manners; specimens of his various abilities; eloquence; - art; and turn for drollery and satire.--Style of speaking - of despatches.--Always young, and inspiring admiration and - affection, even when provoking censure. - - -I. - -In estimating the character of public men, the biographer or critic, -if he descend from the sublimity of unbounded panegyric, is often apt -to elevate himself at the expense of the person of whom he speaks; and -to treat with artificial severity any dereliction from that perfection -of conduct which he sees nowhere attained. Thanks to this affected -severity or paltry envy, we have hardly a great man left to us. -Bolingbroke is nothing but a quack; the elder Pitt only a charlatan; -Burke himself a declaimer and a renegade; Fox an ambitious politician -out of place; all of which things these great men to a certain degree -were, being still great men; and deserving the admiration of a -posterity which can hardly hope to furnish their equals. - -“No one should write history,” said Montaigne, “who has not himself -served the State in some civil or military capacity.” By which this -shrewd and impartial observer meant, that no man is fit to judge the -conduct of men of action who is not himself a man of action, and can -judge it practically, according to what men really are in the world, -and not according to any imaginary theory which he may adopt in the -obscure nook of his own chimney corner, as to what they might and ought -to be. - -“We are not,” says Cicero, “in the Republic of Plato, but in the -mud of Romulus;” and they who have observed and meditated upon the -vicissitudes of empires, will have seen that such have risen or -fallen according to the number of eminent men, endowed with lofty -intelligences and daring spirits, whom they have produced. And where -have such eminent men existed without defects? Human nature is too -imperfect for us to expect to find extraordinary abilities and energies -under the constant control of moderate virtues. - -To those, then, who have read the preceding pages, the whole of Mr. -Canning’s career may be shortly summed up in the words of Lord Orford -(Horace Walpole), who, speaking of Lord Chatham, says: - -“His ambition was to be the most illustrious man in the first country -in the world, and he thought that the eminence of glory could not be -sullied by the steps to it being passed irregularly” (vol. iv. p. 243). - -In the same manner Canning was less scrupulous than he should have -been to obtain power and fame. But, in the most memorable part of his -life, he made a noble use of the one and well deserved the other. -Desirous of office and distinction, he attached himself, on entering -life, to that minister by whom office and distinction were most likely -to be conferred. The circumstances of the time afforded him not merely -an apology, but a fair reason for doing this; still, there seems no -injustice in adding that, in ranging himself under the banner of the -great commoner’s great son, he thought of his own personal prospects as -well as of the public interests. - -Mr. Pitt died; Mr. Canning was, as he declared himself, henceforth -without a leader. Some of his opinions inclined him to unite with his -early friends and recent opponents (the Whigs), who then came into -office; and this, it seems, he was on the point of doing, when, by a -sudden whirl of Fortune’s wheel, the persons he was seceding from were -jerked into power, and those he was about to join jerked out of it. A -young man, conscious of his own abilities, and satisfied in his own -mind that, however he might obtain influence, he would use it for the -public advantage, he did not refuse a high situation from the party -to which he still publicly belonged, in order to follow a party just -driven from the Administration, and with which he had but begun to -treat. - -There are things to say in excuse of this conduct, and I have said -them; but no one who wishes that Mr. Canning’s life had been without a -flaw, can do otherwise than regret that the statesman who made so many -subsequent sacrifices for the Catholics, should have joined, at this -juncture, a Ministry which rallied its partisans under the cry of “No -Popery!” - -It is likewise to be regretted that having so frequently expressed his -sense of the incapacity of Lord Castlereagh, he should nevertheless -have consented first to serve as a subordinate under him when he was -mismanaging foreign affairs; and, secondly, to serve as a colleague -with him when he was alike lowering us abroad and misgoverning us at -home. - -During four years he did not shrink from the promulgation of any -arbitrary edict--from the suppression of any popular right; and though -I admit that many liberal and prudent persons (influenced, I cannot -but think, by most exaggerated apprehensions) considered that the -strongest measures were necessary at that time to control a spirit -of insurrection, which the mingled harshness and incapacity of the -ruling Administration had provoked; still, there is a great difference -between men who sanction bad laws which a bad government, in which -they have had no share, may render momentarily necessary, and men who -bring forward bad laws as the result of a bad government which has been -carried on by themselves. - -It is hardly an excuse to say his errors were committed in an inferior -situation, with the idea of rising to a commanding one; but, at all -events, when he reached the eminence towards which he had so long been -toiling, he made, as I have shown, the best use of that power which had -not always been sought for by the best means. Thus, from first to last, -we see a man anxious to have power and to use it well; but as anxious -to have it as to use it well. That he was blamed and praised with -exaggeration was natural; for amidst confronting arrays he was seen -for ever in the first rank with the most glittering arms, exciting the -admiration of friends and the hatred of foes by his scornful air and -ostentatious attitude of defiance. - -His talents, by nature showy, were given their peculiar turn by his -early education, and his career was shaped to the paths which offered -to lead him most easily to distinction. Trained to the juvenile task of -writing a foreign language in polished periods, he was at times less -anxious to find solid arguments than striking expressions. Not brought -up in communication with the uneducated classes, he was more keenly -alive to the opinion of the cultivated and refined. Too accommodating -as to the temporary suspension of national freedom at home, he was -constantly anxious and determined to maintain the power and prestige of -the country abroad--throughout his whole life he exhibited the effects -of the public school and the close borough. - -Like most men who have become illustrious, Mr. Canning owed much to -fortune. Lucky in the time of his decease, lucky in the times at which -many of those with whom he had hitherto acted deserted him. If he had -lived longer, it would have been difficult for him to have kept the -station to which he had risen: if he had not been left when he was by a -great portion of his party, he would never have obtained the popularity -by which his death was hallowed. To few has it happened to be supported -by a set of men just as long as their support was useful,--to be -quitted by them just when their alliance would have been injurious. The -persons who as friends gave Mr. Canning power, as enemies conferred on -him reputation. That reputation was above all others, at the time of -his demise, amongst his countrymen and contemporaries; and it still -retains its predominance, though the influence which he exercised over -our domestic policy, and over the events which succeeded his death, -is not yet, perhaps, sufficiently recognised. I have already observed -that if he had not been Prime Minister in 1827, it is not likely that -Lord Grey would have been Premier in 1830. I may add that had not his -appointment at the former period brought together all the elements -of a great Liberal party, who were allied under the cry of Catholic -Emancipation, thus giving a hope and a spirit to the Catholics which -they had not previously possessed, the Duke of Wellington would not -within a year or two afterwards have been forced to acknowledge that -further resistance to them was impossible. Furthermore, if such men -as Lord Melbourne, Lord Palmerston, the Grants, and a large party in -the country looking up to these statesmen as safe as well as liberal -guides--had not been already connected with the Whigs, and alienated -from the Tories, under the influence of Mr. Canning in 1827, the Reform -Bill would hardly have been proposed in 1830, and would certainly not -have been carried in 1832. The more minutely, in short, that we examine -the events of the last thirty-six years, the more we shall perceive how -much their quiet development has been owing to Mr. Canning, and to the -class of men whom Mr. Canning formed, and in his later days represented. - -In determining his merits as director of the foreign policy of Great -Britain, I have stood, I confess, by the old doctrines, and argued upon -the assumption that England is a great state, disposed to maintain -that greatness; that the English people is a proud, generous, and -brave people, prepared to assert its principles and its position, -and to assume its part in the affairs of the world--a nation that -takes its share in the general policy of nations--that feels it has a -common interest in the maintenance of justice, in the limitation of -unscrupulous ambition, in the progress of civilization. I have supposed -that the collective wisdom and experience of past ages, have taught us -that human nature is ever, though under different forms, guided by the -same rules; that the strong, unless they are adequately restrained, -insult and oppress, and finally vanquish the weak; that those who under -all circumstances are determined to be at peace, become eventually the -certain victims of aggression and war; that the spirit of a people -cannot with impunity be allowed to droop and languish without dimming -the brightness of its genius and losing the force of its character. -That a mere money-making population, which, lapped in the luxury of -commercial prosperity, begins to disregard its nice sense of honour, -its admiration for valour and daring, becomes daily weaker against the -spoiler, and a greater temptation to spoliation. I have ventured to -believe that a noble people has a heart open to noble emotions--that -such a heart is not dead to pity for the unfortunate, to sympathy with -the brave--to the love of glory inspiring to great deeds, and to the -love of power, with the intention to use it for the public good. I do -not think it wise to exchange the principles of action derived from -these sentiments for a colder, less generous, and, as I feel convinced, -a less sound code of political philosophy. The same sentiments which -make one man considered and beloved above others, must distinguish the -State aspiring to be great and beloved; but it does not follow that -if you feel compassion for a drowning man, you are to plunge into the -sea to save him if you cannot swim; that if you see two men valiantly -struggling against two regiments, you are to rush into the middle of -the combat with the certainty of not vanquishing the assailants, and -with that of losing your own life. I condemn nations that interfere -needlessly with the international affairs of others, as I should the -lady who pretended to dictate to her neighbour how she should have her -drawing-room swept, or her chimneys cleaned. I condemn governments -which threaten heedlessly, and then fail to strike in spite of -their threats; but I esteem governments which look carefully after -their honour and interests, and do interfere when it is necessary -or expedient to do so, in order either to defend that honour, or to -maintain those interests; governments cautious to speak, but bold in -acting up to their words. - -It is with these views that I look upon the foreign policy of Mr. -Canning,--a policy for giving England a great and proud position,--for -giving to Englishmen a glorious and respected name; for safeguarding -our shores by the universal prestige of our bravery and our power; -for limiting the ambition of rival states, without needlessly -provoking their animosity; for showing a wish to conciliate wherever -moderation is displayed, and for displaying a resolution to resist -when conciliation is repulsed--as a great English policy, with which -the people of England will ever sympathize, and by which the permanent -interests of England will best be preserved. - -There are men who are anxious for civil commotion, which they think -may be more easily brought about by concentrating the public mind -on domestic grievances; there are men who are indifferent to the -pride of country--who would as soon be Portuguese, Mexicans, or -Moldo-Wallachians, as Englishmen. There are men who, though fame and -consideration are the great objects of their countrymen, hold they -ought not to be objects for their country. These will repudiate my -opinion. But every Briton who is justly proud of his race, who will -inquire from a small and despised state the value of being a great and -renowned one, will, I believe, recognise the foreign policy I have -been describing to be the true policy for maintaining the dignity and -authority, without rashly risking the peaceful prosperity, of the -British empire. - -In person Mr. Canning was favoured by nature, being of a good height, -of a strong frame, and of a regular and remarkably intelligent -countenance. The glance of his eye when excited, and the smile of his -lip when pleased, were often noted by his contemporaries. - - “And on that turtle I saw a rider, - A goodly man, with an eye so merry, - I knew ’twas our foreign secretary, - Who there at his ease did sit and smile - Like Waterton on his crocodile; - Cracking such jokes, at every motion, - As made the turtle squeak with glee, - And own that they gave him a lively notion - Of what his own forced-meat balls would be.” - - _A Dream of a Turtle._--T. MOORE. - -Charming in manner, as I have said, constant in attachments, it was -observed of him at one period, that he was as dear to his friends as -odious to the public.[125] - -Ever ready to praise his subordinates, and to consult the tastes of his -associates, he was honoured as a chief as much as he was relished as a -companion. His accomplishments were various, and of a kind which may -leave disputes open as to the degree of their excellence, but they were -all of that brilliant and genial description which was sure to attract -sympathy and procure reputation. How many must have chuckled over the -following light and lazy piece of satire: - - “I am like Archimedes for science and skill, - I am like the young prince who went straight up the hill; - And to interest the hearts of the fair be it said, - I am like a young lady just bringing to bed. - If you ask why the eleventh of June I remember - So much better than April, or March, or December, - ’Tis because on that day, as with pride I assure ye, - My sainted progenitor took to his brewery. - On that day in the month he began making beer; - On that night he commenced his connubial career. - On that day he died when he had finished his summing, - And the angels all cried ‘here’s old Whitbread a coming.’ - So that day I still hail with a smile and a sigh, - For his beer with an _e_ and his bier with an _i_; - And that day every year, in the hottest of weather, - The whole Whitbread family dine altogether. - My Lords, while the beams of the hall shall support - The roof which o’ershades this respectable court - (Where Hastings was tried for oppressing the Hindoos), - While the rays of the sun shall shine in these windows - My name shall shine bright as my ancestor’s shines, - Emblazoned on journals as his upon signs.” - -How many must have felt their minds respond and their hearts bound at -the following argumentative and spirited declamation: - -“When the elective franchise was conceded to the Catholics of Ireland, -that acknowledgment and anticipation, which I now call upon the House -formally to ratify and realize, was, in point of fact, irrevocably -pronounced. To give the latter the elective franchise was to admit him -to political power; for, to make him an elector and at the same time to -render him incapable of being elected, is to attract to our sides the -lowest orders of the community, at the same time that we repel from us -the highest orders of the gentry. This is not the surest or safest way -to bind Ireland to the rest of the Empire in ties of affection. And -what is there to prevent our union from being wrought more closely? Is -there any moral--is there any physical obstacle? _Opposuit natura?_ -No such thing. _We have already bridged the channel!_ Ireland now -sits with us in the Representative Assembly of the Empire; and when -she was allowed to come there, why was she not also allowed to bring -with her some of her Catholic children? For many years, alas! we have -been erecting a mound, not to assist or improve the inclinations of -Providence, but to thwart them. We have raised it high above the -waters, and it has stood there frowning hostility and effecting a -separation. In the course of time, however, chance and design--the -necessities of man and the sure workings of nature--have conspired -to break down this mighty structure, till there remains of it only a -narrow isthmus standing - - ‘between two kindred seas, - Which mounting view each other from afar, - And long to meet.’ - -What, then, shall be our conduct? Shall we attempt to repair the -breaches, and fortify the ruins? A hopeless and ungracious undertaking! -or shall we leave them to moulder away by time and accident? a sure but -distant and thankless consummation! Or shall we not rather cut away at -once the isthmus that remains, allow free course to the current which -our artificial impediments have constructed, and float upon the mighty -waters the ark of our common constitution?” - -And we are now to be told that this same man, so playful and jocose, -so ornamented and brilliant, was a close arguer, and indefatigable -in attendance at his office. But though always ready for business, -he would not scruple to introduce a piece of drollery into the most -serious affairs. For instance: - -The embassy at the Hague is in earnest dispute with the King of -Holland; a despatch addressed to Sir Charles Bagot arrives--it is in -cypher. The most acute of the attachés set to work to discover the -meaning of this particular document; they produce a _rhyme_! they are -startled, thrown into confusion; set to work again, and produce another -rhyme. The important paper (and it was important) contains something -like the following doggrel: - - “Dear Bagot, in commerce the fault of the Dutch - Is giving too little, and asking too much, - So since on this policy Mynheer seems bent, - We’ll clap on his vessels just 20 per cent.” - -As a specimen of his more private and trivial pleasantries may be -mentioned his observation to, I believe, Lord Londonderry, who had been -telling a story of some Dutch picture he had seen, in which all the -animals of antediluvian times were issuing from Noah’s Ark, “and,” said -Lord Londonderry, “the elephant was last.” “That of course,” said Mr. -Canning; “he had been packing up his trunk.” - -In his celebrated contest with Lord Lyndhurst (then Sir John Copley), -that noble lord having appeared in it with a speech borrowed for the -most part from a popular pamphlet, written by the late Bishop of Exeter -(then Doctor Philpotts), he was overthrown amidst shouts of laughter, -by the appropriate recollection of the old song: - - “‘Dear Tom, this brown jug that now foams with mild ale, - Out of which I now drink to sweet Nan of the Yale,’ - Was once _Toby Philpot_.” - -Again, who does not remember the celebrated sketch of Lord -Nugent[126]--who went out to join the Spanish patriots when their cause -was pretty well lost--a sketch which furnished Mr. Canning’s most -effective defence of the neutral policy he had adopted towards Spain, -during the French expedition. - -“It was about the middle of last July that the heavy Falmouth -coach”--(here Mr. Canning was interrupted with loud and continued -laughter)--“that the heavy Falmouth coach was observed travelling -to its destination through the roads of Cornwall with more than its -wonted gravity (very loud laughter). The coach contained two inside -passengers--the one a fair lady of no inconsiderable dimensions, the -other a gentleman who was conveying the succour of his person to -the struggling patriots of Spain. I am further informed--and this -interesting fact, sir, can also be authenticated--that the heavy -Falmouth van (which honourable gentlemen, doubtless, are aware is -constructed for the conveyance of cumbrous articles) was laden, upon -the same memorable occasion, with a box of most portentous magnitude. -Now, sir, whether this box, like the flying chest of the conjuror, -possessed any supernatural properties of locomotion, is a point which -I confess I am quite unable to determine; but of this I am most -credibly informed--and I should hesitate long before I stated it to -the House, if the statement did not rest upon the most unquestionable -authority--that this extraordinary box contained a full uniform of a -Spanish general of cavalry, together with a helmet of the most curious -workmanship; a helmet, allow me to add, scarcely inferior in size to -the celebrated helmet in the castle of Otranto (loud laughter). Though -the idea of going to the relief of a fortress, blockaded by sea and -besieged by land, in a full suit of light horseman’s equipments was, -perhaps, not strongly consonant to modern military operations, yet when -the gentleman and his box made their appearance, the Cortes, no doubt, -were overwhelmed with joy, and rubbed their hands with delight at the -approach of the long-promised aid. How the noble lord was received, or -what effects he operated on the councils of the Cortes by his arrival, -I (Mr. Canning) do not know. Things were at that juncture moving -rapidly to their final issue; and how far the noble lord conduced to -the termination by throwing his weight into the sinking scale of the -Cortes, is too nice a question for me just now to settle.”[127] - -Mr. Canning’s wit, it is true, was not unfrequently too long and too -laboured, and a happy combination of words would almost always seduce -him into an indiscretion. The alliteration of “revered and ruptured,” -as applied to the unfortunate Mr. Ogden, cost him more abuse, and -procured him for a time more unpopularity, than the worst of his acts -ever deserved. His description of the American navy (in 1812) as “half -a dozen fir-frigates, with bits of bunting flying at their heads,” -excited the American nation more than any actual grievance, and caused -in a great measure the bitterness of that contest in which we were so -insolent and so unsuccessful. His propensity to jokes made him also -many enemies in private life. The late Duke of Bedford told a friend of -mine that Mr. Canning, when staying with a party at Lord Carrington’s -(a few weeks after Lord C. had been made a peer by Mr. Pitt), wrote in -chalk, on the outside of the hall-door, the following lines:-- - - “One Bobby Smith lives here, - Billy Pitt made him a peer, - And took the pen from behind his ear.” - -This unnecessary impertinence, I have heard, Lord Carrington never -forgave. - -In the art of speaking, our orator’s progress, like that of Pulteney, -Fox, and all our great parliamentary debaters, with the exception of -the two Pitts, Bolingbroke, and Lord Derby, was slow and gradual; -and though I have heard Lord Lansdowne (once known as Henry Petty) -observe that he considered Canning in his best days even more effective -than Fox or Pitt, he had at an earlier period been often accused, by -no mean judges, now of being wordy and tedious, now of being rather -elegant than argumentative. To time, practice, a proud spirit, and -a continually developing understanding, he owed his triumph over -these defects. Then it was that his eloquence approached almost to -perfection, as we consider the audience, half lounging and sleepy, half -serious and awake, to which it was addressed. Quick, easy, and fluent, -frequently passionate and sarcastic, now brilliant and ornamented, -then again light and playful; or, if he wished it, clear, simple, and -incisive; no speaker ever combined a greater variety of qualities, -though many have been superior in each of the excellences which he -possessed. Remarkable as a general rule for the polish of his language -(we have proof, even to the last, of the pains he bestowed upon it), -those who knew him well assert that he would sometimes purposely frame -his sentences loosely and incorrectly, in order to avoid the appearance -of preparation. “Erat memoriæ nulla tamen meditationis suspicio.” His -action exhibiting when calm an union of grace and dignity, became, -as he warmed, unaffectedly fervent; and made natural by its vigour -and animation the florid language and figurative decorations in which -he rather too fondly indulged. His arguments were not placed in that -clear, logical form, which sometimes enchains, but more often wearies, -attention; neither did he use those solemn perorations by which it is -attempted to instil awe or terror into the mind. His was rather the -endeavour to charm the ear, to amuse the fancy, to excite the feelings, -to lead and fascinate the judgment; and in these different attributes -of his great art he succeeded in the highest degree, insomuch that -though he might be said to want depth and sublimity, the faculties he -possessed were elevated to such a pitch, that at times he appeared both -profound and sublime. - -A great merit, which he finally possessed, was that of seizing and -speaking the general sense of the popular assembly he addressed. Sir -Robert Peel, his distinguished rival, told me one day, in speaking of -Mr. Canning as to this particular, that he would often before rising -in his place, make a sort of lounging tour of the House, listening to -the tone of the observations which the previous debates had excited, so -that at last, when he himself spoke, he seemed to a large part of his -audience to be merely giving a striking form to their own thoughts. - -Neither were his despatches, though not so elaborately perfect as -those of his successor (Lord Dudley), inferior to his orations; -possessing precision, spirit, and dignity, they remain what they were -justly called by no incompetent authority, “models and masterpieces of -diplomatic composition.”[128] - -There are critics who have said that there was something in his -character which tended to diminish our respect for his talents, though -it softened our censure for his defects. And it is true that the same -unstately love for wit--the same light facility for satire--the same -imprudent levity of conduct, that involuntarily lowered our estimate of -his graver abilities--involuntarily led us to excuse his graver errors. -We at one time blame the statesman for being too much the child--at -another we pardon the veteran politician in the same humour in which we -would forgive the spoiled and high-spirited schoolboy. - -Mr. Canning, indeed, was always young. The head of the sixth form -at Eton--squibbing “the doctor,” as Mr. Addington was called; -fighting with Lord Castlereagh; cutting jokes on Lord Nugent; flatly -contradicting Lord Brougham; swaggering over the Holy Alliance; he was -in perpetual personal quarrels--one of the reasons which created for -him so much personal interest during the whole of his parliamentary -career. Yet out of those quarrels he nearly always came glorious and -victorious--defying his enemies, cheered by his friends--never sinking -into an ordinary man,--though not a perfect one. - -No imaginative artist, fresh from studying his career, would sit down -to paint this minister with the broad and deep forehead--the stern -compressed lip--the deep, thoughtful, concentrated air of Napoleon -Bonaparte. As little would the idea of his eloquence or ambition -call to our recollection the swart and iron features--the bold and -haughty dignity of Strafford. We cannot fancy in his eye the volume -depth of Richelieu’s--the volcanic flash of Mirabeau’s--the offended -majesty of Chatham’s. Sketching him from our fancy, it would be as a -few still living remember him, with a visage rather marked by humour -and intelligence than by meditation or sternness; with something of -the petulant mingling in its expression with the proud; with much of -the playful overruling the profound. His nature, in short, exhibited -more of the genial fancy and the quick irritability of the poet who -captivates and inflames an audience, than of the inflexible will of the -dictator who puts his foot on a nation’s neck, or of the fiery passions -of the tribune who rouses a people against its oppressors. - -Still, Mr. Canning, such as he was, will remain one of the most -brilliant and striking personages in our historical annals. As a -statesman, the latter passages of his life cannot be too deeply -studied; as an orator, his speeches will always be models of their -kind; and as a man, there was something so graceful, so fascinating, -so spirited in his bearing, that even when we condemn his faults, -we cannot avoid feeling affection for his memory, and a sympathetic -admiration for his genius. - - - - -SIR ROBERT PEEL. - - - - -PART I. - - Family.--Birth.--Formation of character.--Education at Harrow - and Oxford.--Entry into Parliament.--Line adopted there.--Style - of speaking.--Becomes Secretary of Colonies.--Secretary for - Ireland.--Language on the Catholic question.--Returned as - member for the University of Oxford.--Resigned his post in - Ireland. - - -I. - -The family of the Peels belonged to the class of yeomanry, which in -England, from the earliest times, was well known and reputed, forming -a sort of intermediate link between the gentry and the commonalty, as -the gentry formed an intermediate link between the great barons and -the burghers or wealthy traders. The yeoman was proud of belonging to -the yeomanry, and if you traced back the descent of a yeoman’s family, -you found it frequently the issue of the younger branch of some noble -or gentle house. For some generations this family of Peel had at its -head men of industry and energy, who were respected by their own class, -and appeared to be gradually rising into another. The grandfather of -the great Sir Robert inherited a small estate of about one hundred -pounds a year, called Peel’s Fold, which is still in the family. He -received a fair education at a grammar-school, and married (1747) into -a gentleman’s family (Haworth, of Lower Darwen). - -Beginning life as a farmer of his little property, he undertook, at -the time that the cotton manufacture began to develop itself in -Lancashire, the business of trader and printer. - -The original practice had been to send up the fabricated article to -Paris, where it was printed and sent back into this country for sale. -Mr. Peel started a calico printing manufactory, first in Lancashire -and afterwards in Staffordshire, and his success was the result of the -conviction--that “a man could always succeed if he only put his will -into the endeavour,” a maxim which he often repeated in his later days, -when as a stately old gentleman he walked with a long gold-headed cane, -and wore the clothes fashionable for moderate people in the days of Dr. -Johnson. - -The first Sir Robert Peel was a third son. Enterprising and ambitious, -he left his father’s establishment, and became a junior partner in -a manufactory carried on at Bury by a relation, Mr. Haworth, and -his future father-in-law, Mr. Yates. His industry, his genius, soon -gave him the lead in the management of this business, and made it -prosperous. By perseverance, talent, economy, and marrying a wealthy -heiress--Miss Yates, the daughter of his senior partner--he had amassed -a considerable fortune at the age of forty. - -He then began to turn his mind to politics, published a pamphlet on -the National Debt, made the acquaintance of Mr. Pitt, and got returned -to Parliament (1790) for Tamworth, where he had acquired a landed -property, which the rest of his life was passed in increasing. He was -a Church and King politician in that excitable time, and his firm -contributed no less than ten thousand pounds in 1797 to the voluntary -subscriptions for the support of the war. So wealthy and loyal a -personage was readily created a baronet in 1800. - -His celebrated son was born in 1788, two years before he himself -entered public life, and on this son he at once fixed his hopes of -giving an historical lustre to the name which he had already invested -with credit and respectability. - - -II. - -It was the age of great political passions, and of violent personal -political antipathies and partialities. The early elevation of Mr. Pitt -from the position of a briefless barrister to that of prime minister -had given a general idea to the fathers of young men of promise and -ability that their sons might become prime ministers too. The wealthy -and ambitious manufacturer soon determined, then, that his boy, who was -thought to give precocious proofs of talent, should become First Lord -of the Treasury. He did not merely bring him up to take a distinguished -part in politics, which might happen to be a high position in -opposition or office, he brought him up especially for a high official -position. It was to office, it was to power, that the boy who was to be -the politician was taught to aspire; and as the impressions we acquire -in early life settle so deeply and imperceptibly into our minds as to -become akin to instincts, so politics became instinctively connected -from childhood in the mind of the future statesman with office; and he -got into the habit of looking at all questions in the point of view in -which they are seen from an official position; a circumstance which it -is necessary to remember. - -To say nothing of the anecdotes which are told in his family of the -early manifestations which Mr. Peel gave of more than ordinary ability, -he was not less distinguished at Harrow as a student for his classical -studies, than he was as a boy for the regularity of his conduct. I -remember that my tutor, Mark Drury, who, some years previous to my -becoming his pupil, had Peel in the same position, preserved many of -his exercises; and on one occasion brought some of them down from -a shelf, in order to show me with what terseness and clearness my -predecessor expressed himself, both in Latin and English. - -Lord Byron says: “Peel, the orator and statesman that was, or is, or is -to be, was my form-fellow, and we were both at the top of our remove, -in public school phrase. We were on good terms, but his brother was my -intimate friend. There were always great hopes of Peel amongst us all, -masters and scholars, and he has not disappointed them. As a scholar, -he was greatly my superior; as a declaimer and actor, I was reckoned -at least his equal; as a schoolboy out of school, I was always in -scrapes--he never.” This character as a lad developed itself, without -altering in after life. - -At the University of Oxford the young man was the simple growth of the -Harrow boy. He read hard, and took a double first-class, indicating the -highest university proficiency both in classics and mathematics. But it -is remarkable that he studiously avoided appearing the mere scholar: he -shot, he boated, he dressed carefully, and, without affecting the man -of fashion, wished evidently to be considered the man of the world. - -As soon as he became of age, his father resolved to bring him into -Parliament, and did so, in 1809, by purchasing a seat for him at Cashel. - - -III. - -The great men of the Pittite day were passing away. The leading men at -the moment were Grey, Liverpool, Petty, Perceval, Tierney, Whitbread, -Romilly, Horner, Castlereagh, Canning: the genius of Sheridan had still -its momentary flashes; and Grattan, though rarely heard, at times -charmed and startled the House of Commons by his peculiar manner and -original eloquence. - -Brougham, Palmerston, Robinson, were Peel’s contemporaries. The Duke -of Portland was prime minister; Perceval, the leader of the House of -Commons; Canning, minister of foreign affairs; and Lord Castlereagh, -secretary of war. But this ministry almost immediately disappeared: the -Duke of Portland resigning, Lord Castlereagh and Canning quarrelling, -and Mr. Perceval, as prime minister, having to meet Parliament in 1810 -with the disastrous expedition of Walcheren on his shoulders. Young -Peel, not quite twenty-two, was chosen for seconding the address, and -did so in a manner that at once drew attention towards him. He was -then acting as private secretary to Lord Liverpool, who had become -minister of war and the colonies. The condition of the Government was -but rickety: Lord Carnarvon carried against it a motion for inquiry -into the conduct and policy of the expedition to the Scheldt; and, -subsequently, it could only obtain a vote of confidence by a majority -of twenty-three, which, in the days of close boroughs, was thought -equivalent to a defeat. Peel spoke in two or three debates, not ill, -but not marvellously well; there was, in fact, nothing remarkable in -his style; and its fluency and correctness were more calculated to -strike at first than on repetition. He never failed, however, being -always in some degree beyond mediocrity. - -In the meantime his business qualities became more and more -appreciated; and it was not long before he was appointed to the -under-secretaryship of the colonies. - -It was no doubt a great advantage to him that the government he had -joined wanted ability. - -Mr. Perceval’s mediocrity, indeed, was repulsive to men of -comprehensive views; but, on the other hand, it was peculiarly -attractive to men of narrow-minded prejudices. The dominant prejudice -of this last class--always a considerable one--was at this time an -anti-Catholic one; some denouncing Romanists as the pupils of the -devil, others considering it sufficient to say they were the subjects -of the Pope. Mr. Peel joined this party, which had amongst it some -statesmen who, sharing neither the bigotry nor the folly of the -subalterns in their ranks, thought, nevertheless, that it would be -impossible to satisfy the Catholics in Ireland without dissatisfying -the Protestants in England, and were therefore against adding to the -strength of a body which they did not expect to content. - - -IV. - -Mr. Perceval’s unexpected death was a great blow to the anti-Catholics, -and appeared likely to lead to the construction of a new and more -liberal Cabinet. The general feeling, indeed, was in favour of a -Cabinet in which the eminent men of all parties might be combined; -and a vote in favour of an address to the Regent, praying him to take -such measures as were most likely to lead to the formation of a strong -administration, passed the House of Commons. - -But it may almost be said that eminent men are natural enemies, who can -rarely be united in the same Cabinet, and are pretty sure to destroy or -nullify each other when they are. The attempt at such an union was, at -all events, on this occasion a signal failure. - -Thus, luckily for the early advancement of Mr. Peel, Lord Liverpool had -to construct a government as best he could out of his own adherents, -and the under-secretary of the colonies rose at once to the important -position of Secretary for Ireland, to which the Duke of Richmond, a man -more remarkable for his joviality than his ability, and a strenuous -anti-Catholic, was sent as Lord Lieutenant. - - -V. - -The Catholic question was to be considered an open one in the new -Cabinet, but the Irish Government, as I have shown, was altogether -anti-Catholic. This was in fact the strong bias of the administration, -and also of the Prince Regent, who, regardless of former promises and -pledges, had now become an avowed opponent of the Catholic claims. -These claims, moreover, were strongly opposed by the feelings, at that -time greatly excited, of the English clergy, and, speaking generally, -of the English people. - -Under such circumstances, a Catholic policy was at the moment -impracticable; that is, it could not be carried out: for to carry out -a policy opposed by the sovereign, opposed by the premier (who had been -selected because his most able opponents could not form a Cabinet), -opposed by the English clergy, opposed by the general sentiment of the -English people, was impracticable, whatever might be said theoretically -in