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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/8685-8.txt b/8685-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..af8442e --- /dev/null +++ b/8685-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11014 @@ +Project Gutenberg's Memoirs of Henry Hunt, Esq. Volume 1, by Henry Hunt + +Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the +copyright laws for your country before downloading or redistributing +this or any other Project Gutenberg eBook. + +This header should be the first thing seen when viewing this Project +Gutenberg file. Please do not remove it. Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: Memoirs of Henry Hunt, Esq. Volume 1 + +Author: Henry Hunt + +Release Date: August, 2005 [EBook #8685] +[Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] +[This file was first posted on August 1, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MEMOIRS OF HENRY HUNT, V1 *** + + + + +Produced by S.R.Ellison, Stan Goodman, +and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + + + + +[Note:The use of quotation marks in the text does not accord with modern +usage. Double quotes are nested within double quotes, and where this +results in 2 doublequotes closing off a speech, one is omitted. In these +cases ["] has been inserted to clarify the dialogue. + +Spelling of some proper names is inconsistent. These inconsistencies have +not been altered--cf. +Buonaparte--Bonaparte +Collingborn--Collingbourn +Everley--Everly +Halcombe--Halcomb] + + + + +[Illustration: HENRY HUNT, ESQR.] + +_Engraved by T. Woolmoth from a Drawing taken in the Kings Bench Prison +the Morning after Judgement was given._ + +_Published June 5, 1820 by T. Dolby 299 Strand_. + + + + MEMOIRS + OF HENRY HUNT, ESQ. + + _Written by himself,_ + +IN HIS MAJESTY'S JAIL AT ILCHESTER, + + IN THE COUNTY of SOMERSET. + + + + +Volume I + + + + Whoever thinks a faultless piece to see, + Thinks what ne'er was, nor is, nor e'er shall be. + In every work regard the Writer's end, + Since none can compass more than they intend; + And if the means be just, the conduct true, + Applause, in spite of trivial faults, is due. + POPE. + + + LONDON: + +PUBLISHED BY T. DOLBY, 299, STRAND; AND 34, WARDOUR STREET, SOHO. + + 1820 + + + + TO + + _THE RADICAL REFORMERS_, + + MALE AND FEMALE, + + OF + + ENGLAND, IRELAND, AND SCOTLAND, + +_And particularly to the Reformers of Lancashire, who attended the Meeting +of the 16th of August, 1819, held on St Peter's Plain at Manchester, and +more especially to the Reformers of Yorkshire, in which County a Jury +found me Guilty of illegally attending that Meeting, for which, the Court +of King's Bench sentenced me to be imprisoned in Ilchester Jail for_ Two +YEARS _and_ SIX MONTHS, _and at the end of that period, to enter into +recognisances for my good behaviour, for Five Years, Myself in_ ONE +THOUSAND POUNDS _and Two Sureties in_ FIVE HUNDRED POUNDS EACH. + + * * * * * + + + + _Ilchester Jail, May 22, 1820_ + +FRIENDS AND FELLOW COUNTRYMEN, In dedicating this work to you, I will, in +the first instance, briefly record the fact, that--on Monday, the 15th day +of May, Mr. Justice Bayley, as senior puisne Judge of the court of King's +Bench, in a _mild and gentle manner_, passed the above unexampled sentence +upon me for having attended a public meeting at Manchester, by the +invitation of seven hundred inhabitant householders of that town, who +signed a requisition to the Boroughreeve to call the said meeting on the +16th day of August last, for the purpose _"of taking into consideration +the best and most legal means of obtaining a reform in the Commons House +of Parliament."_ This meeting was no sooner assembled to the number of one +hundred and fifty thousand persons, young and old of both sexes, in the +most peaceable and orderly manner, than they were assailed by the +Manchester yeomanry cavalry, who charged the multitude, sword in hand, and +without the slightest provocation or resistance on the part of the people +(as was clearly proved by the trial at York), aided by two troops of the +Cheshire yeomanry, the 15th hussars, the 81st regiment of foot, and two +pieces of flying artillery, sabred, trampled upon, and dispersed the +unoffending and unresisting people, when 14 persons were killed and +upwards of 600 wounded. I, and eleven others, having, by a mere miracle, +escaped the military execution intended for us, were seized and confined +in solitary dungeons in the New Bailey, for eleven days and nights, under +a pretended charge of high treason. At the end of that time, upon a final +examination, I was sent under a military escort, upwards of fifty miles, +to Lancaster Castle, although bail was ready, and waiting to be put in for +me. After this sentence was passed, I was sent to the King's Bench Prison, +where I was confined till four o'clock on the Wednesday following, when I +was conveyed in a chaise to this prison, where I arrived at ten o'clock +the same night, being a distance of 120 miles. Thus, after having been +confined in _three separate jails_ since the 16th of August--the New +Bailey, at Manchester, Lancaster Castle, and the King's Bench, I am doomed +finally to be incarcerated in a dungeon of this, the _fourth jail_, for +two years and six months, while _Hulton_ of _Hulton_, and those benevolent +gentlemen of the Manchester yeomanry cavalry, are at large, without even +the chance of any proceedings, that might lead to the punishment of their +crimes, being instituted against them. Yet, we are gravely told from the +bench, that the laws are equally administered to the _rich_ and to the +_poor_; of the truth of which assertion, the above will, in future ages, +appear as an unexampled specimen. + +In addressing this work to you, my brave, patient, and persecuted friends, +I hope to have an opportunity of communicating with you once a month, +during my incarceration, and during the progress of the work, I shall take +care to avoid all exaggerated statements. I shall confine myself to a +strict relation of facts, and I shall be very particular not to gloss over +or slight any one political or public act of my life you shall be in +possession of the faithful history of _that man_ whom you have so +unanimously honoured by the denomination of your _champion_, and in whose +incarceration a deadly blow is, with savage ferocity, aimed at your rights +and liberties--one who, during his whole political career, will be found +to have been the consistent and undeviating advocate of _real_ or _radical +reform_, one who always, under every difficulty, at all times and seasons, +boldly and unequivocally claimed for the people, the right of every man to +have a vote for the members of the Commons House of Parliament, and who +never, under any circumstances, paltered or compromised the great +constitutional principle that "_no Englishman should be taxed without his +own consent_." Even when its most zealous professed advocates had +abandoned the intention of maintaining this proposition, even at the risk +of loosing the friendship of his dearest political connections, he stood +firm upon the solid basis of that incontrovertible principle, "_equal +justice and freedom to all_." No pretended expediency, no crafty policy, +although urged with the greatest force and zeal, by the most experienced +and acute reasoners, neither flattery, bribes, nor threats, could ever, +for one moment, shake his determination to support the principle Of +UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE, or in other words, the right of every freeman to have +a share by his representative in the making of those laws, by which his +life, his liberty, and his property, are to be governed and disposed of. I +allude, more particularly, to the meeting of delegates, (by some called +deputies) in London, some time in the beginning of the year 1817. The +principle of _Universal Suffrage_ was nothing new. I claim no merit in +having proposed any thing novel--this right is as old as the constitution +of England; it had been advocated by Sir Robert, afterwards Lord Raymond, +by Sir William Jones, and afterwards, with great perseverance and ability, +by the Duke of Richmond, who brought a bill into the House of Lords, in +which he claimed this right for the people, and proposed to carry it into +execution. At that time, however, no part of the people had petitioned for +it, and the bill was thrown out. At that period, the attention of the +populace of the metropolis was directed to other matters--they were +engaged in Lord George Gordon's disgraceful riots. The Duke of Richmond, +disgusted at the apathy of the reformers, to which he attributed the +failure of his favourite measure, soon afterwards accepted a place as +master general of the ordnance, and became a complete tool of the +ministers. The cause of reform languished till the year 1816, although +Major Cartwright, Sir F. Burdett, Mr. Cobbett, myself, and many others, +had made frequent efforts to call the people's attention to the only +measure calculated to check the progress--the fatal progress of +corruption, and its consequent effects, unjust and unnecessary war, +profligate expenditure, the funding or _swindling_ system, and the rapid +annual increase of a ruinous and irredeemable debt. It will be said that +these subjects will naturally be included in, and make part of, my +history. They certainly will, but there is one circumstance connected with +the events of 1816 and 1817, which is very imperfectly known to any of the +reformers, and which I feel it a duty to detail to them all before I +proceed any further. + +In the latter end of the year 1815 and the beginning of the year 1816, the +evil effects of the war began to be severely felt amongst all classes +throughout the country; and, in the North of England, it was particularly +felt by those employed in the manufactories. Great disturbances prevailed, +and the Luddites, as they were called, committed repeated depredations, by +destroying the machinery of their employers. This ultimately led to the +employment of spies and informers, by the agents of the government; by +which means, many of the unhappy men were convicted and executed. Major +Cartwright and Mr. Cobbett, in the most laudable and praiseworthy manner, +endeavoured, by their writings, and the Major, I believe, by going amongst +them personally, to draw the attention of the starving manufacturers to +the real cause of their distress, and recommended them to petition for +reform instead of destroying the machinery. This had the desired effect, +and petitions drawn up by the Major, praying for reform in the Commons +House of Parliament, and demanding suffrage for those who paid taxes, +poured in from all quarters. In the beginning of November some persons in +London advertised and called a public meeting of the distressed +inhabitants of the metropolis, to be held in Spafields, on the 15th; this +originated with Dr. Watson and some of those who called themselves +Spenceans. As I have learned since, they sent invitations to Sir Francis +Burdett, Major Cartwright, myself, and Lord Cochrane, and even to Mr. +Waithman, and several other political characters, earnestly requesting +them to attend the meeting, to advise with and to assist their distressed +fellow creatures, as to the best means of obtaining relief. In the mean +time, the parties calling the meeting had drawn up and prepared a +_memorial_ to the Prince Regent, which was, if passed, to have been +carried immediately to Carlton House, by the whole of the meeting, and +presented in person to the Regent. When the day arrived, of all the +persons invited as political characters to the meeting, _I_ was the only +one who attended, and, having prevailed upon those who called the meeting +to abandon their famous memorial, and to relinquish the plan of going in a +body to Carlton House, I proposed the resolutions and the petition to his +Royal Highness the Prince; which the next day I caused to be presented to +him by Lord Sidmouth: on the following day his Royal Highness was pleased +so far to comply with the request of the petitioners as to send Four +Thousand Pounds as a subscription to the Spitalfields Soup Committee. The +resolutions proposed by me, and unanimously passed by the most numerous +meeting ever held in this country, avowed the principle of UNIVERSAL +SUFFRAGE; and the petition to the Regent claimed his pecuniary assistance, +as an immediate and temporary relief; but declared that the petitioners +had no hope or expectation of permanent prosperity and happiness, till a +reform of Parliament was effected, which would give to _every man_ a vote +in the representation. This was, therefore, the first time that _universal +suffrage_ was petitioned for at a public meeting; and I had the honour, +and I shall ever feel a pride in the reflection, of being the first man +who publicly proposed at a meeting of the reformers this measure, and of +having caused to be presented the first petition to the throne, praying +the Prince to assist the people in recovering their right of universal +suffrage, in the election of members of the House of Commons. You must all +recollect the infamous manner in which I was attacked and assailed by the +whole of the daily London Press at that time, with the single exception of +_the Statesman_. However, the reformers of the north, south, east, and +west, became instantly alive to the appeal that was made to them in the +resolutions passed at Spa Fields; public meetings were held, and petitions +to the House of Commons were signed, all praying for _universal suffrage_; +and, by the time of the meeting of Parliament, the delegates from +petitioning bodies came up to town, in consequence of a circular letter +signed by Sir Francis Burdett, to consult, and to settle upon the extent +of suffrage and other matters to be recommended, for the adoption of all +the petitioning bodies of reformers throughout the country. This was most +unnecessary, for they had, _one and all_, already adopted the principle, +and followed the example, set them by the inhabitants of the metropolis at +Spa Fields. When the delegates were arrived from _Scotland, Yorkshire, +Lancashire,_ and most of the counties in the north, from _Bath, Bristol,_ +and other places in the west, with the petitions entrusted to them, the +signatures to which, together with those of the petitions previously sent +up, did not amount to less than half a million; I came to town as the +delegate from Bath and Bristol, both of which cities had held public +meetings, most numerously attended, and passed similar resolutions to +those agreed to at Spa Fields. The Reformers from each of those cities had +sent me up a petition, to be presented to the House of Commons, praying +for _universal suffrage_, one signed by 24,000 and the other by 25,000 +persons. To be brief here, (for I shall detail the circumstances more +fully hereafter, as they make a most important epoch of my life); the +delegates met, 63 in number, at the Crown and Anchor, Major Cartwright in +the chair, who, together with Mr. Jones Burdett, attended as a deputation +from the Hampden Club. The Major, in opening the business of the day, +stated that the members of the Hampden Club, with Sir Francis Burdett at +their head, had come to a resolution to support suffrage to the extent of +householders, _and no further,_ and that they recommended the adoption of +this plan to the delegates. The Major was particularly eloquent, and went +out of the usual course of a chairman, by requesting, almost as a personal +favour to himself, that the delegates would adopt the recommendation of +the Hampden Club. Mr. Cobbett then rose, and, in a speech replete with +every argument which this most clear and powerful reasoner could suggest, +proposed the first resolution, that the meeting should adopt the +recommendation of the Hampden Club, and agree to recommend the reformers +to petition to the extent of _householder suffrage only;_ urging, as Major +Cartwright had done before, the necessity of agreeing to this plan, +because Sir F. Burdett had positively refused to support any petitions for +universal suffrage. This resolution was seconded by Mr. Jno. Allen, my +brother delegate, from Bath, although he had positive instructions not to +agree to any thing short of universal suffrage; but Mr. Cobbett's powerful +though fallacious reasoning, had convinced him, of the necessity of +curtailing the right to householders only. I rose and moved an amendment, +substituting _universal_ for _householder suffrage_, and, with all the +reasoning and energy in my power, I combated the arguments of my friends +Cobbett and Major Cartwright, deprecating the narrow-minded policy that +would deprive 3-4ths of the population of the inherent birthright of every +freeman. My proposition, and the whole of the arguments I used in its +support, were received by a very large majority of the delegates with +enthusiastic approbation; so much so, that it convinced Mr. Cobbett of the +folly as well as the inutility of persisting in his motion. My amendment +having been seconded by Mr. Hulme, from Bolton in Lancashire, and being +supported by a very ingenious argument of my brave friend and fellow +prisoner (now in Lincoln Castle) Mr. Bamford, Mr. Cobbett rose and begged +to withdraw his motion, he having been convinced of the practicability of +universal suffrage by the speech of Mr. Bamford, who had at the time only +said a few words upon that subject. The question was put, and _principle_ +carried it against _policy_, there being for my amendment I think 60, and +only 3 for the householder plan. Thus then, my friends, whether I was +right or whether I was wrong, I not only was the first to propose the +adoption of the wild and visionary scheme of _universal suffrage_ at a +great public meeting, but I also stood firm to the cause, when those who +have since so ably advocated the principle, were (in evil hour) from +policy about to abandon it. Let, therefore, all the blame of the reformers +having so determinedly advocated the wild and visionary scheme of +_universal suffrage_ rest upon my shoulders, which, thank God, are quite +broad enough to bear it without feeling it in any degree burdensome, +particularly as Sir F. Burdett has at length come fully up to our mark. +From that time to this I have never deviated from, never shifted to the +right or to the left, but always, at all times, through good report, and +through evil report, undisguisedly enforced and maintained, with all the +ability I possessed, the right of the whole of my fellow-countrymen to be +fairly and freely represented, in the Commons House of Parliament. If +there be any merit in what was then called a stubborn and pertinacious +adherence to this great principle, I am only entitled to share that merit +jointly with Mr. Hulme, Mr. Bamford, and the other brave and patriotic men +who came from different parts of the country, as delegates. Without their +manly support, this measure would have been lost, and the reformers +throughout the kingdom would then have been recommended to abandon the +high ground they had taken; to give up petitions, already signed by half a +million of men for _universal suffrage_; and in its stead to petition for +suffrage to the extent of _householders_, or to the payers of _direct +taxes_ ONLY.--Having established this position, for the correctness of +which I appeal to all the delegates who were present, I shall leave it for +the present, although there are very important matters, and some _very +curious circumstances_ connected with the events of that period, which +have never yet appeared before the public, which must come out, and which +will form a very material part of my history. The government, or rather +the ministers, had their eye upon this meeting of delegates, and they well +knew ALL that passed there; and I should not be surprised if six months of +my imprisonment may be fairly placed to the account of what the editor of +the Macclesfield Courier called, "my most uncompromising +perseverance."--The editor of an obscure Sunday London Newspaper, in +observing upon my sentence, says most exultingly, "_The game its now +up_--with this man we have done, to the people we now turn:" and what do +you think he means to do, how does he propose to relieve their distresses? +In speaking of your prospects of relief he says "_Suffer they must for a +time, it would be vain to deny this, it would be dishonest to hold out any +other hope_. IT REMAINS WITH THEMSELVES WHETHER THEIR SUFFERINGS BE LONG +OR SHORT." So this gentleman tells you first that the game is up, and then +he consoles you by telling you that the game is in your own hands. Was +there ever such paltering, ever such base and stupid attempts to delude +rational beings? The _Morning Post_ of the 23d of May, a few days after my +sentence, gives vent to his malignant joy in the following words. + +"The political matters of fact of the last month will descend to +posterity as the proudest _mementos_ of the age in which we +live; never at any period since Trial by Jury has been the +stipulation of our allegiance, never has that grand perfection +of Justice been more sacredly guarded. The trial of Mr. HUNT at +York is a precedent of almost unattainable impartiality in +judicial proceedings. Pending that trial the reports of its +progress gave radicalism a confidence it undisguisedly evinced, +that the result would be favourable to its heart's worst wishes. +The _Io Pæns_ of Faction were in full rehearsal, when the +bringers of _evil tidings_ announced the triumph of Truth. The +conviction of a _burlesque on baronetcy_ was expected in sulky +helplessness--but the overthrow of the CHAMPION of LIBERTY, the +ORATOR whose eloquence was to have been the passing dirge of +Justice--_his_ overthrow was the overthrow of thousands. With +_his_, hearts sunk, and menaces grew silent; the monster at his +whetstone dropped the half-sharpened dagger at the conviction of +_Henry Hunt_; and the tool of his excitement unscrewed the +pike-head and threw away the musquet. I have no hesitation in +declaring, that _all_ the numerous verdicts for the Crown, that +of late have asserted the majesty of Law, including the +convictions of high treason, have not done HALF so much for the +real interest of social quiet, as the radically never-dreamt-of +conviction of '_the Lord of the Manor of Glastonbury_.'" + +This you see, my friends of Yorkshire, is meant to quiet the conscience of +Mr. SEPTIMUS BROMLEY and his brother TALESMAN. The SPECIAL Gentlemen being +above any thing of the sort. I wish some friend who lives near the said +_Septimus_ would give me a line, and tell me who and what he is, and what +he says for himself. I hope some radical in his neighbourhood will send me +a good and particular account of this gentleman. But I see by the +Newspapers that the _game is not quite up_, or if it is, a new game is +begun. If the Honourable House have got rid of one set of petitioners, a +new set is sprung up, not of radicals to be sure, but a set of +agriculturists, merchants, manufacturers, and shipowners, who all appear +to be petitioning against each other, or at least each of them is +petitioning for that which would add to the distress and ruin of the +other. The Honourable House is placed in a very ticklish and delicate +situation. It does not dare to serve the petitions of these new applicants +as they did our petitions, my friends for reform--kick them out of the +House; but having for the present got rid of the radicals, they have now +plenty of leisure to attend to the numerous petitions of all the rest of +the community. The Yeomanry Cavalry, good souls they are in distress, and +they want another CORN BILL. But then you see his Majesty's Ministers, +kind-hearted creatures, and the considerate merchants, the _Barings_, and +the _Ricardos_, they say this must not be. By management the _New Corn +Bill_ gentry got a majority: my Lord Castlereagh is quite shocked, and +even Mr. Holme Sumner, benevolent heart, he is quite astounded with the +unexpected and undeserved success of his own motion. Mark their +proceedings well, my friends--for you to petition I fear will be in vain, +but mark their proceedings. It so very much resembles the proceedings when +the last Corn Bill was passed, that I have little doubt there is foul play +going on somewhere. The farmers cannot pay their _rents, rates_, and +_taxes_ unless they can do it by a rise in the price of the _quartern +loaf_. Baring and Ricardo do not approve of this--each of them has his +scheme for the relief of the general distress, agricultural and all. +Baring hints, but he only hints, at something _tangible_, he hints that +_rents should be lowered_, and his brother stock-jobber, Ricardo, proposes +then to pay off the national debt, by making the land-holders pay down at +once 15 per cent. upon the value of their estates. The Honourable Members +stare with astonishment at the propositions of these wise law-givers--and +well they may. Although the "game may be up;" although the assertion of +the editor of the Morning Post may be true, "that the verdict against +Henry Hunt has proved the overthrow of thousands, and rendered twice as +much service to the real interest of social quiet, as ALL the other +verdicts for the crown put together;" yet I perceive by the language of a +petition from the inhabitants of the town of Kirkeaton, presented to the +Honourable House by my Lord Milton, that even the locking me up in a jail, +in consequence of this verdict, has neither contributed to remove the +distress, nor to put food into the mouths of the poor reformers of +Kirkeaton. Good God of Heaven! what must Lord Milton be made of to +present, _merely present, mind_, a petition shewing that 1729 of his +constituents, in one parish had been, and were living, or rather starving, +upon 11 3/4_d_. each per week, that the average income of 1729 human +beings in that county, Yorkshire, where he is their _virtual +representative_, is under _one shilling_ per head per week?