its favour. - -Mr. Peel then, in taking up the anti-Catholic policy, took up the -practical one. - -The Catholics themselves, indeed, destroyed for a while all hope in -their cause, for when the most considerable of their supporters, in -order to dissipate the alarm of their co-religionists, proposed certain -guarantees for maintaining the authority of the King and the State over -the Catholic priesthood, although the English Catholics and the highest -orders of Catholics in Ireland willingly agreed to these guarantees, -the more violent of the Irish Catholics, with Mr. O’Connell at their -head, joining the most violent anti-Catholics, vehemently opposed them. -Moderate people were, therefore, crushed by the extremes. Even Grattan -was for a moment put on one side. - -This was unfortunate for Mr. Peel, who would willingly have been as -moderate as his situation would permit him, but could only at such -a crisis live with violent people, and thus obtained the nickname -of “Orange Peel,” so that after different altercations with Mr. -O’Connell--altercations which nearly ended in a duel--he found himself, -almost in his own despite, regarded by both Protestants and Catholics -as the great Protestant champion. - -It was in this position that he made, in 1817 (on an unsuccessful -motion of Mr. Grattan’s), a very remarkable speech, the success of -which Sir James Mackintosh attributes to its delivery. - -“Peel,” he says, “made a speech of little merit, but elegantly and -clearly expressed, and so well delivered as to be applauded to excess. -He now fills the important place of spokesman to the intolerant -faction.” - -The speech, however, had other merits than those Sir James -acknowledged, and I quote a passage which subsequently formed the -groundwork of all Mr. Peel’s anti-Catholic speeches. - -“If you give them” (the Catholics) “that fair proportion of national -power to which their numbers, wealth, talents, and education will -entitle them, can you believe that they will or can remain contented -with the limits which you assign to them? Do you think that when they -constitute, as they must do, not this year or next, but in the natural, -and therefore certain order of things, by far the most powerful body -in Ireland--the body most controlling and directing the government -of it; do you think, I say, that they will view with satisfaction -the state of your church or their own? Do you think that if they are -constituted like other men, if they have organs, senses, affections, -passions, like ourselves; if they are, as no doubt they are, sincere -and zealous professors of that religious faith to which they belong; if -they believe your intrusive church to have usurped the temporalities -which it possesses; do you think that they will not aspire to the -re-establishment of their own church in all its ancient splendour? Is -it not natural that they should? If I argue from my own feelings, if I -place myself in their situation, I answer that it is. May I not then, -without throwing any calumnious imputations upon any Roman Catholics, -without proclaiming (and grossly should I injure them if I did) such -men as Lord Fingal or Lord Gormanston to be disaffected and disloyal, -may I not, arguing from the motives by which men are actuated, from -the feeling which nature inspires, may I not question the policy -of admitting those who must have views hostile to the religious -establishments of the State to the capacity of legislating for the -interests of those establishments, and the power of directing the -Government, of which those establishments form so essential a part?” - - -VI. - -Have we not seen that every word I have been quoting is practically -true? Are we not beginning to acknowledge the difficulty of maintaining -a Protestant Church establishment in Ireland in the face of a large -majority of Irish Catholic representatives? Are we not beginning to -question the possibility of upholding an exclusive church belonging to -a minority, without a government in which that minority dominates? Do -we not now acknowledge the glaring sophistry of those who contended -that the Catholics having once obtained their civil equality would -submit with gratitude to religious inferiority? Mr. Peel saw and stated -the case pretty clearly as it stood; the whole condition of Ireland, -as between Catholic and Protestant, was involved in the question -of Catholic emancipation, and as the avowed champion of Protestant -ascendancy, he said, “do not resign your outworks as long as you can -maintain them, if you have any serious design to keep your citadel.” -But the very nature of his argument showed in the clearest manner -that we were ruling against the wishes and interests of the large -majority of the Irish people; that we were endeavouring to maintain an -artificial state of things in Ireland which was not the natural growth -of Irish society;--a state of things only to be maintained by force, -and which, the day that we were unable or unwilling to use that force, -tumbled naturally to pieces. It is well to bear this in mind. - -The anti-Catholic party, however, accepted Mr. Peel’s argument; -they did not pretend to say that they governed by justice; and they -applauded their orator for showing that, whenever there was an attempt -to govern justly, as between man and man, and not unjustly, as between -Protestant and Catholic, their cause would be lost. - -His reward was the one he most valued. Mr. Abbott, then Speaker, -represented the University of Oxford. Mr. Abbott was made a peer, and -Mr. Peel, through the interest of Lord Eldon and of the party that Sir -James Mackintosh calls the intolerant one, was elected in his place, in -spite of the well-known and favourite ambition of Mr. Canning. - -With this result of his Irish administration Mr. Peel was satisfied. -All the duties attached to his place he had regularly and punctually -fulfilled. His life had been steady and decorous in a country where -steadiness and decorum were peculiarly meritorious because they -were not especially demanded. In all matters where administrative -talents were requisite he had displayed them: the police, still -called “Peelers,” were his invention. He protected all plans for -education, except those which, by removing religious inequalities and -animosities, and infusing peace into a discordant society, would have -furnished the best; and with a reputation increasing yearly in weight -and consideration, resigned his post, and escaped from a scene, the -irrational and outrageous contentions of which were out of harmony with -his character. - - - - -PART II. - - Currency.--Views thereupon.--Chairman in 1859 of Finance - Committee.--Conduct as to the Queen’s trial.--Becomes Home - Secretary.--Improvement of police, criminal law, prisons, - &c.--Defends Lord Eldon, but guards himself against being - thought to share his political tendencies, and declares himself - in favour in Ireland of a general system of education for all - religions, and denounces any attempt to mix up conversion with - it.--Begins to doubt about the possibility of resisting the - Catholic claims.--The Duke of York dies, and Lord Liverpool - soon after follows.--Question of Premiership between the Duke - of Wellington and Mr. Canning.--Peel sides with the Duke of - Wellington. - - -I. - -The great practical question at issue, on Mr. Peel’s return from -Ireland, was the currency. - -The Bank, in 1797, declared, with the consent of the Government, that -its notes would not be converted, on presentation, into gold. - -At the time this was, perhaps, a necessary measure. It enabled the -Bank to make large advances to the State, which it could not have -made otherwise, and without which the Government would have found it -difficult to maintain the struggle of life and death it was engaged -in. We did, in fact, in our foreign war, what the United States lately -did in their domestic war; but the commercial consequences of such a -measure were inevitable. - -If the Bank gave a note convertible into gold on presentation it -gave gold: if it gave paper, which simply specified the obligation -to pay gold for it some day or other, the value of the note depended -on the credit attached to the promise. The promise to do a thing is -never entirely equivalent to doing it; consequently, it was utterly -impossible that a bank-note, not immediately convertible into gold, -could have precisely the same value as gold. Gold, therefore, would -have a value of its own, and a bank-note a value of its own. Moreover, -as the value of the bank-note depended on the faith placed in it, if it -had been merely required for home trade, the decrease in value would -have been small; because the English people had confidence in the -Bank of England and in the Government which sustained it; but in all -foreign transactions the case was different. If an English merchant -had to purchase goods on the Continent and he sent out bank-notes, the -merchant at St. Petersburg would have less confidence in the English -bank-note than the Manchester merchant, and he would therefore say, -“No, pay me in gold; or if you want to pay me in bank-notes, I will -only take them at the value I place on them.” In proportion, therefore, -to the extent of purchases abroad was the natural abasement of paper -money at home, and the increase in the value of gold as compared -with paper. Besides, paper money, resting on credit, partook of the -nature of the public funds, depending also on credit. As the one -fell naturally, in a long and critical war, so the other fell from -the same cause, though not in the same degree; all our dealings were -thus carried on in a money which had one real value and one nominal -one; and the real value depending, in a great measure, on matters -beyond our control. Efforts on the part of our legislature to sustain -it were useless. We forbade persons giving more for a guinea than -twenty-one shillings in paper money, and we forbade persons exchanging -a twenty-shilling bank-note for less than twenty shillings. We tried, -in short, to prevent gold and silver getting the same price in England -that they could get out of it. - -The inevitable consequence was, that the precious metals, in spite of -stupid prohibitions against their exportation, went to those countries -in which it could obtain its real value. In this manner there was, -first, the transmission of coin for the maintenance of our armies; -secondly, its exportation for the purposes of our commerce; and, -lastly, its escape from the laws which deteriorated its value, all -operating to drain England of its gold and silver; and in proportion -as they became scarcer, their comparative value with paper increased, -insomuch that fifteen shillings in coin became at last equivalent to -twenty shillings in paper bank-notes. - -Much was said as to the over-issue of bank-notes. It may always be -taken for granted that where there is an inconvertible paper, there is -an over-issue of bank-notes; because the over facility of having or -making money will naturally tend to the over-advance of it. But we must -remember, that a currency must be in proportion to the transactions -which require it; that our trade increased almost, if not quite, in -proportion to the increased issue from the Bank; that the absence of -coin necessitated a large employ of paper, and that there did not -appear to be that multitude of bubble schemes which are the usual -concomitants of a superabundant circulation. There were, in fact, quite -sufficient reasons, without attributing indiscretion to the Bank, to -account for the difference between its paper and the coin it was said -to represent; nor is there any possibility of keeping paper money on -an equality with metallic money, except by making the one immediately -exchangeable for the other. - -The inequality, then, between paper money and metallic money could only -be remedied by re-establishing that immediate exchange. But this was -not an easy matter. - - -II. - -For many years in England every transaction had been carried on in -paper. Individuals had borrowed money in it, and had received this -money in bank-notes. If they were called upon to repay it in gold, they -paid twenty-five per cent. beyond the capital they had received. On the -other hand, if individuals had purchased annuities, the seller, whether -the Government or an individual, had to pay them twenty-five per cent. -more than they had purchased. - -The resumption of cash payments, therefore, could not take place -without great individual hardship and great public loss. There can be -no doubt, also, that paper money afforded great facilities for trade; -and that the sudden withdrawal of these facilities might be felt -throughout every class of the population. - -Thus, although Mr. Horner brought the subject before the House of -Commons with great ability in 1811, it was not till 1819, when the war -had ceased, and the public mind in general had been gradually prepared -for terminating a situation which could not be indefinitely prolonged, -that the ministers intimated their intention to deal with it by the -appointment of a select committee, of which Mr. Peel was named the -chairman. - -Up to this period, it is to be observed, the resumption of cash -payments could not have been carried; and up to this period Mr. Peel -and his father, who both voted against Mr. Horner, had opposed the -resumption. But the question was probably now ripe, so to speak, -for being dealt with. It was a matter, therefore, of practical -consideration, and Mr. Peel reconsidered it; and on the 20th of May it -was curious to see the venerable Sir Robert representing the ideas of -his time, and coming forward with a petition in favour of paper money; -and his son, the offspring of another epoch, rising, after the father -had sat down, to propose a measure by which paper money (I speak of -paper money not immediately convertible into gold) was to be abolished; -and avowing, as he said, “without shame and remorse,” a thorough change -of opinion. - -His proposals compelled the Government to repay the sums which it owed -to the Bank, and compelled the Bank to resume cash payments at a date -which the Bank anticipated by resuming them in 1821. - -Of the necessity of these measures there can be no doubt; at the same -time they were calculated, as I have said, to produce momentary -discontent and distress, and already much discontent and distress -existed. - -There was, indeed, a dark period in our history to which I have already -alluded in these biographical sketches, but Peel (luckily for him) -was out of office during the greater portion of that gloomy time, and -never made himself prominent in it except once, when called upon as a -neighbour to defend the character of the magistrates on that day still -memorable, in spite of all excuses and palliations, as the day of the -“Manchester massacre.” He undertook and performed his very delicate -task on this occasion with tact and discretion. No one, indeed, -ever spoke in a less unpopular manner on an unpopular subject. Far -superior to Mr. Canning, in this respect, from that calm, steady, and -considerate tone which never gives offence, and which, laying aside the -orator, marks the statesman, he neither attempted to excite anger, nor -ridicule, nor admiration; but left his audience under the impression -that he had been performing a painful duty, in the fulfilment of which -he neither expected nor sought a personal triumph. - - -III. - -From the proceedings against the Queen, which shortly followed (the -old King dying in 1820), he kept as much as possible aloof. On -one occasion, it is true, he defended the legal course which the -Ministry had adopted for settling the question of the Queen’s guilt -or innocence; but he blamed the exclusion of her Majesty’s name from -the litany; the refusal of a ship of war to bring her to England, and -of a royal residence on British soil; in short, he separated himself -distinctly from any scheme of persecution, manifesting that he would -not sacrifice justice to Royal favour. - -The Government at this time was so weak, having suffered, even previous -to the Queen’s unfortunate business, which had not strengthened -it, several defeats, that Lord Liverpool saw the necessity of a -reinforcement, and, faithful to the system of a double-mouthed Cabinet, -took in Mr. Wynn (the representative of the Grenvilles), to speak in -favour of the Catholics, and Mr. Peel (as successor to Lord Sidmouth, -who gave up the Home Office, but remained in the ministry), to speak -against them. - -The change, nevertheless, considerably affected the administration, -both as to its spirit and its capacity. The Grenvillites were liberal, -intelligent men generally, as well as with respect to the Catholics, -and Peel was generally liberal, though hostile to the claims of the -Catholic body. - -Lord Sidmouth, at the Home Office, had moreover been a barrier against -all improvement. His career, one much superior to his merits, had been -owing to his having all George III.’s prejudices without George III.’s -acuteness. He was, therefore, George III.’s ideal of a minister, and -on this account had been stuck into every ministry, during George -III.’s lifetime, as a kind of “_King’s send_,” representing the Royal -mind. Uniting with Lord Eldon against every popular concession, and -supporting in a dry, disagreeable manner every unpopular measure, he -was as much hated as a man can be who is despised. Peel, at all events, -wished to gain the public esteem. His abilities were unquestioned. -He was much looked up to by his own party, much respected by the -opposing one; and, as it was known that Mr. Canning had at this time -engaged himself to accept the Governor-Generalship of India, every one -deemed that, if the Tories should remain in power, Peel would be Lord -Liverpool’s inevitable successor. - -The moderate and elevated tone of his language, his indefatigable -attention to business, a certain singleness and individuality which -belonged to him, foreshadowed the premiership. Even the fact that his -father had, undisguisedly, intended him for this position, though the -idea was quizzed at Peel’s entry into public life, tended eventually -to predispose persons to accept it; for people become accustomed to -a notion that has been put boldly and steadily before them, and it is -rare that a man of energy and ability does not eventually obtain a -distinction for which it is known, during a certain number of years, -that he is an aspirant. - -But one of those accidents which often cross the ordinary course of -human life--the sudden death of Lord Castlereagh and the appointment -of Mr. Canning as his successor--retained the Home Secretary in a -second-rate position, over which the great and marvellous success of -the new foreign secretary threw a certain comparative obscurity. He -was obliged, therefore, to be satisfied with continuing to pursue a -subordinate, but useful career, which might place him eventually in -men’s minds, side by side with his more brilliant competitor. - - -IV. - -The subject to which he now particularly devoted himself was the most -useful that he could have chosen. We had at the time he entered office -a police that was notoriously inefficient; prisons, which by their -discipline and condition were calculated rather to increase crime than -to act as a corrective to it; and laws which rendered society more -criminal than the criminals it punished. One can scarcely, in fact, -believe that such men as Lord Eldon and Lord Ellenborough did not think -it safe to abolish the punishment of death in the case of privately -stealing six shillings in a shop; and it is with a shudder that one -reads of fourteen persons being hanged in London in one week in 1820, -and of thirty-three executions in the year 1822. - -No one reflected whether the punishment was proportionate to the -offence; no one considered that the alleged criminal himself was a -member of the community, and had as much right to be justly dealt with -and protected against wrong as the community itself. Satisfied with -the last resort of hanging, the State neglected to take suitable -precautions against the committal of those acts which led to hanging; -nor did it seem a matter of moment to make places of confinement places -of reformation, as well as places of atonement. To Bentham, Romilly, -Mackintosh, Basil Montagu, and others, we owe that improvement in -the public mind which led finally to an improvement in our laws. Mr. -Peel had marked and felt this gradual change of opinion; and almost -immediately after he became invested with the functions of the Home -Department, he promised to give his most earnest attention to the state -of the police, the prisons, and the penal laws; a promise that, in the -four or five succeeding years, he honourably fulfilled; thus giving -to philanthropic ideas that practical sanction with men of the world, -which theories acquire by being taken up by men in power. - -It is true that the country was, as I have observed, becoming desirous -for the changes that Mr. Peel introduced, and that he never advocated -them until, owing to the efforts of others, they had won their way -with the good and the thoughtful; but it is likewise true that, so -soon as they became practically possible, he took them up with zeal, -and carried them against a considerable and, as it was then deemed, -respectable opposition, which held fœtid dungeons, decrepid watchmen, -and a well-fed gallows to be essential appendages to the British -constitution. - -During this time also he supported, though not conspicuously, the -liberal foreign policy of Mr. Canning, and the liberal commercial -policy of Mr. Huskisson. He kept, nevertheless, at the head of his own -section in the Ministry, as well by his consistent opposition to the -Catholic claims as by his defence of Lord Eldon, whose slowness in -the administration of justice and obstinate adherence to antiquated -doctrines were frequently the subject of attack. This remarkable man, -one of the many emanations of the Johnsonian mind which contrived -to make the most narrow-minded prejudices palatable to the most -comprehensive intellect, exercised great influence over the King, over -the older peers and members of the House of Commons, and over that -large mass of uncertains that rallies round a man who entertains no -scruples and doubts. Mr. Peel took care, however, not to pass for a -mere follower of Lord Eldon, nor a mere bigot of the ultra-Protestant -party. In defending and lauding the great judge and lawyer, he said -expressly: “The House will remember I have nothing to do on this -occasion with the political character of the Lord Chancellor:” and -again, in discussing the question of proselytism and education, he -not only ridiculed the idea that some extravagant people entertained -of making Catholic Ireland Protestant, but stated in so many words, -“that he was for educating Catholics and Protestants together under one -common system, from which proselytism should be honestly and studiously -excluded.” His conduct on this occasion merited particular attention. -The great difficulty which he foresaw in passing Catholic emancipation -was the hostile feeling between Catholics and Protestants. If that -feeling was removed, and a common education secured--the best mode of -modifying or removing it--the practical and political objections to -Catholic emancipation ceased. - - -V. - -The fact is that even as early as 1821, when he answered a speech from -Mr. Plunkett, which he once told me was the finest he ever heard, Mr. -Peel felt that the ground on which he had hitherto stood was shifting -from under him; that just as it had been impracticable to carry what -was called “Catholic emancipation” when he entered public life, so it -was becoming more and more impracticable to resist its being carried as -time advanced. - -Such an impression naturally became stronger and stronger as he saw -distinguished converts, from Mr. Wellesley Pole, in 1812, down to -Mr. Brownlow, in 1825, going over to his opponents, whereas not a -single convert was made to the views he advocated. He might still -think that the hope of those who imagined that the Irish Catholics, -once admitted to Parliament, would rest satisfied with that triumph, -was chimerical: he might still think that the Irish Catholics would, -as a matter of course, insist upon equality in all respects with the -Protestants: he might still foresee that this equality, the Catholics -being the majority, would lead to superiority over the Protestants: he -might still believe that the Protestants, accustomed to domination, -and supported by property and rank, would not submit tranquilly to -numbers: he might contemplate the impossibility of maintaining a -Protestant Church establishment, absorbing all the revenue accorded -to religious purposes, with a Catholic representation which would -feel galled and humiliated by such a preference; and he might also -recognise the probability that the English Protestant clergy would take -part with the Irish Protestant clergy, and denounce as an atrocious -robbery what might be demanded as a simple act of justice: and yet, -retaining all his former convictions against the measure he was called -upon to agree to, he might feel that prolonged opposition would only -serve to protract a useless struggle, and be more likely to increase -the evils he foresaw than to prevent them. Such a consideration could -not but deeply affect his mind, and breathe over his conduct an air of -hesitation and doubt. - -It is not surprising, therefore, that any one who reviews his -conduct attentively during the five or six years that preceded Lord -Liverpool’s retirement should find evident traces of this state of -thought. On one occasion he says: “No result of this debate can -give me unqualified satisfaction.” On another: “If I were perfectly -satisfied that concession would lead to perfect peace and harmony, if -I thought it would put an end to animosities, the existence of which -all must lament, I would not oppose the measure on a _mere theory_ -of the constitution.” Just previous to the Duke of York’s celebrated -declaration that, “whatever might be his situation in life, so help him -God he should oppose the grant of political power to Roman Catholics,” -Peel says, on the third reading of the Catholic Relief Bill, which -had been carried in the House of Commons by a majority of twenty-one, -that he should record, perhaps for the last time, his vote against the -concessions that it granted. - -This phrase, “_for the last time_,” much commented on at the time, -might have alluded to the possibility of the measure then under -discussion being carried; and it was generally believed that Mr. Peel -meditated at this time quitting office, and even Parliament, in order -not to prevent Lord Liverpool from dealing with a matter on which his -own opinions differed from those to which he thought it likely that the -Government would have to listen. - -When, however, after the death of the Duke of York, and the illness -of Lord Liverpool, the question was whether he should desert or hold -fast to a cause which had lost its most powerful supporters; whether he -should abandon those with whom he had hitherto acted at the moment when -victory seemed almost certain to crown their opponents, or still range -himself under their banner, there was hardly a choice for an honourable -man, and he spoke as follows: - -“The influence of some great names has been recently lost to the cause -which I support, but I have never adopted my opinions either from -deference to high station, or that which might more fairly be expected -to impress me--high ability. Keen as the feelings of regret must be -with which the loss of those associates in feeling is recollected, it -is still a matter of consolation to me that I have now the opportunity -of showing my attachment to those tenets which I formerly espoused, and -of showing that if my opinions are unpopular I stand by them still, -when the influence and authority which might have given them currency -is gone, and when I believe it is impossible that in the mind of any -human being I can be suspected of pursuing my principles with any view -to favour or personal aggrandizement.” - - -VI. - -This speech had a double bearing. It said, as clearly as possible, that -the Catholic disabilities could not be maintained; but that the speaker -could not separate himself from those with whom he had hitherto acted -in opposing their removal. - -The struggle was, in fact, then commencing between the Duke of -Wellington, backed by Lord Eldon on the one side, and Mr. Canning, -backed by the opponents of Lord Eldon on the other. The ground taken -for this struggle was the Catholic question; but I doubt whether it -could have been avoided if there had not been a Catholic question. - -Mr. Canning had, especially of late, adopted a tone and manner of -superiority which Mr. Peel and Lord Eldon chafed at, and which the Duke -of Wellington could no longer brook. The constant interposition of Lord -Liverpool, who, by flattering alternately the great warrior and the -great orator, prevented an outbreak from either, had kept up apparent -harmony. But Lord Liverpool withdrawn, it was felt, both by the Duke of -Wellington and Mr. Canning, that the one or the other must be master. -As to Mr. Peel, he naturally saw that under Mr. Canning, both being in -the House of Commons, he would be comparatively insignificant, whereas, -as first lieutenant of the Duke of Wellington, the duke being in the -House of Lords, he was a person of considerable importance. - -The determination of the Duke of Wellington not to serve under Mr. -Canning, and of Mr. Canning not to serve under the Duke of Wellington, -left no alternative but to act with one or the other. - -Mr. Peel has been attacked for siding with the Duke of Wellington. But -was it to be expected that he should leave that section of the Ministry -where he was a chief to join another where he would be a subordinate? -What part could he play amidst Mr. Canning and his friends, joined by -a certain portion of the Whigs with whom he was a perfect stranger? -and for what public object was he called upon to make this private -sacrifice? - -The settlement of the great question which agitated the Empire? No; -that was to be left in its actual state. The point at issue was not -whether an united Cabinet should be formed to settle the Catholic -question; but whether a mixed Cabinet should be formed, with the Duke -of Wellington or Mr. Canning at its head, leaving the Catholic question -unsettled. Let us suppose that some progress towards the settlement of -this question would have been made by the choice of Mr. Canning--which -is doubtful--this was a progress that would rather have kept up -agitation and not have stilled it. - -There is, indeed, an immense difference between concurring with the -people with whom you have previously been acting in order to terminate -an affair, and an alliance which does not terminate the affair, with -persons whom you have previously been opposing. It would, I think, have -been easier for Mr. Peel to join Mr. Canning in an attempt to form a -Cabinet which should bring forward a Catholic Relief Bill, than to join -him in forming a cabinet on the same principles as those on which the -Duke of Wellington would have formed one. - -I know that I do not give to these transactions the precise colour -given to them by Mr. Peel himself, and that he says, in a letter of the -19th April to Lord Eldon, that if he had thought as Mr. Canning did -on the Catholic question, or if Mr. Canning had thought as he did, he -would have served under Mr. Canning; but this is creating an imaginary -case in order to put a particular interpretation on a real one. - -I believe, notwithstanding the pains taken to make a personal question -appear a public one, that the dispute as to the premiership was in -reality a personal one; but at the same time based on motives which if -personal were not dishonourable. At all events, Mr. Canning deemed Mr. -Peel’s conduct under all circumstances so natural that he was neither -surprised nor offended by it. Their partisans, as it always in such -cases happens, were bitter; and Mr. Peel has been much blamed for the -violence of his brother-in-law, Mr. Dawson. Every one, however, knows -the proverb, “Save me from my friends, and I will save myself from my -enemies!” and I have little doubt that so profound an axiom originated -in the wisdom of an experienced statesman. But Mr. Pitt had not been -able to temper Mr. Canning’s criticisms against Mr. Addington, and Mr. -Peel would have found it a still harder task to moderate the anger of -his _protégés_ against Mr. Canning. - -It is useless dwelling longer on this epoch. Mr. Canning came -into power at the head of a Government composed of heterogeneous -materials, and closed his brilliant life without any solid advantages -having attended his momentary triumph. The attempt to continue his -administration without him was like that which had previously been made -to continue Mr. Fox’s ministry after the death of that great statesman. -In both cases the Government was the man. - - - - -PART III. - - Fall of the Goderich ministry.--Formation of the Cabinet - under the Duke of Wellington.--Policy of that Cabinet.--Its - junction with Mr. Canning’s friends.--The secession of - these, and the defeat of Mr. Fitzgerald in the Clare - election.--Majority in the House of Commons in favour of - Catholic claims.--The Language of the House of Lords.--The - conviction now brought about in the mind of Mr. Peel, that - there was less danger in settling the Catholic claims than in - leaving them unsettled.--The effect produced by this conviction - on the administration.--The propositions brought forward in - consequence in Parliament.--Carrying of these propositions - through the two Houses.--Sir Robert Peel’s conduct and - sentiments throughout the discussion of the measure he had - advocated. - - -I. - -Lord Goderich soon perished as premier because, though a clever and -accomplished man in a secondary place, he had not the indescribable -something which fits a man for a superior one: that which Mr. Peel -might fairly have anticipated, even had Mr. Canning lived, took place. -The section of the Tory party to which he belonged was recalled to -office. It is evident from the private correspondence which has since -been published that two plans were then discussed. One of these was -to form an administration excluding Lord Eldon, and excluding any -but those who had declared against Mr. Canning; the other was for an -administration which, excluding Lord Eldon, should comprise as many -of Mr. Canning’s partisans as would accept office. It is, moreover, -clear that Mr. Peel not only concurred in, but recommended the latter -course, notwithstanding the connection which had hitherto existed -between him and the Chancellor, a man whom it would be difficult to -comprehend if one did not remember that he was born under the sceptre -of Johnson, whose genius generated a class of men with minds like his -own, exhibiting the compatibility of the strongest prejudices with -an excellent understanding. Such a man is not to be spoken of with -contempt. He represented with force the epoch to which he belonged, but -that epoch was worn out. Loyalty to the House of Hanover and fidelity -to the Protestant Constitution had ceased to be the war cries of the -day; and even that spirit of firmness, energy, and consistency, which -characterised a large part of George III.’s reign, were beginning to be -replaced by a tone partly of indifference, partly of moderation, partly -of liberality, that to Lord Eldon was treachery and weakness. He was, -therefore, left out of the new Cabinet. - -On the other hand, Mr. Lamb, Mr. Huskisson, Lord Dudley, Palmerston, -the Grants, were sought as associates. “What,” says Mr. Peel, “must -have been the fate of a Government composed of Goulburn, Sir J. -Beckett, Wetherall, and myself?… We could not have stood creditably a -fortnight.” Again: “I care not for the dissatisfaction of ultra-Tories.” - -The Duke of Wellington, in recounting his interview with the King, -when the offer to form an administration was made to him, said: “The -Catholic question was not to be a Cabinet question; there was to be a -Protestant Lord Lieutenant, a Protestant[129] Lord Chancellor, and a -Protestant Chancellor in Ireland.” The Irish Government, however, with -Lord Anglesea as Lord Lieutenant, and Mr. Stanley as Secretary, was -neither in spirit nor in letter according to this programme; and the -change was attributable to Mr. Peel. - -This was one of his most prosperous moments. His career had gone -on up to this time, gradually collecting round it those materials -out of which the character of a leading statesman is formed. There -was a quiet, firm regularity in the course he had followed that had -not won for him the cheers that wait on brilliant success, but had -secured for him a constant murmur of continued approbation. He had -never disappointed; whatever had been expected from him he had always -done. His devotion to public affairs was unremitting and unaffected; -they furnished not only his sole employment, but constituted his -sole amusement; his execution of the law, where he had to see to its -administration, was thoroughly upright and impartial. The changes which -had taken place in his opinions were towards a more liberal and, as it -was then beginning to be thought, a more practical policy in commerce, -a sounder system of banking, a milder code of penal legislation. - -These changes had taken place in such a manner that they seemed -natural, and the result of a mind that did not submit itself to any -bias but that of reason. He had no longer to contend against his -brilliant and lamented rival; he was no longer burthened by a patron -who had been useful but had become inconvenient and out of date. He was -universally looked upon as a man of liberal tendencies, one subject -alone excepted. On that subject he shewed obstinacy or firmness, but -not bigotry. Would he now deal with it? Could he? Was it possible, with -the King and the Duke of Wellington against the Catholics, to satisfy -their hopes? Or was it possible, with a House of Commons almost equally -divided, to adopt such measures as would crush their expectations? - - -II. - -There are situations which impose a policy on ministers who wish to -remain ministers--this was one. It was now necessary to “mark time,” -if I may use a military figure of speech, making as little dust as -possible. Mr. Peel tried to do so; dropping the Act against the -Catholic Association, which had been found wholly inefficient, and -endeavouring not to provoke agitation, though he could not quiet it. - -In the meantime, the tendency of opinion against religious -disqualifications manifested itself on a motion of Lord John Russell, -introduced in a speech of remarkable power and ability, for removing -the Test and Corporation Acts. Mr. Peel had stated with emphasis, -during the administration of Mr. Canning, that he would always oppose -the repeal of these Acts, and he now did oppose it; but evidently with -the feeling that his opposition, which was weak, would be ineffectual. -A majority, indeed, of forty-four in the House of Commons declared -against him; and the Government then took up the measure and carried -it through both Houses. Mr. Peel, in his memoirs, gives as his reason -for this course, that if he had gone out of office he would have caused -great embarrassment in the conduct of affairs in general, and not -altered the disposition of Parliament as to the particular question -at issue; and that if he remained in office he was obliged to place -himself in conformity with the feeling of the House of Commons. Almost -immediately afterwards, that House pledged itself, by a majority of -six, to take the state of Ireland into consideration; and, though this -majority was overruled by an adverse one in the House of Lords, the -language of the Duke of Wellington and of Lord Lyndhurst, who both -admitted that things could not remain as they were, left little doubt -that a decided system of repression or concession was about to be -attempted, and that the latter system was the more likely one. - - -III. - -Two events had occurred between the vote in the House of Commons in -favour of the resolution respecting the Catholics, and the vote in -the House of Lords against it, which events had, no doubt, exercised -great influence on the debate in the latter assembly. First, Mr. -Canning’s friends had somewhat abruptly quitted the Government under -the following circumstances: - -East Retford had been disfranchised for corrupt practices. The question -was, what should be done with the two seats for that borough? All the -other members of the Government voted for leaving the seats to the -district in which East Retford was situated. - -Mr. Huskisson alone gave his vote for transferring the right of -election to Birmingham; and on the very night of this vote (May 20th, -1828) tendered his resignation, which the Duke of Wellington accepted. -When the other members of the Canning party heard of Mr. Huskisson’s -hasty resignation, provoked, as he said, by the cross looks of some of -his colleagues on the Treasury Bench, they remonstrated with him on -his conduct, which rendered theirs very difficult, since they had not -voted as he had done. Mr. Huskisson tried to explain and retract his -resignation. But the Premier had a particular dislike to Mr. Huskisson, -who had shown too much desire for office, and gave himself too many -airs after getting it. He would not accept Mr. Huskisson’s excuses or -explanations; and his manner was thought altogether so unfriendly and -overbearing that Mr. Lamb, Mr. Charles Grant, Lord Palmerston, and Lord -Dudley quitted the Government with Mr. Huskisson. The second event to -which I have alluded was the consequence of the first. - - -IV. - -The secession of the Canningites had rendered it necessary to fill -their places. Mr. Vesey Fitzgerald was selected to fill the place at -the Board of Trade vacated by Mr. Grant. This rendered necessary a new -election for Clare. - -No axiom can be more true than that if you do not mean to have a door -forced open you should not allow the wedge to be inserted. It is -difficult to understand how George III. could permit the measure in -1798 which made Catholics electors, whilst he resolved never to grant -Catholics the right to be elected. At first the Catholic voters merely -chose Protestants, who promised to extend Catholic privileges when they -could do this without great injury to their own interests. - -Mr. O’Connell determined on straining the power of Catholic votes -to the utmost. He first tried it in 1826, in Waterford, by combining -an opposition against the Protestant family of the Beresfords, who -had hitherto, from their large possessions, been all-powerful in -the county. But property availed nothing. The word was given, and -almost every tenant voted against his landlord. The Beresfords were -ignominiously defeated. The next trial was a more audacious one. - -There was nothing in law to prevent a Catholic from being elected to -serve in Parliament; it was only on taking his seat in Parliament that -he was stopped by the parliamentary oath. Of all Protestants in Ireland -none were more popular, or had been more consistently favourable to -the Catholic cause, than Mr. Fitzgerald. His name, his fortune, his -principles, gave him every claim on an Irish Catholic constituency that -a Protestant could have. He felt himself so sure of being confirmed in -the seat he occupied that he prepared to meet his constituents without -the slightest fear of opposition. - -But it was determined that a Catholic should be his opponent; and, in -order to prevent all doubt or hesitation amongst his followers, the -great agitator took the field himself. He was successful; and after Mr. -Fitzgerald’s defeat it was to be expected that a similar defeat awaited -sooner or later every other Protestant. This was a serious state of -things. - -The Government was much weakened by the loss of the able men who had -left it, and at the same time the dangers that menaced it were greater -than they had ever been before. - -Lord Anglesea, who was then, as I have stated, the Irish Viceroy, a -gallant soldier, and a man whose judgment was good, though his language -was indiscreet, declared loudly that there was no way of dealing with -the Catholic organization but by satisfying the Catholics. - -The considerations which these various circumstances inspired decided -the mind, which as I have shown had been long wavering, of Mr. Peel; -and avowing it was no longer possible to resist the Catholic claims, he -thus speaks of his conduct at this juncture: - -“In the interval between the discussion (he speaks of the interval -between the discussion in the Lower and Upper Houses of Parliament) I -had personal communication with the Duke of Wellington; I expressed -great reluctance to withdraw from him such aid as I could lend him -in the carrying on of the Government, particularly after the recent -schism; but I reminded him that the reasons which had induced me to -contemplate retirement from office in 1825, were still more powerful -in 1828, from the lapse of time, from the increasing difficulties in -administering the government in Ireland, and from the more prominent -situation which I held in the House of Commons. - -“I told him that, being in a minority in the House of Commons on the -question that of all others most deeply affected the condition and -prospects of Ireland, I could not, with any satisfaction to my own -feelings or advantage to the public interests, perform the double -functions of leading the House of Commons and presiding over the Home -Department; that at an early period, therefore, my retirement must -take place. I expressed at the same time an earnest hope that in the -approaching discussion in the Lords, the Duke of Wellington might deem -it consistent with his sense of duty to take a course in debate which -should not preclude him, who was less deeply committed on the question -than myself, from taking the whole state of Ireland into consideration -during the recess, with the view of adjusting the Catholic question.” - -After the prorogation of Parliament, the course to be adopted was -maturely considered. - -Sir Robert Peel’s opinion was already made up. He argued thus: - -“The time for half measures and mixed cabinets is gone by. We must -yield or resist. Can we resist? Is it practicable? I don’t mean so as -to keep things for a short time as they are. Can we resist effectually -by at once putting down the disturbers of the public peace, who connect -themselves with the Catholic cause? Can we get a ministry divided on -the Catholic question to put down efficiently an agitation in favour of -that question? - -“If we go to a Parliament in which there is a majority in favour of the -Catholic claims, and ask for its support for the purpose of coercion, -will it not say it is cheaper to conciliate than coerce? - -“It is of no use to consider what it would be best to do if it were -possible. Coercion is impossible. - -“Well, then, we must concede what we can no longer refuse.” - -His letters to the Duke of Wellington, given in his memoirs, speak -clearly in this sense: - -“I have uniformly opposed what is called Catholic Emancipation, and -have rested my opinion on broad and uncompromising grounds. I wish -I could say that my views were materially changed, and that I now -believed that full concessions could be made either exempt from the -dangers I have apprehended from them, or productive of the full -advantages which their advocates anticipate from the grant of them. - -“But whatever may be my opinion upon these points, I cannot deny -that the state of Ireland, under existing circumstances, is most -unsatisfactory; that it becomes necessary to make your choice between -different kinds and different degrees of evil--to compare the actual -danger resulting from the union and organization of the Roman Catholic -body, and the incessant agitation in Ireland, with prospective and -apprehended dangers to the constitution or religion of the country; and -maturely to consider whether it may not be better to encounter every -eventual risk of concession than to submit to the certain continuance, -or rather, perhaps, the certain aggravation of existing evils.”[130] - -“I have proved to you, I hope, that no false delicacy, no fear of the -imputation of inconsistency, will prevent me from taking that part -which present dangers and a new position of affairs may require. I am -ready at any sacrifice to maintain the opinion which I now deliberately -give, that there is upon the whole less of evil in making a decided -effort to settle the Catholic question, than in leaving it as it has -been left--an open question. - -“Whenever it is once determined that an attempt should be made by the -Government to settle the Catholic question, there can be, I think, -but one opinion--the settlement should, if possible, be a complete -one.”[131] - -The Duke of Wellington and Lord Lyndhurst, without difficulty, adopted -these views. The rest of the Cabinet accepted them. - -Sir Robert, however, whilst expressing himself thus clearly as to the -necessity of dealing without delay with the Catholic question, and -offering, in the most unequivocal way, his personal support to the -Government in doing so, desired to retire from the Administration, and -it was at first settled he should do so, but finally, at the Duke of -Wellington’s particular and earnest solicitation, he remained. - -The King’s speech at the opening of Parliament spoke of the necessity -of putting down the Catholic Association, and of reviewing the laws -which imposed disabilities on his Majesty’s Roman Catholic subjects. -The authority of the Government was to be vindicated, the constitution -was to be amended. Mr. Peel did not say he had altered his opinions: -he did not deny the possibility of future dangers from the changes -which the Government meant to propose; but he added that those distant -dangers had become in his opinion less pressing and less in themselves -than the dangers which, under present circumstances, would result from -leaving matters as they were. - -He takes as his defence upon the charge of inconsistency “the right, -the duty, of a public man to act according to circumstances;” this -defence is the simple, and almost the only one he uses throughout the -various discussions now commencing. To Mr. Bankes, on one occasion, he -replies pertinently by an extract from a former speech made by that -gentleman himself: - -“Mr. Bankes hoped it would never be a point of honour with any -Government to persevere in measures after they were convinced of their -impropriety. Political expediency was not at all times the same. What -at one time might be considered consistent with sound policy, might at -another be completely impolitic. Thus it was with respect to the Roman -Catholics.” - -On another occasion he quotes that beautiful passage from Cicero, which -was the Roman orator’s vindication of his own conduct: - -“Hæc didici, hæc vidi, hæc scripta legi, hæc sapientissimis et -clarissimis viris, et in hâc republicâ et in aliis civitatibus, -monumenta nobis, literæ prodiderunt, non semper easdem sententias ab -iisdem, sed, quascumque reipublicæ status, inclinatio temporum, ratio -concordiæ postularent, esse defendendas.”--_Orat. pro Cn. Plaucio_, -xxxix. - -It had been arranged that a bill for suppressing the Catholic -Association should be passed, before the bill for removing Catholic -disabilities should be brought forward. - -On the 5th of March, the Catholic Association Bill passed the -House of Lords, and on the same day the Catholic Disabilities Bill -was introduced into the House of Commons--admitting Catholics to -Parliament, and to the highest military and civil offices, save those -connected with church patronage and with the administration of the -Ecclesiastical law, on taking an oath described in the Act; and Mr. -Peel, in opening the debate, repeats with earnestness and solemnity his -previous declaration: - -“On my honour and conscience, I believe that the time is come when -less danger is to be apprehended to the general interests of the -Empire, and to the spiritual and temporal welfare of the Protestant -establishment in attempts to adjust the Catholic question than in -allowing it to remain in its present state. I have already stated that -such was my deliberate opinion; such the conclusion to which I felt -myself forced to come by the irresistible force of circumstances; -and I will adhere to it: ay, and I will act on it, unchanged by the -scurrility of abuse, by the expression of opposite opinions, however -vehement or general; unchanged by the deprivation of political -confidence, or by the heavier sacrifice of private friendships and -affections.” - -He shows the difficulties that had existed since the time of Mr. Pitt, -in forming a cabinet united in its views with respect to the Catholics; -the state of things that experience had proved to be the consequence -of a divided one; the final necessity of some decided course. The -authority which those who were hostile to English rule had acquired, -and were acquiring amidst the distracted councils of the English -Government; the power already granted by previous concessions; and the -dangers which could not but follow the exercise of this power for the -purpose of counteracting the law, or procuring a change in it. - -It had been argued that the elective franchise already gave -parliamentary influence to the Catholics. In reply to this it had -been suggested that we could withdraw that source of influence. “No; -we cannot,” replies Mr. Peel, with some eloquence, “replace the Roman -Catholics in the condition in which we found them, when the system -of relaxation and indulgence began. We have given them the means of -acquiring education, wealth, and power. We have removed with our own -hands the seal from a vessel in which a mighty spirit was enclosed; -but it will not, like the Genius in the fable, return to its narrow -confines and enable us to cast it back to the obscurity from which we -evoked it.” - -He does not say who is to blame for the state of things he thus -describes. He does not seem to care. He describes a situation which it -is necessary to deal with, and never stopping to burthen the argument -with his own faults or merits, thus continues: - -“Perhaps I am not so sanguine as others in my expectations of the -future; but I have not the slightest hesitation in saying that I fully -believe that the adjustment of this question in the manner proposed -will give better and stronger securities to the Protestant interest and -the Protestant establishment than any that the present state of things -admits of, and will avert dangers _impending and immediate_. What -motive, I ask, can I have for the expression of these opinions but an -honest conviction of their truth?” - -It was this general impression that he was honest, and that he was -making great personal sacrifices, which, no doubt, rendered his -task easier; and when, after opening the way to a new election by -the resignation of his seat, he was defeated in a contest for the -University of Oxford, the eulogy of Sir James Graham spoke the public -sentiment: - -“I cannot boast of any acquaintance with that right honourable -gentleman (Mr. Peel) in private life. I have been opposed to him on -almost all occasions since I entered into public life. I have not -voted with him on five occasions, I believe, since I entered into -Parliament. I think him, however, a really honest and conscientious -man; and considering the sacrifices which he has recently made--the -connections from which he has torn himself--the public attachments -which he has broke asunder--the dangers which he might have created -by an opposite course--the difficulties which he might have created -by adhering to an opposite system--the civil war which he has avoided -by departing from it,--and the great service which he has rendered to -the State by the manly avowal of a change of opinion:--considering all -these circumstances, I think the right honourable gentleman entitled -to the highest praise, and to the honest respect of every friend of the -Catholics.” - -One hostile feeling, however, still rankled in the heart of the Liberal -ranks;--the party whose opposition had wearied out the generous and -excitable spirit of Mr. Canning, was about to enjoy the triumph of Mr. -Canning’s opinions. - -The dart, envenomed with this accusation, had more than once been -directed at Mr. Peel’s reputation. He felt it necessary to show that it -made a wound which he did not consider that he deserved. He had been -praised by many for having settled the long-pending differences which -his propositions were to compose. - -In answering Sir Charles Wetherell, he says: “The credit of settling -this question belongs to others, not to me. It belongs, in spite of -my opposition, to Mr. Fox, to Mr. Grattan, to Mr. Plunkett, to the -gentlemen opposite, and to an illustrious and Right Honourable friend -of mine who is now no more. I will not conceal from the House that, -in the course of this debate, allusions have been made to the memory -of that Right Honourable friend, which have been most painful to my -feelings. An honourable baronet has spoken of the cruel manner in which -my Right Honourable friend was hunted down. Whether the honourable -baronet was one of those who hunted him down I know not. But this I do -know--that whoever joined in an inhuman cry against my Right Honourable -friend, I did not. I was on terms of the most friendly intimacy with -him up to the very day of his death; and I say, with as much sincerity -as the heart of man can speak, that I wish he was now alive to reap the -harvest which he sowed.” - -It was a consummate touch of art on the part of the orator thus to -place himself in the position of the conquered, when others proclaimed -him the conqueror; in this way smothering envy, and quieting reproach. - -The Bill passed through the House of Commons on the 30th of March; by a -majority of 320 to 142; and was carried in the House of Lords on the -10th of April, 1829, by a majority of 213 to 109. On the 19th of April -this great measure received the Royal assent. - -It is useless to protract the narrative of this memorable period; but -I will not close it without observing that there was one still living -to whom the end of the battle, which had begun so long ago, was as -glorious and as gratifying as it could have been to the illustrious -statesman who was no more. Justifying, more, perhaps, than any -statesman recorded in our annals, the classical description of the just -and firm man, Lord Grey had, through a long series of disappointing -years--with an unaffected scorn for the frowns of the monarch, and -the shouts of the mob--proclaimed the principles of civil equality of -which his bitterest opponents were at last tardily willing to admit the -necessity. - - “Justum et tenacem propositi virum - Non civium ardor prava jubentium, - Non vultus instantis tyranni - Mente quatit solidâ.” - -But the feelings of the great peer were in bitter contrast with those -of the humiliated sovereign. - -The change of George IV. from the friend to the enemy of the Catholic -cause had been sudden; up to the formation of the Liverpool ministry, -he was supposed to be favourable to it--ever afterwards he was most -hostile. It is not to be supposed that he had not understood at an -early period of life the value of the coronation oath, and all that in -the later period of his life he drivelled over, as to the Protestant -Constitution and the Protestant Succession. But the fact is, that -the haughty bearing of Lord Grey, during those various questions -which arose as to the formation of a new Government, shortly after -the Regency, had deeply wounded and irritated the Regent. Out of his -animosity to Lord Grey had grown up his animosity to the Catholics. The -politician and his policy were mixed up together in the royal mind. -He had kept the politician out of his cabinet; but that politician’s -policy now stormed it. - -The mortification was severe. - -From the summer of 1828 till the beginning of 1829 it was impossible -to get from his Majesty a clear adoption of the principle that the -Government should treat the Catholic question with the same freedom -as any other. When this was granted, another battle was fought over -the opening speech, and finally, on the 3rd of March, when the great -ministerial propositions were to be brought before Parliament, he -refused his assent to them, and the Wellington ministry was for some -hours out of office. - -The struggle continued throughout the Parliamentary discussions, the -King’s aversion to Mr. Peel became uncontrollable, and he did not -attempt to disguise it. - -But the leader of the House of Commons bore the sulky looks of the -Sovereign with as much composure--a composure that was by no means -indifference--as he bore the scurrility of the press, and the taunts of -the Tory Opposition. - -The conviction that he was acting rightly in a great cause made him a -great man: and he faced the storm of abuse that assailed him with a -proud complacency. - - - - -PART IV. - - Mr. O’Connell’s opposition in Ireland.--The general - difficulties of the Government.--The policy it tried - to pursue.--Its increasing unpopularity.--Its policy - towards Don Miguel.--William IV.’s accession.--The - Revolution in Paris.--The cry now raised in England for - Reform.--The King’s opening speech on convocation of new - Parliament.--The discontent against the Government it - excited.--The Duke of Wellington opposed to any change in - the Constitution.--Postponement of Lord Mayor’s dinner to - the new Sovereign.--Impressions this created.--The Duke’s - administration in a minority in the House of Commons.--His - resignation.--Earl Grey’s appointment as Premier.--Personal - description of Sir Robert Peel at this time.--The Reform - Bill.--Sir Robert Peel’s conduct thereon.--Its success in the - country.--The large majority returned by new elections in - favour of it.--Its opposition in the House of Lords.--Lord - Grey’s resignation and resumption of office.--The passing of - his Reform Bill through both Houses. - - -I. - -I have said that Sir Robert Peel was proud of having made great -sacrifices for a great cause. There can be little doubt that he had -prevented a civil war in which many of the most eminent statesmen in -England and all the eminent statesmen of foreign countries would have -considered that the Irish Catholics were in the right. At the same -time he did not derive from the course he had taken the hope which -many entertained that all Irish feuds would henceforth cease, and that -it would become easy to establish in Ireland the satisfaction and -tranquillity that were found in other parts of our empire. He did, -however, deem that if the great and crying cause of grievance, which -had so long agitated and divided the public mind were once removed, -there would be no powerful rallying cry for the disaffected, and that -in any dangerous crisis the Government would find all reasonable men in -Ireland and all men in England by its side. - -He saw, however, more clearly than most people, and in fact it was -this foresight that had made him so long the opponent of the measure -which he had recently advocated, that to bring the Irish Catholics into -Parliament was the eventual transfer of power from the Protestant to -the Catholic. - -The great policy would, no doubt, have been to accept at once this -consequence in its full extent, and to have conciliated the Catholic -majority, and the Catholic priesthood, by abandoning everything which -under a Protestant ascendancy had been established. But no one was -prepared for this. The Whigs would have opposed it as well as the -Tories. The English Protestant Church would have made common cause -with the Irish Protestant Church,--the English Protestants in general -with the Irish Protestants. In short, it was not practicable at the -moment on which our attention had been hitherto concentrated to do more -for the Irish Catholics than had been done; and this was not likely, -as Mr. Peel himself had said in 1817, to satisfy them: “We entered, -therefore, inadvertently on a period of transition, in which a series -of new difficulties were certain to be the result of the removal -of the one great difficulty.” Under such circumstances, Mr. Peel -conceived he had only to watch events; it was not in accordance with -the natural tendency of his character to anticipate them, and to act in -the different situations that might arise as a practical view of each -particular situation might suggest. - -He was right, no doubt, in considering that the Catholic Belief Bill -would not realize the expectations of its most ardent supporters, and -it must be added that the state of things amidst which it was passed -was alone sufficient to destroy many of those expectations. Agitation -had evidently obtained for Ireland what loyalty and forbearance had -never procured; and though the fear to which our statesmen had yielded -might be what Lord Palmerston asserted, “the provident mother of -safety,” a concession to it, however wise or timely, gave a very -redoutable force to the menacing spirit by which concession had been -gained. That force remained with all its elements perfectly organized, -and in the hands of a man whom it was equally difficult to have for a -friend or an enemy. His violence shocked your more timid friends if he -supported you, and encouraged your more timid enemies if he attacked -you. - -The Government, which had in reality yielded to him, did not wish to -appear to have done so. It consequently provoked an altercation which -it might as well have avoided. Mr. O’Connell had been returned for -Clare, when by law he could not sit in Parliament, but when by law he -could be elected. It was not unfair to say his election should not -give him a seat in Parliament, because when he was elected he could -not have a seat. But, on the other hand, it might be contended that, -having been elected legally, he was entitled to take his seat when no -legal impediment prevented it. The better policy would doubtless have -been, not to fight a personal battle after having yielded in the public -contest. - -The Government, however, compelled Mr. O’Connell to undergo a new -election; and considering this a declaration of war, he adopted a -tone of hostility to the Ministry, far too extravagant to do them -harm in England, but which added greatly to their difficulties -in Ireland--where a thorough social disorganization rendered the -Government impotent for the protection of property and life against -robbery and murder, unless it could count amongst its allies patriotism -and popularity themselves. - -But besides the weakness of the Government in Ireland, it was generally -weak, for it had lost by the change in its Irish policy much of its -previous support, and could hardly hope to maintain itself any length -of time without getting back former partisans, or drawing closer to new -allies. - -To regain friends whom you have once lost, owing to a violent -difference on a great political principle, is an affair neither -easily nor rapidly managed. It requires agreement on some question as -important as that which created disagreement. - -On the other hand, for the Tories, under the Duke of Wellington, to -have coalesced with the Whigs, under Lord Grey, called for sacrifices -on both sides too great to be accepted by either with honour or even -propriety. - -The Duke of Wellington and Mr. Peel tried, therefore, a moderate -course. Detaching able men from the Whig ranks where they could secure -them, carrying out administrative reforms, opposing constitutional -changes, doing, in short, all which could be done to conciliate one -party without further alienating another, and carrying on affairs, -as in quiet times a despotic Government can do, even with credit and -popularity. But a free Government rarely admits, for any lengthened -period, of this even and tranquil course; it generates energies and -passions that must be employed, and which concentrate in an opposition -to the rulers who do not know how to employ them. - -Some administrative improvements were nevertheless worthy of notice. -The watchman’s staff was broken in the metropolis. The criminal code -was still further improved, and punishment by death in cases of forgery -partially abolished and generally discountenanced. - -Taxes also were repealed, and savings boasted of. But the nation had -become used to strong political excitement, and had a sort of instinct -that the passing of the Roman Catholic Bill should be followed by some -marked and general policy, analogous to the liberal spirit which had -dictated that measure. - -Nor was this all. Mr. Canning, when he said that he would not serve -under a military premier, had expressed an English feeling. The Duke -of Wellington’s treatment of Mr. Huskisson was too much like that of -a general who expects implicit obedience from his inferior officers. -The very determination he had displayed in disregarding and overruling -George IV.’s anti-Catholic prejudices, evinced a resolve to be obeyed -that seemed to many dangerous. His strong innate sense of superiority, -the language, calm and decided, in which it was displayed, were not -to the taste of our public in a soldier at the head of affairs, -though they might have pleased in a civilian. At the same time, this -undisguised and unaffected superiority lowered his colleagues in the -public estimation, whilst the general tendency of many minds is to -refuse one order of ability where they admit another. - -An act of foreign policy, moreover, did the administration at this -time an immense injury. We had cordially, though indirectly, placed -Donna Maria on the throne of Portugal, and endowed that country with a -constitution. Don Miguel, Donna Maria’s uncle, afterwards dispossessed -her of that throne and ruled despotically. We had not, however, as yet -recognized him as the Portuguese Sovereign. We still honoured the niece -residing in England with that title, when accident occurred which led -to grave doubts as to whether the great commander was also a great -minister. - -The Island of Terceira still acknowledged Donna Maria’s sway; and an -expedition, consisting chiefly of her own subjects, had embarked from -Portsmouth for that Island, when it was stopped and prevented from -landing there by a British naval force, the pretext being that the -expedition, though first bound to Terceira, was going to be sent to -Portugal, and to be employed against Don Miguel. - -But no sufficient proof was given of this intention; the force arrested -in its passage was a Portuguese force, proceeding to a place _bonâ -fide_ in the Queen of Portugal’s possession. If it were eventually to -be landed on the territory held by the usurper, it had not yet made -manifest that such was its destination. Its object might be merely to -defend Terceira, which had lately been attacked. Arguments might be -drawn from international law both for and against our conduct. But -the public did not go into these arguments; what it saw was, that -Mr. Canning had favoured the constitutional cause, that the Duke of -Wellington was favouring the absolute one. “He did not do this,” said -people, “to please his own nation; no one suspected him of doing it to -gratify a petty tyrant. He did it then to satisfy the great potentates -of the Continent who were adverse to freedom.” This suspicion, not -founded on fact, but justified by appearances, weighed upon the Cabinet -as to its whole foreign policy, and reacted upon its policy at home. - -So strong were its effects, that when Charles X. called Prince -Polignac to the head of his counsels, it was said, “Oh, this is the -Duke of Wellington’s doing!” and even when the ordinances of July were -published, it was supposed that they had been advised by our military -premier. Feelings of this sort have no limit. They spread like a mist -over opinion. - -At this time occurred the death of George IV. (June 26th, 1830), and a -new era opened in our history. - -William IV., who succeeded, had not the same talents or accomplishments -as the deceased monarch, his brother, nor perhaps the same powers -of mind. But he was more honest and straightforward; took a greater -interest in the welfare of the nation, and was very desirous to be -beloved by his people. He retained the same Ministry, but a new reign -added to the impression that there must ere long be a new Cabinet, and -the circumstances under which the forthcoming elections took place -confirmed this impression. Parliament was dissolved on the 23rd of -July, and on the 30th was proclaimed the triumph of a revolution in -Paris; whilst immediately after the fall of the throne of Charles X. -came that general crash of dynasties which shook the nerves of every -prince in Europe. - -The roar of revolution abroad did not resound in England and obscure -the lustre of the brightest reputations; nevertheless, it was echoed in -a general cry, for constitutional change, and accompanying this cry, -there was, as winter approached, an almost general alarm from the -demoralization that prevailed in the rural districts and the excitement -that existed in the great towns. - -The country wanted to be reassured and calmed. - -The King’s speech (Nov. 2, 1830) was not calculated to supply this -want. With respect to home affairs, it spoke of the dangerous state of -Ireland, and said nothing of the one question which began to occupy -men’s minds in England--the question of Reform. Abroad, our policy had -been weak against Russia when on her road to Constantinople; timid and -uncertain towards Greece, when the time was come for her recognition; -and now we announced the intention of opening diplomatic relations with -Don Miguel, in Portugal, and made the insurrection in Belgium popular -by taking the King of the Netherlands under our protection. - -In short, there was hardly one word our new Sovereign was made to -say which did not add to the unpopularity of his ministers. These -ministers, indeed, were in a critical position. - -Some plan of Parliamentary Reform had of necessity to be proposed. The -true Conservative policy would have been to propose a moderate plan -before increased disquietude suggested a violent one. Nor was this -task a difficult one at that moment; for if a Parliamentary Reform was -proclaimed necessary, there was no definite idea as to what that Reform -should be. Many of the Tories were willing to give Representatives to -a few of the great towns, and to diminish in some degree the number of -close boroughs; a large portion of the Whigs would have been satisfied -with Reform on this basis. - -It is probable that Sir Robert Peel (Mr. Peel had succeeded to his -father’s title in March of this year) would have inclined, had he been -completely his own master, towards some course of this kind. - -But, whilst a general incertitude prevailed as to what would be the -best course for the Government to pursue, the Duke of Wellington, -who felt convinced that we should be led step by step to revolution -if we did not at once and decidedly declare against all change, -determined to check any contrary disposition in his followers before -it was expressed, and surprised all persons by the declaration that -the Constitution as it stood was perfect, and that no alteration in it -would be proposed as long as he was Prime Minister. - -I have reason to believe that his more wary colleague was by no means -pleased with this hasty and decided announcement; and, although -he could not directly contradict the speech of his chief, he in a -certain degree mitigated its effect by saying: “That he did not at -present see any prospect of such a measure of safe, moderate Reform -as His Majesty’s Government _might be inclined to sanction_” which, -in fact, said that if a moderate, safe Reform were found, it would be -sanctioned. But the party in office, after the significant words of the -Premier, were compromised; and the line they had to follow practically -traced. - -Those words were hazardous and bold; but in times of doubt and peril, -boldness has sometimes its advantages. One must not, however, be bold -with any appearance of timidity. But the Government was about to show -that it wanted that resolution which was its only remaining protection. - -The King had been invited to dine with the Lord Mayor on the 9th of -November. There are always a great many busy people on such occasions -who think of making themselves important by giving information, and the -Lord Mayor is precisely the person who is most brought into contact -with these people. It is not in the least surprising, therefore, -that his Lordship was told there was a plot for attacking the Duke -of Wellington on his way to the city, and that he had better be well -guarded. On this somewhat trumpery story, and not very awful warning, -the Government put off the Royal dinner, saying, they feared a tumult. - -It is evident that a set of Ministers so unpopular that they thought -they could not safely accompany the sovereign through the City of -London to the Mansion House, were not the men to remain in office in a -time of trouble and agitation. Thus, the days of the Government were -now numbered; and being on the 15th of November in a minority of 29, on -a motion respecting the arrangements of the civil list, they resigned. - -Lord Grey succeeded the Duke of Wellington, and announced his intention -of bringing forward a measure of Reform. - -I had been elected for that Parliament, and returned from abroad but a -few days after the change of Government. - -I then saw Sir Robert Peel for the first time, and it was impossible, -after attending three or four sittings of the House of Commons, not to -have one’s attention peculiarly attracted to him. - -He was tall and powerfully built. His body somewhat bulky for his -limbs, his head small and well-formed, his features regular. His -countenance was not what would be generally called expressive, but it -was capable of taking the expression he wished to give it, humour, -sarcasm, persuasion, and command, being its alternate characteristics. -The character of the man was seen more, however, in the whole person -than in the face. He did not stoop, but he bent rather forwards; his -mode of walking was peculiar, and rather like that of a cat, but of -a cat that was well acquainted with the ground it was moving over; -the step showed no doubt or apprehension, it could hardly be called -stealthy, but it glided on firmly and cautiously, without haste, or -swagger, or unevenness, and, as he quietly walked from the bar to -his seat, he looked round him, as if scanning the assembly, and when -anything particular was expected, sat down with an air of preparation -for the coming contest. - -The oftener you heard him speak the more his speaking gained upon you. -Addressing the House several times in the night on various subjects, he -always seemed to know more than any one else knew about each of them, -and to convey to you the idea that he thought he did so. His language -was not usually striking, but it was always singularly correct, and -gathered force with the development of his argument. He never seemed -occupied with himself. His effort was evidently directed to convince -you, not that he was _eloquent_, but that he was _right_. When the -subject suited it, he would be witty, and with a look and a few words -he could most effectively convey contempt; he could reply also with -great spirit to an attack, but he was rarely aggressive. He seemed -rather to aim at gaining the doubtful, than mortifying or crushing the -hostile. His great rivals, Canning and Brougham, being removed, he no -doubt felt more at his ease than formerly; and though there was nothing -like assumption or pretension in his manner, there was a tone of -superiority, which he justified by a great store of knowledge, a clear -and impressive style, and a constant readiness to discuss any question -that arose. - -Lord John Russell had not then the talents for debate which he -subsequently displayed. Lord Palmerston had only made one or two -great speeches. Sir James Graham was chiefly remarkable for a weighty -statement. Mr. Charles Grant had lost his once great oratorical powers. -Mr. Macaulay was only beginning to deliver his marvellous orations. -O’Connell, mighty to a mob, was not in his place when addressing a -refined and supercilious audience. Mr. Stanley, the late Lord Derby, -surpassed Sir R. Peel and every one else in vivacity, wit, lucidity, -and energy. But he struck you more as a first-rate cavalry officer than -as a commander-in-chief. Sir Robert, cool and self-collected, gave -you, on the contrary, the idea of a great, prudent, wary leader who -was fighting after a plan, and keeping his eye during the whole of the -battle directed to the result. You felt, at least I felt, that without -being superior to many of his competitors as a man, he was far superior -to all as a Member of Parliament; and his ascendancy was the more -visible as the whole strength of his party was in him. - -He profited, no doubt, by the fact that the Whigs had been (with the -exception of a short interval) out of office for nearly half a century, -and showed at every step the self-sufficiency of men of talent, and -the incapacity of men without experience. Every