--Gracious God! +the present member for this county, Sir Thomas Lethbridge, once declared +in the Honourable House, that the language of Sir Francis Burdett made +_"his hair stand on end upon his head."_ To have seen Lord Milton present +such a petition as this, to have heard the officer of the Honourable House +mumble out a description, a recital of the privations and cruel sufferings +of my poor insulted fellow countrymen of Kirkeaton, without rising to say +one word in their behalf; without calling down the vengeance of Heaven and +Earth upon the heads of those who had by their acts reduced the country to +such a state of wretchedness and woe; to have witnessed this, I say, +although it might not have made my hair stand on end, it would, I am sure, +have chilled every drop of blood in my body. I can conscientiously say, +that the mere reading in the Times newspaper the account of your cruel +sufferings, my poor countrymen of Kirkeaton, has given me more pain than a +years' imprisonment would have done, if I could have known that you were +enjoying a fair equivalent for your honest industry. Talk of imprisonment +indeed! why it is a perfect Paradise compared with the wants and +privations which you are doomed to endure. The situation of a prisoner in +this jail, let him be confined for any thing less than high treason or +murder, is heaven upon earth compared to your lot. Let us see; there is a +prisoner who is appointed to wait upon me here, an old soldier, who has +enjoyed rank in the army as an adjutant, but having a large family, and +meeting with many reverses of fortune, he became reduced in his +circumstances, and, in consequence of great persecutions, was at length +driven to seek relief from the parish. The sufferings and privations of +his wife and children daily stared him in the face, without even the hope +of relief; and, brooding over his unmerited persecutions and neglect, he +was driven to drinking, &c. In a fit of temporary delirium he attempted to +lay violent hands upon himself and wife, for which he is sentenced to be +imprisoned here for twelve months. His wife and family are supported by +the parish; and I will now tell you what he receives for his week's +allowance, exclusive of clothes, lodging, fire, and washing, all found by +the county. He gets _one pound and a half of good bread and one penny +every day_. Ten pounds and a half of good white bread, and sevenpence to +purchase potatoes and salt, or milk, per week. Bread and pence, at the +very lowest, two shillings and six-pence per week. Now, if we reckon one +shilling and six-pence, at the very lowest rate, for _washing, lodging, +clothing_, and _firing_, which are all found in plenty and very good of +the sort, he receives the value of four shillings per week. The bread, &c. +is quite as much as, or rather more than, a moderate man can eat; and this +person, who has seen a great deal of the world, seriously informs me that +he enjoys here, happiness, ease, and comfort, compared to what he had to +encounter out of prison; and as he professes to be very well pleased with +waiting upon me, he dreads the approach of his release. Every person in +the jail has the same allowance, and if they choose to work, the Governor +enables them to earn from threepence up to one shilling a-day over. + +Now, my good friends of Kirkeaton, although I will not recommend you to do +any thing to get sent to jail, yet, I will tell you what I would do if I +were in your situation. I would work hard from Monday to Saturday, and at +the end of the week if I found that my wages were not sufficient to +support myself, my wife, and children, in the common necessaries of life, +I would, on the following Monday, try a fresh plan. Instead of going to +work, I would go to a neighbouring magistrate, Lord Milton, or Lord +Fitzwilliam, for instance, if they were within reach, and I would tell him +that I had left my wife and family chargeable to the parish, as I was +unable to support them by my labour; but as I knew the leaving of my +family as an incumbrance upon the parish was an offence against the laws, +for which I was liable to be committed to prison, and as I did not wish to +give the parish officers more trouble than was absolutely necessary, I had +come to request his lordship to make out my mittimus, that I might go to +jail as soon and as peaceably as possible. I know what the corrupt knave +of the Morning Post will say, "Ha! he is in a prison himself, and he wants +now to get all his followers there also." But suppose this were the case, +which it is not, you would not, could not, be worse off than Lord Milton's +constituents are. But I have said this a thousand times within the last +five years; nay, I always said this, seeing that a poor labouring man is +twice as well off in a jail as he is out of it, as to meat, drink, +washing, and lodging. + +Now, my friends and fellow countrymen, the writing the history of my own +life, during my confinement in a prison, will not, I trust, be considered +presumption in me; because I follow the example of Sir Walter Raleigh and +many other patriotic and eminent men who have gone before me. I am not +much of a copyist, but I am not ashamed of being accused of endeavouring +to imitate the brave and persecuted Napoleon, who is writing his Memoirs +during his imprisonment on the barren rock of St. Helena. Napoleon I +esteem the most illustrious and eminent man of the present age, both as a +profound statesman and a brave and matchless general. Although he never +appeared to evince so sincere a desire as could be wished, to promote the +universal liberty of man to the extent that I contend, and have always +contended for, yet, when I reflect upon the period in which his energetic +mind was allowed to have its full scope of action, and when I recollect +the powerful armies and fleets that he had to contend with, and the +phalanx of tyrants who were at various times leagued together against him, +I am disposed not to examine too nicely and with too critical an eye the +means that he used to defend himself against their unceasing endeavours to +destroy him, and to restore the old tyranny of the Bourbons. He is, like +myself, a prisoner, and imprisoned by the same power; only in his case +they have not even the _forms_ of law to justify them in his detention. He +is a prisoner upon a barren rock, but I have not the least hesitation in +pronouncing him to have been, both in the cabinet and the field, as to +talent and courage, unrivalled in the pages of modern or ancient history. +Neither the reformers nor the people of England had any share in sending +him to St. Helena, nor ought they in fairness to participate in the +disgrace of his detention. + +In my humble judgment, the greatest fault he ever committed was, in having +too good an opinion of the justice of the boroughmongers, and relying upon +the liberality of their agents, so far as to be betrayed into that net +which now surrounds him. He always appeared to admire our courts of +justice; but he knew nothing of our system of packing SPECIAL JURIES. + +In the progress of this work I shall give a brief delineation of the +political movements of the last twelve or fourteen years, or at least of +those events that came within my knowledge, which I believe will include +almost every thing relating to reform and the public characters who have +taken any part in promoting or retarding that desirable object. These +public characters consist of George the Third down to Arthur Thistlewood +inclusive, who are dead and gone; of those who are yet living from George +the Fourth down to Mr. Cobler Preston and Mr. Billsticker Waddington. The +public events will more particularly include the History of the great +Public Meetings held within the last twelve years in Wiltshire, Hampshire, +Somersetshire, Middlesex, London, Westminster, Bristol, Bath, Spa-fields, +Smithfield and Manchester, as well as those held at the Crown & Anchor and +the Freemason's and London Taverns; and likewise of the contested +elections of Bristol, Westminster, London, Bridport, Ludgershal and +Preston, at all of which I took an active part, and therefore am enabled +to detail many curious and interesting anecdotes, facts, intrigues, plots, +under-plots, cabals, &c. which were never before presented to the public, +and which circumstances, together with the secret springs and actions of +those who worked in the back ground, which have hitherto been very +imperfectly understood, shall be brought to light and faithfully recorded; +taking due care not to betray any confidential communications. I shall, +also, as is usual, or at least as is very common, give a short sketch of +my ancestors, not because I can show a long line of them up to the +Conquest, (nor because I esteem this a circumstance to boast of), but I +shall state facts as they have been handed down from father to son by old +family documents, regardless of the sneers of those who, at the same time +and in the very same breath in which they affect to ridicule and despise +all distinctions of this sort, fall themselves into a much greater error +and indulge in a much less excusable folly; that of holding up to public +admiration, esteem and confidence, their own offspring, and bedaubing them +with the most fulsome adulation merely because they are their own progeny; +although every other person except themselves can clearly perceive that +they neither possess talent, intellect, public spirit, nor any other +qualification calculated either to amuse or to instruct. When I see a +sensible man in other respects fall into an inconsistency of this sort, I +am always reminded of the fable of the _Eagle, the Owl, and her young +ones_. The fact is, that I am more proud of my father than of any of my +ancestors, because I know him to have been an excellent and an honest man, +and one who by his industry and talent became a second founder of his +family. But as the object of my labours will be to give you a faithful +history of my _own life_, it is of very little consequence either to you +or me whether I ever had a grand father or not, except as far as relates +to the coincidence of the events of the present time with those which +occurred in the reigns of Charles the First and Second, and during the +protectorship of Cromwell. It may not be amiss to remind you that the +brave and enlightened patriot, _Prynne_, was imprisoned at Dunster Castle +in _this county_ by the tyrant Charles the First. Prynne had his nose +slit, and his ears cut off, for speaking and writing his mind; but it must +not be forgotten, that he lived to see the _tyrant's head struck off_, and +the _infamous judge_ who passed the _cruel sentence_ upon him, brought to +a _just and exemplary punishment_. + +In the confident hope that we shall live to see better days, our Country +restored to prosperity, and its inhabitants to freedom and happiness, + + I remain, + + My friends and fellow-countrymen, + + Your faithful and sincere humble servant, + + H. HUNT. + + + + + MEMOIRS + + OF HENRY HUNT. + + + +I was born at Widdington Farm, in the parish of Upavon, in the county of +Wilts, on the 6th day of Nov. 1773, and am descended from as ancient and +respectable a family as any in that county, my forefather having arrived +in England with, and attended William the Conqueror, as a colonel in that +army, with which he successfully invaded this country. He became possessed +of very considerable estates in the counties of Wilts and Somerset, which +passed from father to son, down to the period of the civil wars in the +reign of Charles the First, when, in consequence of the tyrannical +government of that weak and wicked prince, _resistance became a duty_; +and, at length, after having by the means of _corrupt judges and packed +juries_, not only amerced and incarcerated, but caused to be executed many +of the wisest, bravest, and most patriotic men of the age, the tyrant was +ultimately brought to justice, and forfeited his head upon a scaffold, +having first been compelled to sign the death warrant for his favourite, +Lord Strafford[1]. When the commonwealth was established, and Cromwell +declared Lord Protector, my great great grandfather, colonel Thomas Hunt, +who was in possession of those estates in Wiltshire, unfortunately took a +decided and prominent part in favour of Charles the Second, who had fled, +and was then remaining in France, waiting an opportunity for his +restoration, and instigating those who were known to be his partisans in +this country, to resist and overthrow the _government and constitution of +the country as then by law established_. Charles was in constant +correspondence with my forefather colonel Hunt, who together with Mr. +Grove and Mr. Penruddock, were all country gentlemen of large property and +considerable influence, residing in the county of Wilts, and avowed +royalists firmly attached to the family of Stuart. And as it was well +known by Cromwell that Charles had a number of powerful partisans in +various parts of the kingdom, he took good care to have all their motions +well watched, and as he kept a host of spies in his employ, they found it +next to impossible to form or arrange any general plan of co-operation, +without its coming to the knowledge of his agents. Many well-digested +schemes had been detected and frustrated, by these watchful well-paid +minions of the Protector, but the royalists were not to be deterred from +their purpose, although many of them received intimation from Oliver that +he was aware of all their plans and intentions: he resting satisfied with +this knowledge, and the conviction that he not only kept their restless +spirits in check, but that he was at all times prepared to put them down +with a high hand, in case they should ever dare to break out into open +violence, or attempt to put their intentions into execution. However, as +Hunt, Grove, and Penruddock, with many other friends in the West, became +very impatient; it was agreed to attempt a general communication by means +of a meeting of the disaffected at[2] a great stag hunt, which was +announced to be about to take place somewhere in the forest, in the +neighbourhood of Wokingham, between Reading and Windsor. To this stag hunt +all the known partisans of the house of Stuart were invited; and when +assembled there in great numbers from all parts of the kingdom, it was +agreed among them, that each man should raise a force agreeable to his +means, some horse and some foot, by a particular day, in order to attack +the troops of Cromwell, who was a great deal too wary and cunning to +suffer such an extraordinary assembly, under any circumstances, and +particularly of such suspicious persons as those who attended the hunt +were known to be, without sending some of his agents to join them, whereby +he might become acquainted with whatever project they might have in +contemplation. They all departed after the hunt was over, having fixed to +be ready and join in the field by a particular day. Cromwell's agents did +their duty, and he was no sooner informed of the plan which was laid, than +he made all due preparation for meeting any force that might be brought +into the field against him by these powerful malcontents. He not only did +this, but he employed his agents to win over some of the most formidable +of his adversaries, by bribes and promises. Having succeeded in this, he +wrote to all the remaining conspirators, and informed them separately, +that he was perfectly aware of all their plots, and of their intention to +bring a force into the field against him on a particular day; he assured +them that he had made all necessary preparations, not only to meet, and to +defeat them with an overwhelming force of well-disciplined troops, but +that he had also made friends of some of those on whom the conspirators +placed their greatest reliance. He concluded by saying, that, as their +project would be sure to end in discomfiture, ruin, and disgrace, he +advised them to abandon their plan altogether; and in that case he +promised each of the parties his pardon, and that it should be taken no +further notice of. This had the desired effect with most of the numerous +partisans of Charles, who had pledged themselves to take the field; for +when they found that all their plans had come to the knowledge of +Cromwell, they anticipated that he would be prepared to meet them with +such a force as it would not be prudent in them to encounter, and, as +prudence is the better part of valour, they at once abandoned their +intended insurrection, and trusted to the clemency of him whom they had +resolved to hurl from the eminence which they professed to say he had +usurped. Not so with the three Wiltshire royalists; they also had received +the circular intimation from Cromwell, but they scorned to be worse than +their words, they took no notice of his proffered pardon, they each raised +a troop of horse as they had promised, and having armed and accoutred +their men by the time appointed, they marched into Salisbury, where +Cromwell's judges were then holding the assizes, and without any further +ceremony struck the first blow, by consigning the Lord Protector's judges +to prison, having liberated the prisoners they were about to try. + +The next day they marched into Hampshire towards the appointed rendezvous, +as had been previously agreed upon; but when they arrived there, instead +of meeting, as they expected, any of their friends who were parties at the +stag hunt, they found Cromwell's army who had intimation of their +movements, already there in considerable force, ready to overwhelm them. +However, Cromwell, as usual, endeavoured to carry his point by policy; in +the first instance, rather than sacrifice any lives in such an unequal +conflict, he sent a flag of truce, and promised if they would lay down +their arms they should be pardoned, and all officers and men might return +to their homes without any molestation. A consultation and council of war +was held, when Grove, Hunt, and Penruddock came to a determination to die +sword in hand rather than trust to the clemency of him, whom they deemed +an usurper, and they returned an answer accordingly. In the meantime, +Oliver had sent some of his agents amongst the men, to whom they pointed +out the desperate situation in which their commanders had placed them, and +urged them at once to accept the offer of the Protector and return to +their homes; and when Grove, Hunt, and Penruddock ordered their men to +prepare for the attack, they one and all refused, and immediately lay down +their arms, upon which they were instantly surrounded, and made prisoners; +and instead of Cromwell keeping his word with these poor fellows, he +ordered every common man to be instantly hung upon the boughs of trees and +elsewhere, and the officers to be committed to three separate jails in the +West of England upon a charge of high treason, for making war against the +troops of the Commonwealth, in order to depose the Protector, and with an +intent to alter the government and constitution of the country, as by the +then law established. Upon which charge they were tried, found guilty, and +sentenced by the very judges whom they had before imprisoned at Salisbury, +to be hanged, drawn, and quartered, but upon petition their sentence was +mitigated by Cromwell to that of being beheaded. Colonel Hunt was sent +back after trial to be executed at this very jail, and possibly might have +been confined, if not in the same room, upon the very same spot wherein +his descendant is now writing the account of the transaction, which has +descended by tradition and written documents to him as the heir of the +family, and which written documents in proof thereof, are now in his +possession. However, be that as it may, it is therein recorded that Hunt's +two sisters, Elizabeth and Margery, came to visit him the night previous +to his execution, which was ordered to take place at day-break the next +morning. The regulations of the jail not being so strictly performed as +they are now, his sister Margery slept in his bed all night, while the +Colonel, who had dressed himself in her clothes, walked out of the prison +unperceived with his sister Elizabeth and escaped; but, as it is recorded +by himself, being a stranger in the neighbourhood, and fearful of keeping +in the high-way, he had lost himself in the night and had wandered about, +so that when day-light arrived he had not got so far from the jail but +that he heard the bell toll for his execution. At this awful period he met +a collier carrying a bag of coals upon his horse, and having ascertained +by some conversation that he had with him, that he was friendly to the +cause of the Stuarts and hostile to the Protector, he was induced to +discover himself, and to place his person and his life in his power, of +which he had no reason to repent, as the man proved faithful, and assisted +him to escape to France, where he remained with the second Charles, and +returned in company with him at the time of the restoration. + +As the circumstances attending his escape are in my opinion very +interesting, I shall give them as they have been handed down to me, +although they may be by some considered as tedious in the detail; yet as +they are circumstances very imperfectly recorded, only in the early +editions of Lord Clarendon's History of the Rebellion, and as they relate +to events somewhat similar to the present times, wherein a prominent part +was taken by one of my forefathers, I trust that they will not be esteemed +superfluous, as making a component part of my memoirs, in reference to the +political part taken by one of my family at this important epoch of the +English history. The collier took him up behind on his horse, dressed as +he was in female attire, and having struck across the country by some +private roads, he arrived at his habitation, a lone cottage situated on +the side of a large common, where he remained concealed, anxiously +awaiting the approach of night, and dreading[3] every moment the +appearance of the officers of justice in pursuit of their victim. In the +mean time the collier had procured two muskets and a blunderbuss, which he +had got loaded, determined to stand by the Colonel, who, if driven to +extremities, was resolved to sell his life as dearly as possible, but not +to be taken again alive. But, to return to the jail; when the officers of +death arrived to unbolt the door of the intended victim, what must have +been their surprise and indignation to have found in his bed a woman, a +brave and patriotic female, who gloried in having saved the life of a high +spirited and beloved brother! With what delight have we read of the +conduct of Madame Lavalette, who saved her husband from an untimely death +by similar means, who, by her virtuous devotion, rescued the victim marked +out for the treacherous revenge of a weak, wicked, and pusillanimous +prince; with what pleasure has every humane and patriotic bosom been +roused into admiration, at the noble, generous, and successful exertions +of Sir R. Wilson and his friends, to assist in snatching the life of that +devoted victim, from the bloody hand of the executioner! But many brave +men have voluntarily sacrificed themselves to save the life of a friend; +in the pages of history, we find that many an excellent wife has done the +same to save a beloved husband; but where shall we find a similar instance +of disinterested devotion in a sister?