one felt, indeed, that -in the ordinary course of things their official career would be short, -and none were more convinced of this than their leaders. They acted -accordingly. Under any circumstances they were pledged to bring forward -a Reform Bill; but under actual circumstances their policy was to -bring forward a Reform Bill that would render it almost impossible for -their probable successors to deal with that question. Such a Bill they -introduced, destroying at one swoop sixty small boroughs, and taking -one member from forty-seven more. - -Mr. John Smith, an ardent Reformer, said that the Government measure -went so far beyond his expectations, that it took away his breath. I -myself happened to meet Mr. Hunt, the famous Radical of those days, in -the tea-room of the House of Commons, just before Lord John Russell -rose. We had some conversation on the project about to be proposed, no -one out of a small circle having any conception as to what it would -be. Mr. Hunt said, if it gave members to a few of the great towns, -and disfranchised with compensation a few close boroughs, the public -would rest contented for the moment with this concession. In fact, -the Government plan was received with profound astonishment. Lord -John continued his explanations of it amidst cheers and laughter. -It almost appeared a joke; and had Sir Robert Peel risen when Lord -John sat down, and said that “he had been prepared to consider any -reasonable or practical plan, but that the plan of the Government was -a mockery repugnant to the good sense of the House, and that he could -not therefore allow the time of Parliament to be lost by discussing it; -moving at the same time the order of the day, and pledging himself to -bring the question in a practical form under the attention of the House -of Commons at an early opportunity,” he would have had a majority of at -least a hundred in his favour. - -It was a great occasion for a less prudent man. But Sir Robert Peel was -not an improvisatore in action, though he was in words. He required -time to prepare a decision. He was moreover fettered by his relations -with the late premier. Could he reject at once a project of Reform, -however absurd, without taking up the question of Reform? Could he -pledge his party to take up that question without being certain of his -party’s pretty general acquiescence? - -He persuaded himself, not unnaturally, that the Government measure had -no chance of success; that nothing would be lost by an appearance of -moderation, and that time would thus be gained for the Opposition to -combine its plans. - -Nine men out of ten would have judged the matter as he did, and been -wrong as he was. But the magnitude of the Whig measure, which appeared -at the moment its weakness, was in reality its strength. It roused the -whole country. - -Much, also, in a crisis like the one through which the country had -now to pass, depends on the action of individuals whose names are not -always found in history. There happened, at the moment of which I am -speaking, to be a man connected with the Whig Government who, by his -frank, good-natured manner, his knowledge of human nature, his habits -of business, his general acquaintance with all classes of persons, and -his untiring activity, gave an intensity and a direction to the general -sentiment which it would not otherwise have attained. - -I allude to Mr. Edward Ellice, Secretary of the Treasury. He was -emphatically a man of the world, having lived with all classes of it. -His intellect was clear, and adapted to business; and he liked that -sort of business which brought him into contact with men. Naturally -kind-hearted and good-natured, with frank and easy manners, he entered -into other people’s plans and feelings, and left every one with the -conviction that he had been speaking to a friend who at the proper time -would do him a service. He took upon himself the management of the -Press, and was entrusted shortly afterwards (when Lord Grey, finding -his ministry in a minority in the House of Commons, obtained the -King’s permission to dissolve Parliament) with the management of the -elections. He knew that the great danger to a Reform party is almost -always division, and bound the Reform party on that occasion together -by the cry of “The bill! the whole bill, and nothing but the bill!” - -All argument, all discussion, all objection, were absorbed by this -overwhelming cry, which, repeated from one end of the country to -another, drowned the voice of criticism, and obliged every one to -take his place either as an advocate of the Government measure, or an -opponent of the popular will. - -The general feeling, when, after the elections in 1831, the shattered -forces of the Tory party gathered in scanty array around their -distinguished leader, was that that party was no more, or at least had -perished, as far as the possession of political power was concerned, -for the next twenty years. People did not sufficiently recognize the -changeful vibration of opinion; neither did they take sufficiently into -account the fact that there will always, in a state like ours, be a set -of men who wish to make the institutions more democratic, and a set of -men who do not wish this; though at different epochs the battle for -or against democracy will be fought on different grounds. The Reform -Bill now proposed having been once agreed to, it was certain that there -would again be persons for further changes, and persons against them. -Sir Robert’s great care, therefore, when our old institutions sunk, was -not to cling to them so fast as to sink with them. He defended, then, -the opinions he had heretofore asserted, but he defended them rather -as things that had been good, and were gone by, than as things that -were good and which could be maintained. The Tories in the House of -Lords were in a more difficult position than the Tories in the House of -Commons. They were called upon to express their opinions, and to do so -conscientiously. They were in a majority in the upper assembly, as the -Whigs were in a majority in the lower one. According to the theory of -the Constitution the vote of one branch of the Legislature was as valid -as that of the other. Were they to desert their duties, and declare -they were incompetent to discharge them? They considered they were not. -They, therefore, threw out the Government bill when it was brought -before them for decision, and thus it had again to be introduced into -the House of Commons. Again it arrived at the House of Lords, which -displayed a disposition to reject it once more. - -Lord Grey, in this condition of things, asked the King for the power -of making peers, or for the permission to retire from his Majesty’s -service. His resignation was accepted, and the Duke of Wellington was -charged with forming a new Government, which was to propose a new -Reform Bill. He applied to Sir Robert Peel for assistance, but Sir -Robert saw that the moment for him to deal with the question of Reform -was passed, and declined to give that assistance, saying that he was -not the proper person to represent a compromise. That any Reform Bill -that would now satisfy the momentary excitement must comprehend changes -that he believed would be permanently injurious. He felt, indeed, that -it would be better to let the reformers carry their own bill than to -bring forward another bill which could not greatly differ from the -one which the House of Commons had already sanctioned, and which, -nevertheless, would not satisfy, because it would be considered the -bill of the House of Lords. The Duke of Wellington consequently was -obliged to retire, the Lords to give way. Lord Grey’s Reform Bill was -carried, and Sir Robert Peel took his seat in a new Parliament formed -by his opponents, who thought they had secured thereby the permanence -of their own power. - - - - -PART V. - - Effects of Reform.--Changes produced by reform.--Daniel - O’Connell.--Lord Melbourne.--Choice of Speaker.--The - Irish Tithe Bill.--Measures of Lord Melbourne.--The Irish - question.--The Queen’s household.--The Corn Law League.--Whig - measures. - - -I. - -The great measure just passed into law was not calculated to justify -the fears of immediate and violent consequences; but was certain to -produce gradual and important changes. - -The new constitution breathed, in fact, a perfectly different spirit -from the old one. The vitality of our former government was drawn from -the higher classes and the lower ones. An election for Westminster -was not merely the return of two members to Parliament: it was a -manifestation of the feeling prevalent amongst the masses throughout -England; and the feeling amongst the masses had a great influence in -moments of excitement, and in all matters touching the national dignity -and honour. On the other hand, it was by the combinations of powerful -families that a majority was formed in Parliament, which, in ordinary -times, and when no great question was at issue, ruled the country. - -The populace, by its passions--the aristocracy, by its pride--gave -energy to the will, and elevation to the character of the nation, -disposing it to enterprise and to action. The government we had -recently created was, on the contrary, filled with the soul of the -middle classes, which is not cast in an heroic mould. Its objects are -material, its interests are involved in the accidents of the moment. -What may happen in five years to a man in trade, is of comparatively -small consequence. What may happen immediately, makes or mars his -fortunes. Moreover, the persons likely to replace the young men, -distinguished for their general abilities and general instruction, who -had formerly represented the smaller boroughs, were now for the most -part elderly men with a local reputation, habits already acquired, and -without the knowledge, the energy, or the wish to commence a new career -as politicians. - -A writer on Representative Government has said, that the two important -elements to represent are intellect and numbers, because they are -the two great elements of force. The new Reform Bill did not affect -especially to represent either. But it represented peace, manufactures, -expediency, practical acquaintance with particular branches of trade. -It established a greater reality. A member of Parliament was more -likely to represent a real thing concerning the public than a mere idea -concerning it. The details of daily business were more certain to be -attended to, useless wars to be put on one side. - -On the other hand, that high spirit which insensibly sustains a -powerful nation, that devotion to the permanent interests of the -country, which leads to temporary sacrifices for its character and -prestige, that extensive and comprehensive knowledge of national -interests, which forms statesmen, and is the peculiar attribute of an -enlightened and patriotic aristocracy, that generous sympathy with -what is right, and detestation for what is wrong, which exists nowhere -with such intensity as in the working classes, who are swayed more by -sentiment, and less by calculation, than any other class--all those -qualities, in short, which make one state, without our being able -exactly to say why, dominate morally and physically over other states, -were somewhat too feebly implanted in our new institutions; and these -institutions generated a set of politicians who, with a very limited -range of view, denied the existence of principles that were beyond the -scope of their observation. - -There were also other considerations, probably overlooked by those -who imagined they were building up a permanent system by the bill of -1832. The middle class, which is perhaps the most important one for a -government to conciliate, is not a class that can itself govern. Its -temporary rule nearly always leads to a democracy or to a despotism; it -must, therefore, be considered as a mere step, upwards or downwards, -in a new order of things. Besides, if you destroy traditional respect, -and that kind of instinct of obedience which is created by the habit -of obeying spontaneously to-morrow, what you obeyed without inquiry -yesterday--if you begin by condemning everything in a constitution -which reason does not approve, you must arrive at a constitution -which reason will sanction. You cannot destroy anomalies and preserve -anomalies. The tide of innovation which you have directed towards -the one anomaly as absurd, will, ere long, sweep away, as equally -ridiculous, another anomaly. There is no solid resting-place between -custom and argument. What is no longer defended by the one, must be -made defensible by the other. - -It is only by degrees, however, that the full extent of a great change -develop es itself; for the peculiarities of a new constitution are -always modified when that new constitution is carried out by men who -have grown up under the preceding one; and in the meantime the vessel -of the State, struggling between old habits and new ideas, must be -exposed to the action of changeful and contrary winds. - -Thus, the Reform party, temporarily united during the recent combat, -split into several sections at its termination. - -First, Lord Durham quitted the administration, because he thought it -too cautious; secondly, Mr. Stanley and Sir James Graham quitted it, -because they each thought it too fast; finally, Lord Grey himself -quitted it, because he deemed that his authority was diminishing, -as his generation was dying away, and younger men absorbing old -influences. In the meantime Mr. O’Connell continued to be a great -embarrassment. He represented the majority of the Irish people, who -contended for a supremacy over the minority, a contest in which it was -natural for the Catholics to engage after they had been declared as -good citizens as the Protestants; but in which it was impossible for -the British Government to concur, so long as there was a feud between -the Protestant and the Catholic, and that the Protestant majority in -England were disposed to sustain the Protestant minority in Ireland. - -Hence, the reformed Parliament had met amidst cries for the repeal of -the Union, and those savage violations of social order which, in the -sister kingdom, are the usual attendants on political agitation. - -The Ministry first tried coercion, but its effects could only be -temporary, and they alienated a portion of its supporters. It then -tried conciliation. But it was found impossible to conciliate the -Irish Catholics without conciliating their leader. That leader was not -irreconcilable, for he was vain: and vain men may always be managed -by managing their vanity; but to gratify the vanity of a man who was -always defying the power of England, was to mortify the pride of the -English people. - -Lord Melbourne had succeeded Lord Grey. He united various -accomplishments with a manly understanding and a character inclined -to moderation. There could not have been selected a statesman better -qualified to preside over a Cabinet containing conflicting opinions -and antagonistic ambitions. But no body of men, acting together under -a system of compromises, can act with vigour or maintain authority. -All these circumstances gave an air of feebleness and inferiority to -an administration which contained, nevertheless, many men of superior -ability. But that, perhaps, which tended most to discredit the -ministry, was the credit which Sir Robert Peel was daily gaining as its -opponent. - -Carefully separating himself from the extreme opinions to be found in -his own party, condemning merely the extreme opinions on the opposite -one; professing the views and holding the language of a mediator -between opinions that found no longer an echo in the public mind, -and opinions that had not yet been ripened by public approbation; -contrasting by his clear and uniform line of conduct with the apparent -variations and vacillations of a Cabinet that was alternately swayed -by diverging tendencies; professing no desire for power, he created -by degrees a growing opinion that he was the statesman who ought to -possess it: and thus, when the Reform Ministry had to add to its -former losses that of Lord Althorpe, who by the death of Lord Spencer -was withdrawn from the House of Commons, which he had long led with a -singular deficiency in the powers of debate, but with the shrewdness -and courtesy of a man of the world, the King thought himself justified -in removing a Cabinet which he considered deficient in dignity, spirit, -and consideration. - -The Duke of Wellington, to whom he offered the post of Premier, -declined it, and recommended Sir Robert Peel. Sir Robert had not -expected, nor perhaps wished for, so sudden a summons. He was, in fact, -at Rome when he was offered, for the first time, the highest place in -the Cabinet. Returning to England instantly, he accepted the offer. His -object now was to organize a new Conservative party on a new basis, -and to come forward himself as a new man in a new state of affairs, -neither lingering over ancient pledges nor fettered by previous -declarations. As the first necessity for a new system, he sought new -men, and wishing to obliterate the prejudice against himself as an -anti-Reformer by a union with those who had been Reformers, hastened to -invite Sir James Graham and Lord Stanley to join him. This invitation -being declined, he had to fall back on his former associates; but being -unable to change the furniture of the old Conservative Cabinet, he -repainted and regilded it. In a letter to the electors of Tamworth, -which engrafted many Liberal promises on Conservative principles, -he went as far towards gaining new proselytes as was compatible with -retaining old adherents. This letter was a preparation for the great -struggle on the hustings which was now about to take place. Parliament -had been dissolved, and the appeal made to the country was answered -by the addition of one hundred members to the new Conservative party. -Such an addition was sufficient to justify King William’s belief that -a considerable change had taken place in public opinion, but was not -sufficient to give a majority in the House of Commons to the ministry -he had chosen. It was beaten by ten votes on the choice of a Speaker, -Mr. Abercrombie having that majority over Mr. Manners Sutton. - -But if Sir Robert Peel had not a sufficient majority to insure his -maintenance in office, the Whigs were not so sure of a majority as to -risk a direct attempt to turn him out, unless on some specific case -which called for a vote to sanction a specific opinion. Sir Robert’s -policy was to avoid a case of this kind, knowing that, if he could once -by his tact, prudence, and ability, increase his numbers and establish -a tendency in his favour, the fluctuating and uncertain would soon join -his standard. This policy was contained in the speech with which he -opened the campaign: - -“With such prospects I feel it to be my duty--my first and paramount -duty--to maintain the post which has been confided to me, and to stand -by the trust which I did not seek, but which I could not decline. I -call upon you not to condemn before you have heard--to receive at least -the measures I shall propose--to amend them if they are defective--to -extend them if they fall short of your expectations; but at least to -give me the opportunity of presenting them, that you yourselves may -consider and dispose of them. I make great offers, which should not -be lightly rejected! I offer you the prospect of continued peace--the -restored confidence of powerful states, that are willing to seize the -opportunity of reducing great armies, and thus diminishing the chances -of hostile collision. I offer you reduced estimates, improvements in -civil jurisprudence, reform of ecclesiastical law, the settlement of -the tithe question in Ireland, the commutation of the tithe in England, -the removal of any real abuse in the Church, the redress of those -grievances of which the Dissenters have any just grounds to complain. I -offer you those specific measures, and I offer also to advance, soberly -and cautiously, it is true, in the path of progressive improvement. -I offer also the best chance that these things can be effected in -willing concert with the other authorities of the State; thus restoring -harmony, ensuring the maintenance, but not excluding the Reform (where -Reform is really requisite) of ancient institutions.” - -It was difficult to use more seducing language, but the Opposition -would not be seduced. From the 24th of February till the beginning -of April, Sir Robert struggled against its unsparing attacks. It was -not easy, however, to catch him exposed on any practical question; at -last, however, he had to deal with one--he had promised to settle the -tithe question in Ireland. How was he to do so? He thought to balk his -assailants by bringing forward a measure this year very similar to one -which they themselves had brought forward the year before. But once -on Irish ground, he was pretty sure of being beaten. The difference -between Lord John Russell and Mr. Stanley, which had led to the -secession of the latter, was a difference of principle as to the nature -of Church property: the former contending that if the revenue possessed -by the Protestant Church in Ireland was larger than necessary for the -decent maintenance of the Protestant clergy, the State might dispose of -it as it thought proper; the latter asserting that the State could not -employ it for any purposes that were not ecclesiastical. - -This was a great question; it was brought to an issue in a very small -manner. Lord John Russell proposed as a resolution that no Irish tithe -bill would be satisfactory which did not contain a clause devoting any -surplus over and above the requirements of the Church establishment -to the purposes of secular education. A committee was then sitting to -determine whether there was any such surplus as that alluded to or not, -and it would have been, doubtless, more regular first to have got the -surplus and then to have determined about its use. Besides, if we were -to deal with so great a principle as the alienation of the property of -the Protestant Church, it would surely have been worth while to do so -for some great practical advantage. The majority, nevertheless, voted -for Lord John Russell’s proposition, partly because it established -a public right, partly because it answered a party purpose. Thus -Parliament decided against the inviolability of Church property--a -decision certain to affect the future; which did affect the present; -and Sir Robert Peel was forced to resign the seals of the Treasury. - -But let us be just. Never did a statesman enter office more -triumphantly than Sir Robert Peel left it. His self-confidence, his -tact, his general knowledge, his temper, filled even his opponents with -admiration! - -It was impossible not to acknowledge to oneself that there was a man -who seemed shaped expressly for being first minister of England. But, -on the other hand, a sense of justice compelled one to consider that -Lord Melbourne had done nothing to justify the manner in which he had -been dismissed; that the party he represented had but two years since -achieved a popular triumph which rendered the reign of William IV. -almost as memorable in our annals as that of William III.--that it had -added to this triumph in the name of Liberty, a triumph quite as great -in the cause of Humanity; and that it would have inflicted a stigma -of fickleness on our national character to pass by with indifference -and neglect the author of the Reform Bill and the Negro Emancipation -Bill--condemning a party still possessed of a majority in the most -important branch of the Legislature, on the ground that the late -Earl of Spencer was no more, and that it was necessary to replace -Lord Althorpe--an honest man of respectable talents--by Lord John -Russell--an honest man of very eminent talents. - -Sir Robert’s attempt, in fact, though made bravely and sustained with -consummate ability, was premature; made a few years later,--when the -Stanley party had joined and were conformed with the Peel party, -and made in consequence of some parliamentary measure, not as the -consequence, which it then appeared to be, of Royal patronage and -favour,--the result would have been different. - -At the same time, it made an immense change in the condition of the -Tory party. That party, after this attempt, was no longer a shattered -band of impossible politicians, placed by public opinion without the -pale of political power. - -It became a compact, numerous, and hopeful party, considered by the -country as prudent and practical, and having at its head the man most -looked up to in that House of Parliament, which he declared publicly he -would never quit. - -For four years after this struggle Sir Robert Peel remained at the head -of the powerful opposition he had gradually collected around him; the -Whig Government having in the meantime to perform the very difficult -and ungrateful task of carrying out changes which it deemed necessary, -against Conservatives, and opposing innovations which it deemed -dangerous, against Reformers. The friends of Liberal institutions and -of religious toleration, and even of administrative improvement, owe it -a debt of gratitude which they have never fully paid. The introduction -of popular suffrage into the system of municipal government; the -removal of various grievances that still existed and were mortifying -and harassing to the Dissenters; the reduction of newspaper stamps; -the commutation of tithes, are the footprints which Lord Melbourne’s -administration left on those times. On the other hand, Lord John -Russell resisted in its name vote by ballot (a question of which both -its advocates and opponents exaggerated the importance); any further -extension of the suffrage, and also the re-establishment of triennial -Parliaments. His great antagonist aided him in respect to all measures -which the public, irrespective of parties, were prepared to adopt, and -supported him against all demands which the more democratic portion of -his adherents put forward, but depreciated his general authority by -showing that, though invested with the functions of Government, he and -his colleagues had not the power of governing. - -The great battle-field, however, between Whig and Tory, or as the -latter now called themselves “Conservatives,” was, as it had long been -and seems always destined to be,--Ireland; for there was still to -settle that Irish Tithes Bill, into which the Whigs had insisted for -some time on inserting the principle of appropriation; and there was -also another question at stake, more pressing and more practical,--that -of the Irish corporations. - -The Whigs were for applying to the municipalities in Ireland the same -principles of popular election which had been applied to municipalities -in England and Scotland. The Conservatives contended that Irish society -was not constituted like English and Scotch society, and would not -admit of the same institutions. They urged that the old municipalities -had been constituted on the basis most proper to keep up an exclusive -Protestant ascendancy; they contended that the new municipalities, -according to the Government plan, seemed likely to create an exclusive -ascendancy for the Catholics; and they asserted that under such -circumstances it would be wise and just to establish an order of things -that would preserve some balance between the two great divisions of the -Irish community. They entered, in fact, upon that difficult ground, a -ground made difficult when the Irish Catholic was placed on an equality -with the Irish Protestant, and commenced the transfer of power from -a long predominant minority to an ambitious and irritated majority. -But it was after carefully weighing immediate peril against contingent -difficulties, that Sir Robert Peel had already taken his choice; and he -ought now to have accepted its consequences. The worst way of arguing -for a legislative union between two countries is surely to question -that they will admit of the same laws. The best way of removing -religious passions from political affairs, is to forget in political -questions religious distinctions. - -By not acting on these convictions, he re-opened the sore which he had -made such sacrifices to heal, but this error, which was certain to bear -its punishment in regard to Ireland at a later season, did not affect -his immediate position in the rest of the Empire. - - -II. - -We have said that anything like an alliance with a man who assumed an -attitude of defiance towards English power would arouse the instincts -of English pride. Besides, nothing at all times injures and lowers a -government more than the appearance of being counselled by a private -individual who is not publicly responsible for his advice. The mere -fact that the Whig policy was more congenial to Mr. O’Connell’s views -than the Tory one, would have naturally created a sort of link between -this singular man and the Whig Government. To keep his followers -together, he wanted the influence of patronage; to obtain the aid of -his followers, the Government did not show itself unwilling to bestow -patronage upon him. In the meantime the independence of his attitude -and language--an independence which the peculiarity of his position -obliged him somewhat ostentatiously to display--apparently justified -the accusation that the Premier was his _protégé_, and not he the -_protégé_ of the Premier. Hence, though the House of Commons still -maintained by a small majority the Whig policy in Ireland, there was a -growing coolness amongst the English at large towards Irish grievances, -and a disposition to accuse Lord Melbourne of a mean desire to retain -place, when in reality he was undergoing many personal mortifications -from public motives. - -The Conservatives in Parliament had, moreover, increased, and were -become impatient. A difference between the Colonial Office and the -Jamaica Legislature offered the opportunity of adding some votes to -that number. A battle was fought, and the ministry only gained a -majority of five. Being oppressed by a long catalogue of questions -which it had undertaken to settle, and had not the power to deal with, -the Ministry not unwillingly resigned; and, by the Duke of Wellington’s -advice, Sir Robert Peel had the same commission confided to him by -Queen Victoria which he had received previously from William IV. - -A difficulty, however, here intervened with respect to certain leaders -in the highest position at Court, whom the Premier desired to remove, -and from whom the Queen would not consent to part. The question ought -not to have arisen, but once having done so, concession could not -be made with becoming dignity, either by the sovereign or by the -statesman, who had acted too much as a man of business, and too little -as a man of the world. - - -III. - -Lord Melbourne resumed for a time the position he had abandoned, but, -by doing so, he rather weakened than strengthened his party, and gave -his opponents the advantage of maturing their strength by a prolonged -contest against a ministry which had confessed its incapacity to master -the difficulties which beset it. - -These difficulties were not a little increased by combinations which -betokened an insurrectionary disposition amongst the working classes, -who, in some cases, proceeded to riot, and set forth their general -plans and devices on the project of a constitution called “the people’s -charter,” a project which was generally considered as subversive of -credit, property, and order. - -The Conservatives attributed these doctrines, however denounced by the -Whigs, as deducible from Whig tendencies, and profited by the mistrust -which a weak government and an agitated commonalty naturally suggested. -One hostile motion succeeded another, each manifesting an increasing -decline in the strength of the Whigs, and an increasing confidence on -the part of their opponents, until a new opportunity arose for bringing -together the same parties that had, by their union, brought about Lord -Melbourne’s previous resignation. - -The doctrines of Free Trade had of late made rapid progress; they were -principally directed by the Corn Law League, recently established, -towards a free trade in corn, and against a free trade in this -commodity Sir Robert Peel had emphatically declared himself; but they -were also applicable to all articles of commerce, and to the general -principles of Free Trade in dealing with the greater number of these -articles the Conservative leader gave his assent. As, however, he made -an exception with respect to corn, so he made an exception as to sugar; -his argument being, that the state of our West Indian colonies merited -our special consideration, for we had deprived them of slave labour, -and thereby placed them in an unequal condition as to their products -with countries which employed slave labour. - -For this inequality, he said, it is fair that you should compensate by -imposing a heavier duty on sugar produced by slave labour than on the -sugar cultivated by free labour. The Government, on the other hand, not -daring as yet to declare decidedly in favour of a Free Trade in corn, -was disposed to lower and fix the duty, which was then variable, and -to abolish the differential duties on timber and sugar. In this state -of things, Lord Sandon gave the following notice:--“That, considering -the efforts and sacrifices which Parliament and the country have made -for the abolition of the slave trade and slavery, with the earnest -hope that their exertions and example might lead to a mitigation and -final extinction of those evils in other countries, this House is not -prepared (especially with the present prospect of the supply of sugar -from the British possessions) to adopt the measure proposed by her -Majesty’s Government, for the reduction of the duty on foreign sugar.” - -After a long debate, the opposition had a majority of thirty-six. The -ministers did not resign, meaning to dissolve, but intending first to -renovate their claims to public sympathy by an exposition of Free Trade -policy, which, though it might not go so far as Mr. Cobden and his -friends might desire, would still go far enough to place them at the -head of the movement which they foresaw would soon agitate the country. - -Sir Robert, however, little disposed after his recent victory to afford -a respite to his adversaries, declaring that he did not think it for -the advantage of the monarchy that the servants of the Crown should -be retained, when unable to carry those measures which they felt it -their duty to advise, moved, on the 27th of May, a vote of want of -confidence, and obtained a majority of one. A dissolution followed, -in which the party which still held office was more unsuccessful than -could have been expected, and, at the opening of Parliament, ministers -were in a minority of ninety-one. This closed their existence, but it -might be recorded on their grave that they had finally given Ireland -elective municipalities, and conferred on the three kingdoms the -benefit of a penny postage. - - - - -PART VI. - - Differences in the country.--Sir Robert Peel’s programme.--A - new Conservative party.--Peel’s commercial policy.--Catholic - education.--The Maynooth grant.--Corn Law agitation.--The - Irish distress.--Peel resumes the Government.--The Corn Laws - repealed.--Review of Peel’s career.--Character of Peel.--Peel - and Canning contrasted. - - -I. - -The great interest which attaches to Sir Robert Peel’s life is derived -from the period over which it extended, and his complete identification -with the spirit and action of that period. It is difficult to point out -in history any time at which such numerous changes in the character and -Government of a country took place peacefully within so small a number -of years. We are now at the sixth epoch in this remarkable career. -The first ended by Mr. Peel’s election for Oxford, and his quitting -Ireland as the especial champion of the Protestant cause. The second, -with his rupture with Lord Eldon, and his formation of a moderate -administration, in which he stood as the mediator between extremes. -The third, in which he effected the abrupt concession of the Catholic -claims. The fourth, in which he opposed the reform or change in our -system of representation. The fifth, in which, planting his standard -on the basis of our new institutions, he carried into power the party -most hostile to the principles on which those institutions had been -remodelled. The sixth, as we shall see, concludes with the momentary -destruction of that party. - -The characteristic features of our Government when Mr. Peel began -political life were the supremacy of Protestants, the peculiar and -anomalous condition of nomination boroughs, and the predominant -influence of our landed gentry. Such was what was called the English -Constitution. The Protestant supremacy was, as a principle, abolished; -the close boroughs were done away with; the landed influence was now -beginning to be in jeopardy. - -The elections that had just taken place were in some degree a trial of -the comparative popularity of free trade and protectionist principles, -the Protectionists being for the most part country gentlemen, voting -generally with the Tories, and the Free Traders, who were chiefly -from the mercantile and manufacturing classes, with the Whigs. But -the opinions between the leaders of the two parties with respect to -commercial principles were not so wide apart. Other causes affected -their struggle for power. - -The country had been for some time perplexed by the differences which -prevailed amongst the liberals, and the discordant and heterogeneous -elements of which their body was composed. It had a general idea that -many of the questions under discussion were not ripe for a solution, -that Sir Robert Peel, though adverse to change, was not blind to -improvement; that his followers were more united than his opponents, -and composed of a less adventurous class of politicians; above all, -he himself considered that he was the person who, by his practical -knowledge, was the most capable of restoring order to our finances, -long since deranged by an annual deficit, which the late government had -done nothing to supply. In short, the large majority in the country and -in Parliament which brought Sir Robert Peel into office did so far more -in homage to his personal prestige than in respect to the principles -which his adherents represented. He stood, in fact, in the most eminent -but in the most difficult position which an individual could occupy. It -is worth while to consider what that position was. - -From the time that the Reform Bill of 1832 had been carried, in spite -of the aristocratic branch of our Legislature, there had been a natural -and continuous difference between the two Houses of Parliament, a -difference that was in itself far more dangerous to the form of our -constitution than any decision on any question on which they differed. -In a celebrated speech which Sir R. Peel delivered at Merchant Tailors’ -Hall (in 1839) he had stated that his endeavour was to form such a -party as might bring the House of Commons and the House of Lords into -harmonious working. “My object,” said he, “for some years past, has -been to lay the foundations of a great party, which, existing in the -House of Commons, and deriving its strength from the popular will, -should diminish the risk and deaden the shock of collisions between -the two deliberative branches of the Legislature.” This could not be -effected by a party which merely represented the feelings of the most -democratic portion of the democratic assembly; it could still less -be effected by a party only representing the feelings of the most -aristocratic portion of the aristocratic assembly. A party was required -that should draw strength from the moderate men of both assemblies. -The Whigs had not been able to form a party of this kind; Sir Robert -undertook to do so, stating then, and frequently afterwards, the course -he should pursue with this object. - -In Ireland he proposed to act up to the spirit of the Catholic Relief -Bill, in his distribution of patronage to the Catholics, but to -maintain the Protestant Church. In the rest of the empire he promised -a careful attention to material interests and administrative reforms, -and an unswerving opposition to further constitutional changes. As -to commercial policy, he admitted the general theory of free trade, -but contended that its application should be relative to existing -circumstances and long-established interests, any sudden overthrow -of which would interfere with the natural progress of events, and -the gradual and safe development of national prosperity. For his own -position he claimed an entire liberty, protesting that he did not -mean to fetter the opinions of others, but that at the same time no -consideration would induce him to carry out views or maintain opinions -in which he did not concur. - -“I do not estimate highly the distinction which office confers. To any -man who is fit to hold it, its only value must be, not the patronage -which the possessor is enabled to confer, but the opportunity which is -offered to him of doing good to his country. And the moment I shall be -convinced that that power is denied me, I tell every one who hears me -that he confers on me no personal obligation in having placed me in -this office. Free as the winds, I shall reserve to myself the power of -retiring from the discharge of its onerous and harassing functions the -moment I feel that I cannot discharge them with satisfaction to the -public and to my own conscience.” - -This liberty he foresaw was necessary, for the object he had to effect -was a compromise between conflicting extremes, in which he must expect -to dissatisfy all those whose views were extreme. But it is public -opinion which establishes extremes. What is extreme one day may not -be so another. A certain latitude in accommodating himself to public -opinion was therefore a natural claim. - -But though Sir Robert Peel’s intention was thus to form a new -Conservative party, he was obliged to use old and recognized -Conservative materials. The Protestants in Ireland, the country -gentlemen in England, were the backbone of any Conservative party. He -might endeavour to mitigate their prejudices and to popularize their -opinions, but he could not have a Conservative party without them. The -difficulties which this situation presented were not conspicuous when -he had merely to criticise in opposition. They were certain, however, -to become so when he began to act in office, and was exposed in his -turn to criticism. - -Years, however, had to pass before his plans could be developed or -their tendency discovered. The distress was great; the finances were -disordered; but the mere fact that Sir Robert Peel was at the head of -affairs tranquillised the public mind. In this period, when confidence -was required, the power of character was felt. - -On the meeting of Parliament in the following year, the general -scheme of the ministerial policy was explained. The intentions of the -Government as to the corn trade were confined to the imposition of -more moderate duties, graduating according to a sliding scale, which -made the duty imposed depend on the average price of corn. The mode -adopted for equalizing the revenue with the expenditure was an Income -Tax, accompanied by a reduction in certain articles of consumption; -and finally came a new tariff which had for its principal object the -lowering the price of essential articles of food, and admitting raw -materials applicable to manufactures. The proposed arrangements as to -the corn duties were attacked by the Whigs, who were in favour of a -fixed instead of a varying duty, and by the Free Traders, who contended -that there should be no duties at all. It was attacked also by a -certain number of country gentlemen, who considered that it afforded -insufficient protection to land; but it was considered at the moment by -the country at large as a tolerably fair compromise between conflicting -demands. As to the Income Tax, it was submitted to as a disagreeable -necessity, affording the simplest and surest method of rescuing the -country from the degrading position of constant loans, whilst the -tariff was hailed with general delight as increasing the value of -income, thus affording a compensation for the reduction imposed on it. - -It was on this tariff, indeed, the principles of which were gradually -developed, that Sir Robert Peel’s commercial policy was based. In -the meantime the beneficial effects of his practical and active -administration were soon apparent. The Poor Law was amended, a large -saving was gained by the reduction of the Three and a Half per Cents., -the currency was satisfactorily regulated by the Bank Charter Bill; -the insolvent law was improved, above three millions of taxes were -remitted. Here was fair subject for legitimate boast. - -But whatever consideration these facts might procure for the Premier -in the country, they did not add to his strength in the House of -Commons, for there you can rarely conciliate opponents, whilst the -appearance of an attempt to do so irritates supporters. It is true -that the accusations brought against him by the Protectionists were -as yet unjust. He had never declared himself a Protectionist in -principle. From the days when Mr. Huskisson commenced his commercial -policy he had accepted Mr. Huskisson’s opinions. He had, to be sure, -made some exceptions to the general theory which he then adopted, -and these exceptions he still maintained. The persons interested in -abolishing them declared at once that as the principles on which they -might be defended had been disavowed, it was absurd that they should -be afterwards maintained. The persons, however, who were interested in -them, saw not only that they could not stand alone, but that they could -not last long after the principles on which they had hitherto defended -had been given up. - -In the meantime, Ireland caused even more than its usual amount of -disquietude and annoyance. Vague complaints violently expressed, -monster meetings militarily organized, alarmed the peaceful, encouraged -the disaffected, and crushed all hopes of industrious tranquillity. -The agitators demanded the repeal of the Union. The Government seized -the arms of the peasantry. Mr. O’Connell and his son were arrested, -and convicted by a jury on a charge of conspiracy, and though their -sentence was subsequently set aside by the House of Lords, this -exhibition of vigour produced some effect. - -The perfect tranquillisation of Ireland, whether by Whig or Tory, is, -I fear, impossible, until the united Legislature shall be disposed to -give the majority in Ireland, under the restraint which the influence -of property may justly create for the minority, what that majority -would be able to obtain if Ireland had a Legislature of her own; but at -the same time, the more the Imperial Government manifests its desire to -conciliate those interests it cannot satisfy, the more it is likely to -maintain in that long-distressed country a state of peace, if not of -content. - -Sir Robert Peel brought forward at this time a measure in conformity -with these views. Up to the year 1795, the Catholic clergy had been in -the habit of seeking their education abroad. The state of the continent -at that time suggested the advisability of offering the means of such -education within the British empire. It might have been well, perhaps, -if a college for this purpose had been established in England, where -the Catholic clergy would have been educated in some degree without the -sphere of Irish politics and passions; but such a college was founded -in Ireland at Maynooth. It is so clear, that if we undertook to create -an institution of this kind we should have done so generously and -munificently, that it seems superfluous to waste an argument upon the -subject. We had not, however, acted in that large and comprehensive -spirit which the occasion demanded; the sum we had dedicated (£9,000 -per annum) to the maintenance of an establishment most important -to the welfare of so large a portion of our population, was wholly -inadequate for its object. Sir Robert Peel now proposed to increase the -allowance, and thus to give a proof that the English Government was not -indifferent to any class of British subjects, whether within or without -the pale of the dominant Church. - -It is terrible to find recorded in any page of our modern history -that the attempt to provide decorously for the education of the -Catholic, was regarded as a grievance by the Protestant; but so it -was. Although the principle involved in the Maynooth grant was already -conceded,--although neither George III., nor Lord Eldon, nor the -Protestants at the Protestant epoch of 1795, had objected to this -principle,--it was now assailed as if it had been for the first time -propounded, and a bigotry displayed by fanatics, which almost justified -agitators. The Premier said, “Abuse me if you will, but let my measure -be carried.” He was abused, and his measure was carried. - -I have said that when he undertook to form a new Conservative party he -was obliged to use the old Conservative materials, and that these were -the Irish Protestants and the English country gentry. In his endeavour -to give to these two bodies a more national character, he had already -lost his prestige with the one, and damaged it with the other. Another -crisis, however, had yet to arrive, before the career he had entered -upon was closed. I approach the repeal of the Corn Laws. - - -II. - -A most rapid change had taken place in public opinion within but a few -years about the laws concerning corn. From the earliest period of my -public life I had considered them untenable and dangerous to the class -which fancied itself interested in their maintenance. Thus, I voted for -their total repeal as early as 1832, but only two persons (Mr. Hume and -Mr. Cobbett) voted with me. - -Almost every statesman, in fact, up to 1840, had considered, as a -matter of course, that home-grown was to be protected by a duty on -foreign corn. They might differ as to the manner in which that duty -should be imposed, as to what should be its amount, but no one doubted -that there should be a duty sufficient to procure a remunerative -price to the English grower. Mr. Charles Pelham Villiers has the -credit of first bringing this subject before the serious attention of -politicians. Ere long the Corn Law League was formed, and produced, no -doubt, a great effect on the public mind; but this was in consequence -of the fact that when the Corn Law League commenced its labours, -people’s thoughts had been subjected to an influence different from -that which had formerly governed them. - -Previous to the Reform Bill and the Municipality Bills everybody in -England looked up: the ambitious young man looked up to the great -nobleman for a seat in Parliament; the ambitious townsman to the -chief men of his borough for a place in the corporation. Subsequently -to these measures, men desirous to elevate their position looked -down. The aristocratic tendency of other days had thus become almost -suddenly a democratic one. This democratic tendency, which has gone on -increasing, had made itself already visible at the period when the Corn -Law agitation began. It had been natural until then to consider this -subject in relation to the interests of the upper classes; it was now -becoming natural to consider it in relation to the interests of the -lower classes. The question presented itself in a perfectly different -point of view, and politicians found, somewhat to their surprise, that -all former arguments had lost their force. It was this change in the -spirit of the times which had occasioned within such a very few years -a total change in the manner of looking at matters affected by the -Legislature. We must, whether we wish to do so or not, breathe the -atmosphere that is around us. Directly it was shown them that low wages -did not necessarily follow a low price of corn, and that the labourer -did not earn more because his living was dearer, the only argument -that was still listened to against foreign competition disappeared. -Statesman after statesman felt himself gliding into the conviction that -all attempts to maintain the existing state of things, because it was -thought favourable to the country gentry, was impracticable. - -Lord John Russell and other leading members of the Whig party, who had -been supporters of a Corn Law, underwent year by year a modification in -their former opinions, and were arriving in 1845 at the determination -of abandoning them. Sir Robert Peel had been undergoing precisely the -same influences, and was arriving precisely at the same conclusions. -The country gentlemen amongst the Whigs had quite as much cause to -reproach their leader for an alteration in his views as the country -gentlemen of the Tories had a right to reproach theirs. But neither the -one statesman nor the other had as yet gone so far as to make common -cause with Mr. Villiers and Mr. Cobden. An important and alarming -incident hastened the decision of both. That incident was the failure -of the potato-crop. Unless some measure was taken for bringing food -from foreign countries into England, and especially into Ireland, -there was legitimate cause for apprehending a famine. An apprehension -of this kind involves no ordinary responsibility. Lord John Russell -and Sir Robert Peel felt this almost at the same moment. But whilst -the responsibility of the one was far greater than that of the other, -his course was far more embarrassed. Lord John did not rely chiefly on -those persons who fancied that their income depended on upholding the -value of home produce. Sir Robert Peel did. The first might gain office -by declaring that the moment was come for putting Protection altogether -on one side; the other could only lose it. - -Such a consideration might in many cases fairly weigh with a public -man. A change of administration, a dislocation of parties, may affect -a variety of questions, as well as the one which at the moment may -be most prominent. But when the matter which presents itself before -you is the death by starvation of hundreds or thousands of your -fellow-creatures, and you think, whether rightly or wrongly, that your -decision can save or condemn so many existences, is there any one who -could counsel you for any reason whatever to sanction wholesale murder -by suppressing your convictions? There were persons who did not think -famine imminent. To them, of course, the question presented itself in a -different point of view. But Sir Robert Peel seems to have been finally -convinced that nothing short of a suspension of the Corn Laws, and -the proposal of measures tending to their ultimate abolition, would -meet the urgency of the case. He had already lost his confidence in the -policy of protecting corn under ordinary circumstances; and now came -circumstances which, even if his general opinions had been the same as -formerly, would have created an especial reason for putting them on one -side. - -What was he to do? Some of his colleagues dissented altogether from his -views. They did not see the crisis he foresaw so clearly as he did, -and therefore were not for meeting it by a temporary suspension of a -permanent duty. They did not recognise the necessity for eventually -repealing that duty, and therefore were not for proposing measures -that would lead to its ultimate abolition. The Premier might have -attempted the policy he had in view with the remainder of the ministry, -but he wisely resolved on not making such an attempt; and tendering -his resignation to her Majesty, and indicating the causes, he stated -his readiness to support Lord John Russell if he were willing, and -able, to form a Cabinet that would undertake to carry out the views -which he believed Lord John and himself entertained in common. The -Whig leader failed in executing the commission with which, after this -communication, the Queen intrusted him; and Lord Stanley, now at the -head of the Protectionist party, considering it was not in his power -to form a Government, Sir Robert Peel had as a matter of duty and -necessity to resume his post. - -It appears to me that the fact that he had resigned office on -changing his policy, and that he did not return to it until every -other ministerial combination had failed, rendered his course on this -occasion more clear than on the Catholic question. To accuse him -under such circumstances of changing his views in order to retain his -office is as absurd as unjust. He is not even subject to the charge of -retaining power after changing the opinions that he entertained on -receiving it. His conduct appears to me to have been dictated by the -purest patriotism, and the most complete sacrifice of personal ambition -to public motives. Nor was his ability ever more conspicuous than -during the ordeal he had now to undergo. - -It is not, however, my intention to follow him through the -Parliamentary contest in which he was soon engaged, and out of which he -came triumphant, though not without, for the second time in his life, -having been submitted to the severest obloquy, and having exposed his -friends, which must have been his most painful trial, to accusations as -bitter as those which he had himself to support. - -The event which he must have anticipated was now at hand. - -We know that, according to Mahomedan superstition, a man walks through -life with his good and his bad angel by his side. Sir Robert Peel had -at this moment his good and his bad angel accompanying his political -fortunes with equal pace. - -“During the progress of the Corn Law Bill,” he says in his Memoirs, -“through the two Houses of Parliament, another bill, entitled a Bill -for the Protection of Life in Ireland, which at an early period of the -Session had received the assent of the House of Lords, was brought -under discussion in the House of Commons, and encountered every species -of opposition.” - - * * * * * - -On the 21st of January, 1846, the two bills, the Corn Law Repeal -Bill, and the Bill for Protection of Life in Ireland, were in such a -position in the two Houses respectively, that there appeared every -reason to calculate on the double event,--the passing of the first bill -unmutilated by the House of Lords, and the rejection of the second by -the House of Commons. These two bills were indeed his guardian and -destroying angels. The one crowned him with imperishable fame--the -other ejected him for the last time from power. - -On the 19th of May, 1846, the Corn Law Repeal Bill was carried by a -majority of 98. On the 25th of June, by a concerted union between the -Protectionists and Whig parties, the Irish Life Protection Bill was -rejected by a majority of 75, and the Premier retired, the shouts of -congratulation at his victory mingling with the condolence at his -defeat. One farther triumph, however, yet remained to him, that of -supporting the Whig Government, when, but a short time afterwards, -it deemed itself obliged to bring forward a bill almost similar to -the one which when proposed by an opposite party it had denounced. -The most triumphant portion of Sir Robert Peel’s political career was -indeed that which followed his exclusion from official life. I know of -no statesman who ever occupied so proud a position as that in which a -greater commoner than even the first William Pitt stood from 1846 to -July, 1850, when an unhappy accident filled with patriotic sorrow every -heart in England. Above all parties, himself a party,--he had trained -his own mind into a disinterested sympathy with the intelligence -of his country. He never during this period gave a vote to court -democratic influence or to win aristocratic favour. Conscientiously -and firmly attached to the religion of the State, he flattered none -of its prejudices, and repudiated boldly its exclusive pretensions; -and his speech on the Jewish Disabilities Bill, considering that it -was delivered towards the close of a career which had begun under the -intolerant patronage of Lord Eldon, is perhaps the most notable and the -most instructive that he ever delivered, as marking the progress of -opinion during forty years in the history of England. - - -III. - -If it could be said of any man, indeed, it could be said of this -statesman, that time in its progress turned him inside out. But the -process was a gradual one, and it was only when you put the Peel -of 1810 by the side of the Peel of 1850, that the totality of the -change appears distinct. And yet, though the end of Sir Robert -Peel’s career was at such variance with the commencement, there is a -certain consistency that may be traced throughout it. Formed on those -official habits which incline a minister to postpone or oppose the -consideration of all questions which cannot be successfully dealt with, -he never exposed a theory until it could be realized, nor brought -forward a measure which he did not think he could carry. At the same -time his tendencies were liberal whenever the object brought under his -consideration became practical. It must also be said that in the matter -on which these tendencies came most strikingly into view his objects -were Conservative. - -He was converted with respect to the Catholic question, and was -converted to Liberal views, but when he professed this conversion, it -was to save the country from civil war. He was converted with respect -to the Corn Law, and was converted to Liberal convictions; but when he -professed this conversion, it was to save the country from famine. - -Those who have asserted that his natural bent was towards a change -in established institutions and ancient customs, were, I think, -decidedly wrong. His natural disposition was rather to maintain what -he found existing, but he sacrificed old things without scruple when -he considered them decidedly incompatible with new ideas. He had not -that order of mind which creates and forces its creations on the -minds of others. His mind was, on the contrary, a recipient which -opened gradually to growing opinions, and became another mind as these -opinions got by degrees possession of it. His changes were thus more -sudden in appearance than in reality, because they always went on -for a certain time, silently, and to a certain degree unconsciously -to himself as well as to the world before they were fully felt; nor -were they ever publicly announced till, having passed through a stage -of doubt, they arrived at the stage of conviction. His convictions, -moreover, were generally simultaneous with those of the public, -when the public formed its convictions gradually. But any sudden and -unexpected leap of opinion, as in the case of the Whig Reform Bill of -1872, took him unprepared. His manner in personal intercourse, however -intimate your relations might be, were nearly always formal, though not -cold; but in correspondence he was easy, natural, and remarkable for -the simplicity and frankness of his letters. - -I speak at least from the result of my own experience. In all matters -of home policy he was thoroughly master of every subject that could -interest an English statesman. In foreign matters he had general -notions, but not much knowledge of particulars, nor any special plan -or theory of policy; but a high idea of the power of England and the -expediency of maintaining her dignity and prestige. - -In the early part of his life I have no doubt that ambition, and the -personal motives of ambition, had a certain influence over his actions. -At a later period, in his last administration, and after quitting -office, I believe he had no personal view that separated him in the -slightest degree from an entire and disinterested devotion to the -interests of his country. He was a scholar in the highest sense of the -term; nor did the attention he could give to the driest details of -business damp his sympathy for the elegancies of literature, or his -appreciation of what was beautiful, whether in painting or sculpture. -He had no hatred--no inveterate prejudices against persons or things. -His domestic virtues are too well known to make it necessary to allude -to them. - -In short, without pretending to raise him above the defects and -littlenesses of human nature, I do not know where to point to any one -who united such talents for public business with such qualities in -private life. - - -IV. - -A comparison which suggests itself naturally to those who study the -history of their times, is one between the practical statesman, -the sketch of whose career I am concluding, and his more brilliant -contemporary, of whom I have previously spoken. Though for a long -period rivals, they both entered political life under the Tory banner, -and gained their reputation by adopting Whig principles. In canvassing -their separate merits, it is just to say that Sir Robert Peel’s great -acts were the development of Mr. Canning’s principles. The former -hatched the latter’s ideas, and for one triumph especially, which Sir -Robert tardily but nobly achieved, the Catholics of the British empire -must feel even more grateful to their early champion than to their -subsequent benefactor. - -Sir Robert Peel had the talents for giving a prosperous issue to a -popular cause, Mr. Canning the genius that makes a cause popular. -The one had the courage to advocate an opinion before it was ripe -for realization. The other, the fortitude when the advantage and the -possibility of a measure became apparent, to make unhesitatingly every -personal sacrifice for the public welfare. If we praise the one for his -prescience as a statesman, we bend with admiration before the other as -a patriot. - -The brilliant talents, the genial and generous spirit of Mr. -Canning procured him partisans who served him with their heart, and -animating his country by a sympathy with his spirit, inspired a -sort of affectionate interest in his fortunes. The calm and steady -prudence, the sober and moderate language, the punctilious devotion to -business, the constant attention to practical and useful improvements, -the comprehensive acquirements, the gradual abandonment of early -prejudices, won by degrees for Sir Robert Peel a sort of judicial -pre-eminence which made men obey his decisions who were displeased -with his manners, and who even differed from his opinions. Thus was he -finally elevated to a height in the general esteem which was the more -remarkable from its being gained by qualities which neither charmed -individuals nor dazzled the public. - -Each left a school. In the one we may learn how to sustain our renown -and our power abroad; in the other how to advance our prosperity at -home. Both were the citizens of a free state, but if I might venture to -distinguish the peculiarities of these two illustrious Englishmen by a -reference to classical examples, I would say that the one resembled a -Greek in the most glorious times of Athens, the other reminded you of a -Roman in the noblest epoch of the city of Romulus. - - - - -APPENDIX. - -TWO MEMOIRS, READ BY M. DE TALLEYRAND AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE. - - -_Essai sur les avantages à retirer de colonies nouvelles dans les -circonstances présentes. Par le CITOYEN TALLEYRAND. Lu à la séance -publique, de l’Institut national, le 25 messidor, an V._ - -Les hommes qui ont médité sur la nature des rapports qui unissent les -métropoles aux colonies, ceux qui sont accoutumés à lire de loin les -événements politiques dans leurs causes, prévoyaient depuis longtemps -que les colonies américaines se séparaient un jour de leurs métropoles, -et, par une tendance naturelle que les vices des Européens n’ont que -trop accélérée, ou se réuniront entre elles, ou s’attacheront au -continent qui les avoisine: ainsi le veut cette force des choses qui -fait la destinée des états, et à laquelle rien ne résiste. - -Si de tels événements sont inévitables, il faut du moins en retarder -l’époque et mettre à profit le temps qui nous en sépare. - -Des mesures désastreuses ont porté dans nos colonies la dévastation. -L’humanité, la justice, la politique même, commandent impérieusement -que, par des mesures fermes et sages, on s’efforce enfin de réparer ces -ruines. - -Mais, en même temps, ne convient-il pas de jeter les yeux sur d’autres -contrées, et d’y préparer l’établissement de colonies nouvelles, dont -les liens avec nous seront plus naturels, plus utiles et plus durables? -car il faut bien que le système de notre gouvernement intérieur amène -dans nos rapports étrangers des changements qui lui soient analogues. - -L’effet nécessaire d’une constitution libre est de tendre sans cesse -à tout ordonner, en elle et hors d’elle, pour l’intérêt de l’espèce -humaine: l’effet nécessaire d’un gouvernement arbitraire est de tendre -sans cesse à tout ordonner, en lui et hors de lui, pour l’intérêt -particulier de ceux qui gouvernent. D’après ces tendances opposées, il -est incontestable que rien de commun ne peut exister longtemps pour -les moyens, puisque rien de commun n’existait pour l’objet. - -La tyrannie s’irrite des regrets alors qu’ils se manifestent; -l’indifférence ne les entend pas: la bonté les accueille avec intérêt; -la politique leur cherche un contre-poids: or le contre-poids des -regrets, c’est l’espoir. - -Les anciens avaient imaginé le fleuve de l’oubli, où se perdaient, au -sortir de la vie, tous les souvenirs. Le véritable Léthé, au sortir -d’une révolution, est dans tout ce qui ouvre aux hommes les routes de -l’espérance. - -“Toutes les mutations,” dit Machiavel, “fournissent de quoi en faire -une autre.” Ce mot est juste et profond. - -En effet, sans parler des haines qu’elles éternisent et des motifs de -vengeance qu’elles déposent dans les âmes, les révolutions qui ont tout -remué, celles surtout auxquelles tout le monde a pris part, laissent, -après elles, une inquiétude générale dans les esprits, un besoin de -mouvement, une disposition vague aux entreprises hasardeuses, et une -ambition dans les idées, qui tend sans cesse à changer et à détruire. - -Cela est vrai, surtout quand la révolution s’est faite au nom de la -liberté. “Un gouvernement _libre_,” dit quelque part Montesquieu, -“c’est-à-dire, _toujours agité_,” &c. Une telle agitation ne pouvant -pas être étouffée, il faut la régler; il faut qu’elle s’exerce non aux -dépens, mais au profit du bonheur public. - -Après les crises révolutionnaires, il est des hommes fatigués et -vieillis sous l’impression du malheur, dont il faut en quelque sorte -rajeunir l’âme. Il en est qui voudroient ne plus aimer leur pays, à qui -il faut faire sentir qu’heureusement cela est impossible. - -Le temps et de bonnes lois produiront sans doute d’heureux changements; -mais il faut aussi des établissements combinés avec sagesse: car le -pouvoir des lois est borné, et le temps détruit indifféremment le bien -et le mal. - -Lorsque j’étais en Amérique, je fus frappé de voir qu’après une -révolution, à la vérité très-dissemblable de là nôtre, il restait aussi -peu de traces d’anciennes haines, aussi peu d’agitation, d’inquiétude; -enfin qu’il n’y avait aucun de ces symptômes qui, dans les états -devenus libres, menacent à chaque instant la tranquillité. Je ne -tardai pas à en découvrir une des principales causes. Sans doute cette -révolution a, comme les autres, laissé dans les âmes des dispositions à -exciter ou à recevoir de nouveaux troubles; mais ce besoin d’agitation -a pu se satisfaire autrement dans un pays vaste et nouveau, où des -projets aventureux amorcent les esprits, où une immense quantité -de terres incultes leur donne la facilité d’aller employer loin du -théâtre des premières dissensions une activité nouvelle, de placer des -espérances dans des spéculations lointaines, de se jeter à la fois au -milieu d’une foule d’essais, de se fatiguer enfin par des déplacements, -et d’amortir ainsi chez eux les passions révolutionnaires. - -Heureusement le sol que nous habitons ne présente pas les mêmes -ressources: mais des colonies nouvelles, choisies et établies avec -discernement, peuvent nous les offrir; et ce motif pour s’en occuper -ajoute une grande force à ceux qui sollicitent déjà l’attention -publique sur ce genre d’établissements. - -Les diverses causes qui ont donné naissance aux colonies dont -l’histoire nous a transmis l’origine, n’étaient pas plus déterminantes; -la plupart furent beaucoup moins pures; ainsi l’ambition, l’ardeur -des conquêtes, portèrent les premières colonies des Phéniciens[132] -et des Égyptiens dans la Grèce; la violence, celle des Tyriens à -Carthage[133]; les malheurs de la guerre, celle des Troyens fugitifs -en Italie[134]; le commerce, l’amour des richesses, celle des -Carthaginois dans les[135] îles de la Méditerranée, et sur les côtes -de l’Espagne et de l’Afrique; la nécessité, celles des Athéniens dans -l’Asie mineure,[136] lorsqu’ils devinrent trop nombreux pour leur -territoire borné et peu fertile; la prudence, celle des Lacédémoniens -à Tarente, qui, par elle, se délivrèrent de citoyens turbulents; une -forte politique, les nombreuses colonies des Romains[137], qui se -montraient doublement habiles en cédant à leurs colons une portion des -terres conquises, et parce qu’ils apaisaient le peuple, qui demandait -sans cesse un nouveau partage, et parce qu’ils faisaient ainsi, des -mécontents mêmes, une garde sûre dans le pays qu’ils avaient soumis; -l’ardeur du pillage et la fureur guerrière (bien plus que l’excès de -population), les colonies ou plutôt les irruptions des peuples du -Nord[138] dans l’empire romain; une piété romanesque et conquérante, -celles des Européens[139] dans l’Asie. - -Après la découverte de l’Amérique, on vit la folie, l’injustice, le -brigandage de particuliers altérés d’or, se jeter sur les premières -terres qu’ils rencontrèrent. Plus ils étaient avides, plus ils -s’isolaient; ils voulaient non pas cultiver, mais dévaster: ce -n’étaient pas encore là de véritables colonies. Quelque temps après, -des dissensions religieuses donnèrent naissance à des établissements -plus réguliers: ainsi les Puritains se réfugièrent au nord de -l’Amérique; les Catholiques d’Angleterre, dans le Maryland; les -Quakers, dans la Pensylvanie: d’où Smith conclut que ce ne fût point -la sagesse, mais plutôt les vices des gouvernements d’Europe, qui -peuplèrent le nouveau monde. - -D’autres grands déplacements sont dus aussi à une politique ombrageuse, -ou à une politique faussement religieuse: ainsi l’Espagne rejeta de -son sein les Maures; la France, les Protestants; presque tous les -gouvernements, les Juifs; et partout on reconnut trop tard l’erreur -qui avait dicté ces déplorables conseils. On avait des mécontents; on -voulut en faire des ennemis: ils pouvaient servir leur pays; on les -força de lui nuire. - -Cette longue expérience ne doit pas être perdue pour nous. L’art de -mettre les hommes à leur place est le premier, peut-être, dans la -science du gouvernement: mais celui de trouver la place des mécontents -est, à coup sûr, le plus difficile; et, présenter à leur imagination -des lointains, des perspectives où puissent se prendre leurs pensées -et leurs désirs, est, je crois, une des solutions de cette difficulté -sociale. - -Dans le développement des motifs qui ont déterminé l’établissement d’un -très-grand nombre de colonies anciennes, on remarque aisément qu’alors -même qu’elles étaient indispensables, elles furent volontaires; -qu’elles étaient présentées par les gouvernements comme un appât, non -comme une peine: on y voit surtout dominer cette idée, que les états -politiques devaient tenir en réserve des moyens de placer utilement -hors de leur enceinte cette surabondance de citoyens qui, de temps -en temps, menaçaient la tranquillité. Ce besoin, au reste, était -fondé sur une origine vicieuse: c’était, ou une première loi agraire -qui suscitait de menaçantes réclamations qu’il fallait calmer, ou -une constitution trop exclusive qui, faite pour une classe, faisait -craindre la trop grande population des autres. - -C’est en nous emparant de ce qu’ont de plus pur ces vues des anciens, -et en nous défendant de l’application qu’en ont faite la plupart des -peuples modernes, qu’il convient, je pense, de s’occuper, dès les -premiers jours de la paix, de ce genre d’établissements, qui, bien -conçus et bien exécutés, peuvent être, après tant d’agitations, la -source des plus précieux avantages. - -Et combien de Français doivent embrasser avec joie cette idée! combien -en est-il chez qui, ne fût-ce que pour des instants, un ciel nouveau -est devenu un besoin! et ceux qui, restés seuls, ont perdu, sous le -fer des assassins, tout ce qui embellissait pour eux la terre natale; -et ceux pour qui elle est devenue inféconde, et ceux qui n’y trouvent -que des regrets, et ceux même qui n’y trouvent que des remords; et -les hommes qui ne peuvent se résoudre à placer l’espérance là où ils -éprouvèrent le malheur; et cette multitude de malades politiques, ces -caractères inflexibles qu’aucun revers ne peut plier, ces imaginations -ardentes qu’aucun raisonnement ne ramène, ces esprits fascinés qu’aucun -événement ne désenchante; et ceux qui se trouvent toujours trop -resserrés dans leur propre pays; et les spéculateurs avides, et les -spéculateurs aventureux; et les hommes qui brûlent d’attacher leur nom -à des découvertes, à des fondations de villes, à des civilisations; tel -pour qui la France constituée est encore trop agitée, tel pour qui elle -est trop calme; ceux enfin qui ne peuvent se faire à des égaux, et ceux -aussi qui ne peuvent se faire à aucune dépendance. - -Et qu’on ne croie pas que tant d’éléments divers et opposés ne peuvent -se réunir. N’avons-nous pas vu dans ces dernières années, depuis qu’il -y a des opinions politiques en France, des hommes de tous les partis -s’embarquer ensemble, pour aller courir les mêmes hasards sur les -bords inhabités du Scioto? Ignore-t-on l’empire qu’exercent sur les -âmes les plus irritables, le temps, l’espace, une terre nouvelle, des -habitudes à commencer, des obstacles communs à vaincre, la nécessité de -s’entr’aider remplaçant le désir de se nuire, le travail qui adoucit -l’âme, et l’espérance qui la console, et la douceur de s’entretenir du -pays qu’on a quitté, celle même de s’en plaindre? etc. - -Non, il n’est pas si facile qu’on le pense de haïr toujours: ce -sentiment ne demande souvent qu’un prétexte pour s’évanouir; il ne -résiste jamais à tant de causes agissant à la fois pour l’éteindre. - -Tenons donc pour indubitable que ces discordances d’opinions, aussi -bien que celles de caractères, ne forment point obstacle à de nouvelles -colonies, et se perdront toutes dans un intérêt commun, si l’on sait -mettre à profit les erreurs et les préjugés qui ont flétries jusqu’à ce -jour les nombreuses tentatives de ce genre. - -Il n’entre point dans le plan de ce mémoire de présenter tous les -détails d’un établissement colonial, mon but n’étant que d’éveiller -l’attention publique, et d’appeler sur ce sujet des méditations plus -approfondies et les connaissances de tous ceux qui ont des localités à -présenter. - -Toutefois je ne m’interdirai point d’énoncer quelques-uns des principes -les plus simples, sur lesquels ces établissements doivent être -fondés; j’ai besoin de me rassurer moi-même contre la crainte de voir -renouveler des essais désastreux. Je pense qu’on sentira le besoin de -s’établir dans des pays chauds, parce que ce sont les seuls qui donnent -des avances à ceux qui y apportent de l’industrie; dans des lieux -productifs de ce qui nous manque et desireux de ce que nous avons, car -c’est là le premier lien des métropoles et des colonies. On s’occupera, -sans doute, à faire ces établissements vastes, pour que hommes et -projets y soient à l’aise; variés, pour que chacun y trouve la place -et le travail qui lui conviennent. On saura, surtout, qu’on ne laisse -pas s’embarquer inconsidérément une multitude d’hommes à la fois, avant -qu’on ait pourvu aux besoins indispensables à un premier établissement; -et l’on se rappellera que c’est par la plus inepte des imprévoyances -que les expéditions de Mississipi en 1719, et de Cayenne en 1763, ont -dévoré tant de milliers de Français. - -Jusqu’à présent les gouvernements se sont fait une espèce de -principe de politique de n’envoyer, pour fonder leurs colonies, que -des individus sans industrie, sans capitaux et sans mœurs. C’est -le principe absolument contraire qu’il faut adopter; car le vice, -l’ignorance et la misère ne peuvent rien fonder: ils ne savent que -détruire. - -Souvent on a fait servir les colonies de moyens de punition; et l’on a -confondu imprudemment celles qui pourraient servir à cette destination, -et celles dont les rapports commerciaux doivent faire la richesse de la -métropole. Il faut séparer avec soin ces deux genres d’établissements: -qu’ils n’aient rien de commun dans leur origine, comme ils n’ont rien -de semblable dans leur destination; car l’impression qui résulte d’une -origine flétrie a des effets que plusieurs générations suffisent à -peine pour effacer. - -Mais quels seront les liens entre ces colonies nouvelles et la France? -L’histoire offre des résultats frappants pour décider la question. -Les colonies grecques étaient indépendantes; elles prospérèrent au -plus haut point. Celles de Rome furent toujours gouvernées; leurs -progrès furent presque nuls, et leurs noms nous sont à peine connus. -La solution est encore aujourd’hui là, malgré la différence des -temps