--To be the descendant of such a +woman--to bear the same name and belong to her family, is in itself +something that I am proud to boast of. With what delight have I (while yet +a boy) listened to this recital, while my father dwelt on it with rapture; +his eye glistening with a dignified pride as he recounted the tale of this +heroine of the family! How often have I been sent up stairs to unlock the +old oak chest, and to bring down the musty records of these eventful days, +that they might be unrolled either to refresh my father's memory, or to +vouch for particular acts and circumstances! How many times, subsequently, +has it been my lot to turn to this or that particular event, and while he +enjoyed his pipe, how often did I at his command read the minute detail as +I found it written, upon the old musty parchments and papers! However, to +proceed, Colonel Desbrow, who then had the command of Oliver's troops at +this place, was instantly informed of the flight of the prisoner; he +ordered Margery to appear before him, which she did habited in her +brother's clothes, and he threatened to have her executed instantly, +without judge or jury, in her brother's stead, if she did not immediately +inform him of the whole plot, and assist in the re-capture of her brother. +She calmly replied, that she had not the least objection to comply with +his demand as far as she knew of the plot. She confessed that she went +into the prison to visit her brother with the intention to effect his +escape if possible; that neither her brother, nor even her sister, had the +slightest knowledge of her intentions till she proposed it to him in the +prison, that there she found him resigned to his fate, and it was with the +greatest difficulty that she at last prevailed upon him to put it into +practice; that all she knew of him was, that he had left the room with her +sister Elizabeth, but which way or where he was gone she knew nothing; +then, with great and dignified firmness, she added, even if she had known +any thing of his route, Colonel Desbrow must be aware, that as she had the +courage and goodness to plan and effect his escape, no threats, not even +the torture, should induce her to do any thing that might place him in +their power again. Elizabeth was instantly taken into custody and examined +also, but she knew nothing more than her sister. They were both consigned +to the dungeon that he had quitted, and the scaffold, although it remained +fixed for some days, it mourned for the loss of its victim, and the gaping +multitude daily stared in vain for the consummation of the bloody +sacrifice. Col. Desbrow sent off dispatches to the Government, raised a +Hue and Cry to search every house they came to, and dispatched messengers +to all the out-ports, so that neither pains, expense, nor trouble were +spared to retake the fugitive. In the mean time the sentence of Grove and +Penruddock was put in execution. They were both beheaded on the same +morning, one at Exeter, and the other at some other jail. It is a very +remarkable coincidence of circumstances, that at the time myself, the +lineal heir and descendant of Colonel Hunt, am confined in this jail by +the state policy of the day, Colonel Desbrow, the lineal descendant of the +very Colonel Desbrow, who then had the command of this district as a +soldier and servant of Cromwell, is at this very time an officer in the +service of the present reigning family, and, I believe, an attendant about +the person of the Sovereign. Colonel Hunt remained concealed in the +cottage of his protector, but when night came they were too agitated to +retire to rest; they therefore barricadoed the door of their little +fortress as well as they could, and, having put out the lights, took their +station at the bed-room window, each with a loaded firelock, and all the +arms and ammunition they could muster for re-loading, preparatory to the +best and most determined defence in case of necessity. In this they were +ably and resolutely assisted by the wife of the collier, both of whom are +recorded to have evinced the most heroic courage, coolness, and presence +of mind upon this, to them, desperate and trying occasion, which qualities +were soon put to the test, by the sudden and boisterous arrival of the +_Hue & Cry_, consisting of 8 or 10 mounted troops, accompanied by an +officer belonging to the Sheriff. As that which followed relating to this +rencontre is described minutely, and in the most simple manner, I will +give it _verbatim_, as I find it recorded in the family document, from +which I have taken the whole narrative. Colonel Hunt and the Collier were +standing at the window, each with a loaded musket; the collier's wife +stood behind, with a loaded blunderbuss in one hand, and with the other +she was to supply the powder and slugs, for they had no ball, for +reloading. They were in this order when the commander of the gang loudly +halloed and demanded admittance. This, as was agreed upon by the party +within, was repeated three times before any answer was given, or any +movement made from within. At length, the Collier opened the casement of +the thatched cottage, and, rubbing his eyes as if he had just awoke out of +his first sleep, he exclaimed, in the broad Somersetshire dialect, "What's +thow want makin such a naise there?" The reply was, "We want admittance: +we are the Hue and Cry, come to search every house for a prisoner that has +escaped from Ilchester jail in woman's clothes." At which the Collier +exclaimed, "Ha, ha, ha! what a pack of fools, to come to look for a man in +woman's clothes at this time o' the night." The officer, with a stern +voice, demanded immediate admittance, saying, that they had a warrant, +signed by Colonel Desbrow, for searching every house; and that, unless he +came down and opened the door, they would force their way in immediately; +upon which the Collier turned round and said, as if speaking to his wife, +"Come, dame, you must get up and strike a light, and we will let the +gentlemen in presently." There was then some pretended delay in finding +the tinder-box, and at length the Collier began striking the steel with +the flint, and, after bestowing a few curses on the dampness of the +tinder, intentionally struck down the tinderbox, tinder and all, upon +which he said, "There, now, they must come in and search in the dark." All +this time they were actually preparing to fire upon the Hue and Cry, and +just as they had taken aim, and were upon the point of drawing their +triggers, the Captain of the gang gave the Collier two or three heavy +curses, and said to his men, "Come, let us be off to some more likely +place: there is nobody here but that stupid fellow, that does not appear +to know his right hand from his left." They therefore galloped off to +search the next house, leaving to Colonel Hunt and his faithful friends in +adversity, the uninterrupted possession of his safe and secure retreat; +where he remained concealed, till, in the disguise of some of the +Collier's clothes, he contrived, soon afterwards, to escape to France, +accompanied by his friend. He was received by Charles with open arms, with +every demonstration of gratitude, and professions of future reward, in +case he should succeed in re-establishing himself upon the throne of +England. In the meanwhile, Cromwell, enraged at the escape of one, who had +discovered such intrepid and persevering hostility to his power, +confiscated the whole of his estates, kept his sisters, Elizabeth and +Margery, close prisoners in this jail, and frequently threatened to +execute the latter, unless Hunt would return from France, and surrender +himself to his fate. This reaching the ears of Colonel Hunt in France, and +fearing for the safety of such excellent sisters, he at length resolved to +return and rescue them from their unpleasant and precarious situation, by +resigning himself into the hands of Cromwell.--Charles remonstrated in +vain, as Hunt appeared resolute in his determination. The Prince, +therefore, put him under arrest, and forcibly detained him in custody to +prevent him from surrendering himself. His two sisters were confined _two +years._ When they were set at liberty, Charles released him from his +confinement; he remained in constant attendance about his person, returned +with him in the same vessel, and assisted in his restoration to the +throne, which had been withheld from him during the life of Cromwell. + +Colonel Hunt, as well as all his friends, expected the immediate +restoration of his estates, which had been confiscated. In fact no one +could have expected less than this act of justice at least, in return for +his long, zealous and faithful services. But, on the contrary, the secret +advisers of the grateful prince recommended to him by all means to +endeavour to conciliate his enemies, and to let his friends shift for +themselves, which advice he followed to the letter in this instance. As +Colonel Hunt's estates had fallen into powerful hands, Charles absolutely +refused to take any measures for their restoration. Thus was this faithful +partisan of royalty rewarded for all his services, by one of the basest +acts of ingratitude that ever disgraced the character even of a prince. +How truly verified was the prophetic and sublime admonition of Scripture, +"Put not your trust in princes." However, Colonel Hunt was offered the +Chancellorship of the Duchy of Lancaster for life, which offer he +indignantly refused, and in disgust retired into the country, where he +married and passed the remainder of his life in tranquillity, accompanied +by his sisters, upon a small estate in the parish of Enford in the county +of Wilts, which had been overlooked by the agents of Cromwell. Here, with +the property he had with his lady, and the wreck of his fortune, he +sustained the character of a gentleman to a good old age, leaving an only +son, to whom Queen Anne gave the colonelcy of a regiment of foot. This was +the last of my family who was ever in the employment of the government, or +who ever received one shilling of the public money in any capacity +whatever. + +This little estate descended to my grandfather, who married Miss Biggs of +Stockton, and, at his death, it came, considerably encumbered, to my +father, in the year 1774, the year after I was born. Finding, during the +life time of his father, that this was a very poor property to live upon +as a gentleman, he turned his mind to business, and to the improvement of +his fortune. He married at the age of forty-one to Miss Powell who was +only nineteen, the eldest daughter of a respectable farmer of Week near +Devizes, and went to live at Widdington, in the parish of Upavon, a lone +farm situated upon Salisbury Plain, not within one mile of any other house +whatever. The 6th day of November, 1773, gave birth to the author of these +memoirs, and as I was the first born, my father having a great deal of the +old family pride about him, the event was commemorated in a very memorable +and extraordinary manner. It was the custom of the country to celebrate +the birth of a child by inviting the friends and neighbours to partake of +a _sugar-toast_ feast, which consisted of toast well baked, sliced in +layers, in a large bowl, interspersed with sugar and nutmeg, well soaked +in boiling ale, or what was called in that country, good old October. My +father as soon as he was about to marry, anticipating the natural result, +prepared and provided two hogsheads of real stingo for the occasion, it +being brewed exactly fifteen bushels to the hogshead, which he liberally +determined should be devoted to celebrate the happy event, which was +literally carried into effect. I have very often heard those who were +present, and who participated in the good cheer and rejoicing, mention +these circumstances. It was usual, in that part of the country, upon these +occasions, to have a day fixed and set apart for the feast, when all the +neighbours were invited to partake and drink to the health of the good +lady in the straw, and long life to the little stranger. But upon this +occasion my father set no bounds to his joy, and determined to keep it up, +which he did, till the whole to the last hoop of the stingo was gone. I +have heard the nurse say that she toasted bread from morning till night +for a fortnight, and that in the whole there could not have been less +bread used than what was made from two bags of flour. The 6th of November +was annually celebrated as long as my father lived, by a dinner which he +gave to his neighbours and friends, and one thing was never forgotten, +which was a bumper toast to the memory of Colonel Thomas and Miss Margery +Hunt; which generally concluded by the production of the sword, which +Charles the second took from his side and presented to the Colonel on his +arrival in France, which my father with great pride exhibited to his +friends, frequently accompanied by some part of the foregoing narrative. + +My mother was of a weak and nervous constitution, and I inherited in some +degree, when a child, her complaint, for I was very delicate, although +remarkable for activity and high spirits. I remember about a month before +I first went to school, which was at the early age of only five years and +a half, I rode to Magdalen-hill fair near Winchester, a distance of +thirty-one miles, and back again the same day, with my father. To ride +sixty-two miles in one day for a boy not five years and a half old, which +I did without any apparent fatigue, was considered rather an extraordinary +omen of my future capability for active exertion. I was sent to a +boarding-school at Tilshead in Wiltshire, at five and a half years of age, +and, my father told me at my departure, "that I was going to begin a +little world for myself." Before I mounted my poney he seriously gave me +his blessing and his parting advice, which was delivered in a very +emphatic manner, my mother anxiously listening, while a tear glistened in +her eye. "Go," said he, "my dear, and may heaven bless and direct all your +actions, so that you may grow up to be an honest, a brave, and a good man; +but remember well what I now say: you must fight your own battles amongst +your schoolfellows as well as you can. If I ever hear that you are +quarrelsome I shall detest you, but if I find that you are a coward I will +disown and disinherit you." This was the language of one of the best of +fathers to his son, a child of five years and a half old, and it speaks +volumes as to the character of the man and the parent. This school, which +was situated in a healthy village upon Salisbury Plain, consisted of a +master and an usher, who had the care and instruction of sixty-three boys. +The scholars were better fed than taught; but as a healthy situation was +more looked to than their education, by the parents of those children who +were sent there, the discipline was calculated to give general +satisfaction. We learned to read (the Bible), to write, and cast accounts, +and at the end of one year I was taken from this school. + +Beyond the common-place events incident to an early initiation into the +tricks and frolics of a school-boy, there occurred, during my stay at this +place, nothing worthy of being introduced here; with the exception, +however, of one very important circumstance, relative to the strict +discipline maintained by my father, in all cases where there was the +slightest deviation from truth. A violation of truth was always sure to be +punished by him with the greatest severity. As the circumstance to which I +allude made a strong and lasting impression upon my mind, and in a great +measure laid the foundation for my general rule of action ever since, I +shall faithfully record it. + +During the year that I was at Tilshead I came home for the Midsummer +holidays. On the last Thursday, before I returned, I accompanied my father +to Devizes market, and while he was taking his dinner and selling his corn +I was directed to go to Week, about half a mile distant, to dine with and +see my grandfather. I set off to walk thither, but on my road there was a +number of persons collected on the green, seeing some soldiers fire at a +target--The firing was kept up in rapid succession. I felt alarmed and was +fearful of passing them; I therefore, returned into the town, and having +passed the time away in play with some boys that I met, I returned to my +father at the inn and answered the questions that he put to me, relative +to my grandfather, so as to make him believe that I had been there as he +desired me, being _ashamed_ to confess the truth, that I was afraid to +pass the soldiers. On the following Monday, I went to school again, +without thinking any more of the falsehood that I had been guilty of; +however, about six o'clock in the afternoon of the next Friday, I was +surprised and delighted to see my father ride up to the door of the +school-yard. I ran to meet him, but he received me rather coolly, which I +scarcely perceived; but he asked to see Mr. Cooper, my master, who came +out and invited him to get off his horse, which he declined, and said that +I might ride a little way with him on his road home, if my master had no +objection, and I could walk back; which was readily assented to--All this +was done with a dignified calmness which I did not comprehend. However, as +I rode along, seated before him; he began to question me as to the truth +of some transactions, that had passed during the holidays, and at length +came to the visit to my grandfather. The whole fabrication flashed across +my mind at once, and the mighty secret of all his apparent solemnity had +such an effect upon my nerves that I should, I am sure, have fallen from +the horse if he had not held me on. + +At length, after I had confessed the whole truth, which he did not appear +to believe, he broke out into the following exclamation, "you have been +guilty of an abominable falsehood, and you have now, as is always the +case, told me another artful lie, in order to screen yourself from the +punishment which you deserve, and to give you which I have ridden over +here eight miles on purpose. Your conduct has almost broken your afflicted +mother's heart, and has rendered me completely miserable. I would rather +follow you to the grave than live to see you bearing the character of a +liar, and I will now nearly half kill you for your infamous behaviour." +Upon which he lifted me off by the side of the road, on the down, no +person being within hearing or sight, and having alighted, and tied his +horse to a bush, all remonstrance and intreaties on my part proved in +vain: he made me strip off my coat, and, with a smart stick, he gave me a +most severe flogging. As he helped me on with my coat, and sent me back to +school, I saw the big tear trickle down his noble, manly cheek; a +convincing proof to me, even at that time, that he suffered much more in +performing such a painful duty to save a child from disgrace, than I did +in receiving such a severe, though well-merited, chastisement. Although I +thought the punishment very harsh at the time, yet I felt conscious that I +deserved it; and he performed the heart-rending task in such a manner as +convinced me of its justice, and the more I reflected upon it the more I +was satisfied that it arose from the greatest parental affection. It made +the most lasting impression upon my mind, and stamped my determination, at +all hazards, to speak the truth in future. The kindness of my father and +mother was such, that they never mentioned the subject afterwards, till I +was grown up to manhood, and thanked him for it. It was a severe but +excellent lesson for me, and I have always found that as honesty is the +best policy, so is truth in the end always sure to prevail. Although I +know I am sent here for speaking boldly and publicly the _truth_, and for +always under every circumstance acting up to its lovely and substantial +precepts; yet I never felt more grateful than I do at this moment, to my +excellent and noble-minded father, for inculcating the principle of always +speaking the truth, notwithstanding that I am suffering for practising it. +He used to say nothing could be more dangerous than the doctrine so +frequently promulgated, "that the truth should not be spoken at all +times;" thus leaving it to be inferred that falsehood was sometimes +justifiable. Although, he added, there are times when it may be prudent +for a man not to speak at all, yet when he does speak, nothing but a +time-serving coward would hesitate to speak boldly the truth. This was the +language of that man to whom I owe my existence, and from whom I imbibed, +at a very early age, those principles of veracity, justice, humanity, and +public spirit, the free exercise of which, although it consigned his +forefather as well as his descendant to the _same_ prison; yet, such is +the consoling and heart-cheering effect of following the dictates of an +honest mind, that it not only tranquillizes the passions, and checks their +overflowing the due bounds of discretion, while under the influence of +prosperity, but also conveys to the persecuted captive that inward +satisfaction, which makes reflection, even in a prison, a source of +delight, and teaches him to despise that outward shew of mirth and +affected gaiety which accompany the selfish votaries of pleasure, who +sacrifice every honest independent principle at the shrine of fashion, +till the man is degraded to a mere time-serving pander in the Temple of +Folly. + +When I left this school, Mr. Cooper, the master, came round during the +holidays, as was customary, to collect his bills. My father, having +settled the amount and invited him to dine, informed him of his intention +to remove me to Hursley, in Hampshire; which he did at the recommendation +of Sir Thomas Heathcot, whom he had met at Mr. Wyndham's, at Dinton, of +whom my father rented Widdington Farm. Mr. Cooper, who was one of the best +hearted and worthy men that perhaps ever lived, and who possessed as +little of the pedantry and stiffness of a schoolmaster, as any man who had +spent his life in such an occupation, replied, that he was very sorry to +part with me, as he had no doubt I should some day make as clever, and he +hoped as good, a man as my father. The only fault in me of which he had to +complain was, that I was too volatile, and inattentive to my books; but he +added, that he could already discover sufficient capacity to enable me, +with a little steadiness, to become a very good scholar. Then, addressing +himself particularly to my mother, he said, that he was bound in justice +to declare, that he had not a more tractable or better-disposed boy in his +school; that I was a generous and warm-hearted lad, and that my +school-fellows would be sorry to hear that I was going to leave them. He +spent the day with my father and mother, and in the most benignant and +good-humoured manner, recounted some of the idle boyish tricks and +frolicks that he had detected me in; assuring them, at the same time, that +I had been punished only _once_ during my stay with him, and that was for +a venial offence, which was committed out of school hours. + +Young as I was, being under seven years of age, when I left this school, +I, nevertheless, formed connections and attachments, which have existed to +this hour with unabated sincerity and uninterrupted friendship. And, as a +gratifying proof of this fact, one of my then school fellows, Mr. Thomas +Cousens, of Heytesbury, with whom I have ever since that period been on +the most friendly footing, was the very first person who came to visit me +after my arrival at this prison. He no sooner heard of my sentence than he +mounted his horse, and before I had scarcely had time to look round my new +habitation, the name of my friend Cousens was announced, who had ridden +upwards of thirty miles; and, in the true spirit of disinterested genuine +friendship, proffered not only his hand but his heart, to serve me in any +way that lay in his power. I have indeed received innumerable proofs of +kindness and sympathy from various quarters of the empire, since my +arrival here; but the recollection of this prompt and efficient testimony +of the sincerity of his friendship, will only be forgotten by me in the +grave. + +Upon the death of my grandfather, at this period, my father went to reside +at Littlecot Farm, in the parish of Enford; but he still occupied +Widdington Farm. Having spent two or three days, by invitation, with his +landlord, Mr. Wyndham, of Dinton, where he met Sir Thomas Heathcot, of +Hursley Park, who was the brother of Mrs. Wyndham, he was prevailed upon, +by the joint intercession of Sir Thomas and Mr. as well as Mrs. Wyndham, +to send me to be educated at Hursley, where Sir Thomas was patronising in +a school a very worthy man, of the name of Alner, the brother of Mr. +Alner, of Salisbury, who for so many years had the conducting and +arranging the materials which composed the Western Almanack. Mr. and Mrs. +Wyndham had also promised to send their three eldest sons at the same time +to the same school, and one or two sons of Mr. Wyndham, of Salisbury, were +also going there; and the worthy baronet, who never did a kind action by +halves, promised my father, who was a great favourite with him, that he +would take the same care of me, and shew me the same attention that he did +to his nephews; which promise he did not forget to perform during my stay +at Hursley School, which was about two years and a half. + +Mr. Alner was a remarkably good penman and accountant, as well as a great +proficient in teaching the use of the globes. Here I became an adept in +writing, arithmetic, and geography, which were the principal things to be +learned at that school. During my stay there, I was in the frequent habit +of spending the Sunday with the young Wyndham's at Hursley Park; and, as +often as my father came to see me, the old baronet insisted upon his +making the Lodge his home. Kindness, generosity, and hospitality, welcomed +every visitor to Hursley Lodge, during the life of Sir Thomas; in fact, +his philanthropy was such, that it not only extended to his own tenants, +but to his brother-in-law's tenants, and to the whole of the surrounding +neighbourhood. Perhaps there never were two country gentlemen, who did +greater credit to the character of genuine old English hospitality, than +the then owners of Hursley Lodge, in Hampshire, and Dinton House, in +Wiltshire. My old school-fellow, the present proprietor of Dinton, still +keeps up the character of an hospitable English country gentleman; but, +alas! Hursley Lodge, since the death of old Sir Thomas----but, as I cannot +say any thing favourable, either from my own knowledge, or from the report +of others, I will content myself with saying nothing. + +I left this school at the age of ten years. During the holidays I had +frequent means of seeing, and now first began to reflect, and make my +observations upon, the situation of the labouring poor of the parish of +Enford; for my mother devoted a very great portion of her time to +relieving the wants of those who, either through illness or accident, +stood in need of assistance; and although she was herself in a very weakly +state of health, yet neither inclemency of the weather, nor the distance, +ever deterred her from going in person to visit, to comfort, and to +assist, those of her fellow-creatures who were in distress. It was quite +enough for her to know, that any of her poor neighbours were in want, to +command her immediate aid. How often, when she was about to relieve some +one whom they supposed to be an unworthy object, who had brought want on +his own head by misconduct or crime, have I heard even my father, as well +as other friends, endeavour in vain to persuade her, that her +indiscriminate charity did almost as much harm as good. Her answer always +was, having first quoted some amiable Christian precept, "would you leave +them to starve, and thus drive them to despair? They are in want of bread; +and, after I have relieved them from their present distress, I shall have +some claim to their attention; and by setting them a _good Christian +example_, I shall be the better enabled to enforce the mild and wholesome +doctrines of religion. Surely, I shall have a much better chance of +reforming and reclaiming them by the _practice of kindness_, than I should +have by treating them with neglect, or casting on them the chilling and +forbidding look of harshness." And here let me observe, that if there ever +was a human being who acted up to the spirit and letter of Christianity, +both in profession and practice, I believe my excellent departed mother to +have been that mortal. Her greatest pleasure consisted in doing good; and +to pour the healing balm of comfort into the wounded and afflicted breast, +was to her the very essence of delight. Surrounded by every comfort +herself, her very existence appeared to depend upon her power to make +others participate in those comforts: no living creature in distress was +ever turned away from her door without being relieved. I could fill a +volume in her praise, without being able to do her common justice. + +I was now become of sufficient age, to be at once a companion and an +assistant in these charitable peregrinations. There was not a threshold in +the village but she had crossed at one time or another, in order to render +some act of kindness or attention; and, as she passed along, the grateful +inhabitants of every cottage came forth to bestow upon her their +spontaneous and fervent blessings, whilst those who were rolling in +wealth, and puffed up with pride, were suffered to pass unheeded by. Here +it was that my little heart first began to pant for the power to do good; +and I longed to receive, and to deserve such blessings, as were lavished +with grateful lips upon my angelic mother by the poor of all +denominations. I now began to pity their wants and sufferings, and to +participate and rejoice in their happiness. When I expressed a desire for +riches, to enable me to purchase such blessings as were bestowed upon her, +how often did my beloved mother reprove me in the kindest manner, and +endeavour to impress upon my young mind this valuable truth, that wealth +did not always afford the best means of doing good. She used to say, that +those who sincerely wished to do an act of charity, seldom wanted the +means of doing something to relieve the wants, and soothe the afflictions, +of those who were pining in wretchedness and want; for, said she, even a +kind consoling word, combined with a very little personal attention, is +frequently esteemed more valuable, and even proved to be more useful, than +money, to those whose spirits as well as bodies are pressed down to the +earth by unforeseen and frequently unmerited misfortune. These examples +opened to my susceptible mind a new field for reflection, and the scenes +of misery[4] I witnessed, although at that period they were not numerous, +and required to be sought for to be known, yet they created a sympathy in +my young breast, which I flatter myself I have ever cherished, and from +that period I may date the origin of my philanthropy. My mother saw the +impression which it had made upon the mind of her son, and having kindled +the sacred fire of benevolence, she took good care to fan the flame, by +giving me the means of exercising those charitable feelings, which she had +by her example created. Added to these, as well as all the other moral +virtues, this excellent woman practised the most pious and scrupulous +attention to her religious duties. Her motto was + + "Teach me to feel another's woe, + To hide the fault I see; + That mercy I to others shew, + That mercy shew to me." + +While my mother was instilling into my mind, and teaching me to practice, +the mild and lowly principles of Christianity, my father never failed to +hold up for my admiration and example, the exploits of the noble, +generous, brave, and renowned heroes of antiquity. Pope was his favourite +author; and of all Pope's works, his Universal Prayer, and his Translation +of Homer, were the theme of his never-ceasing and unqualified panegyric. +The former he never failed to repeat aloud, night and morning, in the most +fervent and impassioned manner. He made me learn it, and recommended me to +follow his example, by making it the daily expression of my praise and +adoration of the Allwise and Supreme Disposer of events. He could repeat +every line of the Iliad; and, what was more remarkable, he could begin at +any one line and proceed with the greatest fluency and correctness, even +to the end of any chapter or book. In short, he endeavoured to instil into +my breast the _patriotic principle of disinterested love of country_. +Although he was himself a man of business and of the world, he never +failed to hold up for my example, those heroes who had lived and died +alone for their country. Hector was his favourite warrior, and he appeared +to have obtained the dearest wish of his heart when, coming into my room +by accident one day, he found me reading aloud, and repeating the speech +of Hector to Andromache. I was taken by surprise, and laid down the book; +but he entreated me to continue the subject, and to oblige him I began the +dialogue again, and he repeated the part of Andromache. Although +heretofore a very shy boy, I now became warm, and at length impassioned; +he encouraged me, and before we had concluded I almost fancied myself a +hero. He was delighted; he took me in his arms, he embraced and caressed +me; he saw that I had caught the "_electric spark_;" he wept over me with +rapture, and he exclaimed aloud, in a sort of frantic extacy, "The name of +HUNT will again be recorded in the page of history, and I feel that you, +my dear boy, are destined to restore the fame of our family; and I hope to +live to see you prove yourself worthy of your ancestors." + +This brought into the room my mother, who was struck with astonishment at +the unusual manner of my father. He repeated to her that be had, he +thought, discovered in me such seeds as would grow up and produce fruit of +future fame. She smiled in the most benignant manner, and said, he must +trust to time to realize such hopes; but at all events she could answer +for one thing, which was, that the seeds of humanity and philanthropy were +implanted in my breast; for she had hailed, with great satisfaction, the +proof that I could feel for others, and that it was a pleasure to me to +relieve the wants and sufferings of my fellow creatures; and therefore, +she fondly hoped, that I should make a good man and a good Christian; and +addressing herself to my father, she added, "we will, my dear, trust to +chance whether he ever makes a hero or not." I mention these particular +incidents, to shew what pains were taken by my excellent, noble-minded +father, and my amiable, tender-hearted, and affectionate mother, to instil +into my young mind those precepts which each conceived would be most +conducive to my future happiness. My fathers great object appeared to be, +to fire the young aspiring hope with deeds of honour, courage, and +patriotism. My mother's more gentle nature induced her to cultivate the +genial soil with the milder virtues, making Christian piety and charity +the foundation of all her present and future hopes. There never lived a +child that had more pains and care bestowed upon him, by his parents, than +I had. My father inherited and practised the noblest qualities; he was an +intelligent, industrious, strictly honest, honourable, high-spirited +Englishman; the motto, taken from his favourite author, was constantly +upon his lips, "An honest man is the noblest work of God." My mother may +be correctly described in one short sentence, to have been a gentle, +virtuous, amiable, charitable, and truly pious Christian. + +Having now left the school at Hursley, where I had learned all that could +be learned there, my father received from Mr. Alner, the worthy master, +very similar assurances to those he had previously received from Mr. +Cooper: that I was a high-spirited, generous, volatile lad, capable of +learning any thing that I chose to apply myself to; but that I was rather +more fond of excelling in feats of activity, than of a strict adherence to +my studies. + +I was now sent to the grammar school at Andover, under the care of the +Rev. Thomas Griffith, where I was to enter upon the study of the classics. +My father took me on a Saturday, that being a market-day at Andover; and +having introduced me to Mr. and Mrs. Griffith, he did not forget to give +me the character he had received from the masters of the two schools which +I had previously left; adding his own testimony, in confirmation of my +being of a kind, generous, and open disposition. Mrs. Griffith received us +very politely; and, as she had a very prepossessing manner, I felt pleased +with the prospect before me, although I thought I saw something that I did +not much like in the countenance of Mr. Griffith, who was a muscular, +swarthy, dark-looking person, with rather a forbidding air. My father, +having given me his blessing, took his leave, and consigned me to my new +master, who led me into the school; and, as it was then past eleven +o'clock, he gave me an Enfield's Speaker, and desired me to look it over, +as he should not place me in any class until Monday. The school hours were +up at twelve o'clock, Saturday afternoon being always a holiday, and +consequently I did not consider that I had any task to learn on that day. +I was therefore more employed in thinking of my mother at home, and in +looking round the school, surveying my new companions, than I was with the +volume. At length I caught my master's eye, and as he seemed to be +smiling, as I thought at me, I returned it, as an earnest of my sense of +his kindness. But alas! as it will appear, I mistook my man. He beckoned +to me, and called me up to his desk, at the other end of the school. I +obeyed; "Pray, Sir," said he, "what were you laughing at?" I found I was +deceived, and I stood silent, unable to answer the interrogatory; upon +which he gave me a severe box under the ear, which made me reel again, and +nearly knocked me down. He then sternly said, "Go, Sir, to your seat, and +mind your business, and in future take care how you let me catch you +laughing again." This at once impressed upon my mind the ferocity and +cowardice of his nature; for I had not been in the school at the time more +than ten minutes. It was such an act of injustice, cruelty, and tyranny, +and so very different from any thing that I had ever before experienced, +that I was almost stupified with indignation; but, recovering myself a +little, I was upon the point of rushing out of the school, and flying to +my father, who must have been yet at the inn in the town. I looked towards +the door; it stood enticingly open, and if my pride had not come to my +assistance, I should most assuredly have indulged the first impulse of my +resentment. From that moment to this, however, I have never thought of the +circumstance, without regretting that I did not follow that impulse. +However, I sat down; but, from that time, I never failed to consider him +as an unjust and cruel petty tyrant; nor did I ever, for one moment +afterward, look up to him even with common respect. + +I continued at this place for nearly two years and a half, during which +time, in common with many of my school-fellows, I had to endure the cruel, +unnecessary, and wanton punishments, indiscriminately inflicted by this +modern Dionysius. I soon became hardened, and set all controul at +defiance; and, instead of my pride being hurt, or being ashamed of +punishment, it became a boast and a pride to brave it, and to bear it with +indifference and contempt. This monster in human form would come into the +school and flog half a dozen boys before he sat down, under some pretence +or other; either that he had heard some noise in their bedroom the night +before, or that they had not washed their hands clean; nay, he sometimes +flogged a boy without ever telling him what it was for; and frequently, +while his hand was in, he would, gnashing his large white teeth, which +looked white from the same cause that a chimney-sweeper's teeth look so, +merely because they were such a great contrast to his black fiend-like +visage, he would dart his eye round the different classes to see which boy +he should fix upon as his next victim. During these disgusting periods, +with the exception of two or three favourites, every one's heart +palpitated within his agitated breast. When this vindictive mania was upon +him, myself and three or four other boys were almost certain to come in +for a share. In fact, when his eye came to my class, I would almost +involuntarily lay down my book, and meet his horrid gaze, as if prepared +to receive a beckon from him to come out. If he passed me over, which was +very seldom, it was considered as a miracle. Frequently, while he was +punishing me, and while the blood was running almost in streams from my +lacerated back, I have looked him steadily in the face, and I could fancy +I saw him enjoying the same sort of savage ferocious delight, that a +hungry wolf would discover in gorging upon the mangled vitals of the +unoffending lamb. Such is the effect which tyranny produces upon the noble +mind, that although I was of a tender delicate frame, and rather of a +timid nature, yet I soon became so inured to punishment, that I constantly +bore the most severe flogging without altering a muscle of my face, +notwithstanding I frequently received from ten to twenty lashes from the +recently made instrument of torture, which was composed of new _birch +twigs_, each stroke from which drew the blood; and it was no uncommon +thing, after I had left the room, to get some other boy to pick out the +spills which were left sticking in my lacerated flesh, some of them more +than half an inch long. Nay, at last it became so bad that one of the +washerwomen made a serious complaint to Mrs. Griffith, about the horrid +state of my linen. Mrs. Griffith's expostulations were in vain, although +they were made in the most urgent and pressing manner in my hearing. + +I speak of myself here, but there were several other boys, who were +punished equally without justice and without mercy, as well as myself. To +recite particular acts of this sort would be as disgusting as they would +be tedious and uninteresting. But there was a nice lad, of the name of +George Blandford, that he had literally flogged into a _hardened +dunce_--he had whipped every power of learning out of him, and then he +whipped him daily because he could not learn. At length his elder brother, +who slept in the same room with me, planned their escape from the school. +I went down stairs with them very early one morning, and having let them +out I locked the doors again, and returned to my bed, without being +detected. Griffith, however, called me up to his desk, and having charged +me with having assisted in their escape, I boldly admitted the fact, +rather than tell a lie; upon which I received a most severe flogging +before he set off to reclaim the fugitives. The Blandfords escaped all +pursuit, and reached their home; and fortunately for them their parents +never suffered them to return. As for myself, he continued to flog, and I +continued to set him at defiance. One more act of his extreme injustice I +will relate, to shew how unfit he was to have the care of children; and as +a caution to parents not to place them in the power of such men, +particularly under the care of such clergymen, who, while they practise +every species of _tyranny, injustice,_ and _cruelty_, upon their pupils, +contrive to escape detection by covering their real character with the +garb of religion, and thus hide the most atrocious acts under the cloak of +their hypocritical sanctity. + +Immediately before the holidays, there was a prize to be written for, +which prize was a handsome pen-knife. The Rev. Hugh Stevens, a gentleman +in every respect exactly the reverse of Mr. Griffith, was the principal +assistant and writing-master, who always decided which was the best +written piece; and he at once declared that I was the winner. Griffith, +who had never before interfered in a matter of this kind, was enraged that +I should be successful, in spite of his malignant exertions always to put +me back; and he insisted upon it, that a boy of the name of Butcher had +written his piece better than mine, and that he should have the prize. Mr. +Stevens felt indignant at this barefaced act of partiality and gross +injustice, and would not be come a party to it. After having expostulated +some time in vain, he handed me over the prize upon his own +responsibility, in the presence of the enraged parson; and desired +Griffith, if he wished to favour Butcher, to do it by giving him a knife +out of his own pocket, which he actually did, in order to sneak out of the +business. By these repeated acts of injustice and cruelty he, however, +soon lost his school. Another boy, Mrs. Griffith's own nephew, whose name +was Bradley, now ran away, for setting a hollow tree on fire in the public +parade, called the Acre. + +To shew what acts of tyranny and oppression will drive even a lad to do, +in the way of hardened resistance, observe the following instance +Seventeen of the boys were to be flogged for making a bonfire on the 5th +of November, myself of course among the number; many of them were large +boys, and we were left together while Griffith was busily employed making +up a number of rods out of half a dozen new birch brooms, a great many +dozens of which he bought every year at Weyhill fair, expressly for that +purpose. While he was thus amiably occupied, although I was one of the +smallest and youngest among them, I volunteered to recommend forcible +resistance; and proposed, if they would all stick together, that when he +came into the school we would seize him, lay him down, tie him hand and +foot, and give him a good flogging, instead of taking the flogging +ourselves; and I believe that I went so far as to offer to become myself +the operator. This was listened to for a moment, but such is the effect of +tyranny upon the human mind, that the majority were for remaining passive +slaves, and accordingly we all patiently suffered him to flog us one after +the other. When it came to my turn I looked him in the face, and received +any punishment with a hardened indifference, which enraged him to such a +degree, that he gave me a double dose; declaring at one time, as he +gnashed his teeth, that he would flog me till I did cry out. In spite of +his threat, however, he became tired first; for I believe I should have +expired under his bloody hand before I would have uttered a single sigh or +a groan. I must do my fellow-sufferers the justice to say, that the whole +seventeen acted in the same manner, not one of them gratified his tender +ear with a shriek, a groan, or even a complaint. + +Our play ground was the church yard, at the back of the school; a very +improper place indeed for boys to amuse themselves in, as it was covered +with graves, and tomb and head stones, over which it was our occupation to +be constantly jumping. The churchwardens complained to Griffith of the +injury done to the graves by our jumping on them, and Griffith, tyrant +like, always ready to curtail any indulgence and liberty we had, however +previously limited it might be, instead of appropriating a fresh play +ground to our use, threatened to punish any boy who was found jumping over +the tomb stones, or upon the graves, and prohibited almost every species +of amusement that we had hitherto enjoyed. A consultation was held, and it +was agreed, in order to be revenged upon the churchwardens, that we would +all meet, in the dusk of the evening, or rather as soon as it was dark, +and that every one should throw a stone into the chancel window. When the +time arrived, this was _religiously_ performed; and I believe myself and +some half dozen more remained, while the rest were scampering off, and had +a second throw, although the first did ample execution, and made a +tremendous crash, particularly at that still hour of the night. The noise +brought all the neighbours out of their houses, who perceived us flying; +but we all escaped, and got into the school, without the detection of any +one in particular. However, as it was known that some of the boys had done +this, we were, all told by Griffith, the next day, that unless we gave up +the boy or boys who did it, to be flogged, he would not grant a holiday +the whole half year; and he only gave us till two o'clock in the afternoon +to consider of what he had said. + +During the play hours, between twelve and two o'clock, the whole time was +occupied in devising expedients how to avert this dreadful denunciation, +which was to deprive us of our usual holidays. At length it was declared +that all expedients were in vain; and that, unless some one would +undertake to bear the brunt, and sacrifice himself for the _common good_, +they must all submit to be incarcerated within the walls of the school the +whole half-year, without any recreation whatever. One of the largest boys +said, if any one would volunteer to do this, the others would not only, +with gratitude, subscribe the sum required to pay for mending the window, +but would also subscribe a handsome sum, as a reward for him who would +undertake to receive the punishment. + +After this speech, silence reigned around for a time; but all eyes were +soon fixed upon me, with a sort of anxious supplicating hope. I stepped +forward with a determined air. I was hailed with a general cheer, and I +soon realized their hopes, by boldly saying, that I would take the +flogging, although it must and would no doubt be a very severe one; +provided that they would subscribe to pay for mending the window, but that +I scorned to receive any thing more for myself than the reward of their +good opinion, and the consciousness of having made a generous sacrifice of +myself, in order to relieve the whole of my school fellows from a dilemma +which was in no other way to be overcome. I was cheered and caressed, and +was led back to the school, a sort of willing captive, and surrendered up +to the vengeance of the master, as the culprit who had been guilty of a +crime very little short of, and bordering upon, sacrilege. Two or three of +the boys came forward, and stated that they had been eye witnesses of the +transaction, and had seen me break the window, by throwing repeatedly at +it with a hatful of stones. Although Griffith knew this to be a falsehood, +as it was ascertained that it was done at one smash, by all the boys, yet, +he received the communication with a savage delight; and, having put on +one of his usual _smiles, a "ghastly grin_," he ordered me to prepare for +the punishment due to my temerity. The very boy who had proposed the +measure was selected to take me on his back, to hold me while I received +the flogging, which was inflicted with such savage cruelty, and extended +to such a length of time, that with some difficulty I was, by being led +into the air, prevented from fainting. Now the result! after coming out of +the school I was, I own, extolled by some, and caressed by others; but +many laughed at my folly behind my back, some even taunted me at times +with having broken the church windows; but, from first to last, they never +subscribed _one penny_ towards paying for the window, and I was left to do +it myself, which was accomplished by my week's allowance being stopped for +the whole half-year, and the remainder was placed to my account, and sent +home to my father, in the following item--"for breaking church windows 4s. +6d." And, to this very day, I bear the character in the town of Andover of +being the person who, when a boy at school, broke the church windows. + +This act of ingratitude was enough to have broken the public spirit of +almost any one but myself. I have, from that day to this, been in the +constant habit of making personal and pecuniary sacrifices for the _common +good_; but human nature, as taken in the mass, was faithfully imaged, even +in a school; and I can safely say, that the only reward which I have ever +received, from that day to this, for all my public services, devotion, and +sacrifices, consists in the substantial reflection that I have never had +any selfish, sinister motives, but that I have always been actuated by the +most disinterested philanthropy, and inflexible love of country. How many +good men have I seen even in my own time, stand forward the zealous +advocates of the people's rights, who have flitted upon the public stage +but a very short period, and we have heard no more of them! what is the +cause of this dereliction? The inference generally is, that all mankind +are alike; none are to be trusted. But the fact is this, many really +disinterested, truly patriotic men have been driven from off the field by +the infamous slanders of the corrupt daily press. Many of them were men +who would have faced a cannon's mouth, or would have suffered the most +horrid punishment, even the torture, rather than have deserted the public +cause; but they were incapable of bearing up against the malignant +slanders, base assertions, and foul attacks of the public press. + +There are also many who have come before the public with very patriotic +feelings, and who have at the same time calculated upon receiving a public +reward; at any rate, they have expected to be saved harmless in their +pockets; that the expence of any public exertion would at least be repaid +by those who surrounded them, and who cheered and applauded their every +exertion.