et des intérêts. Je sais qu’il est difficile de convaincre des -gouvernements qui ne savent pas sortir de l’habitude, qu’ils retireront -le prix de leurs avances et de leur protection sans recourir à des -lois de contrainte: mais il est certain que l’intérêt bien entendu -de deux pays est le vrai lien qui doit les unir; et ce lien est -bien fort lorsqu’il y a aussi origine commune: il se conserve même -lorsque la force des armes a déplacé les relations. C’est ce qu’on -aperçoit visiblement dans la Louisiane, restée française quoique sous -la domination espagnole depuis plus de trente ans; dans le Canada, -quoiqu’au pouvoir des Anglais depuis le même nombre d’années: les -colons de ces deux pays ont été Français; ils le sont encore, et un -tendance manifeste les porte toujours vers nous. C’est donc sur la -connaissance anticipée des intérêts réciproques, fortifiés par ce lien -si puissant d’origine commune, que l’établissement doit être formé, -et sur la force de cet intérêt qu’il faut compter pour en recueillir -les avantages. A une grande distance, tout autre rapport devient, avec -le temps, illusoire, ou est plus dispendieux que productif: ainsi, -point de domination, point de monopole; toujours la force qui protège, -jamais celle qui s’empare; justice, bienveillance; voilà les vrais -calculs pour les états comme pour les individus; voilà la source d’une -prospérité réciproque. L’expérience et le raisonnement s’unissent enfin -pour repousser ces doctrines pusillanimes qui supposent une _perte_ -partout où il s’est fait un _gain_. Les principes vrais du commerce -sont l’opposé de ces préjugés: ils promettent à tous les peuples des -avantages mutuels, et ils les invitent à s’enrichir tous à la fois -par l’échange de leurs productions, par des communications libres et -amicales, et par les arts utiles de la paix. - -Du reste, les pays propres à recevoir nos colonies sont en assez grand -nombre; plusieurs rempliraient parfaitement nos vues. - -En nous plaçant dans la supposition où nos îles d’Amérique -s’épuiseraient, ou même nous échapperaient, quelques établissements le -long de la côte de l’Afrique, ou plutôt dans les îles qui l’avoisinent, -seraient faciles et convenables. Un auteur recommandable par les vues -qui se manifestent dans ses ouvrages, tous inspirés par l’amour du bien -public, le citoyen Montlinot, dans un très-bon mémoire qu’il vient -de publier, indique le long de cette côte un archipel d’îles dont -plusieurs, quoique fertiles, sont inhabitées et à notre disposition. - -M. le duc de Choiseul, un des hommes de notre siècle qui a eu le plus -d’avenir dans l’esprit, qui déjà en 1769 prévoyait la séparation de -l’Amérique de l’Angleterre et craignait le partage de la Pologne, -cherchait dès cette époque à préparer par des négociations la cession -de l’Egypte à la France, pour se trouver prêt à remplacer par les mêmes -productions et par un commerce plus étendu, les colonies américaines -le jour où elles nous échapperaient. C’est dans le même esprit que le -gouvernement anglais encourage avec tant de succès la culture du sucre -au Bengale; qu’il avait, avant la guerre, commencé un établissement -à Sierra-Leona, et qu’il en préparait un autre à Boulam. Il est -d’ailleurs une vérité qu’il ne faut pas chercher à se taire: la -question si indiscrètement traitée sur la liberté des noirs, quel que -soit le remède que la sagesse apporte aux malheurs qui en ont été la -suite, introduira, tôt ou tard, un nouveau système dans la culture des -denrées coloniales: il est politique d’aller au-devant de ces grands -changements; et la première idée qui s’offre à l’esprit, celle qui -amène le plus de suppositions favorables, paraît être d’essayer cette -culture aux lieux mêmes où naît le cultivateur. - -Je viens à peine de marquer quelques positions; il en est d’autres que -je pourrais indiquer également: mais, ici surtout, trop annoncer ce -qu’on veut faire est le moyen de ne le faire pas. C’est d’ailleurs aux -hommes qui ont le plus et le mieux voyagé, à ceux qui ont porté dans -leurs recherches cet amour éclairé et infatigable de leur pays; c’est -à notre Bougainville, qui a eu la gloire de découvrir ce qu’il a été -encore glorieux pour les plus illustres navigateurs de l’Angleterre -de parcourir après lui; c’est à Fleurieu, qui a si parfaitement -observé tout ce qu’il a vu, et si bien éclairé du jour d’une savante -critique les observations des autres; c’est à de tels hommes à dire -au gouvernement, lorsqu’ils seront interrogés par lui, quels sont les -lieux où une terre neuve, un climat facilement salubre, un sol fécond -et des rapports marqués par la nature, appellent notre industrie et -nous promettent de riches avantages pour le jour du moins où nous -saurons n’y porter que des lumières et du travail. - -De tout ce qui vient d’être exposé, il suit que tout presse de -s’occuper de nouvelles colonies: l’exemple des peuples les plus sages, -qui en ont fait un des grands moyens de tranquillité; le besoin de -préparer le remplacement de nos colonies actuelles pour ne pas nous -trouver en arrière des événements; la convenance de placer la culture -de nos denrées coloniales plus près de leurs vrais cultivateurs; la -nécessité de former avec les colonies les rapports les plus naturels, -bien plus faciles, sans doute, dans des établissements nouveaux que -dans les anciens; l’avantage de ne point nous laisser prévenir par une -nation rivale, pour qui chacun de nos oublis, chacun de nos retards en -ce genre est une conquête; l’opinion des hommes éclairés qui ont porté -leur attention et leurs recherches sur cet objet; enfin la douceur de -pouvoir attacher à ces entreprises tant d’hommes agités qui ont besoin -de projets, tant d’hommes malheureux qui ont besoin d’espérance. - - -_Mémoires sur les relations commerciales des Etats-Unis avec -l’Angleterre, par le CITOYEN TALLEYRAND. Lu le 15 germinal, an V._ - -Il n’est pas de science plus avide de faits que l’économie politique -L’art de les recueillir, de les ordonner, de les juger la constitue -presque tout entière; et, sous ce point de vue, elle a peut-être plus -à attendre de l’observation que du génie; car, arrive le moment où il -faut tout éprouver, sous peine de ne rien savoir; et c’est alors que -les faits deviennent les vérificateurs de la science, après en avoir -été les matériaux. - -Toutefois il faut se garder de cette manie qui voudrait toujours -recommencer les expériences; et ne jamais rien croire, pour avoir -le droit de tout ignorer; mais on ne doit pas moins repousser cette -témérité qui, dédaignant tout ce qui est positif, trouve plus commode -de deviner que de voir. - -Que faut-il donc? Unir sans cesse les produits de l’observation à ceux -de la pensée; admettre, sans doute, les résultats que donnent certains -faits généraux bien constants, bien d’accord, et vus tout entiers; -mais en même temps, savoir appeler, dans les nouvelles questions et -même dans les profondeurs de quelques-unes des anciennes, le secours -de faits nouveaux ou nouvellement observés. Il faut se défendre des -premiers aperçus, ces axiomes de la paresse et de l’ignorance; et -enfin se défier beaucoup de ces principes ambitieux qui veulent tout -embrasser; ou plutôt, corrigeant l’acception d’un mot dont on a tant -abusé, n’appeler du nom de principe que l’idée première dans l’ordre du -raisonnement, et non l’idée générale; que ce qui précède, non ce qui -domine. - -Plein de ces vérités auxquelles tout nous ramène, j’ai cru pouvoir -présenter à la classe de l’institut à laquelle j’ai l’honneur -d’appartenir quelques observations que j’ai été à portée de faire en -Amérique, et dont les conséquences m’ont plus d’une fois étonné. - -Je me suis persuadé que quelques-unes de ces observations, vérifiées -sur toute l’étendue d’un pays longtemps encore nouveau, pourraient -être apportées au dépôt de l’économie politique, et y être reçues avec -l’intérêt qu’on accorde en histoire naturelle à la plus simple des -productions ramassée par un voyageur sur sa route. - -Malheureusement, l’esprit de système est dans les sciences ce que -l’esprit de parti est dans les sociétés: il trouve les moyens -d’abuser même des faits; car il les dénature, ou il en détourne les -conséquences; raison de plus, non pour les dédaigner, mais pour -apprendre à bien connaître et ce qu’ils sont et ce qu’ils prouvent. - -On dit proverbialement qu’il ne faut pas disputer sur les faits. Si ce -proverbe parvient un jour à être vrai, il restera bien peu de disputes -parmi les hommes. - -Un fait remarquable dans l’histoire des relations commerciales, et que -j’ai été à portée de bien voir, m’a fait connaître particulièrement -jusqu’à quel point il importe d’être observateur attentif de ce qui -est, alors qu’on s’occupe de ce qui sera et de ce qui doit être. Ce -fait est l’activité toujours croissante des relations de commerce -entre les Etats-Unis et l’Angleterre; activité qui, par ses causes -et ses résultats, n’appartient pas moins à l’économie politique qu’à -l’histoire philosophique des nations. - -Lorsque, après cette lutte sanglante, lutte où les Français défendirent -si bien la cause de leurs nouveaux alliés, les Etats-Unis de l’Amérique -se furent affranchis de la domination anglaise, toutes les raisons -semblaient se réunir pour persuader que les liens de commerce qui -unissaient naguère ces deux portions d’un même peuple allaient se -rompre, et que d’autres liens devaient se former: le souvenir des -oppressions qui avaient pesé sur les Américains; l’image plus récente -des maux produits par une guerre de sept ans; l’humiliation de dépendre -de nouveau, par leurs besoins, d’un pays qui avait voulu les asservir; -tous les titres militaires subsistent dans chaque famille américaine -pour y perpétuer la défiance et la haine envers la Grande-Bretagne. - -Que si l’on ajoute ce sentiment si naturel qui devait porter les -Américains à s’attacher par la confiance aux Français, leurs frères -d’armes et leurs libérateurs; si l’on observe que ce sentiment s’était -manifesté avec force lorsque la guerre se déclara entre l’Angleterre -et la France; qu’à cette époque les discours du peuple américain, la -grande majorité des papiers publics, les actes mêmes du gouvernement, -semblaient découvrir une forte inclination pour la nation française, et -une aversion non moins forte pour le nom anglais; toutes ces raisons -si puissantes de leur réunion doivent entraîner vers ce résultat, que -le commerce américain était pour jamais détourné de son cours, ou que, -s’il inclinait du côté de l’Angleterre, il faudrait bien peu d’efforts -pour l’attirer entièrement vers nous; dès lors de nouvelles inductions -sur la nature des rapports entre la métropole et les colonies, -sur l’empire des goûts et des habitudes, sur les causes les plus -déterminantes de la prospérité du commerce, sur la direction qu’il peut -recevoir des causes morales combinées avec l’intérêt, et, en dernière -analyse, beaucoup d’erreurs économiques. - -L’observation, et une observation bien suivie, peut seule prévenir ces -erreurs. - -Quiconque a bien vu l’Amérique ne peut plus douter maintenant que dans -la plupart de ses habitudes elle ne soit restée anglaise; que son -ancien commerce avec l’Angleterre n’ait même gagné de l’activité, au -lieu d’en perdre, depuis l’époque de l’indépendance des Etats-Unis, -et que, par conséquent, l’indépendance, loin d’être funeste à -l’Angleterre, ne lui ait été à plusieurs égards avantageuse. - -Un fait inattaquable le démontre. L’Amérique consomme annuellement plus -de trois millions sterling de marchandises anglaises; il y a quinze -ans elle n’en consommait pas le moitié; ainsi, pour l’Angleterre, -accroissement d’exportation d’objets manufacturés et, de plus, -exemption des frais de gouvernement. Un tel fait, inscrit dans les -registres de la douane, ne peut être contesté; mais, on l’a déjà dit, -il n’est point de fait dont on n’abuse. Si l’on regardait celui-ci -comme une suite nécessaire de toute rupture des colonies, même des -colonies à sucre, avec la métropole, on se tromperait étrangement. Si, -d’autre part, on voulait croire qu’il tient uniquement à des causes -passagères, et qu’il est facile d’obtenir un résultat opposé, on ne se -tromperait pas moins. Pour échapper à l’une et l’autre erreur, il ne -s’agit que de bien connaître et de bien développer les causes du fait. - -Il faut se hâter de le dire, la conduite irréfléchie de l’ancien -gouvernement de France a, plus qu’on ne pense, préparé ce résultat -favorable à l’Angleterre. Si, après la paix qui assura l’indépendance -de l’Amérique, la France, eût senti tout le prix de sa position, elle -eût cherché à multiplier les relations qui pendant la guerre s’étaient -heureusement établies entre elle et ses alliés, et qui s’étaient -interrompues avec la Grande-Bretagne: alors, les anciennes habitudes -étant presque oubliées, on eût pu du moins lutter avec quelque avantage -contre tout ce qui pouvait les rappeler. Mais que fit la France à cette -époque? Elle craignit que ces mêmes principes d’indépendance qu’elle -avait protégés de ses armes chez les américains, ne s’introduisissent -chez elle, et à la paix elle discontinua et découragea toutes relations -avec eux. Que fit l’Angleterre? elle oublia ses ressentiments, et -rouvrit promptement ses anciennes communications, qu’elle rendit plus -actives encore. Dès lors, il fut décidé que l’Amérique servirait les -intérêts de l’Angleterre. Que faut-il en effet pour cela? qu’elle le -veuille et qu’elle le puisse. Or, volonté et pouvoir se trouvent réunis -ici. - -Ce qui détermine la volonté, c’est l’inclination, c’est l’intérêt. -Il paraît d’abord étrange et presque paradoxal de prétendre que les -Américains sont portés d’inclination vers l’Angleterre; mais il ne faut -pas perdre de vue que le peuple américain est un peuple dépassionné, -que la victoire et le temps ont amorti ses haines, et que chez lui -les inclinations se réduisent à de simples habitudes: or, toutes ses -habitudes le rapprochent de l’Angleterre. - -L’identité de langage est un premier rapport dont on ne saurait trop -méditer l’influence. Cette identité place entre les hommes de ces -deux pays un caractère commun qui les fera toujours se prendre l’un à -l’autre et se reconnaître; ils se croiront mutuellement chez eux quand -ils voyageront l’un chez l’autre; ils échangeront avec un plaisir -réciproque la plénitude de leurs pensées et toute la discussion de -leurs intérêts, tandis qu’une barrière insurmontable est élevée entre -les peuples de différent langage, qui ne peuvent prononcer un mot sans -s’avertir qu’ils n’appartiennent pas à la même patrie; entre qui toute -transmission de pensée est un travail pénible, et non une jouissance; -qui ne parviennent jamais à s’entendre parfaitement, et pour qui le -résultat de conversation, après s’être fatigués de leurs efforts -impuissants, est de se trouver mutuellement ridicules. Dans toutes les -parties de l’Amérique que j’ai parcourues, je n’ai pas trouvé un seul -Anglais qui ne se trouva Américain, pas un seul Français qui ne se -trouva étranger. - -Qu’on ne s’étonne pas, au reste, de trouver ce rapprochement vers -l’Angleterre dans un pays où les traits distinctifs de la constitution, -soit dans l’union fédérale, soit dans les Etats séparés, sont -empreints d’une si forte ressemblance avec les grands linéaments de -la constitution anglaise. Sur quoi repose aujourd’hui la liberté -individuelle en Amérique? Sur les mêmes fondements que la liberté -anglaise. Sur _l’habeas corpus_ et sur le jugement par jurés. Assistez -aux séances du Congrès, à celle des législatures particulières; suivez -les discussions qui préparent les lois nationales: où prend-on ses -citations, ses analogies, ses exemples? Dans les lois anglaises, dans -les coutumes de la Grande-Bretagne, dans les règlements du Parlement. -Entrez dans les cours de justice: quelles autorités invoque-t-on? Les -statuts, les jugements, les décisions des cours anglaises. Certes, si -de tels hommes n’ont pas une tendance vers la Grande-Bretagne, il faut -renoncer à connaître l’influence des lois sur les hommes et nier les -modifications qu’ils reçoivent de tout ce qui les entoure. Inutilement, -les noms de république et de monarchie semblent placer entre les deux -gouvernements des distinctions qu’il n’est pas permis de confondre: -il est clair pour tout homme qui va au fond des idées, que dans la -constitution représentative de l’Angleterre il y a de la république, -comme il y a de la monarchie dans le pouvoir exécutif des Américains. -Cela a été vrai surtout aussi longtemps qu’a duré la présidence du -général Washington; car la force d’opinion attachée à sa personne dans -toute l’Amérique représente facilement l’espèce de pouvoir magique que -les publicistes attribuent aux monarchies. - -La partie de la nation américaine chez qui l’on devrait rencontrer -le moins de préjugés, les hommes qui réunissent l’aisance et -l’instruction, ceux qui ont été les moteurs de la révolution, et -qui, en soufflant dans l’âme du peuple la haine contre les Anglais, -auraient dû, il semble, s’en pénétrer pour toujours; ceux-là mêmes -sont insensiblement ramenés vers l’Angleterre par différents motifs. -Plusieurs ont étés élevés en Europe; et, à cette époque, l’Europe -des Américains n’était que l’Angleterre. Ils n’ont guère d’idées -comparatives de grandeur, de puissance, d’élévation, que celles qui -leur sont fournies par les objets tirés de l’Angleterre; et, surpris -eux-mêmes de la hardiesse du pas qu’ils ont fait en se séparant, ils -sont ramenés à une sorte de respect pour elle par tous leurs mouvements -involontaires. Ils ne peuvent pas se dissimuler que, sans la France, -ils n’auraient pas réussi à secouer le joug de l’Angleterre; mais, -malheureusement, ils pensent que les services des nations ne sont que -des calculs, et non de l’attachement; ils disent même que l’ancien -gouvernement de France, alors qu’il fit des sacrifices en leur faveur, -agit bien plus pour leur indépendance que pour leur liberté; qu’après -les avoir aidés à se séparer de l’Angleterre, il travailla sourdement à -les tenir désunis entre eux, pour qu’ils se trouvassent émancipés sans -avoir ni sagesse pour se conduire, ni force pour se protéger. - -Ainsi les inclinations, ou, si l’on veut, les habitudes, ramènent sans -cesse les Américains vers l’Angleterre; l’intérêt, bien plus encore; -car la grande affaire, dans un pays nouveau, est incontestablement -d’accroître sa fortune. La preuve d’une telle disposition générale s’y -manifeste de toutes parts: on la trouve avec évidence dans la manière -dont on y traite tout le reste. Les pratiques religieuses elles-mêmes -s’en ressentent extrêmement. A cet égard, voici ce que j’ai vu; la -liaison avec mon sujet ne tardera pas à se faire sentir. - -On sait que la religion a conservé en Angleterre un puissant empire -sur les esprits; que la philosophie même la plus indépendante n’a osé -s’y déprendre entièrement des idées religieuses; que depuis Luther -toutes les sectes y ont pénétré, que toutes s’y sont maintenues, -que plusieurs y ont pris naissance. On sait la part qu’elles ont eue -dans les grandes mutations politiques; enfin, que toutes se sont -transplantées en Amérique, et que quelques-uns des Etats leur doivent -leur origine. - -On pourrait croire d’abord, qu’après leur transmigration ces sectes -sont ce qu’elles étaient auparavant, et en conclure qu’elles pourraient -aussi agiter l’Amérique. Quelle n’est pas la surprise du voyageur -lorsqu’il les voit co-exister toutes dans ce calme parfait qui semble -à jamais inaltérable; lorsqu’en une même maison le père, la mère, -les enfants, suivent chacun paisiblement et sans opposition celui -des cultes que chacun préfère. J’ai été plus d’une fois témoin de ce -spectacle, auquel rien de ce que j’avais vu en Europe n’avait pu me -préparer. Dans les jours consacrés à la religion, tous les individus -d’une même famille sortaient ensemble, allaient chacun auprès du -ministre de son culte, et rentraient ensuite pour s’occuper des mêmes -intérêts domestiques. Cette diversité d’opinions n’en apportait -aucune dans leurs sentiments et dans leurs autres habitudes: point -de disputes, pas même de questions, à cet égard. La religion y -semblait être un secret individuel que personne ne se croyait le droit -d’interroger ni de pénétrer. Aussi, lorsque de quelque contrée de -l’Europe il arrive en Amérique un sectaire ambitieux, jaloux de faire -triompher sa doctrine en échauffant les esprits, loin de trouver, -comme, partout ailleurs, des hommes disposés à s’engager sous sa -bannière, à peine même est-il aperçu de ses voisins, son enthousiasme -n’attire ni n’émeut, il n’inspire ni haine ni curiosité; chacun enfin -reste avec sa religion et continue ses affaires.[140] - -Un telle impassibilité, que ne peut ébranler le fougueux prosélytisme, -et qu’il ne s’agit point ici de juger, mais d’expliquer, a -indubitablement pour cause immédiate la liberté et surtout l’égalité -des cultes. En Amérique, aucun n’est proscrit, aucun n’est ordonné, -dès lors point d’agitations religieuses. Mais cette égalité parfaite -a elle-même un principe: c’est que la religion, quoiqu’elle y soit -partout un sentiment vrai, y est surtout un sentiment d’habitude: -toutes les ardeurs du moment s’y portent vers les moyens d’accroître -promptement son bien-être; et voilà en résultat la grande cause du -calme parfait des Américains pour tout ce qui n’est pas, dans cet ordre -d’idées, ou moyen ou obstacle. - -Remarquons, de plus, que les Américains des villes, naguère colons -et dès lors accoutumés à se regarder là comme étrangers, ont dû -naturellement tourner leur activité vers les spéculations commerciales, -et subordonner à ces spéculations les travaux mêmes de l’agriculture, -par laquelle cependant elles doivent s’alimenter. Or, une telle -préférence, qui suppose d’abord un désir impatient de faire fortune, -ne tarde pas à accroître ce désir: car le commerce, qui étend les -rapports de l’homme à l’homme, multiplie nécessairement ses besoins; et -l’agriculture, qui le circonscrit dans la famille, nécessairement aussi -les réduit. - -L’Amérique, dont la population est actuellement de plus de quatre -millions d’habitants et augmente très-rapidement, est dans l’enfance -des manufactures; quelques forges, quelques verreries, des tanneries, -et un assez grand nombre de petites et imparfaites fabriques de -casimir, de tricot grossier et de coton dans quelques endroits, -servent mieux à attester l’impuissance des efforts faits jusqu’à -ce jour, qu’a fournir au pays les articles manufacturés de sa -consommation journalière. Il en résulte qu’elle a besoin de recevoir -de l’Europe, non-seulement une grande partie de ce qu’elle consomme -intérieurement, mais aussi une grande partie de ce qu’elle emploie pour -son commerce extérieur. Or, tous ces objets sont fournis à l’Amérique -si complètement par l’Angleterre, qu’on a lieu de douter si, dans -les temps de la plus sévère prohibition, l’Angleterre jouissait plus -exclusivement de ce privilège avec ce qui était alors ses colonies, -qu’elle n’en jouit actuellement avec les Etats-Unis indépendants. - -Les causes de ce monopole volontaire sont, au reste, faciles à -assigner: l’immensité de fabrication qui sort des manufactures -anglaises, la division du travail, à la fois principe et conséquence de -cette grande fabrication, et particulièrement l’ingénieux emploi des -forces mécaniques adaptées aux différents procédés des manufactures, -ont donné moyen aux manufacturiers anglais de baisser le prix de -tous les articles d’un usage journalier au-dessous de celui auquel -les autres nations ont pu le livrer jusqu’à ce jour. De plus, les -grands capitaux des négociants anglais leur permettent d’accorder des -crédits plus longs qu’aucun négociant d’aucune autre nation ne le -pourrait faire: ces crédits sont au moins d’un an, et souvent de plus. -Il en résulte que le négociant américain qui tire ses marchandises -d’Angleterre, n’emploie presque aucun capital à lui dans le commerce, -et le fait presque tout entier sur les capitaux anglais. C’est donc -réellement l’Angleterre qui fait le commerce de consommation de -l’Amérique. - -Sans doute que le négociant Anglais doit, de manière ou d’autre, -charger ses comptes de vente de l’intérêt de ses fonds dont il -accorde un si long usage; mais, comme les demandes se succèdent et -s’augmentent, chaque année, il s’établit une balance de paiements -réguliers et de crédits nouveaux qui ne laissent en souffrance qu’un -premier déboursé, dont l’intérêt est à répartir sur les factures -suivantes en même temps que sur les premières. Cette première dette -établit, comme on voit, un lien difficile à rompre des deux côtés -entre le correspondant anglais et l’Américain. Le premier craint, -s’il arrêtait ses envois, de renverser un débiteur dont la prospérité -est la seule garantie de ses avances: l’Américain craint de son -côté de quitter un fournisseur avec lequel il y a trop d’anciens -comptes à régler. Entre ces intérêts réciproques et cimentés par de -longues habitudes, il est à peu près impossible à une nation tierce -d’intervenir. Aussi la France est-elle réduite avec l’Amérique a -quelques fournitures de denrées particulières à son sol; mais elle -n’entre point en concurrence avec l’Angleterre sur la vente des objets -manufacturés, qu’elle ne pourrait établir en Amérique ni à si bon -compte, ni à si long terme de crédit. - -Si l’on voulait objecter qu’il s’est fait pendant notre révolution -de nombreuses exportations de marchandises françaises en Amérique, -la réponse serait bien facile. De telles exportations n’ont rien de -commun avec un commerce régulier; c’est la spéculation précipitée -de ceux qui, épouvantés des réquisitions, du maximum et de tous les -désastres révolutionnaires, ont préféré une perte quelconque sur -leurs marchandises vendues en Amérique, au risque ou plutôt à la -certitude d’une perte plus grande s’ils les laissaient en France; c’est -l’empressement tumultueux de gens qui déménagent dans un incendie -et pour qui tout abri est bon, et non l’importation judicieuse de -négociants qui ont fait un calcul et qui le réalisent. Du reste, ses -objets se sont mal vendus, et les Américains ont préféré de beaucoup -les marchandises anglaises: ce qui fournit un argument de plus pour -l’Angleterre dans la balance des intérêts américains. - -Ainsi le marchand américain est lié à l’Angleterre, non seulement par -la nature de ses transactions, par le besoin du crédit qu’il y obtient, -par le poids du crédit qu’il y a obtenu, mais encore par la loi qui -lui impose irrésistiblement le goût du consommateur; ces liens sont si -réels, et il en résulte des rapports commerciaux si constants entre les -deux pays, que l’Amérique n’a d’échange véritable qu’avec l’Angleterre; -en sorte que presque toutes les lettres de change que les Américains -tirent sur ce continent sont payables à Londres. - -Gardons-nous cependant, en considérant ainsi les Américains sous un -seul point de vue, de les juger individuellement avec trop de sévérité; -comme particuliers, on peut trouver en eux le germe de toutes les -qualités sociales; mais comme peuple nouvellement constitué et formé -d’éléments divers, leur caractère national n’est pas encore décidé. Ils -restent Anglais, sans doute par d’anciennes habitudes, mais peut-être -aussi parce qu’ils n’ont pas eu le temps d’être entièrement Américains. -On a observé que leur climat n’était pas fait; leur caractère ne l’est -pas davantage. - -Que l’on considère ces cités populeuses d’Anglais, d’Allemands, de -Hollandais, d’Irlandais, et aussi d’habitants indigènes; ces bourgades -lointaines, si distantes les unes des autres; ces vastes contrées -incultes, traversées plutôt qu’habitées par des hommes qui ne sont -d’aucun pays; quel lien commun concevoir au milieu de toutes ces -disparités. C’est un spectacle neuf pour le voyageur qui, partant -d’une ville principale où l’état social est perfectionné, traverse -successivement tous les degrés de civilisation et d’industrie qui -vont toujours en s’affaiblissant, jusqu’à ce qu’il arrive en très-peu -de jours à la cabane informe et grossière construite de troncs -d’arbres nouvellement abattus. Un tel voyage est une sorte d’analyse -pratique et vivante de l’origine des peuples et des Etats: on part de -l’ensemble le plus composé pour arriver aux éléments les plus simples; -à chaque journée on perd de vue quelques-unes de ces inventions que nos -besoins, en se multipliant, ont rendues nécessaires; et il semble que -l’on voyage en arrière dans l’histoire des progrès de l’esprit humain. -Si un tel spectacle attache fortement l’imagination, si l’on se plaît -à retrouver dans la succession de l’espace ce qui semble n’appartenir -qu’à la succession des temps, il faut se résoudre à ne voir que -très-peu de liens sociaux, nul caractère commun, parmi des hommes qui -semblent si peu appartenir à la même association. - -Dans plusieurs cantons, la mer et les bois en ont fait des pêcheurs ou -des bûcherons; or, de tels hommes n’ont point, à proprement parler, -de patrie, et leur morale sociale se réduit à bien peu de chose. On a -dit depuis longtemps que l’homme est disciple de ce qui l’entoure, et -cela est vrai: celui qui n’a autour de lui que des déserts, ne peut -donc recevoir des leçons que de ce qu’il fait pour vivre. L’idée du -besoin que les hommes ont les uns des autres n’existe pas en lui; et -c’est uniquement en décomposant le métier qu’il exerce, qu’on trouve le -principe de ses affections et de toute sa moralité. - -Le bûcheron américain ne s’intéresse à rien; toute idée sensible est -loin de lui: ces branches si élégamment jetées par la nature, un beau -feuillage, une couleur vive qui anime une partie de bois, un vert -plus fort qui en assombrit un autre, tout cela n’est rien; il n’a de -souvenir à placer nulle part: c’est la quantité de coups de hache qu’il -faut qu’il donne pour abattre un arbre, qui est son unique idée. Il n’a -point planté; il n’en sait point les plaisirs. L’arbre qu’il planterait -n’est bon à rien pour lui, car jamais il ne le verra assez fort pour -qu’il puisse l’abattre: c’est détruire qui le fait vivre; on détruit -partout: aussi tout lieu lui est bon; il ne tient pas au champ où il a -placé son travail, parce que son travail n’est que de la fatigue, et -qu’aucune idée douce n’y est jointe. Ce qui sort de ses mains ne passe -point par toutes les croissances si attachantes pour le cultivateur; -il ne suit pas la destinée de ses productions; il ne connaît pas le -plaisir des nouveaux essais; et si en s’en allant il n’oublie pas sa -hache, il ne laisse pas de regrets là ou il a vécu des années. - -Le pêcheur américain reçoit de sa profession une âme à peu près aussi -insouciante. Ses affections, son intérêt, sa vie, sont à côté de la -société à laquelle on croit qu’il appartient. Ce serait un préjugé de -penser qu’il est un membre fort utile; car il ne faut pas comparer -ces pêcheurs-là à ceux d’Europe, et croire que c’est comme en Europe -le moyen de former des matelots, de faire des hommes de mer adroits -et robustes: en Amérique, j’en excepte les habitants de Nantuket qui -pêchent la baleine, la pêche est un métier de paresseux. Deux lieues -de la côte, quand ils n’ont pas de mauvais temps à craindre, un mille -quand le temps est incertain, voilà le courage qu’ils montrent; et la -ligne est le seul harpon qu’ils sachent manier: ainsi leur science -n’est qu’une bien petite ruse; et leur action, qui consiste à avoir un -bras pendant au bord d’un bateau, ressemble bien à de la fainéantise. -Ils n’aiment aucun lieu; ils ne connaissent la terre que par une -mauvaise maison qu’ils habitent; c’est la mer qui leur donne leur -nourriture; aussi quelques morues de plus ou de moins déterminent leur -patrie. Si le nombre leur paraît diminuer à tel endroit, ils s’en vont, -et cherchent une autre patrie où il y ait quelques morues de plus. -Lorsque quelques écrivains politiques ont dit que la pêche était une -sorte d’agriculture, ils ont dit une chose qui a l’air brillant, mais -qui n’a pas de vérité. Toutes les qualités, toutes les vertus qui sont -attachées à l’agriculture, manquent à l’homme qui se livre à la pêche. -L’agriculture produit un patriote dans la bonne acception de ce mot; la -pêche ne sait faire que des cosmopolites. - -Je viens de m’arrêter trop longtemps peut-être à tracer la peinture de -ces mœurs; elle peut sembler étrangère à ce mémoire, et pourtant elle -en complète l’objet, car j’avais à prouver que ce n’est pas seulement -par les raisons d’origine, de langage et d’intérêt que les Américains -se retrouvent si souvent Anglais. (Observation qui s’applique plus -particulièrement aux habitants des villes.) En portant mes regards -sur ces peuplades errantes dans les bois, sur le bord des mers et le -long des rivières, mon observation générale se fortifiait à leur égard -de cette indolence, de ce défaut de caractère à soi, qui rend cette -classe d’Américains plus facile à recevoir et à conserver l’impression -d’un caractère étranger. La dernière de ces causes doit sans doute -s’affaiblir et même disparaître, lorsque la population toujours -croissante aura pu, en fécondant tant de terres désertes, en rapprocher -les habitants; quant aux autres causes, elles ont des racines si -profondes, qu’il faudrait peut-être un établissement français en -Amérique pour lutter contre leur ascendant avec quelque espoir de -succès. Une telle vue politique n’est pas sans doute à négliger, mais -elle n’appartient pas à l’objet de ce mémoire. - -J’ai établi que les Américains sont Anglais et par leurs habitudes et -par leurs besoins; je suis loin de vouloir en conclure que par leurs -inclinations ils soient restés sujets de la Grande-Bretagne. Tout, il -est vrai, les ramène vers l’Angleterre industrieuse, mais tout doit les -éloigner de l’Angleterre mère-patrie. Ils peuvent vouloir dépendre de -son commerce, dont ils se trouvent bien, sans consentir à dépendre de -son autorité, dont ils se sont très-mal trouvés. Ils n’ont pas oublié -ce que leur a coûté leur liberté, et ne seront pas assez irréfléchis -pour consentir à la perdre et à se laisser entraîner par des ambitions -individuelles. Ils n’ont plus, il est vrai, l’enthousiasme qui -détruit; mais ils ont le bon sens qui conserve. Ils ne haïssent pas -le gouvernement anglais; mais ce sera sans doute à condition qu’il -ne voudra pas être le leur. Surtout ils n’ont garde de se haïr entre -eux; ensemble ils ont combattu, ensemble ils profitent de la victoire. -Partis, factions, haines, tout a disparu:[141] en bons calculateurs -ils ont trouvé que cela ne produisait rien de bon. Aussi personne ne -reproche à son voisin ce qu’il est; chacun cherche à le tourner à son -avantage: se sont des voyageurs arrivés à bon port, et qui croient au -moins inutile de se demander sans cesse pourquoi l’on s’est embarqué et -pourquoi l’on a suivi telle route. - -Concluons. Pour parvenir à la preuve complète du fait que j’avais -avancé sur les relations des Américains avec la Grande-Bretagne, il -a fallu repousser les vraisemblances, écarter les analogies; donc, -dans les sciences positives surtout, il importe, sous peine de graves -erreurs, de se défendre de ce qui n’est que probable. - -Ce fait lui-même bien connu pouvait conduire à de faux résultats; il -portait à croire que l’indépendance des colonies était un bien pour les -métropoles: mais en remontant à ses véritables causes, la conséquence -s’est resserrée. Maintenant on n’est plus en droit d’y voir autre -chose, si ce n’est que l’indépendance des Etats-Unis a été utile à -l’Angleterre, et qu’elle le serait à tous les Etats du Continent qui, -d’une part, offriraient les mêmes avantages à des colonies du même -genre, et, de l’autre, seraient secondés par les mêmes fautes de leurs -voisins. - -Le développement des causes de ce fait a amené beaucoup de conséquences -ultérieures. - -En parcourant ces causes on a dû conclure successivement: - -1ᵒ. Que les premières années qui suivent la paix décident du système -commercial des Etats; et que s’ils ne savent pas saisir le moment pour -la tourner à leur profit, elle se tourne presque inévitablement à leur -plus grande perte. - -2ᵒ. Que les habitudes commerciales sont plus difficiles à rompre qu’on -ne pense, et que l’intérêt rapproche en un jour et souvent pour jamais -ceux que les passions les plus ardentes avaient armés pendant plusieurs -années consécutives: - -3ᵒ. Que dans le calcul des rapports quelconques qui peuvent exister -entre les hommes, l’identité de langage est une donnée des plus -concluantes: - -4ᵒ. Que la liberté et surtout l’égalité des cultes est une des plus -fortes garanties de la tranquillité sociale; car là ou les consciences -sont respectées, les autres droits ne peuvent manquer de l’être: - -5ᵒ. Que l’esprit de commerce, qui rend l’homme tolérant par -indifférence, tend aussi à le rendre personnel par avidité, et -qu’un peuple surtout dont la morale a été ébranlée par de longues -agitations, doit, par des institutions sages, être attiré vers -l’agriculture; car le commerce tient toujours en effervescence les -passions, et toujours l’agriculture les calme. - -Enfin, qu’après une révolution qui a tout changé, il faut savoir -renoncer à ses haines si l’on ne veut renoncer pour jamais à son -bonheur. - - - - -APPENDIX II. - - There is a circumstance connected with the sketch of Mr. - Canning which I am called upon to notice. - - -The original MS.