--But, no! so sure as a man entertains any notion or expectation +of this sort, so sure is he to meet with cruel disappointment, the very +first time he places himself in a situation to try the experiment. Thus, +otherwise a very good man, he feels at once disgusted with public +ingratitude, and not having calculated upon such conduct, and not perhaps +ever having tried the experiment, _as I did_ while at school, he retires +with scorn and indignation from public life, or he turns over to some new +faction in place or power, who have both the means and inclination to +reward him for his apostacy. + +To proceed with the narrative, Griffith did every thing he could to +prevent my getting on in my studies; but I always contrived to say my +lesson, even to him, so as to escape punishment; and, out of all the +floggings I got at this school, I was never once punished for not learning +my task. Indeed, when I had to say my lesson to Mr. Stevens, I did it with +ease, and frequently left off at the head of the class, having worked my +way up during _his_ examination. In fact, when I said my lesson to Mr. +Stevens, I _generally_ left off at the head or top of the class; but when +I said it to Griffith, I was sure _always_ to finish at the _bottom_. + +After having endured this sort of discipline nearly two years and a half, +Griffith, one evening, came into the school, after having had _bad sport +in shooting_, as if to wreak that vengeance upon the boys which the +partridges had escaped. He walked up the school, throwing his eyes to the +right and to the left, to seek for some proper objects; at length he fixed +upon a boy of the name of Ludlow, and, having ordered him to prepare for a +flogging, Ludlow expostulated, and demanded to know what he had done to +justify the punishment? Griffith hesitated, and assigned some trifling +reason, frivolous even had it not been unfounded; but he persisted, and +gave Ludlow the flogging. As usual he called me up, and upon his ordering +me to prepare, I followed the example of Ludlow, and demanded the reason; +he gave me a box on the ear, and told me he would inform me after I had +received the flogging. When he had given me this chastisement, as usual +very severely, he said, "Now, sir, this is for what you did yesterday, and +I will flog you to-morrow for what you did the day before," (mentioning at +the same time some trivial circumstance,) "unless you should do something +in the meanwhile to deserve it." Thus he taught me to look forward to a +flogging every day for five or six days to come! This was a little too +bad; to live in anticipation, nay of a certainty, of being flogged every +day for the next week; and I consequently determined to embrace the first +opportunity of taking French leave. I communicated my intention to Ludlow, +who slept in the same room, and he, feeling indignant at the injustice +done him, determined to accompany me. + +The next day, being a half holiday, I was to be confined at home to learn +some lines, instead of going out to walk with the rest of the boys; and +Ludlow having agreed to sham illness in the morning, we hoped that we +should by that means be left at home together by ourselves, and if a fair +opportunity offered, we resolved that we would be off. Every thing turned +out as we had anticipated. Ludlow was very ill, and Mrs. Griffith, who was +a very humane, kind-hearted woman, made him lie in bed, where he was +nursed with tea and toast, and other nice things that were necessary for a +sick person. About three o'clock all the other boys went out with the +usher, to take their after noon's walk. I was left at home, and ordered to +remain in the school, to learn a very hard task out of some book, or to +take a flogging in the morning. I went immediately up stairs to inform my +companion that the coast was clear; he jumped out of bed, and put on his +cloaths, and in a few minutes we walked down stairs, out of the back door, +across the church yard; and in less than a quarter of an hour we were on +our road to Weyhill, leaving Mrs. Griffith to take her patient's physic +herself, and any one that chose, to learn the lines that the Parson had +set me. + +As we passed along we saw our master and his friend shooting in a field +adjoining the road. We began to quake for fear, but he was too busily +engaged with his sport to notice us; and, creeping along under the hedge, +we passed on unnoticed. Ludlow's parents lived at Devizes, a distance of +twenty-seven miles from Andover; Enford, the residence of my father, was a +little more than fifteen miles on the same road. We lost no time, and, +having kept on a good pace, we arrived at Enford soon after six o'clock. +This was some time in October, and it was quite dark before we got within +sight of the house. We had agreed that Ludlow should sleep with me, and +proceed on to his own house the next morning. When we reached the door my +heart began to sink within me, and I was actually afraid to enter; for now +I began to dread the anger of my father, which was much more terrible to +me than the tyranny of Griffith. At length one of the servants, James +Jukes, came by, and I begged him to go in and inform my father of my being +come home. He told me that my father was from home, but he hastened in, +for the purpose of informing my mother. This, however, was not necessary, +for we followed him, and stood before my mother, who gave a shriek of +astonishment. We told her the story, but she instantly dispatched the +servant for my father, who was gone to visit a neighbour. Ludlow was very +brave upon this occasion. Before my father arrived, my mother had given us +a supper of Apple pie; and, as we were very tired, and as I wished to +avoid the presence of my father as long as I could, we requested to go to +bed; but my mother would not admit of this till he was come home. + +At length, the well known knock at the door announced his approach--I +never before felt such a sensation of fear as I did at this moment. He +came in, and having sternly surveyed us, after a short pause, he said, +"Pray gentlemen, what wind brought you here?" I was speechless; but Ludlow +boldly replied, "the severity of our Master, Sir." "Well," he rejoined, +"and my severity shall flog you back again to-morrow," upon which we were +immediately packed off to bed, which my Mother had taken care to provide +for us. + +As soon as we were alone in the bed room, Ludlow began to complain of the +injustice of my Father; adding, that he had no right to take him back, +that he might do what he pleased as to his son, but he should not take +_him_ back. I told him this was very brave talking, but that he knew +nothing of my Father if he expected to escape, either by blustering or +reasoning. If, however, he was determined to proceed home, I would do any +thing in my power to get him out of the house very early in the +morning.--This was at once agreed upon, to be attempted at all events. We +lay awake till day break, when he got up. Having put on his cloaths, we +crept down stairs very quietly, and I unlocked the door, and having shaken +him by the hand, and wished him better success than I was likely to meet +with, he departed for Devizes. I returned to bed, and being called up in +the morning, my Father, when he entered the breakfast room, demanded why +Ludlow did not get up. I told him the truth, that he had been gone for +four hours, and must by that time have reached his own home. My Father +made no reply, but with a very stern look he left the room, as I +afterwards understood from my Mother, to attend a court-leet at Updavon, +where he had engaged to meet his friend and landlord Mr. Wyndham. He +informed that gentlemen of the circumstance of my having run away from +school, and added, that he intended to take me back early in the morning, +a step in the propriety of which Mr. Wyndham heartily concurred--However, +in the course of the day, a messenger came with a letter from Griffith to +my Father, which was delivered to him in the presence of his landlord. The +letter was couched in the most coarse and unfeeling language; he charged +my Father with being the author and instigator of all my faults, and +accused him of having not only encouraged me in disobeying his orders, but +also of conniving at my running away from the school.--This was a most +fortunate circumstance for me, and the only thing that could have saved me +from being taken back again. Mr. Wyndham told my Father that nothing on +earth ought to prevail upon him to place his son again under the care of +such a monster; and they now both became just as determinedly hostile to +my return as they had previously been agreed that I ought to go back. + +In the course of a few days, my Father rode over to Andover, and sent for +Griffith down to the Star Inn, to pay him his bill. Having expostulated +with him upon his conduct to me, and his still more unfeeling conduct if +possible to himself; Griffith chose to bluster and bully, upon which my +father coolly turned him out of the room, telling him that his gown alone +saved him from the chastisement that he merited; a privilege which the +parson did not choose to waive. He, therefore sneaked off, in order to +save himself from being either kicked or horse-whipped. Ludlow was taken +back to the School by his Father, and having subsequently formed +connections, he got into business, and has lived in the own of Andover +ever since. Within two years of this time Griffith's school dwindled down +to nothing, and soon afterwards, execrated by every boy that had ever been +under his care, he returned to Wales, from whence he came. + +In detailing these occurrences of my boyhood, I have been thus particular +for two purposes; first, to shew the reader the tyranny I had to encounter +before I was yet thirteen years of age, and the effect it produced upon my +mind, as well as the determined manner in which I resisted oppression, +even at that time; and, secondly, with the hope that it will be a warning +to all those who may read these memoirs, to avoid sending their children +to be flogged out of every good quality, and rendered miserable, without +the least chance of improvement, by one of these petty tyrants. The +greatest care and circumspection should be exercised by parents, for they +have a sacred duty to perform, in the selection of those with whom they +intrust the care and education of their children. As to this school, it +was a stain upon and a disgrace to the character of English education: in +Scotland such a school would not have existed a month, and the master +would have been indicted. + +I was next placed under the care of the Rev. James Evans, who kept a very +respectable school in Castle Street, at Salisbury. This gentleman was also +a Welshman; and, as I had taken a great antipathy to Reverend Welshmen, I +felt rather uncomfortable when I ascertained that he came from the land of +goats. My fears, however, were groundless; he was a gentleman in every +respect the reverse of him of whom I have so recently spoken. To be sure +he was pedantic enough, having been all his life a school-master; but he +was a humane, kind-hearted man, and his strictness was assumed, for the +purpose of maintaining by discipline a due subordination in the school. +His lady, Mrs. Evans, was also a combination of good qualities, and I +believe there never was a more happy couple. She delighted to make every +body happy about her. As for myself, the good disposition that I took with +me to Andover, was in a great measure flogged out of me there; I was +become impatient of controul, and had imbibed an ungovernable spirit, +which led me into difficulties and disappointments, that I should +otherwise have avoided. I have often lamented the trouble that I gave this +worthy man, as well as his lady, and many years back thought it my duty to +take an occasion of expressing the sorrow I felt for any uneasiness that I +had caused them during my stay there. + +The life which I led here was a life, of pleasure compared to that which I +led at the place I had quitted, and although it was impossible for me to +recover that which I lost at Andover, either in disposition or in +learning, yet I acquired ten times more real knowledge of books in one +year at this school, under Mr. Evans, than I did at Andover in the two +years and a half that I existed there. I remained nearly three years at +Salisbury, at the end of which time I was become a pretty good latin +scholar, and could construe Virgil and Horace with considerable ease to +myself. I was an excellent penman, and a pretty good mathematician, as +well as a complete master of mensuration. I had for many years been a +pupil of the celebrated Mr. Goodall, and as I was acknowledged by him to +have arrived at a great degree of perfection in elegantly "tripping it on +the light fantastic toe," he frequently took me to exhibit at his balls, +both in Salisbury and other places. I was, in good truth, excessively fond +of dancing, and I was not a little proud, at one of the race balls, to be +selected by Mr. Goodall, who was master of the ceremonies, to stand one of +the first three couple with the Prince of Wales, (my partner Miss S. +Mahon) to enable his royal Highness to accomplish the figure of _Maney +Musk_, for the first time introduced at Salisbury, by his Royal Highness. + +I will relate only one particular occurrence which I had to encounter at +this school, and which, but for a mere accident, would have fixed upon my +character an indelible stain; and I am especially induced to notice it by +the circumstance of its having been grossly misrepresented by the venal +part of the public press. I believe it appeared either in one or both of +those sinks of corruption, those stews of falsehood, those unblushing +vehicles of calumny and lies, the Morning Post and the Courier, viz. +"_that Hunt, when a boy, was turned out of a school for robbing one of his +schoolfellows_." Although I believe there is not one disinterested +intelligent person in a thousand, who reads those papers, that ever gives +the least credit to any of those atrocious falsehoods with which their +columns are constantly filled, yet the baseness and cowardice of their +intentions are not the less disgraceful on that account. To proceed, my +bedfellow, whose name was Scott, when he arose one morning, discovered +that, during the night, his Breeches had been removed from under his +pillow, and his purse, which contained a guinea and two or three +shillings, had been taken out of the pocket, ransacked of its contents, +and then replaced under the pillow. Scott missed the money as he was +getting up, and, having mentioned the thing, all the boys collected round +him to hear his account of the story. There were also some boys who came +out of another room up stairs, and amongst them a boy of the name of Best, +who, after having heard what Scott had to say, at once declared that it +was impossible for any one but the boy who had slept with him in the same +bed to have stolen the money. I instantly fired up, and endeavoured to +knock down the scoundrel, who had by implication charged me with the +theft. A battle ensued, in which Best got the worst of it, and amongst +other things a black eye; which being perceived by Mr. Evans, when we got +into the school, I was punished with an imposition for having given it to +him; notwithstanding I informed the master that it arose in consequence of +his having falsely charged me with a theft. Upon this an investigation +took place. Scott proved that he had the money when he went to bed; I also +spoke to the knowledge of that fact; all which Best urged as a presumptive +proof of my guilt. Appearances were against me, and my having so suddenly +attacked Best for the insinuation, rather increased than diminished those +appearances. + +After breakfast Mr. Evans called me into his parlour, where there was no +one but himself and Mrs. Evans, and addressed me in a very solemn manner, +trusting, he said, that I would instantly confess to him that _I had +played some trick with the money_, and restore it to him; in which case, +he would endeavour to hush the matter up as well as he could. I stood +gasping with astonishment, without being able to give an immediate answer; +not before believing that he had any suspicion of me. He proceeded as +follows, "it is no use for you to deny it, Master Hunt, as I know those +who will prove that they saw you take the money." My surprise was now +turned to indignation. I protested vehemently against the truth of his +assertion, and dared him to the proof. I denied, in the most solemn +manner, that I knew any thing of the money, and demanded, with more than +common earnestness, that he would bring forth my accusers, that I might +meet them face to face. + +Mrs. Evans now came forward, and earnestly entreated her husband, in +common justice, if there was any person who had seen me, or if he had any +proof that I took the money, or knew any thing of it, that he would bring +them forward; and, if he had not, that he would at least, admit that he +had no ground for saying what he had said. Mr. Evans felt the force of her +observation, and seeing that I denied the fact so unequivocally, he said +that he had no proof of the fact, that he had gone too far, that as +circumstances appeared strong against me at first, and it appeared that I +was embarrassed, he thought it best to charge me boldly with it, to induce +me to confess at once. Mrs. Evans, who was a good creature, and a sincere +lover of justice, possessing too a great deal of discrimination, inveighed +in very strong terms against charging a boy with theft, and casting +aspersions upon his character, without any foundation or proof whatever. +She added, that I had been at the school nearly three[5] years, without +ever having created any suspicion of my honesty, or without doing the +slightest act upon which they could ground such a charge:--that she had +frequently trusted me with money to execute errands and commissions for +her, that I had always done it with the strictest regularity, and the most +scrupulous regard to honesty; and, raising her voice, she said she would +herself be bound for my innocence upon this occasion; adding, with great +warmth, there was not an honester lad in the school, and that some of +those who threw out dark hints of suspicion against Master Hunt, were much +more likely, from their general character, to have robbed Scott than he +was. + +In consequence of this tone being taken by my kind friend, whose memory I +have always held, and ever shall hold, in the highest veneration, Mr. +Evans slightly apologized for having asserted that he had proof of my +guilt; saying in excuse that it was his duty to do every thing in his +power to unravel the mystery. "You may go Master Hunt," said Mrs. Evans; +and in the kindest possible manner she endeavoured to console me for the +injustice I had suffered, by telling me that the thief would certainly be +found out, and then those that had accused me would be ashamed of +themselves. + +As I walked out of the parlour up the play ground, many of my school +fellows approached, to know the result of such a long conference--"Well, +Hunt, is there any thing made out likely to clear up this affair?" all of +them anxious to see me fairly acquitted of the charge. I exclaimed in a +loud voice, "what a d----d liar that _Taffy Evans_ is--He first declared +that some one had seen me take the money, and afterwards confessed it was +no such thing." Mr. Evans, who had followed me out of the parlour, and +had, unperceived by me, walked up his garden, which was only separated +from the play ground by some pales and a slight low yew hedge, heard this +as plain as any of the boys, In a very emphatic tone, and close to my +elbow, he, to my utter confusion, said, "really Master Hunt! Pray, sir, go +to your room, and we will settle that account as soon as we go into +school," which was in a few minutes after. + +I certainly now expected that I should have a severe flogging, and so did +all my school fellows; but I was agreeably disappointed when he arrived in +the school, by his addressing me in a very serious manner, as follows, +"Master Hunt, I now set you an imposition of one hundred lines of Virgil +to learn by Friday, and the next time I ever hear you make use of such +words I will certainly give you a flogging." The lines were learnt, and so +ended that part of the story. + +As, however, no discovery was made about the money, I felt very uneasy; +not that I believed any of the boys had any suspicion of me, and Scott +himself constantly declared that he had not the slightest idea that I knew +any thing of the matter. Notwithstanding this, there was sometimes an +insinuation thrown out, which rendered my life very miserable; and Best, +the boy who had first accused me, although from the drubbing he got he was +deterred from repeating the assertion, yet he would frequently ask in my +hearing, "_who stole Scott's money?