--which has since then been but very slightly -altered--was completed twenty-six years ago, and the greatest part in -print not very long afterwards. Before, however, the whole had been -sent to the press, I was called away on diplomatic duty, and left the -proof-sheets in the hands of Mr. Colburn and the printer’s, Beaufort -House; abandoning in my own mind the intention of ever publishing -or completing the work. In fact, in the busy life of Spain it was -forgotten. On my return to England, in 1848, I received a visit from -Mr. Bell, then editor of the _Atlas_. He sat with me some time, but -did not make to me any particular communication, and it was only some -time afterwards that I conjectured the purport of his visit. I then by -accident, it might have been in America, read his Life of Mr. Canning, -and found it was undeniably based on my original sketch. Many anecdotes -were in it that I had had from private sources of a particular -description, some of which anecdotes I have now omitted. Whole passages -were entirely the same in purport and almost in expression; in fact, -there are parts, the one relating to the Treaty of Vienna and the -partitions which then took place, for instance, which are almost -verbally repeated. I did not think it worth while to take notice of -this; I was rather glad than otherwise that the labour, which I had -considered thrown away, as far as any object of my own was concerned, -had been useful in the composition of an able work by another; and I -only now mention the facts I have been relating, to clear myself from -any charge of plagiarism which might otherwise be reasonably made -against me. A copy of the old proofs I still retain. - - H. L. B. - - * * * * * - - M. R. - - 1. Separate, _secret_, _and confidential_. (In cypher.) - - Foreign Office, January 31st, 1826. - - SIR, - - In matters of commerce the fault of the Dutch is offering too - little and asking too much. The French are with equal advantage - content, so we clap on Dutch bottoms just 20 _per cent._ - Chorus of English Custom House officers and French douaniers: - “We clap on Dutch bottoms just 20 _per cent._; Vous frapperez - Falk avec 20 pour cent.” - - I have no other commands from his Majesty to convey to your - Excellency to-day. - - I am, with great truth and respect, Sir, Your Excellency’s - - Most obedient humble servant, - - (Signed) - - GEORGE CANNING. - - H. E. The Right Hon. Sir CHARLES BAGOT, G.C.B., The Hague. - - * * * * * - - 2. Secret. - - The Hague, February 3rd, 1826. - - SIR, - - I sincerely hope that this circumstance will not be productive - of any public inconvenience; but I am concerned to state that - I do not possess any cypher by which I am enabled to decypher - your despatch of the 31st of last month, which I received this - morning; the only cypher belonging to this embassy is letter S. - - I take the liberty of suggesting that it might be convenient at - the present moment that I should be furnished with the cypher - given to his Majesty’s ambassador at St. Petersburg, or at - least with that of which his Majesty’s minister at Berlin may - be in possession. - - I have the honour to be, with the highest respect, Sir, - - Your most obedient humble servant, - - (Signed) - - CHARLES BAGOT. - - The Right Hon. GEORGE CANNING. - - * * * * * - - 3. Secret and separate. - - Foreign Office, February 6th, 1826. - - In consequence of your despatch marked “Secret,” of the 3rd - instant, I send your Excellency the cyphers and the decyphers - I and U, both of which are in the possession of his Majesty’s - ambassador at St. Petersburg and his Majesty’s minister at - Berlin. - - I regret the circumstance of your Excellency’s not having been - furnished with the proper cyphers, as I was anxious that your - Excellency should receive with as little delay as possible the - impression which has been made upon his Majesty’s Government - by the very opposite feelings and conduct which have been - demonstrated by the governments of the Netherlands and France, - in the late commercial negotiations with Great Britain. - - I am, &c., - - (Signed) - - GEORGE CANNING. - - His Excellency The Right Hon. Sir C. BAGOT. - - * * * * * - - 4. Private. - - The Hague, February 13th, 1826. - - MY DEAR CANNING, - - You have fretted me to fiddlestrings, and I have a great mind - not to give you the satisfaction of ever knowing how completely - your mystification of me has succeeded. It was more than you - had a right to expect when you drew from me that solemn and - official lamentation which I sent you of my inability to - decypher his Majesty’s commands; but, as the devil would have - it, your success did not end here. The post which brought - me the decyphers arrived at eleven o’clock at night, when I - had only time before I sent off the other messenger to read - your grave regret at what had occurred and to acknowledge the - receipt of the mail. - - The next morning Ferney and I were up by cock-crow to make out - “la maudite dépêche;” and it was not till after an hour of - most indescribable anxiety that we were put “out of our fear” - by finding what it really was, and that “you Pyramus” were not - Pyramus, but only “Bottom the weaver.” - - I could have slain you, but I got some fun myself, for I - afterwards put the fair decypher into Douglas’ hands, who read - it twice without moving a muscle, or to this hour discovering - that it was not prose; and returning it to me, declared that it - was “oddly worded;” but he had always had a feeling that the - despatch must relate to discriminating duties. - - C. BAGOT. - - - - -FOOTNOTES - - -[1] Many of those works confound dates and names, and make the most -absurd, as well as the most malignant, accusations; but here and there -they relate facts which authentic documents have since confirmed, as -well as anecdotes which I have heard contemporaries repeat, and of -which I shall therefore take advantage. - -[2] “It is a terrible advantage to have done nothing; but one must not -abuse it.” - -[3] There seems to be some difficulty in ascertaining the date of M. -de Talleyrand’s birth with exactitude. I have been told, on apparently -the best authority, that he was born on the 7th of March, on the 1st -of September, and on the 2nd of February. This last is the date I have -selected, having reason upon the whole to believe it the correct one. -With respect to the year there is no dispute. - -[4] The Countess de Talleyrand lived to 1809; and was very proud of the -talents of her son, but regretting, it is said, the use he had made of -them. - -[5] This gentleman had been _menin_ to the Dauphin, son of Louis XV. -He subsequently commanded a regiment in the Seven Years’ War, and rose -to be lieutenant-general in the King’s armies. He bore an excellent -character, but was never considered to have any ability. - -[6] This singular fact is mentioned by M. Mignet in a short and able -memoir, which after M. de Talleyrand’s death he read to the French -Academy. - -[7] “And who are you, my friend?” “I am your coachmaker, my lord.” “Ah! -you are my coachmaker; and what do you want, my coachmaker?” “I want to -be paid, my lord.” “Ah! you are my coachmaker, and you want to be paid; -you shall be paid, my coachmaker.” “And when, my lord?” “You are very -inquisitive!” - -[8] Sieyès, in a celebrated pamphlet published at this period. - -[9] Evêque d’Autun, archévêque de Bordeaux, Lally, Clermont-Tonnerre, -Mounier, Sieyès, &c., &c. - -[10] “Our souls were then intoxicated by a gentle philanthropy, which -induced us to seek passionately the means of being useful to humanity, -and of rendering the condition of man more happy.” - -[11] “This man has made himself great by placing himself always by the -side of the little, and aiding those who most needed him.” - -[12] “La motion du clergé lui a conquis cette place.”--_Correspondance -de Mirabeau et le Comte de la Marck._ - -[13] The presidency was only for fifteen days; but the consideration in -which this dignity was held may be estimated by the fact that Mirabeau, -notwithstanding his utmost efforts, was unable to obtain it until the -subsequent year. - -[14] “Each of the two nations should by this means form its standards, -which it ought to preserve with the greatest care, so that if, at the -end of several centuries, any variation in the sidereal year should be -perceived, the standards might serve to ascertain its extent, and in -this way to connect this important point in the system of the universe -with a mighty epoch, such as that of the National Assembly. Perhaps, -even we may be permitted to foresee in this co-operation of two -nations, together interrogating nature to obtain from her an important -solution, the principle of a political union brought about by the -intervention of the sciences.” - -[15] “La popularité de M. de Lafayette qui s’était élevée si haut -commençait à décliner de ce jour là (14 July): un mois plus tard, -les cris ‘à bas Lafayette!’ avaient succédé aux cris de ‘Vive -Lafayette!’”--(_Comte de la Marck._) - -[16] “I should be inconsolable if the severity of our decrees as to -the clergy should not produce as its result the salvation of the -State.”--See _Appendix_. - -[17] “Saying is quite a different thing from doing: the preaching and -the preacher must be considered apart.” - -[18] A defence has been set up for Mirabeau, viz., that the work, -though written by him, was published without his knowledge by a -bookseller’s wife, his mistress. But besides the utter improbability of -this story, there is the fact that Mirabeau remained until his death -on the best terms with the person who would thus have betrayed a most -sacred trust and merited his bitterest contempt and indignation. - -[19] See _Les Considérations sur la Révolution_, by Madame de Staël. - -[20] See _Appendix_. - -[21] When M. Mercy, the Austrian ambassador, and for a long time the -intermediate agent between the court and Mirabeau, left Paris, M. de -Montmorin, the minister of foreign affairs, was, without the knowledge -of his colleagues, admitted into the secret of the court’s engagements, -and authorised to correspond with Mirabeau concerning their execution. - -[22] “I shall be what I have always been, the defender of the -monarchical power, regulated by the laws; the apostle of liberty, -guaranteed by the monarchical power.” - -[23] “The brief of the Pope arrived last Thursday. De -Talleyrand-Périgord, the late Bishop of Autun, is suspended from all -functions and excommunicated, if after forty days he has not repented.” - -[24] “The ministers, the royalists of the Assembly, were all left in -ignorance of the King’s intentions, and exposed to great peril. Such -was the situation, not only of the National Guards and their officers, -but also of the most devoted of the King’s friends, the Duc de Brissac, -commander of the Swiss Guards, and M. de Montmorin, who had unwittingly -given a passport in the name of the Baroness de Korff.” - -[25] “Ce prince (Louis XVI.) dont on ne peut trop déplorer le manque de -bonne foi dans cette occasion, lui donna les assurances si positives, -si solennelles, qu’il crut pouvoir répondre _sur sa tête_ que le roi ne -partirait pas.”--_Mémoires de Lafayette._ - -[26] “The Duc d’Orléans is the vase into which people have thrown all -the filth of the Revolution.” - -[27] M. de Rulhières, l’ancien secrétaire du baron de Breteuil à St. -Pétersbourg, le confident du maréchal de Richelieu, le poëte de la -duchesse d’Egmont, narrateur fort redouté de Catherine II., &c. &c. - -[28] March 9. Lord Grenville to Lord Gower. - -[29] He acted as secretary to the mission. - -[30] M. de Talleyrand amuses himself, M. de Chauvelin grumbles, and M. -de Roveray bargains. - -[31] No zeal, sir. - -[32] “SIRE,--I address to your Majesty a letter written the day before -yesterday, and which I only received yesterday after mid-day. It is -from the Bishop of Autun, who seems desirous to serve your Majesty. -He had it conveyed to me that the King might make a trial of his zeal -and influence, and indicate to him the points on which he could be -employed.” - -[33] - - “18 septembre, Kensington Square. - -“MY LORD, - -“J’ai l’honneur de vous informer que je suis arrivé en Angleterre il -y a deux jours. Les rapports que j’ai eu l’avantage d’avoir avec vous -pendant mon séjour à Londres m’en font un devoir. - -“Je me reprocherais de ne pas m’en acquitter promptement et de ne -pas offrir mes premiers hommages au ministre dont l’esprit m’a paru -au niveau des grands événements de cette époque, et qui a toujours -manifesté des vues si pures, et un amour éclairé de la vraie liberté. - -“A mes premiers voyages j’étais chargé par le roi d’une mission à -laquelle j’attachais le plus grand prix. Je voulais hâter le moment de -la prospérité de la France, et par conséquent l’attacher, s’il était -possible, à l’Angleterre. - -“J’osais à peine, il est vrai, espérer tant de bonheur dans nos -circonstances, mais je ne pouvais me résoudre à ne pas faire des -efforts pour y parvenir. - -“L’assurance que vos daignâtes nous donner de la neutralité de votre -gouvernement à l’époque de la guerre me parut un présage très-heureux. - -“Depuis ce moment tout est cruellement changé parmi nous, et quoique -rien ne puisse jamais détacher mon cœur ni mes vœux de la France, -et que mon espoir soit d’y retourner aussitôt que les lois y auront -repris leur empire, je dois vous dire, mylord, et je tiens beaucoup à -ce que vous sachiez que je n’ai absolument aucune espèce de mission en -Angleterre, que j’y suis venu uniquement pour y chercher la paix et -pour y jouir de la liberté au milieu de ses véritables amis. - -“Si pourtant mylord Grenville désirait connaître ce que c’est que la -France en ce moment, quels sont les différents partis qui l’agitent, -et quel est le nouveau pouvoir exécutif provisoire, et enfin ce qu’il -est permis de conjecturer des terribles et épouvantables événements -dont j’ai été presque le témoin oculaire, je serais charmé de le lui -apprendre et de trouver cette occasion de lui renouveler l’assurance -des sentiments de respect avec lesquels je suis, mylord, votre -très-humble, et très-obéissant serviteur, - - “TALLEYRAND-PÉRIGORD.” - -[34] “_Déclaration de Monsieur de Talleyrand._ - -“Mon respect pour le conseil du roi, et ma confiance en sa justice -m’engagent à lui présenter une déclaration personnelle plus détaillée -que celle que je vois comme étranger présenter au magistrat. - -“Je suis venu à Londres vers la fin de janvier 1792, chargé par -le gouvernement français d’une mission auprès du gouvernement -d’Angleterre. Cette mission avait pour objet, dans un moment où -toute l’Europe paraissait se déclarer contre la France, d’engager le -gouvernement d’Angleterre de ne point renoncer aux sentiments d’amitié -et de bon voisinage qu’il avait montré constamment en faveur de la -France pendant le cours de la Révolution. Le roi surtout, dont le -vœux le plus ardent était le maintien d’une paix qui lui paraissait -aussi utile à l’Europe en général qu’à la France en particulier, -le roi attachait un grand prix à la neutralité et à l’amitié de -l’Angleterre, et il avait chargé Monsieur de Montmorin qui conservait -sa confiance, et Monsieur de Laporte, de me témoigner son désir à -ce sujet. J’étais chargé de plus par les ministres du roi de faire -au gouvernement d’Angleterre des propositions relatives à l’intérêt -commercial des deux nations. La constitution n’avait pas permis au roi -en me chargeant de ses ordres, de me revêtir d’un caractère public. Ce -défaut de titre officiel me fut opposé par mylord Grenville comme un -obstacle à toute conférence politique. Je demandai en conséquence mon -rappel à Monsieur de Laporte, et je retournai en France. Un ministre -plénipotentiaire fut envoyé quelque temps après; le roi me chargea -d’en seconder les travaux, et en fit part à S. M. Britannique par une -lettre particulière. Je suis resté attaché au devoir que le roi m’avait -imposé jusqu’à l’époque du 10 août, 1792. J’étais alors à Paris où -j’avais été appelé par le ministre des affaires étrangères. Après avoir -été plus d’un mois sans pouvoir obtenir de passeport et être resté -exposé pendant tout ce temps, et comme administrateur du département de -Paris, et comme membre de l’Assemblée Constituante à tous les dangers -qui peuvent menacer la vie et la liberté, j’ai pu enfin sortir de -Paris vers le milieu de septembre, et je suis venu en Angleterre jouir -de la paix et de la sûreté personnelle à l’abri d’une constitution -protectrice de la liberté et de la propriété. J’y existe, comme je l’ai -toujours été, étranger à toutes les discussions et à tous les intérêts -de parti; et n’ayant pas plus à redouter devant les hommes justes la -publicité d’une seule de mes opinions politiques que la connaissance -d’une seule de mes actions. Outre les motifs de sûreté et de liberté -qui m’ont ramené en Angleterre, il est une autre raison, très-légitime -sans doute, c’est la suite de quelques affaires personnelles et la -vente prochaine d’une bibliothèque assez considérable que j’avais à -Paris, et que j’ai transportée à Londres. - -“Je dois ajouter que devenu en quelque sorte étranger à la France, -où je n’ai conservé d’autres rapports que ceux de mes affaires -personnelles, et d’une ancienne amitié je ne puis me rapprocher de ma -patrie que par les vœux ardents que je fais pour le rétablissement de -sa liberté et de son bonheur. - -“J’ai cru que dans des circonstances où la malveillance pouvait se -servir de quelques préventions pour les faire tourner au profit -d’inimitiés dues aux premières époques de notre Révolution, c’était -remplir les vues du conseil du roi que de lui offrir dans une -déclaration précise un exposé des motifs de mon séjour en Angleterre, -et un garant assuré et irrévocable de mon respect pour la constitution -et pour les lois. - - “TALLEYRAND. - - “1er janvier, 1793.” - -[35] “L’art de mettre des hommes à leur place est le premier de la -science du gouvernement; mais celui de trouver la place des mécontents -est à coup sûr le plus difficile; et présenter à leur imagination des -lointains, des perspectives où puissent se prendre leurs pensées et -leurs désirs, est, je crois, une des solutions de cette difficulté -sociale.” - -[36] (XII.) Eclaircissements donnés par le citoyen Talleyrand à ses -concitoyens. - -[37] See _Appendix_. - -[38] “After all that Sieyès has a very profound intellect.” “Profound! -Hem! You mean perhaps--_hollow_.” - -[39] Bourrienne. - -[40] “Quand Roger Ducos et Sieyès portaient le titre de consuls, les -trois membres de la commission consulaire étaient égaux, si non de -fait, du moins en droit. Cambacérès et Lebrun les ayant remplacés, M. -de Talleyrand, appelé dans le même moment à succéder à M. Reinhard au -ministère des relations extérieures, fut reçu en audience particulière -dans le cabinet du premier consul. - -“‘Citoyen Consul,’ lui dit-il, ‘vous m’avez confié le ministère des -relations extérieures, et je justifierai votre confiance; mais je dois -vous déclarer dès à présent que je ne veux travailler qu’avec vous. -Il n’y a point là de vaine fierté de ma part; je vous parle seulement -dans l’intérêt de la France. Pour qu’elle soit bien gouvernée, -pour qu’il y ait unité d’action, il faut que vous soyez le premier -consul, et que le premier consul ait dans sa main tout ce qui tient -directement à la politique, c’est-à-dire les ministères de l’intérieur -et de la police, pour les affaires du dehors; ensuite les deux grands -moyens d’exécution, la guerre et la marine. Il serait donc de toute -convenance que les ministres de ces cinq départements travaillassent -avec vous seul. L’administration de la justice et le bon ordre dans -les finances tiennent sans doute à la politique par une foule de -liens: mais ces liens sont moins sacrés. Si vous me permettez de le -dire, général, j’ajouterai qu’il conviendrait de donner au deuxième -consul, très-habile jurisconsulte, la haute main sur la justice, et -au troisième consul, également bien versé dans la connaissance des -lois financières, la haute main sur les finances. Cela les occupera, -les amusera; et vous, général, ayant à votre disposition les parties -vitales du gouvernement, vous arriverez au noble but que vous vous -proposez--la régénération de la France.’” - -“Qui ne reconnaît là le premier germe de l’archichancellerie et de -l’architrésorerie de l’empire?” Bourrienne, _Mémoires_, vol. iii., pp. -324, 325. - -[41] See _Napoleon’s Letter to King George III. before Marengo_. - -[42] “_A notre Très-cher Fils, Charles Maurice Talleyrand._ - -“Nous avons été touché de joie quand nous avons appris l’ardent -désir que vous avez de vous réconcilier avec nous et avec l’Eglise -catholique. Dilatant donc à votre égard les entrailles de notre charité -paternelle, nous vous dégageons par la plénitude de notre puissance -du lien de toutes les excommunications. Nous vous imposons par suite -de votre reconciliation avec nous et avec l’Eglise, des distributions -d’aumônes pour le soulagement surtout des pauvres de l’église d’Autun -que vous avez gouvernée. Nous vous accordons le pouvoir de porter -l’habit séculier, et de gérer toutes les affaires civiles, soit qu’il -vous plaise de demeurer dans la charge que vous exercez maintenant, -soit que vous passiez à d’autres auxquelles votre gouvernement pourrait -vous appeler.” - -[43] Fouché, not then in office, was also consulted. - -[44] It is even remarked, that a few days previous, the Duc Dalberg -had been informed that there was no jealousy of the _émigrés_ at that -place.--See _M. de Rovigo_, vol. ii., and _Letter of the Duc Dalberg to -M. de Talleyrand_, 13th November, 1823. - -[45] There were two “_procès-verbaux_,” or accounts taken of this -trial. The one published in the _Moniteur_, which cites the laws in -virtue of which the prince was condemned, and the pieces that were -brought forward in proof of the accusation. This is evidently an -afterthought: there was not time to write it at the spot and on the -scene. The other cites nothing but the decree of the 29th Ventôse, and -the answers of the prince, after a deliberation on which he is ordered -to immediate execution; this is genuine. The laws by which he is -condemned are left in blank. - -[46] “Bonaparte seul, mal informé par ce que la police avait de plus -vil, et n’écoutant que sa fureur, se porta à cet excès sans consulter. -Il fit enlever le prince avec l’intention de le tuer. Il est connu -que sous votre ministère vous n’avez cessé de modérer les passions de -Bonaparte.”--_Letter of Duc Dalberg_, May 13, 1823. - -[47] The houses of the upper classes had oaken floors, called -_parquets_: the houses of the lower classes had brick floors. - -[48] “Was re-making the bed of the Bourbons.” - -[49] See _Mémoires sur Talleyrand_, read in the Academy by M. Mignet, -May 11, 1839. - -[50] The term applied to persons detained in France at the rupture of -the peace of Amiens. - -[51] _Mémoires de Rovigo._ - -[52] _Mémoires de Rovigo_, vol. iii. p. 116. - -[53] With regard to his habits in this respect, it may not be amiss -to refer to the American correspondence: _State Papers and Public -Documents of the United States_, vol. iii. pp. 473-479. - -[54] A note written by M. Izquierdo, Spanish ambassador to the Court -of France, and dated 24th of March, 1808, is exceedingly curious -respecting these particulars. - -[55] “Le prince était instruit dans le plus grand détail de ce qui -s’était passé à Bayonne, et il m’en parut indigné: ‘Les victoires,’ -me disait-il, ‘ne suffisent pas pour effacer de pareils traits, parce -qu’il y a là je ne sais quoi de vil; de la tromperie, de la tricherie! -Je ne peux pas dire ce qui en arrivera, mais vous verrez que cela ne -lui sera pardonné par personne.’ Le duc Decrès m’a plus d’une fois -assuré que l’Empereur avait reproché en sa présence à M. de Talleyrand -de lui avoir conseillé tout ce qui s’était fait à Bayonne, sans que -celui-ci eût cherché à s’en défendre. Cela m’a toujours étonné. -D’abord, il suffit de connaître un peu M. de Talleyrand pour être bien -sûr que, si au fond il a été d’avis de déposséder du trône d’Espagne -les princes de la maison de Bourbon, il n’a certainement pas indiqué -les moyens qu’on a employés. Ensuite, lorsqu’il m’en a parlé, c’était -avec une sorte de colère qu’il n’éprouve qu’en présence des événements -qui le remuent fortement.” - -[56] “Il me fallait 800,000 hommes, et je les ai.”--_Mémoires de -Fouché_, vol. ii. p. 113. - -[57] _Mémoires de Rovigo_, vol. vi. p. 66. - -[58] “Une mauvaise paix ne peut nous devenir aussi funeste -que la continuation d’une guerre qui ne peut plus nous être -favorable.”--_Mémoires de Rovigo_, vol. vi. p. 229. - -[59] “‘Jamais,’ dit-il au dignitaire qui le lui insinuait, ‘jamais -je ne donnerai la main à la perte d’un homme qui m’a longtemps -servi.’”--_Mémoires de Rovigo_, vol. vi. p. 298. - -[60] M. Thiers gives the account of such a scene as we have just -described, but fixes it in 1809; nothing is omitted, not even the -position of M. de Talleyrand and his hat; and in this account M. Thiers -makes Napoleon accuse Talleyrand of the murder of the Duc d’Enghien. - -I cannot but believe that M. Thiers’s authority has been incorrect. -Count Molé could not be mistaken as to dates and facts, for he was -present at the scene I have related, and stated to me all the details, -as I have given them, without touching on the Duc d’Enghien, which -he certainly would have spoken of had Napoleon himself done so. The -Emperor’s reproaches were, according to Count Molé, entirely confined -to what he considered were M. de Talleyrand’s intrigues at that -particular time--intrigues which were not, however, then further -advanced than in clearing away the obstacles which might interfere with -his defection, if Napoleon was ultimately defeated. - -[61] “Eh bien! voilà donc la fin de tout ceci. N’est-ce pas aussi votre -opinion? Ma foi! c’est perdre une partie à beau jeu. Voyez un peu où -mène la sottise de quelques ignorants qui exercent avec persévérance -une influence de chaque jour. Pardieu! l’Empereur est bien à plaindre, -et on ne le plaindra pas, parce que son obstination à garder son -entourage n’a pas de motif raisonnable; ce n’est que de la faiblesse -qui ne se comprend pas dans un homme tel que lui. Voyez, monsieur, -quelle chute dans l’histoire! Donner son nom à des aventures au lieu -de le donner à son siècle! Quand je pense à cela je ne puis m’empêcher -d’en gémir. Maintenant quel parti prendre? Il ne convient pas à tout le -monde de se laisser engloutir sous les ruines de cet édifice. Allons, -nous verrons ce qui arrivera! - -“L’Empereur, au lieu de me dire des injures, aurait mieux fait de juger -ceux qui lui inspiraient des préventions; il aurait vu que des amis -comme ceux-là sont plus à craindre que des ennemis. Que dirait-il d’un -autre s’il s’était laissé mettre dans cet état?”--_Mémoires du Duc de -Rovigo_, cités par M. Thiers. - -[62] “Le lendemain, 12 avril, on se mit en marche pour aller au-devant -de Monsieur. Le temps était admirable; c’était un de ces premiers jours -du printemps, ravissants sous la température de Paris, où le soleil -brille de tout son éclat, et ne distribue qu’une chaleur douce aux -germes encore tendres qui sourdissent de toutes parts. Quelques fleurs -déjà entr’ouvertes, un vert tendre qui commençait à poindre sur les -arbres, le chant des oiseaux printaniers, l’air de joie répandu sur -les figures, et le vieux refrain du bon Henri qui marquait la marche, -avaient signalé cette entrée comme la fête de l’Espérance. Il y régnait -peu d’ordre, mais on y répandait des larmes. Dès qu’on vit paraître le -prince, M. de Talleyrand alla à sa rencontre, et en s’appuyant sur le -cheval du prince, avec la grâce nonchalante qu’autorise la faiblesse -de ses jambes, il lui débita un compliment en quatre lignes, frappé -au coin d’une sensibilité exquise. Le prince, qui, de toutes parts se -sentait pressé par des Français, était trop ému pour pouvoir répondre; -il dit, d’une voix étouffée par les sanglots: ‘Monsieur de Talleyrand, -Messieurs, je vous remercie; je suis trop heureux. Marchons, marchons, -je suis trop heureux!’ - -“Nous avons entendu depuis, le même prince répondre avec de la -présence d’esprit et du bonheur aux harangues qu’on lui faisait, mais, -pour ceux qui l’ont vu et qui l’ont entendu à son entrée à Paris, -il ne fut jamais aussi éloquent que ce jour-là. Le cortège se mit -en marche pour Notre-Dame, suivant l’antique usage d’aller porter à -Dieu, dans la première église de Paris, les hommages solennels des -Français pour chaque événement heureux. La garde nationale formait -le fond du cortège, mais il se composait aussi d’officiers russes, -prussiens, autrichiens, espagnols, portugais, à la tête desquels le -prince apparaissait comme un ange de paix descendu au milieu de la -grande famille européenne. Depuis la Barrière de Bondy jusqu’au Parvis -Notre-Dame, il n’y avait pas une fenêtre qui ne fût garnie de figures -rayonnantes de joie. Le peuple, répandu dans les rues, poursuivait -le prince de ses applaudissements et de ses cris. A peine pouvait-il -avancer au milieu de l’ivresse générale, et il répondit à quelqu’un qui -voulait écarter de si douces entraves: ‘Laissez, Monsieur, laissez, -j’arriverai toujours trop tôt.’ - -“C’est ainsi que le prince fut, s’il est permis de le dire, porté -jusqu’à Notre-Dame sur les cœurs des Français; et à son entrée dans le -sanctuaire, lorsqu’il se prosterna aux pieds de l’autel, qui avait, -durant tant de siècles, reçu les prières de ses pères, un rayon de -lumière très-vive vint frapper sur sa figure et lui imprima je ne sais -quoi de céleste. Il priait avec ardeur; tous priaient avec lui. Des -larmes mouillaient nos yeux; il en échappait aux étrangers eux-mêmes. -Oh! avec quelle vérité, avec quelle ardeur, chaque strophe de l’hymne -de la reconnaissance était poussée vers les cieux! A la fin de la -cérémonie, de vieux serviteurs du prince qui avaient pleuré trente ans -son absence embrassaient ses genoux, et il les relevait avec cette -grâce du cœur si touchante et qui lui est si naturelle. Le retour, -de Notre-Dame aux Tuileries ne fut pas moins animé, moins heureux, -et, parvenu dans la cour du palais, le prince descendit le cheval et -adressa à la garde nationale une allocution parfaitement appliquée à -la situation. Il prit la main à plusieurs officiers et soldats, les -pria de se souvenir de ce beau jour, et leur protesta que lui-même -ne l’oublierait jamais. Je fis ouvrir devant le prince les portes du -palais et j’eus l’honneur de l’introduire dans l’aile qu’il devait -habiter. - -“Je lui demandai ses ordres pour le reste de la journée, et l’heure -à laquelle je devais me présenter le lendemain pour le travail. Le -prince paraissait hésiter s’il me laisserait partir ou me retiendrait. -Je crus m’apercevoir que c’était indulgence de sa part, et je lui dis -que je craindrais de l’occuper une minute de plus, parce que je le -supposais fatigué, et c’est à moi qu’il répondit:--‘Comment voulez-vous -que je sois fatigué? C’est le seul jour de bonheur que j’ai goûté -depuis trente ans. Ah! monsieur, quelle belle journée! Dites que je -suis heureux et satisfait de tout le monde. Voilà mes ordres pour -aujourd’hui--à demain, à neuf heures du matin.’ - -“En quittant le prince, je repris mon travail ordinaire et je le -quittai sur les onze heures du soir pour aller chez M. de Talleyrand. -Je le trouvai s’entretenant de la journée avec MM. Pasquier, Dupont -de Némours, et Anglès. On s’accordait à la trouver parfaite. M. de -Talleyrand rappela qu’il fallait un article au _Moniteur_. Dupont -s’offrit de le faire. ‘Non pas,’ reprit M. de Talleyrand, ‘vous y -mettriez de la poésie; je vous connais. Beugnot suffit pour cela; qu’il -passe dans la bibliothèque et qu’il broche bien vite un article pour -que nous l’envoyions à Sauvo.’ - -“Je me mets à la besogne qui n’était pas fort épineuse, mais parvenu -à la mention de la réponse du prince à M. de Talleyrand, j’y suis -embarrassé. Quelques mots échappés à un sentiment profond produisent -de l’effet par le ton dont ils sont prononcés, par la présence des -objets qui les ont provoqués, mais quand il s’agit de les traduire -sur le papier, dépouillés de ces entours, ils ne sont plus que -froids, et trop heureux s’ils ne sont pas ridicules. Je reviens à M. -de Talleyrand, et je lui fais part de la difficulté.--‘Voyons,’ me -répondit-il, ‘qu’a dit _Monsieur_? Je n’ai pas entendu grand’chose; -il me paraissait ému et fort curieux de continuer sa route; mais si -ce qu’il a dit ne vous convient pas, faites-lui une réponse.’ ‘Mais -comment faire un discours que _Monsieur_ n’a pas tenu?’ ‘La difficulté -n’est pas là: faites-le bon, convenable à la personne et au moment, -et je vous promets que _Monsieur_ l’acceptera, et si bien, qu’au -bout de deux jours il croira l’avoir fait, et il l’aura fait; vous -n’y serez plus pour rien.’ A la bonne heure! Je rentre, j’essaye une -première version, et je l’apporte à la censure. ‘Ce n’est pas cela,’ -dit M. de Talleyrand, ‘_Monsieur_ ne fait pas d’antithèses et pas la -plus petite fleur de rhétorique. Soyez court, soyez simple, et dites -ce qui convient davantage à celui qui parle et à ceux qui écoutent; -voilà tout.’ ‘Il me semble,’ reprit M. Pasquier, ‘que ce qui agite bon -nombre d’esprits est la crainte des changements que doit occasionner -le retour des princes de la maison de Bourbon; il faudrait peut-être -toucher ce point, mais avec délicatesse.’ ‘Bien! et je le recommande,’ -dit M. de Talleyrand. ‘J’essaye une nouvelle version et je suis renvoyé -une seconde fois, parce que j’ai été trop long et que le style est -apprêté. Enfin j’accouche de celle qui est au _Moniteur_, et où je -fais dire au prince: ‘Plus de divisions: la paix et la France; je la -revois enfin; et rien n’y est changé, si ce n’est qu’il s’y trouve un -Français de plus.’ ‘Pour cette fois je me rends!’ reprit enfin le grand -censeur, ‘c’est bien là le discours de _Monsieur_, et je vous réponds -que c’est lui qui l’a fait; vous pouvez être tranquille à présent.’ Et -en effet le mot fit fortune: les journaux s’en emparèrent comme d’un à -propos heureux; on le reproduisit aussi comme un engagement pris par -le prince, et le mot, ‘_un Français de plus!_’ devint le passeport -obligé des harangues qui vinrent pleuvoir de toutes parts. Le prince ne -dédaigna pas de le commenter dans ses réponses, et la prophétie de M. -de Talleyrand fut complètement réalisée.” - -[63] Page 41, _du Consulat_.--“A huit heures du soir le Sénat se -présenta aux Tuileries, ayant en tête son président, M. de Talleyrand. -Ce personnage si bien fait pour les représentations où il fallait -tempérer le fermeté par une exquise politesse, s’approcha du Prince, -et selon sa coutume s’appuyant sur une canne, la tête penchée sur -l’épaule, lut un discours à la fois fier et adroit, dans lequel il -expliquait la conduite du Sénat sans l’excuser, car elle n’avait pas -besoin d’excuse. - -“‘Le Sénat,’ disait-il, ‘a provoqué le retour de votre auguste maison -au trône de France. Trop instruit par le présent et le passé, il désire -avec la nation affermir pour jamais l’autorité royale sur une juste -division des pouvoirs, et sur la liberté publique, seules garanties du -bonheur et des intérêts de tous. - -“‘Le Sénat, persuadé que les principes de la constitution nouvelle sont -dans votre cœur, vous défère, par le décret que j’ai l’honneur de vous -présenter le titre de lieutenant-général du royaume jusqu’à l’arrivée -du Roi, votre auguste frère. Notre respectueuse confiance ne peut mieux -honorer l’antique loyauté qui vous fut transmise par vos ancêtres. - -“‘Monseigneur, le Sénat, en ces moments d’allégresse publique, obligé -de rester en apparence plus calme sur la limite de ses devoirs, n’en -est pas moins pénétré des sentiments universels. Votre Altesse Royale -lira dans nos cœurs à travers la retenue même de notre langage.’” - -M. de Talleyrand joignit à ces paroles fermes et respectueuses les -protestations de dévouement qui étaient alors dans toutes les bouches; -il y mit de moins la banalité et la bassesse qui se rencontraient dans -presque toutes. - -“Le Prince répondit par le texte de la déclaration convenue. -‘Messieurs,’ dit-il, ‘j’ai pris connaissance de l’acte constitutionnel -qui rappelle au trône de France le Roi, mon auguste frère. Je n’ai -point reçu de lui le pouvoir d’accepter la Constitution, mais je -connais ses sentiments et ses principes, et je ne crains pas d’être -désavoué en assurant en son nom qu’il en admettra les bases.’ - -“Après cet engagement explicite, la déclaration énumérait les bases -elles-mêmes, c’est-à-dire la division des pouvoirs, le partage du -gouvernement entre le Roi et les Chambres, la responsabilité des -ministres, le vote de l’impôt par la nation, la liberté de la presse, -la liberté individuelle, la liberté des cultes, l’inamovibilité des -juges, le maintien de la dette publique, des ventes, dites nationales, -de la Légion d’Honneur, des grades et dotations de l’armée, l’oubli -des votes et actes antérieurs, etc. ‘J’espère ajouta le Prince, que -l’énumération de ces conditions vous suffit, et comprend toutes les -garanties qui peuvent assurer la liberté et le repos de la France.’” - -[64] Page 121.--“‘Je sais tout cela mieux que vous,’ répondit M. de -Talleyrand, ‘mais il ne faut pas qu’il en reste de trace dans l’esprit -du roi, et c’est pour que l’oubli soit patent que j’ai choisi le duc -de Liancourt; c’est l’homme du pays; il y fait du bien à tout le -monde, il est placé pour en faire au roi, et je vous proteste qu’il -sera bien reçu. Ce qui est passé est passé: la nature n’a pas donné -aux hommes d’yeux par derrière, c’est de ce qui est devant qu’il faut -s’occuper, et il nous restera encore assez à faire. Mais cependant, si -M. de Liancourt trouvait de la difficulté à approcher du Roi? Car on -s’accorde à dire qu’il est sous le joug d’un M. de Blacas qui ne laisse -aborder que ceux qui lui conviennent. Qu’est-ce que ce Blacas? Je ne -sais pas d’où il vient et me soucie assez peu de la savoir. Nous allons -entrer dans un régime constitutionnel où le crédit se mesurera sur -la capacité. C’est par la tribune et par les affaires que les hommes -prendront désormais leur place, et se chargera qui voudra d’épier le -moment du lever et de vider les poches du roi à son coucher.’ - -“M. de Liancourt était en effet parti, et partageant l’illusion de M. -de Talleyrand il croyait aller reprendre sans difficulté auprès du -roi l’exercice de son ancienne charge de maître de la garderobe. Tous -deux avaient notablement compté sans leur hôte. M. de Liancourt ne vit -point le roi, mais seulement M. de Blacas, qui le congédia avec la -politesse froide qui ne lui manque jamais. Le hasard me fit rencontrer -M. de Liancourt au retour, et avant qu’il eût pu voir M. de Talleyrand, -je lui demandai comment il avait été reçu. Il me répondit: ‘Mal, -très-mal, ou, pour mieux dire, pas du tout. Il y a là un certain M. de -Blacas qui garde les avenues et vous croyez bien que je ne me suis pas -abaissé à lutter contre; au reste, je crains fort que M. de Talleyrand -n’ait donné dans un piège: les princes vont nous revenir les mêmes que -lorsqu’ils nous ont quittés.’ - -“Le roi nous fut bientôt annoncé; les affaires se pressaient les unes -sur les autres de telle sorte qu’à peine l’insuccès de M. de Liancourt -put effleurer l’attention. Il fallait, toutefois, qu’il eût donné -beaucoup à penser à M. de Talleyrand, car il n’en parlait à personne.” - -[65] “Mon Dieu, sire, je n’ai rien fait pour cela. C’est quelque chose -d’inexplicable que j’ai en moi et qui porte malheur aux gouvernements -qui me négligent.” - -[66] “But then, my dear M. de Talleyrand, I should be standing, and you -seated.” - -[67] M. Thiers is of this opinion. - -[68] “Madame de Simiane reprit: ‘Il ne s’agit pas de cela; c’était bon -du temps de Bonaparte; aujourd’hui il faut mettre dans les ministères -des gens de qualité et qui ont à leurs ordres des bons travailleurs -qui font les affaires, ce qu’on appele des _bouleux_.’”--_Mémoires de -Beugnot_, p. 142. - -[69] So many and such different accounts are given of the time and -manner in which this news arrived, that I merely give the popular, -without answering for its being the accurate one. - -[70] “Le Conseil s’assemble: il se composait de MM. de Talleyrand, -Dambray, de Feltre, de Fancourt, Beurnonville, et moi. - -“Après deux mots de M. de Talleyrand sur ce dont le Roi a permis que le -Conseil s’occupât, je commence la lecture du projet de la proclamation -tel que les corrections l’avaient ajusté. Le Roi me laisse aller -jusqu’au bout; puis, et non sans quelque émotion que trahit sa figure, -m’ordonne de relire. Quand j’ai fini cette seconde lecture, Monsieur -prend la parole; il se plaint avec vivacité des termes dans lesquels -cette proclamation est rédigée. On y fait demander pardon au Roi des -fautes qu’il a commises; on lui fait dire qu’il s’est laissé entraîner -à ses affections, et promettre qu’il aura dans l’avenir une conduite -toute différente. De pareilles expressions n’ont qu’un tort, celui -d’avilir la royauté; car du reste elles disent trop ou ne disent rien -du tout. M. de Talleyrand répond: - -“‘Monsieur, pardonnera si je diffère de sentiments avec lui. Je trouve -ces expressions nécessaires, et pourtant bien placées; le Roi a fait -des fautes; ses affections l’ont égaré; il n’y a rien là de trop.’ - -“‘Est-ce moi,’ reprend Monsieur, ‘qu’on veut indirectement désigner?’ - -“‘Oui, puisque Monsieur a placé la discussion sur ce terrain, Monsieur -a fait beaucoup de mal.’ - -“‘Le prince de Talleyrand s’oublie!…’ - -“‘Je le crains, mais la vérité m’emporte.…’ - -“M. le Duc de Berry, _avec l’accent d’une colère péniblement -contrainte_: ‘Il ne faut rien moins que la présence du Roi pour que je -permette à qui que ce soit de traiter ainsi mon père devant moi, et je -voudrais bien savoir.…’ - -“A ces mots, prononcés d’un ton encore plus élevé que le reste, le -Roi fait signe à M. le Duc de Berry, et dit: ‘Assez, mon neveu: c’est -à moi seul _à faire justice_ de ce qui se dit en ma présence et dans -mon Conseil. Messieurs, je ne peux approuver ni les termes de la -proclamation, ni la discussion dont elle a été le sujet. Le rédacteur -retouchera son œuvre et ne perdra pas de vue les hautes convenances -qu’il faut savoir garder quand on me fait parler.’ - -“M. le Duc de Berry, _en me désignant_: ‘Mais ce n’est pas lui qui a -enfilé toutes ces sottises là.’ - -“Le Roi: ‘Mon neveu, cessez d’interrompre, s’il vous plaît. Messieurs, -je répète que j’ai entendu cette discussion avec beaucoup de regrets. -Passons à un autre sujet.…’”--_Mémoires du Comte Beugnot_, tom. ii. p. -274. - -[71] “Mais, reprend vivement M. de Talleyrand, partez donc! Tandis -que nous perdons le temps en allées et venues, et à disputer sur la -compétence, le pont sautera! Annoncez-vous de la part du Roi de France -et comme son ministre, dites les choses les plus fortes sur le chagrin -qu’il éprouve. - -“Voulez-vous que je dise que le Roi va se faire porter de sa personne -sur le pont, pour sauter de compagnie si le maréchal ne se rend pas? - -“Non pas précisément: on ne nous croit pas faits pour un tel héroïsme; -mais quelque chose de bon et de fort: vous entendez bien, quelque chose -de fort. - -“Je cours à l’hôtel dû maréchal. Il était absent, mais j’y trouve les -officiers de son état-major réunis. Je me fais annoncer de la part -du Roi de France, et je suis reçu avec une politesse respectueuse; -j’explique le sujet de ma mission à celui des officiers que je devais -supposer le chef de l’état-major. Il me répond par des regrets sur -l’absence de M. le maréchal, et s’excuse sur l’impuissance où il est -de donner des ordres sans avoir pris les siens. J’insiste, on prend le -parti d’aller chercher le maréchal qu’on était sur de trouver dans le -lieu confident de ses plus chers plaisirs, au Palais-Royal, No. 113. -Il arrive avec sa mauvaise humeur naturelle à laquelle se joignit le -chagrin d’avoir été dérangé de sa partie de trente-et-un. Il m’écoute -impatiemment, et comme il m’avait fort mal compris, il me répond de -telle sorte qu’à mon tour je n’y comprends rien du tout. Le chef -d’état-major reprend avec lui la conversation en allemand. Elle dure -quelque temps, et j’entendais assez la langue pour m’apercevoir que -le maréchal rejetait avec violence les observations fort raisonnables -que faisait l’officier. Enfin, ce dernier me dit que M. le maréchal -n’avait pas donné l’ordre pour la destruction du pont, que je concevais -sans peine comment le nom qu’il avait reçu importunait des soldats -prussiens; mais que du moment que le Roi de France avait fait justice -de ce nom, il ne doutait pas que les entreprises commencées contre ce -pont ne cessassent à l’instant même, et que l’ordre allait en être -donné. Je lui demandai la permission d’attendre que l’ordre fût parti -pour que j’eusse le droit de rassurer complètement Sa Majesté. Il le -trouva bon. Le maréchal était retourné bien vite à son cher No. 113; -l’ordre partit en effet. Je suivis l’officier jusque sur la place, -et quand je vis que les ouvriers avaient cessé et se retiraient avec -leurs outils, je vins rendre compte à M. de Talleyrand de cette triste -victoire. Cela lui rendit un peu de bonne humeur. ‘Puisque les choses -se sont passées de la sorte, dit le prince, on pourrait tirer parti de -votre idée de ce matin, que le Roi avait menacé de se faire porter sur -le pont pour sauter de compagnie: il y a là matière d’un bon article de -journal. Arrangez cela.’ - -“Je l’arrangeai en effet; l’article parut dans les feuilles du -surlendemain. Louis XVIII. dût être bien effrayé d’un pareil coup de -tête de sa part; mais ensuite il en accepta de bonne grâce la renommée. -Je l’ai entendu complimenter de cet admirable trait de courage, et il -répendait avec une assurance parfaite.…” - -[72] “Vous voyez à quoi les circonstances me forcent: j’ai à vous -remercier de votre zèle, vous êtes sans reproche, et rien ne vous -empêche de rester tranquillement à Paris.” - -[73] “J’ai eu le bonheur de rendre au Roi assez de services pour croire -qu’ils n’ont pas été oubliés; je ne comprendrais pas ce qui pourrait -me forcer de quitter Paris. J’y resterai, et je serai trop heureux -d’apprendre qu’on ne fera pas suivre au Roi une ligne capable de -compromettre sa dynastie et la France.” - -[74] Of whom nineteen to be tried by military law, the rest banished. -A list of sixty, who were to be warned to quit France, was in the same -spirit reduced to twenty. - -[75] “Gentlemen,--It is to-day sixteen years ago, that, called by him -who then governed the world to give him my opinion as to a conflict -which we were about to engage in with the Spanish people, I had the -misfortune to displease him by unveiling the future, and revealing -all the dangers likely to spring from an aggression not less unjust -than rash. Disgrace was the price of my sincerity. Strange destiny! -that which brings me back after this long space of time to renew to my -legitimate sovereign the same efforts, the same counsels. The speech of -the crown has dispelled the last hopes of the friends of peace, and, -menacing Spain, is, I ought to say it, alarming for France.… Yes, I -will have the courage to tell all the truth. The chivalrous sentiments, -which in 1789 carried away the generous hearts of that epoch, could not -save the legitimate monarchy: they may lose it in 1823.” - -[76] “Sans la liberté de la presse il n’y a point de gouvernement -représentatif: elle est un de ses instruments essentiels, elle en -est l’instrument principal: chaque gouvernement a les siens, et nous -ne nous souvenons pas assez que souvent ceux qui sont bons pour tel -gouvernement sont détestables pour tel autre. Il a été démontré jusqu’à -l’évidence, par plusieurs membres de cette Chambre, qui, dans cette -session et dans le précédentes, ont parlé sur cette matière, que sans -la liberté de la presse il n’y a point de gouvernement représentatif. -Je ne vous redirai donc point ce que vous avez tous ou entendu, ou lu, -et ce qui a dû souvent être l’objet de vos méditations. - -“Mais il est deux points de vue sous lesquels la question ne me paraît -pas avoir été suffisamment examinée et que je réduis à ces deux -propositions: - -“1ᵒ. La liberté de la presse est une nécessité du temps. - -“2ᵒ. Un gouvernement s’expose quand il se refuse obstinément et trop -longtemps à ce que le temps a proclamé nécessaire. - -“L’esprit humain n’est jamais complètement stationnaire. La découverte -de la veille n’est pour lui qu’un moyen de plus d’arriver à des -découvertes nouvelles. Il est pourtant vrai de dire qu’il semble -procéder par crises, parce-qu’il y a des époques où il est plus -particulièrement tourmenté du besoin d’enfanter et de produire, -d’autres, au contraire, où, satisfait de ses conquêtes, il paraît se -reposer sur lui-même, et plus occupé de mettre ordre à ses richesses -que d’en acquérir de nouvelles: le dix-septième siècle fut une de ces -époques fortunées. L’esprit humain, étonné des richesses immenses -dont l’imprimerie l’avait mis complètement en possession, s’arrêta -d’admiration pour jouir de ce magnifique héritage. Tout entier aux -jouissances des lettres, des sciences et des arts, il mit sa gloire -et son bonheur à produire des chefs-d’œuvre. Tous les grands génies -du siècle de Louis XIV. travaillèrent a l’envi à embellir un ordre -social au-delà duquel ils ne voyaient rien, ils ne désiraient rien, -et qui leur paraissait devoir durer autant que la gloire du grand -Roi, objet de leurs respects et de leur enthousiasme. Mais quand on -eut épuisé cette mine féconde de l’antiquité, l’activité de l’esprit -humain se trouva presque forcée de chercher ailleurs, et il ne trouva -de choses nouvelles que dans les études spéculatives qui embrassent -tout l’avenir, et dont les limites sont inconnues. Ce fut dans ces -dispositions que s’ouvrit le dix-huitième siècle, qui devait si peu -ressembler au précédent. Aux leçons poétiques de Télémaque succédèrent -les théories de l’esprit des lois, et Port-Royal fut remplacé par -l’Encyclopédie. - -“Je vous prie de remarquer, Messieurs, que je ne blâme ni n’approuve: -je raconte. - -“En nous rappelant tous les maux versés sur la France pendant la -révolution, il ne faut cependant pas être tout-à-fait injuste envers -les génies supérieurs qui l’ont amenée; et nous ne devons pas oublier -que si dans leurs écrits ils n’ont pas toujours su se préserver de -l’erreur, nous leur devons aussi la révélation de quelques grandes -vérités. N’oublions pas surtout que nous ne devons pas les rendre -responsables de la précipitation inconsidérée avec laquelle la France, -presque tout entière, s’est lancée dans la carrière qu’ils s’étaient -contentés d’indiquer. On a mis en pratique des aperçus, et toujours on -a pu dire: ‘malheur à celui qui dans son fol orgueil veut aller au-delà -des nécessités du temps, l’abîme ou quelque révolution l’attendent.’ -Mais quand on ne fait que ce que le temps commande, on est sûr de ne -pas s’égarer. - -“Or, Messieurs, voulez-vous savoir quelles étaient en 1789 les -véritables nécessités du temps? ouvrez les cahiers des différents -ordres. Tout ce qui était alors le vœu réfléchi des hommes éclairés, -voilà ce que j’appelle des nécessités. L’Assemblée Constituante n’en -fut que l’interprète lorsqu’elle proclama la liberté des cultes, -l’égalité devant la loi, la liberté individuelle, le droit des -jurisdictions (nul ne peut être distrait de ses juges naturels), la -liberté de la presse. - -“Elle fut peu d’accord avec le temps lorsqu’elle institua une Chambre -unique, lorsqu’elle détruisit le sanction royale, lorsqu’elle tortura -les consciences, etc. etc. Et cependant, malgré ses erreurs, dont je -n’ai cité qu’un petit nombre, erreurs suivies de si grandes calamités, -la postérité qui a commencé pour elle, lui reconnaît la gloire d’avoir -établi les bases de notre nouveau droit public. - -“Tenons donc pour certain que ce qui est voulu, que ce qui est -proclamé bon et utile par tous les hommes éclairés d’un pays, sans -variation pendant une suite d’années diversement remplies, est une -nécessité du temps. Telle est, Messieurs, la liberté de la presse. -Je m’adresse à tous ceux d’entre vous qui sont plus particulièrement -mes contemporains, n’était-elle pas l’objet des vœux de tous ces -hommes excellents que nous avons admirés dans notre jeunesse,--des -Malesherbes, des Trudaines,--qui certes valaient biens les hommes -d’état que nous avons depuis? La place que les hommes que j’ai nommés -occupent dans nos souvenirs prouve bien que la liberté de la presse -consolide les renommées légitimes; et si elle ruine les réputations -usurpées, où donc est le mal? - -“Après avoir prouvé que la liberté de la presse est en France le -résultat nécessaire de l’état actuel de la société, il me reste à -établir ma seconde proposition, qu’un gouvernement s’expose quand il se -refuse obstinément à ce que le temps a proclamé une nécessité. - -“Les sociétés les plus tranquilles et qui devraient être les plus -heureuses, renferment toujours dans leur sein un certain nombre -d’hommes qui aspirent à conquérir, à la faveur du désordre, les -richesses qu’ils n’ont pas et l’importance qu’ils ne devraient jamais -avoir. Est-il prudent de mettre aux mains de ces ennemis de l’ordre -social, des motifs de mécontentement sans lesquels leur perversité -serait éternellement impuissante? - -“La société, dans sa marche progressive, est destinée à subir de -nouvelles nécessités; je comprends que les gouvernements ne doivent pas -se hâter de les reconnaître et d’y faire droit; mais quand il les ont -reconnues, reprendre ce qu’on a donné, ou, ce qui revient au même, le -suspendre sans cesse, c’est une témérité dont, plus que personne, je -desire que n’aient pas à se repentir ceux qui en conçoivent la commode -et funeste pensée. Il ne faut jamais compromettre la bonne foi d’un -gouvernement. De nos jours, il n’est pas facile de tromper longtemps. -Il y a quelqu’un qui a plus d’esprit que Voltaire, plus d’esprit que -Bonaparte, plus d’esprit que chacun des directeurs, que chacun des -ministres passés, présents, à venir, c’est tout le monde. S’engager, ou -du moins persister dans une lutte où tout le monde se croit intéresse, -c’est une faute, et aujourd’hui toutes les fautes politiques sont -dangereuses. - -“Quand la presse est libre, lorsque chacun peut savoir que ses intérêts -sont ou seront défendus, on attend du temps une justice plus ou moins -tardive; l’espérance soutient, et avec raison, car cette espérance ne -peut être longtemps trompée; mais quand la presse est asservie, quand -nulle voix ne peut s’élever, les mécontentements exigent bientôt de la -part du gouvernement, ou trop de faiblesse ou trop de répression.” - -[77] The Duc d’Orléans’ sister. - -[78] Ah, the good prince! I knew he would not forget us. - -[79] He always turned round the same idea. - -[80] “MESSIEURS,-- - -“J’étais en Amérique, lorsque l’on eut la bonté de me nommer Membre -de l’Institut, et de m’attacher à la classe des sciences morales et -politique, à la quelle j’ai depuis son origine, l’honneur d’appartenir. - -“A mon retour en France, mon premier soin fut de me rendre à ses -séances, et de témoigner aux personnes qui la composaient alors, et -dont plusieurs nous ont laissé de justes regrets, le plaisir que -j’avais de me trouver un de leurs collègues. A la première séance à -laquelle j’assistai, on renouvelait le bureau et on me fit l’honneur -de me nommer secrétaire. Le procès-verbal que je rédigeai pendant six -mois avec autant de soin que je le pouvais, portait, peut-être un peu -trop, le caractère de ma déférence; car j’y rendais compte d’un travail -qui m’était fort étranger. Ce travail, qui sans doute avait coûté bien -des recherches, bien des veilles à un de nos plus savants collègues, -avait pour titre ‘Dissertation sur les Lois Ripuaires.’ Je fis aussi, -à la même époque, dans nos assemblées publiques, quelques lectures -que l’indulgence, qui m’était accordée alors, a fait insérer dans les -Mémoires de l’Institut. Depuis cette époque, quarante années se sont -écoulées, durant lesquelles cette tribune m’a été comme interdite, -d’abord par beaucoup d’absences ensuite par des fonctions auxquelles -mon devoir était d’appartenir tout entier: je dois dire aussi, par -la discrétion que les temps difficiles exigent d’un homme livré aux -affaires; et enfin, plus tard, par les infirmités que la vieillesse -amène d’ordinaire avec elle, ou du moins qu’elle aggrave toujours. - -“Mais aujourd’hui j’éprouve le besoin, et je regarde comme un devoir -de m’y présenter une dernière fois, pour que la mémoire d’un homme -connu dans toute l’Europe, d’un homme que j’aimais, et qui, depuis -la formation de l’Institut, était notre collègue, reçoive ici un -témoignage public de notre estime et de nos regrets. Sa position et la -mienne me mettent dans le cas de révéler plusieurs de ses mérites. Son -principal, je ne dis pas son unique titre de gloire, consiste dans une -correspondance de quarante années nécessairement ignorée du public, -qui, très-probablement, n’en aura jamais connaissance. Je me suis dit: -‘Qui en parlera dans cette enceinte? Qui sera surtout dans l’obligation -d’en parler, si ce n’est moi, qui en ait reçu la plus grande part, -à qui elle fut toujours si agréable, et souvent si utile dans les -fonctions ministérielles que j’ai eues à remplir sous trois règnes … -très-différents?’ - -“Le comte Reinhard avait trente ans, et j’en avais trente-sept, quand -je le vis pour le première fois. Il entrait aux affaires avec un grand -fonds de connaissances acquises. Il savait bien cinq ou six langues -dont les littératures lui étaient familières. Il eût pu se rendre -célèbre comme poëte, comme historien, comme géographe; et c’est en -cette qualité qu’il fut membre de l’Institut, des que l’Institut fut -créé. - -“Il était déjà à cette époque, membre de l’Académie des Sciences de -Göttingen. Né et élevé en Allemagne, il avait publié dans sa jeunesse -quelques pièces de vers qui l’avaient fait remarquer par Gesner, par -Wieland, par Schiller. Plus tard, obligé pour sa santé, de prendre les -eaux de Carlsbad, il eut de bonheur d’y trouver et d’y voir souvent -le célèbre Göthe, qui apprécia assez son goût et ses connaissances -pour désirer d’être averti par lui de tout ce qui faisait quelque -sensation dans la littérature française. M. Reinhard le lui promit: -les engagements de ce genre, entre les hommes d’un ordre supérieur, -sont toujours réciproques et deviennent bientôt des liens d’amitié: -ceux qui se formèrent entre M. Reinhard et Göthe donnèrent lieu à une -correspondance que l’on imprime aujourd’hui en Allemagne. - -“On y verra, qu’arrivé à cette époque de la vie où il faut -définitivement choisir un état M. Reinhard fit sur lui-même, sur les -goûts, sur sa position et sur celle de sa famille un retour sérieux -qui précéda sa détermination; et alors, chose remarquable pour le -temps, à des carrières où il eût pu être indépendant, il en préféra -une où il ne pouvait l’être. C’est à la carrière diplomatique qu’il -donna la préférence, et il fit bien: propre à tous les emplois de -cette carrière, il les a successivement tous remplis, et tous avec -distinction. - -“Je hasarderai de dire ici que ses études premières l’y avait -heureusement préparé. Celle de la théologie surtout, où il se fit -remarquer dans le Séminaire de Denkendorf et dans celui de la faculté -protestante de Tübingen, lui avait donné une force et en même temps -une souplesse de raisonnement que l’on retrouve dans toutes les pièces -qui sont sorties de sa plume. Et pour m’ôter à moi-même la crainte -de me laisser aller à une idée qui pourrait paraître paradoxale, je -me sens obligé de rappeler ici les noms de plusieurs de nos grands -négociateurs, tous théologiens, et tous remarqués par l’histoire -comme ayant conduit les affaires politiques les plus importantes de -leurs temps: le cardinal chancelier Duprat aussi versé dans le droit -canon que dans le droit civil, et qui fixa avec Léon X. les bases du -concordat dont plusieurs dispositions subsistent encore aujourd’hui. -Le cardinal d’Ossat, qui, malgré les efforts de plusieurs grandes -puissances, parvint à réconcilier Henry IV. avec le cour de Rome. Le -recueil de lettres qu’il a laissé est encore prescrit aujourd’hui aux -jeunes gens qui se destinent à la carrière politique. Le cardinal de -Polignac, théologien, poëte et négociateur, qui, après tant de guerres -malheureuses sut conserver à la France, par le traité d’Utrecht, les -conquêtes de Louis XIV. - -“Les noms que je viens de citer me paraissent suffire pour justifier -l’influence qu’eurent, dans mon opinion, sur les habitudes d’esprit -de M. Reinhard, les premières études vers lesquelles l’avait dirigé -l’éducation paternelle. - -“Les connaissances à la fois solides et variées qu’il y avait acquises -l’avaient fait appeler à Bordeaux pour remplir les honorables et -modestes fonctions de précepteur dans une famille protestante de cette -ville. Là, il se trouvà naturellement en relation des hommes dont le -talent, les erreurs et la mort jetèrent tant d’éclat sur notre première -assemblée legislative. M. Reinhard se laissa facilement entraîner par -eux à s’attacher au service de la France. - -“Je ne m’astreindrai point à le suivre pas à pas à travers les -vicissitudes dont fut remplie la longue carrière qu’il a parcourue. -Dans les nombreux emplois que lui furent confiés, tantôt d’un ordre -élevé, tantôt d’un ordre inférieur, il semblerait y avoir une sorte -d’incohérence, et comme une absence de hiérarchie que nous aurions -aujourd’hui de la peine à comprendre. Mais à cette époque il n’y avait -pas plus de préjugés pour les places qu’il n’y en avait pour les -personnes. Dans d’autres temps, la faveur, quelquefois le discernement, -appelaient à toutes les situations éminentes. Dans le temps dont je -parle, bien ou mal, toutes les situations étaient conquises. Un pareil -état de choses mène bien vite à la confusion. - -“Aussi, nous voyons M. Reinhard, premier secrétaire de la légation à -Londres; occupant le même emploi à Naples; ministre plénipotentiaire -auprès des villes anséatiques, Hambourg, Brême et Lubeck; chef de la -troisième division au département des affaires étrangères; ministre -plénipotentiaire à Florence; ministre des relations extérieures; -ministre plénipotentiaire en Helvétie; consul-général à Milan; -ministre plénipotentiaire près le cercle de Basse-Saxe; président dans -les provinces turques au delà du Danube, et commissaire-général des -relations commerciales en Moldavie; ministre plénipotentiaire auprès -du roi de Westphalie; directeur de la chancellerie du département des -affaires étrangères; ministre plénipotentiaire auprès de la diète -germanique, et de la ville libre de Frankfort, et, enfin, ministre -plénipotentiaire à Dresde. - -“Que de places, que d’emplois, que d’intérêts confiés à un seul homme, -et cela, à une époque où les talents paraissaient devoir être d’autant -moins appréciés que la guerre semblait, à elle seule, se charger de -toutes les affaires! - -“Vous n’attendez donc pas de moi, Messieurs, qu’ici je vous rende -compte en détail, et date par date, de tous les travaux de M. Reinhard -dans les différents emplois dont vous venez d’entendre l’énumération. -Il faudrait faire un livre. - -“Je ne dois parler devant vous que de la manière dont il comprenait les -fonctions qu’il avait à remplir, qu’il fût chef de division, ministre, -ou consul. - -“Quoique M. Reinhard n’eût point alors l’avantage qu’il aurait eu -quelques années plus tard, de trouver sous ses yeux d’excellents -modèles, il savait déjà combien de qualités, et de qualités diverses, -devaient distinguer un chef de division des affaires étrangères. Un -tact délicat lui avait fait sentir que les mœurs d’un chef de division -devaient être simples, régulières, retirées; qu’étranger au tumulte du -monde, il devait vivre uniquement pour les affaires et leur vouer un -secret impénétrable; que, toujours prêt à répondre sur les faits et sur -les hommes, il devait avoir sans cesse présents à la mémoire tous les -traités, connaître historiquement leurs dates, apprécier avec justesse -leurs côtés forts et leurs côtés faibles, leurs antécédents et leurs -conséquences; savoir, enfin, les noms des principaux négociateurs, et -même leurs relations de famille; que, tout en faisant usage de ces -connaissances, il devait prendre garde à inquiéter l’amour-propre -toujours si clairvoyant du ministre, et qu’alors même qu’il -l’entraînait à son opinion, son succès devait rester dans l’ombre; car -il savait qu’il ne devait briller que d’un éclat réfléchi; mais il -savait aussi que beaucoup de considération s’attachait naturellement à -une vie aussi pure et aussi modeste. - -“L’esprit d’observation de M. Reinhard ne s’arrêtait point là; -il l’avait conduit à comprendre combien la réunion des qualités -nécessaires à un ministre des affaires étrangères est rare. Il faut, -en effet, qu’un ministre des affaires étrangères soit doué d’une sorte -d’instinct qui, l’avertissant promptement, l’empêche, avant toute -discussion, de jamais se compromettre. Il lui faut la faculté de se -montrer ouvert en restant impénétrable; d’être réservé avec les formes -de l’abandon, d’être habile jusque dans le choix de ses distractions; -il faut que sa conversation soit simple, variée, inattendue, toujours -naturelle et parfois naïve; en un mot, il ne doit pas cesser un moment, -dans les vingt-quatre heures, d’être ministre des affaires étrangères. - -“Cependant, tout ces qualités, quelque rares qu’elles soient, -pourraient n’être pas suffisantes, si la bonne foi ne leur donnait une -garantie dont elles ont presque toujours besoin. Je dois le rappeler -ici, pour détruire un préjugé assez généralement répandu: non, la -diplomatie n’est point une science de ruse et de duplicité. Si la bonne -foi est nécessaire quelque part, c’est surtout dans les transactions -politiques, car c’est elle qui les rend solides et durables. On a voulu -confondre la réserve avec la ruse. La bonne foi n’autorise jamais la -ruse, mais elle admet la réserve; et la réserve a cela de particulier, -c’est qu’elle ajoute à la confiance. - -“Dominé par l’honneur et l’intérêt du prince, par l’amour de la -liberté, fondé sur l’ordre et sur les droits de tous, un ministre des -affaires étrangères, quand il sait l’être, se trouve ainsi placé dans -la plus belle situation à laquelle un esprit élevé puisse prétendre. - -“Après avoir été un ministre habile, que de choses il faut encore -savoir pour un bon consul! Car les attributions d’un consul sont -variées à l’infini; elles sont d’un genre tout différent de celles des -autres employés des affaires étrangères. Elles exigent une foule de -connaissances pratiques pour lesquelles une éducation particulière est -nécessaire. Les consuls sont dans le cas d’exercer, dans l’étendue de -leur arrondissement, vis-à-vis de leurs compatriotes, les fonctions -de juges, d’arbitres, de conciliateurs; souvent ils sont officiers de -l’état civil; ils remplissent l’emploi de notaires, quelquefois celui -d’administrateur de la marine; ils surveillent et constatent l’état -sanitaire; ce sont eux qui, par leurs relations habituelles, peuvent -donner une idée juste et complète de la situation du commerce, de la -navigation et de l’industrie particulière au pays de leur résidence. -Aussi M. Reinhard, qui ne négligeait rien pour s’assurer de la justesse -des informations qu’il était dans la cas de donner à son gouvernement, -et des décisions qu’il devait prendre comme agent politique, comme -agent consulaire, comme administrateur de la marine, avait-il fait -une étude approfondie du droit des gens et du droit maritime. Cette -étude l’avait conduit à croire qu’il arriverait un temps où, par des -combinaisons habilement préparées, il s’établirait un système général -de commerce et de navigation, dans lequel les intérêts de toutes les -nations seraient respectés, et dont les bases fussent telles que la -guerre elle-même n’en pût altérer le principe, dût-elle suspendre -quelques-unes de ses conséquences. Il était aussi parvenu à résoudre -avec sûreté et promptitude toutes les questions de change, d’arbitrage, -de conversion de monnaies, de poids et mesures, et tout cela sans que -jamais aucune réclamation se soit élevée contre les informations qu’il -avait données et contre les jugements qu’il avait rendus. Il est vrai -aussi que la considération personnelle qu’il l’a suivi dans toute sa -carrière donnait du poids à son intervention dans toutes les affaires -dont il se mêlait et à tous les arbitrages sur lesquels il avait à -prononcer. - -“Mais, quelque étendues que soient les connaissances d’un homme, -quelque vaste que soit sa capacité, être un diplomate complet est bien -rare; et cependant M. Reinhard l’aurait peut-être été, s’il eut en une -qualité de plus; il voyait bien, il entendait bien; la plume à la main, -il rendait admirablement compte de le qu’il avait vu, de ce qui lui -avait été dit. Sa parole écrite était abondante, facile spirituelle, -piquante; aussi, de toutes les correspondances diplomatiques de mon -temps, il n’y en avait aucune à laquelle l’empereur Napoléon, qui avait -le droit et le besoin d’être difficile, ne préférât celle du comte -Reinhard. Mais ce même homme qui écrivait à merveille s’exprimait avec -difficulté. Pour accomplir ses actes, son intelligence demandait plus -de temps qu’elle n’en pouvait obtenir dans le conversation. Pour que sa -parole interne pût se reproduire facilement, il fallait qu’il fût seul -et sans intermédiaire. - -“Malgré cet inconvénient réel, M. Reinhard réussit toujours à faire, -et bien faire, tout ce dont il était chargé. Où donc trouvait-il ses -moyens de réussir, où prenait-il ses inspirations? - -“Il les prenait, Messieurs, dans un sentiment vrai et profond qui -gouvernait toutes ses actions, dans le sentiment du devoir. On ne sait -pas assez tout ce qu’il y a de puissance dans ce sentiment. Une vie -tout critère au devoir est bien aisément dégagée d’ambition. La vie -de M. Reinhard était uniquement employée aux fonctions qu’il avait à -remplir, sans que jamais chez lui il y eût trace de calcul personnel ni -de prétention à quelque avancement précipité. - -“Cette religion du devoir, à laquelle M. Reinhard fut fidèle tout sa -vie, consistait en une soumission exacte aux instructions et aux ordres -de ses chefs; dans une vigilance de tous les moments, qui, jointe a -beaucoup de perspicacité, ne les laissait jamais dans l’ignorance de ce -qu’il leur importait de savoir; en une rigoureuse véracité dans tous -ses rapports, qu’ils dussent être agréables ou déplaisants; dans une -discrétion impénétrable, dans une régularité de vie qui appelait la -confiance et l’estime; dans une représentation décente, enfin dans un -soin constant à donner aux actes de son gouvernement la couleur et les -explications que réclamait l’intérêt des affaires qu’il avait a traiter. - -“Quoique l’âge eût marqué pour M. Reinhard le temps du repos, il -n’aurait jamais demandé sa retraite, tant il aurait crainte de montrer -de la tiédeur a servir dans une carrière qui avait été celle de toute -sa vie. - -“Il a fallu que la bienveillance royale, toujours si attentive, fut -prévoyante pour lui, et donnât à ce grand serviteur de la France la -situation la plus honorable en l’appelant à la chambre des pairs. - -“M. le comte Reinhard n’a pas joui assez longtemps de cet honneur, et -il est mort presque subitement le 25 décembre, 1837. - -“M. Reinhard s’était marié deux fois. Il a laissé du premier lit un -fils qui est aujourd’hui dans la carrière politique. Au fils d’un tel -père, tout ce qu’on peut souhaiter de mieux, c’est de lui ressembler.” - -[81] “Nous avons dit qu’à la suite du testament du prince de Talleyrand -se trouvait une sorte de manifeste, dans lequel le célèbre diplomate -exposait les principes qui l’avaient guidé dans sa vie politique, et -exprimait sa manière de voir à l’égard de certains événements. - -“Voici, d’après les renseignements que nous avons recueillis, ce que -contient en substance cette déclaration, qui porte la date de 1836, et -qui, conformément au vœu du testateur, a été lui à la famille et à ses -amis assemblés. - -“Le prince déclare qu’avant tout et à tout, il a préféré les vrais -intérêts de la France. - -“S’expliquant sur la part qu’il a prise à la rentrée des Bourbons en -1814, il dit que, dans son opinion, les Bourbons ne remontaient pas sur -le trône en vertu d’un droit héréditaire, et pré-existant, et il donne -même à entendre que ses conseils et ses avis ne leur manquèrent pas -pour les éclairer sur leur vraie position, et sur la conduite qu’ils -devaient tenir en conséquence. - -“Il repousse le reproche d’avoir trahi Napoléon: s’il l’a abandonné, -c’est lorsqu’il reconnut qu’il ne pouvait plus confondre, comme il -l’avait fait jusqu’alors, la France et l’Empereur dans une même -affection; ce ne fut pas sans un vif sentiment de douleur, car il lui -devait à peu près toute sa fortune; il engage ses héritiers à ne jamais -l’oublier, à le répéter à leurs enfants, et ceux-ci à ceux qui naîtront -d’eux, afin, dit-il, que si quelque jour un homme du nom de Bonaparte -se trouvait dans le besoin, ils s’empressassent de lui donner aide, -secours et assistance. - -“Répondant à ceux qui lui reprochent d’avoir servi successivement tous -les gouvernements, il déclare qu’il ne s’en est fait aucun scrupule, et -qu’il a agi ainsi, guidé par cette pensée que, dans quelque situation -que fût un pays, il y avait toujours moyen de lui faire du bien, et que -c’était a opérer ce bien que devait s’appliquer un homme d’état.” - -[82] _Brunonian System._--Medical doctrines first broached by Dr. John -Brown, in his “Elementæ Medicinæ,” in 1780. He imagined that the body -was endowed with a certain quantity of _excitability_, and that every -external agent acted as a _stimulant_ on this property of excitability. -Health consisted in a just proportion of stimulation, but when this was -carried too far, exhaustion, or _direct debility_, was the consequence, -and when not far enough, _indirect debility_. The diseases which he -supposed to arise from one or other of those two states were classed -into two orders, the _sthenic_ and the _asthenic_. Brown was considered -no great prophet in his own country, but he exercised considerable -influence on the medical doctrines of the Italian schools, which to -this day are somewhat tinctured with Brunonianism. - -[83] It is fair to observe that this prejudice is gradually -disappearing. - -[84] Letter to Mr. Pitt. - -[85] Letters to Mr. Sharpe. See “Life of Sir James Mackintosh,” by his -Son. - -[86] Hazlitt. - -[87] He only sanctioned one execution. - -[88] He would perhaps have repudiated this name; but, as far as -opinions gave the title, it certainly at this time belonged to him. - -[89] See “Life of Sir James Mackintosh,” by his Son, pp. 246 and 279. - -[90] Subsequently he sat for Knaresborough, under the patronage of the -Duke of Devonshire. - -[91] 27th April, 1815. - -[92] This idea has lately been brought forward by M. de Tocqueville, -and treated by many as a novelty. - -[93] “On the Power of Punishments,” ch. xii. - -[94] See “Life of Sir James Mackintosh,” by his Son, vol. ii. p. 2. - -[95] Principal Papers of Sir James Mackintosh in the “Edinburgh Review”: - - Vol. 20. Account of Boy born Blind and Deaf. - _Ib._ Wakefield’s Account of Ireland. - 21. Madame de Staël: On Suicide. - 22. _Ib._ L’Allemagne. - _Ib._ On Rogers’ Poems. - 24. On the French Restoration. - 26. Life of James II. (Stuart’s Papers.) - 27. Stuart’s Preliminary Essay (Metaphysics) to - Encyclopædia Britannica. - 36. _Ib._ - 34. Parliamentary Reform. - 35. Sismondi: Histoire des Français. - 36. Sir George Mackenzie’s “Scotland.” - 44. Who wrote “Eikon Basilike?” - _Ib._ Danish Revolution. (Struensee.) - November, 1822. The Partition of Poland. - No. 89. Portugal--Don Miguel. - -The following articles were also published by Sir James in the “Monthly -Review”: - - Year 1795. Vol. 19. Burke’s Letter to a Noble Lord. - _Ib._ A Letter to Mr. Miles, occasioned by his late - scurrilous attack on Mr. Burke. - 20. Miscellaneous Works of Gibbon (Part). - 1796. _Ib._ Roscoe’s “Life of Lorenzo de Medici.” - _Ib._ Moore’s “View of the Causes of the French - Revolution.” - 21. Burke’s Two Letters. - _Ib._ Thoughts on A Regicide Peace. - _Ib._ O’Brien’s “Utrum Horum?” - _Ib._ Burke’s Two Letters (concluded). - -[96] The death of Rizzio is an almost equally vivid description. - -[97] Columbus, born 1441, or earlier, according to Mr. W. Irving. - -[98] Duncombe’s Letters, pp. 106, 107. - -[99] Warton on “Pope.” - -[100] See his “Querist,” p. 358, published in 1737. - -[101] “Siris; or, Reflections on Tar Water.” - -[102] Sermon in Trinity College Chapel on “Passive Obedience,” 1712. - -[103] “Gentleman’s Magazine,” 1777. - -[104] He published the “Vindiciæ Gallicæ” in 1791; he gave his lectures -in 1799; he appeared as Peltier’s advocate in the same year; he entered -Parliament in 1813; he delivered his celebrated speech against the -Foreign Enlistment Bill in 1819, and carried his motion pledging the -House of Commons to an improvement in the criminal law in 1822; his -work on “Ethics” was published in 1830; his “History of England” in -1830-31. - -[105] B. Constant was another instance of this kind, and it is -singular to see Mackintosh himself thus judging him:--“Few men have -turned talent to less account than Constant. His powers of mind are -very great, but as they have always been exerted on the events of the -moment, and as his works want that laboured perfection which is more -necessary but more difficult in such writings than in any others, they -have left us a vague or faint reputation which will scarcely survive -the speaker or writer.” - -[106] Letter to Mr. Taylor. “Writings,” vol. xii. s. 212. - -[107] Page 393. - -[108] People are often at this day disputing as to whether a particular -picture is by the master it is attributed to, or by one of his -scholars. A peculiarity of genius in an artist is to create first-rate -imitators in those who live in his society; and it is not unworthy of -notice that one of the best pieces of writing in Cobbett’s best style -is “The Rat Hunt” (_Political Register_, vol. xci. p. 380), and was by -the pen of Mr. J. M. Cobbett, Mr. Cobbett’s son. - -[109] Of this sect, by the way, he elsewhere speaks in these eulogistic -terms: - -“Here am I amongst the thick of the Quakers, whose houses and families -pleased me so much formerly, and which pleasure is now revived. -Here all is ease, plenty, and cheerfulness. These people are never -_giggling_, and never in _low spirits_. Their minds, like their dress, -are simple and strong. Their kindness is shown more in acts than in -words. Let others say what they will, I have uniformly found those whom -I have intimately known of this sect sincere and upright men; and I -verily believe that all those charges of hypocrisy and craft that we -hear against Quakers, arise from a feeling of _envy_; envy inspired by -seeing them possessed of such abundance of all those things which are -the fair fruits of care, industry, economy, sobriety, and order; and -which are justly forbidden to the drunkard, the prodigal, and the lazy.” - -[110] His son, the late Earl Canning, represented Warwick in the House -of Commons from August, 1836, to March, 1837. - -[111] See _Microcosm_. - -[112] In the Life given in the edition of Mr. Canning’s Speeches. - -[113] Speech on the King’s Message relative to Union with Ireland, -January 2, 1799. - -[114] Speech on the Army Estimates, Dec. 8, 1802. - -[115] A virtual declaration of hostility against every neutral power. - -[116] This is one of the portions from my original sketch, which it -would appear that Mr. Bell consulted and copied. See Appendix. - -[117] Speech on Regency Question, Dec. 31, 1810. - -[118] Speech on vote of thanks to the Marquis of Wellington, July 7, -1813. - -[119] See _Appendix_. - -[120] Spence preached about the period of the French Revolution, and -his doctrines were revived now by his follower, Evans. - -[121] The accuracy of this story having been disputed, I asked Lady -Palmerston, who was living in the same set as the lady in question, and -also about this period residing at Brighton, whether she remembered -hearing anything corroborating my information, and she said she -perfectly well remembered hearing the anecdote I have narrated. But -there is nothing in the Duke of Wellington’s letters to confirm -it, and, like most tales of a similar nature, it probably had some -foundation, but was not precisely correct either in details or dates. - -The main fact, however, remains untouched, and is indeed proved by -the Wellington correspondence, viz., that Lord Liverpool applied to -the Duke of Wellington to obtain the King’s consent to Mr. Canning’s -appointment, and that the Duke succeeded, though not without difficulty. - -[122] This story was related by Sir Roundell Palmer in his address to -the jury in the trial of Ryves _v._ the Attorney-General. I do not know -whence Sir Roundell derived the anecdote, but I think it as well to -say, in favour of its authenticity, that I heard it thirty years ago -from a person who was present on the occasion, and that it has been -recorded for twenty-six years in my MS. - -[123] The correctness of this story has been questioned by a -correspondent to the _Times_, who signs “A. W. C.” I heard it from -a person much in the intimacy of George IV. and Mr. Canning, and -noted it when I heard it as curious; but I give it as gossip, which, -whether true or false, illustrates the notions of the time, and is not -incompatible with what is said by “A. W. C.” himself. - -[124] Lord Townsend being dismissed in 1717 from the Lord Lieutenancy -of Ireland, at the instigation of Lord Sunderland, the whole of Lord -Townsend’s party in the Cabinet at that time, including Walpole, -resigned. They were attacked in much the same way as the Duke of -Wellington was attacked in 1827, and thought it necessary to defend -themselves in the same manner, though there is no doubt that they did -resign expressly for the purpose of ousting a government which they -thought could not go on without them. In the end they succeeded.--See -Coxe’s “Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole,” page 107. - -[125] In the Memoirs of Sir J. Mackintosh, in the “Keepsake.” 1829. - -[126] Lord Nugent was a remarkably large heavy man, with a head even -larger than was required to be in proportion to his body. - -[127] “Annual Register,” 1821. - -[128] Sir J. Mackintosh, in speaking of Mr. Canning’s despatches on the -South American question, said that “they contained a body of liberal -maxims of policy, and just principles of public law, expressed with a -precision, a circumspection, a dignity, which will always render them -models and masterpieces of diplomatic composition.”--June 15, 1826. - -[129] Protestant here is, of course, meant to signify anti-Catholic. - -[130] Letter to the Duke of Wellington, August 11, 1828. - -[131] Mr. Peel’s Memorandum for the Duke of Wellington, August 25, 1828. - -[132] Cécrops, Cadmus et Danäus. - -[133] Didon. - -[134] Enée. - -[135] Syracuse. - -[136] Milet, Ephèse. - -[137] Grand nombre de petites colonies dans le pays latin; aucune ne -devint célèbre. - -[138] Invasion des Huns, Goths, Vandales, Cimbres, etc. - -[139] Croisades. - -[140] Dans un temps de factions politiques cela cesserait d’être exact; -car alors chaque secte voudrait nécessairement être l’auxiliaire de tel -ou tel parti, comme on l’a déjà vu; mais ces factions une fois calmées -la religion deviendrait à l’instant dans les Etats-Unis ce qu’elle y -est aujourd’hui; ce qui veut dire en résultat, qu’elle n’y a point de -fanatisme pour son propre compte, et c’est déjà beaucoup.--(_Note du -citoyen Talleyrand, au mois de ventôse, an VII._) - -[141] Cela était littéralement vrai lorsque ce mémoire a été lu à -l’institut. Si depuis ce moment des partis s’y sont formés de nouveau, -s’il en est un qui travaille à remettre honteusement l’Amérique sous -le joug de la Grande-Bretagne, cela confirmerait beaucoup trop ce que -j’établis dans le cours de ce mémoire, que les Américains sont encore -Anglais; mais tout porte à croire qu’un tel parti ne triomphera pas, -que la sagesse du gouvernement français aura déconcerté ses espérances; -et je n’aurai pas à rétracter le bien que je dis ici d’un peuple de qui -je me plais à reconnaître qu’il n’est Anglais que par des habitudes qui -ne touchent point à son indépendance politique, et non par le sentiment -qui lui ferait regretter de l’avoir conquise.--(_Note du citoyen -Talleyrand, au mois de ventôse, an VII._) - -THE END. - -LONDON: PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING -CROSS. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Historical Characters, by Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORICAL CHARACTERS *** - -***** This file should be named 53285-0.txt or 53285-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/3/2/8/53285/ - -Produced by Clarity and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from -images generously made available by The Internet -Archive/American Libraries.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law 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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