_" A month had nearly passed, and with +most of the Boys the affair began to wear off, and it was seldom +mentioned; not so with me, it pressed very heavily upon my mind, and +instead of being one of the most lively and cheerful boys in the school, I +was now become quite serious, and even melancholy, and was frequently +observed to shed tears. My Friends endeavoured to rally me out of this +what they called sulky mood; I replied that I could not help it, that I +should never again be happy till it was discovered who it was that took my +bed-fellow's Money; and that its being lost while I was his bed fellow, +certainly threw a sort of suspicion on me, that I could not get over, and +to labour under which rendered me completely miserable. They all +endeavoured to laugh me out of this humour, and I must say that Scott +himself did every thing in his power to relieve me; but it was all in +vain, I not only grew melancholy, but I began to lose my appetite, and as +I looked very thin and ill, Mrs. Evans was really somewhat alarmed, and +said every thing she could to comfort me. Alas! it was all in vain, and I +really began to think that I should fall a victim to a false accusation, +for I had no sleep by night, nor ease by day. + +[Illustration: +THE NORTH WEST VIEW OF HIS MAJESTY'S JAIL AT ILCHESTER. +Taken from the lower part of the Meadow behind the Bell Inn. + +_a. The part occupied by Mr. Hunt. +b. The Top of the Keeper's House. +c. The part occupied by the Debtors +d. The part occupied by the Time people +f. The part occupied by the Task Master & Matron + Behind this is the part occupied by the Females +g. The Lodge or entrance & occupied by the chief Turnkey +h. The Keeper's stable and Chaise House._] + +Mrs. Evans now proposed to send for my father, which in a few days she +did. When he arrived and was informed of the circumstances, he felt +greatly distressed. I was sent for into the parlour; my father was shocked +at my appearing in such ill health, and the agony of his feelings was +intense at the cause of my illness. He intreated me, by the love I bore +towards him and my mother, to confess the truth; if I had in an unguarded +moment been led into an error, the only reparation was openly to confess +it, and, in that case, he offered immediately to repay Scott his money, +and to make him a handsome present besides; in fact he promised to do any +thing. Before he would allow me to make an answer, he went almost upon his +knees, and implored me to tell him the whole truth, proffering at the same +time his entire forgiveness if I had done it. I assured him, in the most +serious and solemn manner, that I knew nothing whatever of the money, that +it had made me very unhappy indeed, that I had had no sleep for the last +eight or ten nights, and had lost my appetite, and that I was become very +weak and ill; which illness he found, by feeling my pulse, was attended +with a very considerable fever. He proposed to take me home for a short +time, to restore my health; but this I objected to, as being likely to +give a colour to the charge. It was therefore settled that I should take +some medicine, prescribed by Mr. Stills[6], to calm my spirits and allay +my fever. + +My father returned home almost broken-hearted, and I continued in the same +melancholy and hopeless state. However, in the evening of the next Sunday, +a boy came running up to me almost breathless, and declared that he had +discovered the thief, who had stolen the money. I eagerly entreated him to +explain himself--he answered that Charles Best, together with his brother +James, had just brought in a hatful of _Carraway Comfits_, which be said +he had bought with five shillings, given to him by his father. The Father +of these boys lived in the town, and they had been home on the Sunday, as +was usual, to dine with him. They had just returned from their visit, +about eight o'clock in the evening, and Charles, the eldest, the fellow +who had accused me of being the thief, had now brought these comfits in +his hat, saying that his father had given him _five shillings_, which he +had expended at once in this way. My friend directly declared that it was +a falsehood, that his father was a cursedly stingy old fellow, and that he +had never before returned with more than sixpence in his pocket; and he +added, suppose his father or any other person had given him _five +shillings_, it was very unlikely that he would lay it all out at once in +such a manner. I requested Best to show us his purse, to see if he had any +more money in it. This he declined to do; and, as his brother James began +to shuffle, and did not confirm him altogether in his story, I immediately +seized him by the collar, and having tripped up his heels, called for +assistance to search him. This we accomplished with some difficulty, and +having got at his purse, we found it contained _sixteen shillings_ in +silver more. He now changed his tale, and asserted that his father had +given him a _guinea_, which he had changed at Mrs. Hadding's the +pie-woman; that he had purchased five shillings-worth of carraway comfits, +and the sixteen shillings was the remainder of the change. + +By the manner of his telling this story it was evidently false. Some of +the boys accordingly kept him in custody, while myself and my friend, who +had first brought me the intelligence, rushed out of the house, regardless +of the consequences, and proceeded as fast as possible to the house of old +Best, either to have this account confirmed or denied. On our reaching the +door we knocked with great authority, and upon the servant's opening it, +we marched in without any ceremony, and demanded an audience of his master +immediately, as we had some very important business with him. The servant +informed him of our visit, and he came out of the parlour to us, and +demanded what business we could have with him at that time of night, it +being then nearly nine o'clock. We first asked if his sons had been home +to dine with him; he answered yes, and that they had left his house +upwards of an hour ago, in order to return to the school, and he wished to +know whether they had not arrived before we left it. We replied that they +had. We then asked him if he had given his son Charles any money; he at +once said, "Certainly not." We then asked him if he had given him a +guinea; he replied, "Certainly not." His mother might have given him +sixpence, but if she did it was without his knowledge. He then returned +into the parlour; and we heard him ask his wife if she had given Charles +any money to-day, the answer was, "No, my dear." + +This was quite enough for us, and without waiting any further ceremony, we +started off back to the school. In the mean time, Best, having ascertained +that we were gone to his father to make enquiry, had confessed that it was +he who had stolen the money out of Scott's pocket; and when we returned he +was surrounded by all the boys, who were upbraiding and taunting him with +his villainy; but they were all more enraged with him for his baseness in +accusing me of the theft, than they were with the theft itself. I was the +only one who expressed any pity for him, and had the weakness to solicit +for that mercy to be shewn to him which he had denied to me. The next +morning he was expelled the school; but, in consideration of his family +very little was said about it--however, they soon left the town, which it +was generally understood was occasioned by this unfortunate event. My +father was sent for, and he came over immediately, to participate with me +in the happiness I felt, at being so completely exculpated from all +suspicion; and every endeavour was made to render me, as far as it was +possible, compensation for my sufferings. + +I trust that this circumstance will prove to the reader the danger and the +injustice of condemning any person upon mere circumstantial evidence. How +cautious ought jurors upon their oaths to be, not to find men guilty upon +mere circumstances; and, particularly, when their verdict may give the +party over, _bound hand and foot_, and place his life or his liberty at +the disposal of corrupt, wicked, cruel, and vindictive judges! + +I now recovered my health and strength, and prosecuted my studies till I +was nearly sixteen years of age. My father then, on condition of my taking +orders, and going into the Church, proposed to send me to Oxford, and to +purchase the next presentation to a living of upwards of a thousand a +year, which was offered to him at that time at a very moderate price; +subject to the life of the incumbent, who was upwards of seventy years of +age. This I declined, as I had a great wish to be a farmer; and, at the +same time, had a particular objection to the Church, an objection which +principally originated in the dislike I had to Parson Griffith, and to the +way in which he enforced the precepts of Christianity. + +My father desired me to reflect well upon it, before I made up my mind; +though I could discover that he was not at all displeased at my +determination. He would not, he said, prejudice my choice, but whether I +was a clergyman, or whether I was a farmer, he hoped I should make a good, +a brave, and an honest man; but he added, "if you intend to be a farmer, I +trust that it is not from an idea that a farmer's life is composed merely +of coursing, hunting, shooting, and fishing. These alone, said he, are +very well, when occasionally and moderately used as a recreation; but a +farmer must learn his business before he is capable of conducting and +managing a farm--for, remember the old couplet, "he that by the plough +would thrive, must either hold himself or drive." I would, therefore, have +you think this matter over, before you finally make your choice. If you +should like to be a clergyman, I have now an opportunity of purchasing the +next presentation to a good living, and you will then have secured to you +for life a thousand or perhaps twelve hundred pounds a year; and you will +have nothing else to do, for six days out of the seven, but hunt, shoot, +and fish by day, and play cards and win the money of the farmer's wives +and children by night. Although, continued he, this may appear to you, and +I am ready to admit, that this is, a very inglorious sort of a life, yet +it is a very easy one. All that will be expected of you is to read +prayers, and preach a sermon, which will cost you three pence once a week. +This is the life of modern clergymen; and they might do very well, and get +on very smoothly, in this way, if they did not screw up their _tythes_ too +high, and get drunk too often, so as to cause a serious complaint to be +made to the bishop by some of the parishioners; which you may rest assured +they never will do by you, let your conduct be ever so immoral or ever so +irreligious, provided that you let the farmers have their tythes at an +easy rate. Do that, and no complaint will ever be made against you to the +bishop." + +While my father was thus addressing me, my mother returned from visiting a +poor gypsy woman, who had that morning been delivered of a fine child, +under an adjoining hedge, without any other covering but one of their +small tents, which are merely composed of a sheet thrown over a few arched +sticks, stuck into the ground. She came into the room just in time to hear +the latter part of my father's observations, describing the life of a +modern clergyman. With her accustomed charitable feeling, she said +"really, my dear, although there is too much truth in the picture you have +drawn, yet you have been a little too severe upon the clergy, when +speaking of them in the mass. There are many excellent and worthy men, who +follow the precepts of their great master, who are an ornament to that +society to which they belong, and are, therefore, most deserving members +of, and do great credit to, the profession which you have so +indiscriminately reprobated." + +"Do not tell me," said my father, "about ornaments to society; the best of +them are the _drones of society_, and, without contributing any thing to +the common stock, they feed upon the choicest honey, collected by the +labour of the industrious bees. To be sure, when they do the duty allotted +to them conscientiously, and _do not screw up their tythes too high_, they +may be very necessary evils; but you are aware, my dear, that what I say +is true as to most of them that we know; and I am not sorry that Henry +appears to have no inclination towards that course of life." + +"But," said my mother, "because some of the clergy bear the character that +you say they do, is that any reason that Henry should follow their +example? If he should be a clergyman, he will have great power of doing +good among his parishioners; he may be a magistrate, or perhaps a Doctor +of Divinity; and who knows but he may by and bye be a bishop?" + +My father now began to grow impatient. "A bishop indeed!" said he, "God +forbid that I should ever live to see him act in such a way as to obtain a +bishopric, even if he were to go into the church." + +My mother was surprised at this language, and enquired if he would not +wish his son to gain the top of his profession; to which he answered +sternly, (which was not often the case to my mother,) "No, indeed. I would +not. The road to such preferment is generally so disgraceful, that I never +wish to see him tread its path. He will never attain such an _honour_ but +by the most _dishonourable_ means. Would you like to see him the tutor to +the son of some nobleman? This is the first step to promotion. When he is +in that situation, if his pupil should be of an abandoned character and +_he_ will condescend to be his _pimp_ and the pander to his vices, laugh +at his follies, and flatter his vanity: why, then, should this sprig of +nobility hereafter become a minister of state, or a man in power, knowing +the servility of his late tutor, and that he will make a willing tool for +the administration to which he belongs, then, forsooth, he is a proper +man, and may possibly become a bishop." + +My mother could not believe that the highest dignities of the church were +ever obtained by such disgraceful means; but my father justified his +assertion by pointing out one or two living instances, that had come +within the reach of his own knowledge. He also pointed out some +dignitaries of the church who lived in his immediate neighbourhood, whom +my mother knew, and was obliged to admit to be very profligate characters. +But she, always wishing to look at the bright, instead of the dark side of +the question, called in turn to his recollection a number of very +excellent and very worthy members of the church, whom they knew to be most +amiable, charitable, and truly religions characters. + +Thus ended this conference upon a subject which appeared to be so very +important to my parents. My mother certainly had a great leaning to the +desire of seeing me a clergyman, and I believe it would have been the +summit of her happiness and ambition to have seen me zealously enforcing +those principles of christianity, which she had so faithfully practised. +My father dropped the subject at that time; but he took an early +opportunity of seriously going into the matter in private, and he exhorted +me to give the question a deliberate consideration, as it most materially +concerned my future welfare; adding, "he that sets out wrong is more than +half undone. If," said he "you intend to lead a quiet, easy life, that of +a clergyman will exactly suit you. If you are disposed to make one of the +common herd of mankind, and pass your time away in enjoying the sports of +the field, and the recreations of a social country life, you may live and +die a clergyman, and a very happy man. But if you have any ambition to be +a shining character in the world, that is the very last profession I would +recommend; as I am firmly persuaded that you will have no chance of +becoming eminent, or exalted in rank, unless you will condescend to obtain +it by the most prostituted sycophancy, and a total dereliction of every +manly noble feeling of independence." + +If I had been wavering in my decision, or had entertained any doubts +before, this would have turned the scale; but I had already made up my +mind to be a farmer, which determination I seriously and firmly +communicated to my father. "Well then," said he, "you are young enough to +learn, and if you will manfully set your shoulder to the wheel, I have no +doubt of your soon becoming acquainted with the practical part of the +profession, and when you have acquired a knowledge of the practice the +theory will follow very easily. To-morrow you shall make a beginning. You +are now sixteen, and no time is to be lost. God and nature have bestowed +upon you a sound mind, and an active body; and if you properly apply these +inestimable blessings, there is no doubt of your becoming a useful member +of society, and of your making a respectable figure in the world. But +never forget the maxim that I now lay down for your future guidance; +recollect that 'a man can never dirt his hands about his own business;' +and always bear in mind these three old Italian proverbs--first, '_Never +do that by proxy, which you can do yourself._'--Second, '_Never defer till +to-morrow that which can be done well to-day._'--Third, '_Never neglect +small matters and expences._'" + +The next morning I was called up early, and, to begin upon my labours, I +drove one of the teams at plough all day. I came home very tired. Not +being accustomed to labour, I found it a very different occupation from +that of attending my studies at school; my feet were sore, and my heels +were galled, but I was deterred from complaining, by seeing that I was +merely performing the same labour that little plough boys, of eight or +nine years of age, were only receiving sixpence a day for doing. Driving +plough was, therefore, not only, soon learned, but it became very irksome +to me; and as I thought myself full as good a man as the lad that was +holding, I demanded, before the week was up, that he should change places +with me. This he refused, and that occurred which is very common upon such +occasions. I threw away the whip, and having seized the handle of the +plough, a struggle ensued, which led to blows. At length, the horses and +plough were both abandoned, and a regular fight took place between myself +and the under carter, who had been holding the plough to which I was the +driver. I soon, however, compelled him to cry "hold!" and without farther +ceremony I took the plough and he the whip. I mention this trivial +circumstance to shew the reader that I was obliged to fight my way into a +practical knowledge of agricultural pursuits; my father well knowing, from +experience, that there was no other method by which I could gain a +complete knowledge of farming, but by the manual performance of every +branch of the profession. + +Before I proceed it will not be improper to observe that, in detailing the +events of my own life, I am confined to the strict limits which truth +imposes upon my pen; for if I wished either to exaggerate or to embellish +by any imaginary touches, such as may be admissible, and in fact such as +are indulged in, by the writers of common events, I should be liable to +immediate detection and exposure; because I am detailing circumstances +which, although they are long past, are still in the recollection of +numerous living witnesses. In fact, there is not an occurrence that I have +hitherto mentioned, but what is within the knowledge and the recollection +of many of those witnesses, and very many of the most important events +which I shall have to detail will be familiar to hundreds. On the other +hand, there are certainly many facts and anecdotes, which are only known +to myself and those immediately connected with them, and these, when I +arrive at them, will, I doubt not, be read with a lively interest by those +who are not yet in the secret how many public and private intrigues are +carried on and effected. All that I can promise is, that I will, to the +best of my knowledge and recollection, which I find no ways impaired by +imprisonment, record the truth; and should I, in my anxiety to speak the +truth, sometimes become dull, tiresome, or tedious, I must rely upon the +indulgence of the reader, to attribute it to my desire that the public +should be made acquainted with those circumstances which appear to me to +have materially contributed to the formation of that character which has +been so vilified, abused, and misrepresented, by the venal tools, and +corrupt agents, of a system of persevering, fatal misrule, such as was +never equalled in any age or in any country. + +To proceed--I now found that I was encountering greater difficulties than +I had anticipated. Though it was very easy to learn to drive plough, yet +it was a very different thing to be able to hold plough well. I returned +home at night ten times more tired than I was when I drove the first day; +my feet were not only sore, but my legs and arms ached ready to drop off, +and my hands were in a gore of blood, and blistered all over. My poor +mother began now to lament my undertaking, and threw out hints how much +better and easier it would have been to have gone to Oxford, and have been +now preparing myself by study to become a candidate for the black cloth, +and to be a respectable clergyman, instead of being a _clod-hopper_. In +the midst of her advice and admonition my mother did not forget to wash my +hands and feet, and plaster up my lacerated flesh; and as soon as she had +made me comfortable I retired to rest. I rose refreshed, and returned the +next day with renovated vigour to my task. To be brief, I soon because a +good ploughman. My father daily witnessed with considerable anxiety my +zealous and persevering exertions; and as I proceeded, he encouraged me by +the most animating hopes of future prospects; he informed me that he had +remarked with no small pleasure my determination to excel in every thing +that I undertook; and that I set about every thing with an enthusiasm +calculated to surmount all difficulties, which was, as he justly observed, +the only way to attain any object, or to arrive at any degree of +perfection. + +I had now regularly persevered with the most assiduous industry for more +than a fortnight, and although I was but a tall thin stripling, I +perceived that I gathered strength with my labour; and what I at first +found to be the most trying exertion and severe hard work, as I became +acquainted with the art, it appeared a pleasant and cheerful occupation; +for I could now turn a furrow as true and as straight as "the path of an +arrow." My father, who was an excellent and an accomplished husbandman, +never failed during this time to pass some part of the day with me, in +order to instruct me how to set my plough, to fix the share and point, and +so to regulate its various bearings as to make it, at the same time it did +the work well, go easy and pleasant to the holder. This may, perhaps, be +very uninteresting to many sedentary readers, and to those who are mere +passing observers, and who believe that there is no art in holding plough; +but they are very much mistaken who think that any body will make a +farmer, and that to be a good husbandman is the natural result of living +in the country. It is a very common and vulgar saying in the country, +among farmers, when any one has a son that is more stupid than common, "if +he will make nothing else, if he is unfit or incapable of learning any +business or trade, why, he will make a parson." But to make a good farmer, +a man must have served a double apprenticeship to the profession; and +after that, he must be a philosopher and a chemist. No business requires +the exercise of a man's patience and his reasoning faculties so much as +that of a farmer. Every day, nay, every hour, produces something new, +something fresh, which calls forth the active use of his reason, his +exertion, and his talent. No two seasons are alike, and scarcely any two +days. In every other profession or business, a clever intelligent person +can calculate for any given number of hands, nearly, the work of a week, a +month, or almost a year, in advance. The manufacturer or the tradesman has +a constant regular routine of business for his workmen to perform; and if +he be called from his home, for any length of time, he can leave orders +what work almost every man shall do till his return; but the farmer's +occupation, and that of all his servants, changes with the weather; nay, +it becomes his peculiar care, at some periods of the year, to watch with +anxiety every change of the wind, and his business to observe the +direction of every cloud. But as four or five years of my life were passed +in practically acquiring a knowledge of every branch of this most valuable +and respectable occupation, I shall, by reciting the particular +occurrences of that period, as I pass along, convince the readers of this +work, of that which they little suppose to be the case, that it is +absolutely necessary for a man to be a philosopher, before he can be a +good farmer. + +My father, having convinced himself of my capability, as well as my +determination to persevere in acquiring the practical manual knowledge of +the various branches belonging to husbandry, now said that he was not only +satisfied, but extremely well pleased, with the progress I had made; and, +therefore, I should now have a respite from such incessant labour, and +should take my poney and accompany him round the farms, to inspect and to +assist him in giving directions to the workmen. A fresh plough boy was +immediately found, and my driver, the vanquished under-carter, again +resumed his situation between the handles of the plough, very well pleased +with my removal. The scene to which I was now introduced opened to my +enquiring eye a new field for observation, and what I had heretofore +passed over as common occurrences, became intensely interesting to me. My +father felt great delight in satisfying my eager enquiries, and, instead +of being annoyed at my unceasing inquisitiveness, he encouraged me to +satisfy myself, and not to leave any one subject till he had made me +comprehend the cause as well as the effect. + +About this time my mother, who had been for several years in a very +declining state of health, from a violent nervous affection, which +produced a constant oppressive head-ache, was put to bed of a son, her +sixth child, and to the great joy of my father, as well as all her +friends, as she recovered her strength, and the natural effects of her +lying-in wore off, she appeared also to have recovered her general good +health, and her usual cheerfulness. She was always benignant, kind, and +affectionate, but the effects of an incessant nervous headache had +produced a sombre sadness, which threw a gloom around, and affected the +whole family, and prevented that sort of hilarity and cheerfulness, which +was the usual companion of our abode. My father was of a generous, +hospitable, sociable disposition, and was never so happy and blessed as +when he had his friends surrounding him, and partaking of those comforts +which he had acquired by his industry, skill, and persevering attention to +his business; but even these sociable enjoyments with his friends had been +very much curtailed, by my dear mother's melancholy indisposition. + +The restoration of her health was hailed by my father as the greatest +blessing that Divine Providence could have bestowed upon him and his +family; and we were all made to join him in audibly offering up our +nightly prayers and grateful acknowledgments to the allwise and beneficent +Creator, for this to us the greatest of earthly blessings. My father was +enraptured, and a hundred times a day, while he burst forth into sincere +and extatic praise and adoration of the goodness of the Divine Being, he +would enjoin us, his children, never to forget his mercy and loving +kindness, in restoring his dear Elizabeth to health. He also called in his +friends again, to partake of his hospitable and festive board. In fact, he +would sometimes exclaim, to my mother, that he was almost too happy for a +mortal, in this vale of misery and probation. My amiable mother used +gently to chide him, and to tell him that the best way to manifest their +gratitude to Divine Providence, for the happiness which it bestowed, was +never to let a day pass over their heads without doing some good act to +prove their willingness to deserve it. She would add, with her eye beaming +a heavenly smile, "as our blessed Saviour has bestowed every earthly +comfort upon us, let it be part of our duty and our pleasure to dispense +happiness among our poorer and less fortunate neighbours; for recollect, +my dear, 'that all our doings without charity are nothing worth.'" + +My mother had not yet been able personally to perform any of her +accustomed charitable visits since her lying in; for she was too strict an +observer of her religious duties, to go from home till she had gone to the +parish church, and publicly offered up her prayers and thanksgivings to +her blessed Creator and Saviour. The following Sunday was fixed upon as +the day for this religious ceremony. My father expostulated; saying that +the church was damp, and that she had better defer it till the next +Sunday, and, in the mean time, take some gentle walks abroad, to enure +herself by degrees to bear the walk and the fatigue of remaining in the +church during the length of the service. He expressed his great dread of +her catching cold, and having a relapse in consequence; but she firmly +replied, that she never feared any evil when she was performing a sacred +religious duty; that God was too wise and too good to permit one of his +creatures to suffer, when in the act of obeying his commands; and she +urged so many pious reasons to shew the necessity of her not delaying to +perform what she termed her indispensable duty, that my father silently, +but very reluctantly, submitted to her decision. + +But, alas! alas! my father's prophetic forebodings were but too well +founded! The ways of God are just, and the dispensations of his wisdom are +not to be scanned, much more disputed, by impious man; to submit to his +Divine will without repining, is the imperative duty of every sincere +Christian. I shall never forget the day, nor the care and anxiety of my +excellent father. We set off early, in order to walk leisurely to church, +that my mother should not be so heated as to render her liable to catch +cold; there was my mother leaning on the right upon my father, and on the +left upon me, and two of my sisters, Elizabeth and Sophia, the one about +five, and the other about seven years old, skipping lightly along before +us. My mother enjoyed the walk very much, and as my father led her into +the church, preceded by the clergyman, upon whom we had called in our way +thither, the whole congregation spontaneously rose up to greet and to +welcome their best and kindest benefactress and amiable neighbour. A gleam +of pleasure beamed from every eye, and the curtseys and bows that were +bestowed upon her, as she passed along the aisle, most clearly shewed that +they proceeded from the impulse of grateful hearts. With a heavenly smile +of inward delight, and with an air of the greatest sweetness, she returned +their kind salutations. It was an enviable sight, and it imparted to me +such sensations of pride and delight, as have been seldom, if ever, +equalled since. To see an amiable parent, upon such an occasion, receive +the spontaneous willing homage of three or four hundred, the whole, of her +poorer neighbours, and the sincere congratulations and kind attentions of +all her friends, of this happy village, was a scene never likely to be +erased from the memory; every heart appeared to leap with joy, and it +seemed to me as if that the whole congregation were preparing to join in +prayer, and to participate in the performance of the divine service of the +afternoon, with more than usual earnestness and zealous piety. + +My mother, who was a tall, thin, elegant figure, and very fair, had a +roseate flush spread over her delicate features, and she looked beautiful +as she knelt to offer up her grateful and sincere adoration to the +omnipotent, omnipresent, merciful Disposer of All. I believe that my +father was the only person amongst the whole congregation who did not, at +that moment, enjoy unmixed delight. I could discover that his enquiring +eye was more frequently fixed upon my mother, than it was upon his +prayer-book; a sort of uneasy doubt sat visible upon his brow, and it was +plainly to be perceived that his prayers were interrupted by his +meditations upon the fearful consequences which he apprehended might be +the result of my mother's catching cold, by remaining within the walls of +a large damp building, and that building only inhabited for a few hours +once a week. But, while he was anticipating earthly misery by the loss of +the greatest blessing that kind Heaven had ever bestowed upon man, my +angelic mother's soul and body were alike absorbed in the most devout and +earnest prayer. In the mean time, the beautiful rosy hue, that had spread +such a lustre over her fair face, disappeared. My father's intense anxiety +now became so obvious to me that the dreadful uneasiness of mind which he +displayed drew my attention to the paleness which had succeeded the colour +upon her cheek. The instant the clergyman began to pronounce the +concluding prayer, "The peace of God," &c. my father flew across the seat, +while my mother was yet on her knees, joining most fervently and devoutly +in that beautiful sentence, and exclaimed, in a loud half whisper, which +was heard all over the church, "for God's sake! are you not well, my +love!" She appeared surprised at the earnestness of his manner, and rather +hurt at being interrupted in her devotions; but replied, that she was very +well, only a little cold. He hurried her out of the church, and scarcely +gave her time to return the salutations of her neighbours, requesting her +to take his and my arm, and hasten home as fast as possible, to avoid the +effect of a chill which he very much feared that she had taken in the +church. + +When we got home she was rather fatigued, but, though the colour that had +adorned her face did not return, she ate her dinner with a good appetite, +and my father began to hope that his fears were groundless. His hope was +soon blighted: my mother suddenly screamed out, saying that she had a +violent pain in one of her feet. She complained of this pain, sometimes in +one foot and sometimes in the other, till bed time; but my father, in +order to hide his own forebodings, endeavoured to rally her, and in a +joking way told her she was going to have the gout. She took some warm +gruel, and retired early to rest. + +About twelve o'clock my father came into my bedroom to awake me, and +desired me to rise immediately, take my horse, and go for the family +apothecary, who lived at a distance of about five miles. I, who was +accustomed to rise at a moment's warning, jumped out of bed, and with the +greatest haste performed the sad office. I accompanied the apothecary to +her bedside before two o'clock, for I had made my poney almost fly thither +and back. We found my poor father, who had been anxiously attending the +progress of her disorder, in great distress. She had no sooner gone to bed +than she was seized with cold chills, which continued, with alternate +fever, the paroxysms of which had increased with such violence that she +was already partially delirious. The next day Dr. Barvis[7], from Devizes, +attended her and pronounced her in considerable danger. I mounted my +poney, rode back with him, and soon returned again with the medicine he +had prescribed; but my mother's disorder baffled all their skill and +attention. My poor father was distracted; he never quitted her bedside for +a moment; all his large farming concerns were left to the care of the +servants; he desired me to go to them on the Monday morning, the day after +my mother was taken ill, and to request them all to do their best in each +of their separate departments, and they were left entirely to themselves; +every other thought but what was directed to the attention and care of my +mother was abandoned; my father, whom I had never known to neglect seeing +all his servants once a day at least, and who suffered nothing to be done +unless it was under his immediate direction, would not now listen even to +an inquiry about his business; his whole soul was wrapped up in his +attention to my mother, whose illness he had anticipated with a presaging +spirit, even before it came upon her. I was incessantly employed in going +too and from the medical attendants, and assisting to wait upon my mother; +and from the time of her first attack she took nothing but from the hand +either of myself or my father. Her illness was now pronounced to be a +determined putrid fever, and she was continually in a delirious state. Her +infant son, William, had been kindly received to nurse by an excellent +neighbour, Mrs. Patient of Compton, a most worthy lady, who nursed him and +her own son together, with great good-nature and ease to herself. + +My mother grew worse and worse, and was at length pronounced by the +physician past all hopes of recovery. My poor father was frantic; he, who +possessed the most manly resolution and firmness upon all other occasions, +was now by excessive grief and despair reduced almost to the level of a +child; he alternately wept and prayed; but he wept and prayed in vain. I +was at this time under seventeen years of age, and I had scarcely time to +vent my sorrow. Although I was distressed beyond measure at the suffering +of my mother, yet the affliction, the indiscribable anguish, of my father +demanded almost as much of my attention as the illness of my mother. To +see his noble soul bent down to the earth, driven almost to the madness of +desperation, was to me a more heart-rending spectacle than the delirium +which produced a sort of stupor in my mother. She had not been sensible +for any considerable period of time together for two days; and we were +under dreadful apprehensions that she would be taken from us without ever +recovering her reason. This my poor father dreaded excessively; yet the +very thing we most prayed for, proved, when it was ultimately granted to +us, our greatest affliction; so incapable are poor frail mortals of +judging what is best for them under such trying circumstances. + +My mother had now lain as it were in a doze for about two hours, and my +father and myself, who were anxiously watching every breath, observed her +awake up, as if it were from a sound sleep; she appeared to feel as if she +had recovered from a trance; she spoke; and to the great joy of my father +and myself she was perfectly collected. But our joy was of the most +transient nature. She looked around in the most melancholy manner, and +having enquired where all the children were gone, she expressed a great +desire to see them before she breathed her last; for she said she was +perfectly sensible of her situation, and she must see her children once +more. They had all been removed to the house of a friend, as those who +remained were considered in imminent danger from infection, the putrid +state of my mother having assumed a very alarming appearance, and no one +was now left, except my father, myself, and the nurse; the maid servant +having already failed with the fever. My poor father had entreated, nay +had commanded _me_ also to save myself by flight; but upon my knees I +implored him to let me remain and participate with him in performing the +last sad office for my dear mother; I told him that I should break my +heart to leave him alone; for he really was now become an object of much +greater pity than my dying parent. + +My mother repeated so earnestly her wish to see her children, that they +were immediately sent for, and she took a last sad farewell of them. They +were hastened out of the room, that they might be removed at once from +such a melancholy scene, and from the serious danger of contagion, arising +from the dreadful state of their mother. To those who have never witnessed +a parting of this sort, any attempt of mine to convey to them even a +slight representation of the agony it inflicts on those who undergo it, +would be in vain, for it is impossible. The great exertion of my poor +mother, during this affecting scene, was such as left her almost without +the power of speech; her respiration became excessively quick, and my +afflicted father exclaimed, "I shall never hear her voice again!" She, +however, soon recovered a little, and in the most plaintive strain +lamented her approaching end, and prayed aloud to her blessed Saviour, to +spare her life that she might have the happiness of seeing her children +brought up. In fact, this most excellent of women appeared very much to +dread the hand of death. My father now implored her to be tranquillised, +and, in the most tender and affectionate manner, assured her, that of all +living creatures she was, he thought, the best prepared to enter the +presence of her Creator. She calmly replied that though to her knowledge +she had never intentionally injured any human being, either in _thought, +word, or deed_; though she had never neglected her duty to her Maker, but +had always acted to the best of her judgment so as to deserve his mercy; +yet, she trembled, and doubted, and feared to die. My father now observed +that her voice faltered, and, to draw her attention from such a painful, +heart-rending subject, he asked her if she knew me, supposing that she was +becoming insensible. With the kindest look she took my hand, and gently +replied, "I know him perfectly well, God bless him!" She then seized his +hand also, and instantly expired, grasping both. Thus breathed the last, +of as bright, as lovely, and as perfect a pattern of Christian piety as +ever lived to grace society, and to adorn and bless a husband and family. + +My father's sorrow was now become too intense for outward shew; he stood +dumb and motionless, with his eyes fixed and rivetted upon her, in whose +death he felt that he had sustained an irretrievable loss. We had both +still hold of her hands; his mute, immovable figure looked like a statue; +and I fancied that his heart was breaking. I seized him by the hand, and +in the most supplicating manner implored him to leave the room. My extreme +sorrow seemed to awake him from his trance; and I led him gently, and he +followed involuntarily, out of the chamber. Having seated him in his armed +chair, I knelt before him, and threw my head in his lap, there I gave a +loose to my grief, and mingled my tears with those which were now flowing +in streams down his manly cheeks. To endeavour to describe what I felt, +upon this melancholy event, would be puerile in the extreme; none but +those who have been placed in a similar situation are capable of +comprehending the distress which enters the soul of such a husband and +child, who had witnessed the last sad moments of such a wife and mother. + +To have dwelt so long upon such a melancholy subject, may, perhaps, appear +to some of my readers to be not only unnecessary, but tedious. I must, +therefore, intreat their indulgence, by confessing my error, if an error +it be. At the same time I must assure them, that I believe this to have +not only been the most important event of my life, but that it was a +matter of more serious importance to me than all the occurrences of my +previous existence multiplied ten times ten fold; and this being the case, +I shall rely upon their kind forgiveness with great confidence; for I feel +that every incident of my life, for many years after this, may be fairly +said to have been influenced in some degree, or in some way or other, by +this ever to be regretted, never to be forgotten, loss. + +My father remained absorbed in melancholy, shut himself up, and refused to +see any one till after the last sad office had been performed for my +mother. In the mean time, he gave me instructions to overlook all the +servants, and to superintend their work. + +At length the day arrived for performing the ceremony of depositing her +honoured remains in the family vault, which was in the chancel of the +parish church. My father and myself followed as chief-mourners; and, +during the performance of the funeral service, I believe there was not a +dry eye amongst the numerous congregation who attended. Every one felt +that he had sustained a loss. My father was so agitated, that I thought at +one moment he would have thrown himself headlong into the grave, upon my +mother's coffin; and it was with some difficulty that he was drawn from +the sacred spot. + +The maid servant was yet confined to her bed, very ill with the fever; and +my eldest sister, who was about thirteen years of age, also fell sick the +morning before the funeral took place. When we returned from church, we +found that she had been obliged to go to bed, and the apothecary declared +that she also had taken the fever. My father was very much alarmed for the +consequences, and he now devoted his whole attention to the care of my +sister, and left me entirely to manage his business. + +The servant soon got well, in spite, as it were, of herself; for having +heard the dogs howl very much one night, the circumstance made such an +impression upon her weak, fearful mind, that it was with the greatest +difficulty she could be persuaded that she was better. The howling of the +dogs she considered as a certain omen of her death, and she gave herself +up entirely to this ridiculous notion; nor could any thing short of a most +excellent constitution have saved her from falling a prey to her own +superstition. However, having been almost forced out of her bed, and +persuaded with difficulty to put on her cloaths, she soon found, to her +great astonishment, that she was as well as ever she was in her life, with +the exception of being a little languid from the effects of the fever. The +recovery of poor BETTY KITE was a great comfort to the whole family; for, +although she was one of the plainest women in the world, and also very +illiterate, and full of superstition, yet she was an unequalled servant +both as to cleanliness and work. I was a great plague to her in various +ways. She not being the best tempered woman in the world, I used to +irritate her very much, by imitating the howling of dogs; and the +complaints that she frequently made to my father of my conduct to her were +truly ridiculous. + +My father was now left a widower, in the prime of life; (at least he +considered himself quite in the prime of life at the age of fifty-eight) +with six children, myself the least, three sisters and two brothers. With +such a family, the loss of a mother is at all times, and under almost all +circumstances, the most serious and irreparable; but the loss of such a +mother as ours, alas it was most distressing! Ours was indeed a house of +joy turned into a house of mourning; it was not the same house, it was not +the same family. There stood my poor departed mother's chair, and the +sight of the vacant seat perpetually called forth our tears, and sighs, +and lamentations; my father would not have it removed,--but I must quit +this subject, or I shall dwell upon it for ever. + +My sister recovered from the fever, but there remained such a languor and +weakness, that it was a long time before she could walk alone. My father +dreaded her loss now almost as much as he had before dreaded that of my +mother; he devoted a great portion of his time to her, and I was still +left to look after his very extensive business. I shall never forget the +authority I now began to assume. I was as dictatorial over the servants, +and gave my commands as peremptorily, as if I had been an old farmer. Some +of the old servants, who knew that my directions were improper, disputed +my commands, and expostulated against my proceedings. However, like a true +Jack in office, feeling that I was clothed with power, I considered this +"brief authority" to be all-sufficient, and, like all other ignorant +upstarts, what I was deficient in knowledge and real information, I made +up in positiveness. But I soon found that by this foolish course, I lost +all influence, and that I was laughed at by the old servants, who knew +very well how to please my father, and I was, therefore, astonished that +they did not know how to please me. My own sense now whispered to me that +I must be wrong, yet, I nevertheless, appealed to my father, and +complained of some of the servants having refused to comply with my +directions. He enquired what those directions were, and he soon taught me +that I ought to have applied for information to, and have followed the +advice of, those very men with whom I had been contending. My father then +pointed out to me the absolute necessity of becoming a master of my own +business, and learning how to do the work myself, before I attempted to +give directions to others. "This want of knowledge," said he, "causes more +than half of the quarrels and squabbles that arise between the master and +the servant. The moment a servant finds out that his master does not +understand the nature of his business, he immediately begins to dispute +his orders, and then there is an end of all authority; the master probably +perseveres in his error, and insists upon it that his servant has not done +his work properly, or that he has not done enough; and the moment a master +orders a servant to do what is unreasonable, that moment the servant +despises the master. And, unless the master knows how himself to shew the +servant with his own hands the way to do any thing, he had better hold his +tongue, and not find any fault whatever. I found my old neighbour Barnes," +continued he, "the other day in this predicament. Although he has been for +many many years a farmer, and manages his farm as well as most men, yet, +as he was bred up a gardener, he does not know, nor did he ever learn, how +to perform many of the laborious parts of husbandry; and I shall, I am +sure, convince you, from what occurred to him, of the absolute necessity +of acquiring a knowledge of every minute operation belonging to the +affairs of husbandry, before you will be able to manage your business with +ease to yourself, and with satisfaction to your servants. As I was riding +past the risk yard of my worthy friend and neighbour Barnes's farm, I +heard him storming and blustering, quite in a rage with passion. "What is +the matter, friend Barnes? what is it that has ruffed your temper so?" He +was nearly choaked with passion; but at length he informed me, that one of +his labourers, of the name of RODNEY, (who, by-the-bye, I believe had +acquired this nick name from the circumstance of his having been a sailor, +and fought under Admiral Rodney) had behaved to him in the most insolent +manner. + +"What has he done, neighbour Barnes?" + +"Why," said he, "I found fault with the fellow several times, for not +making the _Helms_ properly, for thatching the ricks, and he told me as +often that he could not make them any better, and at length he put his +hand into his pocket, pulled out his purse, and with an oath declared that +he would make an Helm with me for a wager of a shilling." "Well, neighbour +Barnes, what did you do, did you accept his offer, or did you shew him how +to do it without the wager"? "Oh, no, replied he, I will send the insolent +scoundrel about his business." Upon which, guessing that my neighbour did +not understand how to make a helm himself, therefore could not shew the +man how to do it, I said, "let me see the fellow, and talk to him a +little, and hear what he has got to say for himself; and let me see +whether I cannot make him do his work better." We then rode back together +to the man, who was doing his work certainly not so well as it ought to +have been done. "Well, Rodney," said I to him, "what is all this dispute +about, between your master and you?" "Lord, Sir," replied the man, "I do +the work as well as I can; but master is always finding fault, and wont +show me how to do it better. I am very willing to learn, Sir, and if you +will please to show me how, I will do any thing to please in my power." I +then alighted from my horse, and having made some Helms, convinced the man +of his error, by ocular demonstration. He was very thankful for my +kindness, immediately followed my example, and did the remainder of his +work to the thorough satisfaction of his master as well as with ease to +himself. Barnes was now grown cool, and, while he expressed his thanks to +me, he admitted the great superiority that a man who knows the practical +part of his business had over one who only knew the theory."["] + +This was the method my father took, to instruct me in useful knowledge; +and, as my sister grew better and gained strength, he by degrees began to +accompany me over his farms again, and in his rounds he made it his +peculiar business to explain every part of the operations that were in +progress by the servants. He appeared to take quite as much delight in +cultivating my mind as he did in cultivating the soil, and no man knew +better than he did how to cultivate the soil and manage a farm in all its +branches. When there was any particular work to do, I always made a hand +in it, and my father never failed to take pains to shew me how to do it +well, and in the most scientific manner; always observing, that no man +could perform his work well unless he appeared to do it easily to himself. +Sowing time came, I learned to sow; haymaking time came, I learned to mow; +harvest came, I learned to reap; in fact, I learned not only to plough, to +sow, to reap, to mow, to pitch, to load, to make ricks, to thrash, and to +winnow, but I made it my study to excel in all these things; and in +recounting some of my feats of activity, strength, agility, and +perseverance in these matters, the reader will recollect that I am +recording them in the life time of numerous individuals, who were +eye-witnesses of these facts, and who worked side by side with me; and as +I know that this work is taken in, and read, not only by my old +school-fellows, but also by my old[8] work-fellows, they who peruse these +pages will take into their consideration, that I am not writing, neither +are they reading, a novel or a romance; that on the contrary, they are +perusing the real facts that have occurred within the knowledge and the +recollection of thousands. + +After the labour of the day was over, and the servants had retired to +their homes to obtain their natural rest, to fit them for the toils of the +coming morn, my father used to read, alternately with myself, some useful +or entertaining book; and be frequently lamented that I appeared to give +up so much the study of my Latin books. I had all along spent a few hours, +twice or three times a week, in reading the Classics with the Rev. Mr. +Carrington, the clergyman of the parish, who was an excellent scholar, and +a very sensible, liberal-minded, worthy man. To him I am greatly indebted +for a deal of useful, sound information, and a knowledge of that portion +of mankind with whom my father had never associated. Mr. now the Rev. Dr. +Carrington, the Rector of Berkeley, in Gloucestershire, took great +pleasure in completing my education; and at the end of one year, with the +advantage of this friendly assistance, I believe sincerely that I had +acquired more knowledge, both of literature and of ancient and modern +history, than I should have done in seven years at college. + +Although my time was so much occupied in the business of the farms, yet I +longed for the refined instruction of the mind, which was conveyed with so +much kindness, with so much care, and with so much assiduity, by this +worthy and intelligent man. He was at that time denominated by the vulgar, +illiterate, grovelling, low-bred slaves of the day, a _jacobin_; and this +excellent, enlightened being, who possessed more real love of country than +a _legion_ of the reptiles with which he was surrounded, was constantly +exposed to the petty insults of some of his big-bellied, big-headed, +empty-pated neighbours, who termed themselves loyal and constitutional +subjects, and who took upon themselves to point him out as an enemy to his +country, because he did not choose to shut his eyes and join in the +war-whoop, the savage, stupid, ideotic cry against the patriotic efforts +that were then making by the friends of liberty in France, to rescue their +fellow countrymen from the accursed yoke, the double bondage of +superstition and tyranny. + +This was the period that the people of England, at all times and in all +ages esteemed the most credulous people in the universe, were made drunk +with their own ignorance and folly. Mr. Paine had now written and +published his wonderful book, his "Rights of Man," and to put down, to +prevent the people from reading, to prejudice the public feeling, and to +misrepresent and to vilify the author and his work, the whole power of +this powerful government was put in motion. I was myself at this time too +young to take any active part in the proceedings; I knew nothing of +politics; I loved my country, and was taught to honour my king; I knew not +what to make of the violence and bigotry of faction; but I always so far +stood by, and gave that support to, my tutor and friend, as to demand that +he should be heard in his own defence, when any of these brutal attacks +were made upon him by his half-savage, half-human assailants. My father +was a loyal, but a liberal-minded man; when he was present, the parson +always had fair play; my father would combat his arguments, but he would +always in return hear his reply, and, although he was a very shrewd, +intelligent, well-informed man, yet I generally observed that Mr. +Carrington had the best of the argument, and that he frequently convinced +my father of the truth of his positions. As my father was obliged, in +fairness, to admit the truth of his opponent's assertions, and the +correctness of his reasonings, and the conclusions which he drew +therefrom, he generally finished by putting in the plea of necessity, and +defending the government and measures of Mr. Pitt, on the ground of +policy. This used to enrage their audience, which consisted of the farmers +of the parish and neighbourhood, among whom was frequently some upstart +puppy, some ineffable coxcomb, one of their sons, perhaps, apprenticed at +the neighbouring town, who came home on a Sunday, at Easter, Whitsuntide, +Michaelmas, or Christmas, on a visit, and who had imbibed a double portion +of the mania, in consequence of his having licked up the froth and saliva +which had been vomited forth by the ministerial agents and tools of the +rotten borough, or corporate town, of which his master was one of the +rotten limbs. How often have I seen one of these self-sufficient cubs, +with all the solemn mummery, without half the sense, of an ape, deliver +what the fool vainly called his opinion, which consisted of the most +stupid and senseless contradictions and assertions, generally finishing +with something which he conceived to be unanswerable, _"as our mayor +said!"_ How often have I felt my blood boil, to hear my worthy friend and +preceptor insulted by one of these contemptible jackanapes. In fact, more +than once, when I found that my friend the clergyman did not condescend +even to return a look of contempt in answer to such despicable trash, I +have taken up the cudgels myself; but, being fully as ignorant of such +matters as my opponent, it generally followed that I retorted nothing more +than flat contradictions to his assertions, and frequently I proposed to +settle the dispute by an appeal to force; and sometimes it actually ended +in blows. My worthy friend used at first to laugh at my zeal most +heartily; but when he found that I more than once concluded by a +_knock-down_ argument, he begged me to moderate my ardour, and +expostulated with me upon the impropriety, as well as the absurdity, of my +following the example of such contemptible opponents, by falling into the +very error which he and all good and honest men must deplore, "that of +resorting to brute force, instead of relying upon truth, reason, and +justice." + +Yet though I was warmly his friend, I own I thought the parson took up the +matter too harshly against the measures of Mr. Pitt, and I could not +understand many of the grounds of complaint which he made against the +proceedings of government. I was taught to believe that those who promoted +the Revolution and guillotined the King of France were bloody-minded +fellows, and that the people of this happy country ought to do any thing +rather than submit to have its streets stained with the blood of their +monarch. I was in the habit of hearing all the ridiculous stories of +invasion, rapine, and murder, and of listening to all the hobgoblin +accounts of what we were to expect from our fellow creatures on the other +side of the channel, and my young mind was worked up to such a pitch, that +I longed to become one of the number of those who were going to resist and +to punish them if ever they dared to invade our happy shores; nay, I +always expressed my determination, if that day should ever arrive, that I +would not remain at home, wasting my time in inglorious ease and safety, +while they were disfiguring the fair face of our favoured Isle with blood +and conquest. My father, who had frequently heard me burst out in loud +declamation and expressions of a patriotic feeling of abhorrence, and +threaten defiance in case any attempt at invasion was made, began to +reason with me upon this subject; and he trusted that I should never put +myself forward to enter any of the volunteer corps, as they were called; +adding "why, do you not see that amongst these men every idea of sincere +patriotism or genuine love of country is a mere joke, a farce? Look +round," said he, "and you will find that nine out of every ten persons who +enter these corps do it at the command of their landlord, or some other +person in power, who is a magistrate, or the immediate agent of +government." + +I had never before heard my father talk in this manner; but our little +friend, the clergyman, appeared delighted to think that he had made a +convert of him, and he expressed his pleasure upon ascertaining this fact, +by hearing him talk to and admonish me in the way he did. He joined in my +father's censure of the selfish motives and views of those exclusively +loyal gentry, the yeomanry, and said they were a set of tools of the +government, who wished to enslave the minds as well as the bodies of their +fellow countrymen. "Hold! hold!" said my father to the parson, "you +mistake me if you think I am a convert to your doctrine, I am a truly +loyal man, and a sincere friend of the constitution both in church and +state; and if I thought these volunteer corps were raised for the sole +purpose of repelling the invasion of the French, I would not only wish my +son to enter into one of them, but I would also go myself, old as I am, +rather than live under a foreign domination. My opinion," said he, "always +has been that we ought not to have meddled with the affairs of France; +that we had quite enough to do to mind our own business, and if we could +only take care of our own concerns, and manage them with a little more +economy, and do justice by the people, and keep our magistrates and the +courts of law independent, upright and impartial in their decisions, we +need not dread the French, nor all the foreigners in the world put +together." "Why, really, my friend," replied Mr. Carrington, "you have now +been merely repeating that for which those whom you call jacobins have +been contending: they wish for nothing more than you have said we all +ought to have, with this exception, that they say, that the "only way to +secure this is by the means of a free and equal representation."" "Ah!" +said my father, "there's the rub; that word _equal_ will never go down; do +you want that _equality_ which has caused the shedding of so much blood in +France?" "No, Sir," said the parson, "we want equal justice, equal +political rights; in fact all we want, and all that the people require, to +make them free and happy, is _equal laws_ and an _impartial_ and _just +administration of those laws_, which we shall never have while the present +corrupt system lasts. However," said the clergyman to me, "my young +friend, do nothing hastily; but should you go into any of the yeomanry +corps, with your zealous feeling and patriotic love of country, I fear you +will be woefully disappointed if you expect to find any of your comrades +acting under a corresponding impulse. Their main object appears to be to +secure their corn ricks, and to keep up the price of their grain; and +their landlords, who are the officers of these their tenants, encourage +this measure, that they may be enabled to pay them high rents. Depend upon +it nine tenths of them are actuated by this selfish feeling; therefore, +let me advise you to reserve your disinterested and praiseworthy +patriotism for another and a better occasion." My father said there was +too much truth in our friend's observations, and under this impression I +was induced to forego my design of being among the first to volunteer into +one of these troops that were about to be embodied; and very much to the +satisfaction of my father, as well as to that of my tutor, I resolved to +redouble my attention to the business of the farm. + +At this time, in the beginning of the year 1794, great alarm was raised +and propagated all over the country, of the introduction of French +principles. Party spirit ran high in every company and society. A great +portion of the enlightened part of the community protested in very loud +terms against the war, and numerous petitions were sent from various parts +of the country demanding peace. The debates in parliament were very +violent, and Mr. Fox, with an irresistible eloquence and a prophetic +voice, foretold the disasters that were likely to follow, if such a course +of hostility were pursued against the liberties of France, and he accused +the ministers of making and continuing the war for the purpose of +ultimately restoring the tyranny of the Bourbons, and replacing that +family upon the throne. This was disclaimed by all the ministers, and Mr. +Pitt broadly and unequivocally denied that they had any such intention. +The opposition moved to address the King to make peace, but this was +negatived by a large majority, and _war! war! war!_ eternal war against +French principles! was the cry which was resounded by all the agents of +the government throughout the country; and although this was lamented and +deplored by every humane, thinking, rational man, yet such was the fact, +that the nation was drunk with the clamour, and particularly the _lower +orders_ (for they then truly merited the degrading appellation). Church +and King mobs were the order of the day! Every honest man who had the +courage to express his opinion, was denounced as a jacobin; and great +depredations were committed in many parts of the country. Dreadful +outrages of this sort had been perpetrated at Birmingham, as far back as +the year 1792, by the drunken, hired, besotted populace destroying the +houses and property of several worthy and patriotic, and therefore +obnoxious, individuals. At Bath a very worthy man of the name of Campbell +had his house pulled down by one of these drunken church-and-king mobs, +merely because he took in the COURIER NEWSPAPER, published by the +notorious DANIEL STEWART, who was a violent republican, and who propagated +his principles and doctrines in that paper. I am informed that the _hired +wretches_, who acted under authority, actually pulled down this poor +fellow's house to the tune of _God save the King;_ many of the loyal +inhabitants of that loyal town, who were standing by looking on, excited +them to persevere, by joining in the chorus. Poor Campbell was ruined by +the loss of his house and furniture, which broke his heart. The fact of +his taking in the Courier was understood to have arisen from his +acquaintance with Stewart, with whom he had been in the habits of intimacy +when they were both JOURNEYMEN TAYLORS. This notorious DANIEL STEWART, who +has made a _large fortune_ by turning his coat, and devoting the columns +of the Courier to the ministers, is still the same man at the bottom of +his heart; and I understand, from those who are his pot companions, that +he is as violent a _jacobin_ and supporter of revolutionary doctrines over +his cup as he ever was. To call such a miserable creature as this a +_radical_, would be to cast a greater stigma upon the word radical than +all that Castlereagh, Brougham, and Canning ever sent forth against those +who bear it. It is confidently asserted by those who profess to know his +private concerns, that he has feathered his dirty nest well, and that, as +the best means of securing his ill gotten pelf, he has lately invested it +in the _French funds_, to the amount of one hundred thousand pounds! + +On the first of June in this year, 1794, the _brave sailors_ under Lord +Howe defeated the French fleet, took seven sail of the line, and brought +them into Spithead; and it was announced that the king and queen and the +royal family were going to Portsmouth, to thank and to congratulate Lord +Howe and those brave officers who had survived the dreadful slaughter of +the engagement. As the _Prince of Wales_, a ninety-six gun ship of war, +was to be launched upon the occasion, a great number of persons from the +part of the world where I lived, which was about fifty miles from +Portsmouth, were going there to see the launch, and to witness the effect +of this bloody battle. I was very anxious to make one of the party, and I +expressed my wish to my father, with which he positively refused to +comply. This refusal arose from some little misunderstanding we had about +a favourite maid servant of his who lived with us at the time, to whom I +had not conducted myself with all the attention that she required. She had +therefore caused that sort of shyness and distance between my father and +me, which rendered my home not so pleasant as it had heretofore been, and +indeed exactly the reverse of what it had been in my poor mother's life +time. My father assigned as a reason for his detaining me, that there was +some hay about, and although this was of very trivial moment, it being a +very small quantity, yet he positively refused to give his consent to my +going. I urged my plea of constant attention to business, and my +extraordinary personal exertions for several years past, wherein I had +done more work than almost any two of his men servants, and I demanded to +know if he had ever seen me neglect his business, or shift from performing +the severest labour? He admitted that he had no fault to find with me, and +that he did not require that I should work so hard; nay, he added, that, +so far from having any complaint to make against me for not working, he +thought I tasked myself too much, and that he was fearful that I should +injure myself by such excessive exertions as he had frequently witnessed. +"Then pray, Sir," said I, "why will you not allow me a little recreation? +this small indulgence?" I promised I would return at the end of two days. +But all would not do. I found that his favourite maid had prejudiced him, +and I was foolish enough to hint this to him, which he resented very +warmly, and gave me a lecture in such language as I had never before +received from him. At length we rose to very high words, and the dispute +was of so serious a nature that he almost ordered me out of doors. It +ended in my declaring that _nothing should deter me_ from going to +Portsmouth, and by his declaring that, if I did, I should never enter his +house again; and in order to put my threat of going out of my power, he +took _my horse_, which was already saddled, instead of his own, and rode +out to the other farm. + +Burning with rage at this harsh, this unusual, as well as unjust +treatment, I rushed up stairs, and began dressing myself for the journey. +My sister flew up stairs with tears in her eyes, and upon her knees +implored me not to think of going. I coolly asked her if she had heard +what passed between my father and me. She replied that she had heard it +with the greatest astonishment and dismay, and that she had heard my +determination with the greatest pain. Although she knew too well the cause +of my father's harshness to me, and felt most acutely the reason of his +ill humour, which she herself had sometimes partaken of, and had borne in +silence, yet she dreaded the effect of my leaving home. However, all her +expostulations were in vain; _I had made my resolve_, and that once done +with me, _even then_, nothing but death would have deterred me from +carrying it into effect. Having dressed myself, I saddled my father's +favourite horse, as he had taken mine, and having mounted him, I was +twenty miles on my road to Portsmouth in less than two hours. + +I slept with a friend, and started the next morning at four o'clock, to +ride the remaining thirty miles, in order to be there by eleven o'clock, +which was the hour the ship was to be launched. On the other side of +Andover I overtook a gentleman, of the name of NEALE, who, as well as +myself, was also going to Portsmouth, to see the Royal Family. I had known +him a little when a boy at school at Andover, and having soon learned each +others intentions, we agreed to go in company together. We intended to +have breakfasted at Winchester, but we were too early, all the windows and +doors of the inns were shut, and we passed on till we came to Whiteflood, +a small inn by the road side, where we got good corn for our horses, and +an excellent breakfast for ourselves. + +We arrived at Gosport about nine o'clock, and having put up our horses we +crossed to Portsmouth about ten. The gates of the dockyard were closed, +and we were told that we were too late to be launched in the man of war, +that the king, queen, and three or four of the princesses were at the +governor's house, and the ship would be launched at eleven precisely. I +had more anxiety about being launched _in_ a ship of war, never having +seen any thing of the sort before, than I had about any thing; therefore I +felt greatly mortified at being too late, and I began to try the +experiment of bribing the gatekeeper, who had positive orders not to let +any one pass after that hour. My friend Neale, seeing it in vain to remain +there, took another course, and said he would get a boat to see the +launch, if he could not get into it; but as I had set my heart upon being +in the ship when it was launched, I remained at the door. As soon as I was +alone with the door-keeper, I renewed my application, and finding that he +began to relax, I plied him close, and he soon put me in the way how to +_cheat the devil_. He asked if I did not know any one who lived in the +dock yard, and I instantly made up my mind to say yes, and urged him to +repeat some of their names. This he did, and I was luckily saved the +disgrace of telling a lie, for the second person he named was an old +school-fellow of mine; and I never in my life claimed acquaintance with +any old friend with so much alacrity and pleasure. A half crown now opened +the gates, and in I went, a fine sunburnt country youth, and made my way +to my friend's house as fast as possible. Another check! he was from home! +I then hastened to the part where the majestic Prince stood upon her few +remaining stocks, ready at a moment's notice for the signal of being +launched into the watery element. But no entrance was to be obtained! all +communication was cut off from the dock to the vessel, except by one step +ladder, strongly guarded, waiting for the arrival of the principal +commissioner, who had gone to conduct the royal family to the sort of +balcony that was erected to enable them to see the whole of the launch +with ease and safety. I now placed myself as near as possible to the foot +of this ladder, anxiously waiting the arrival of the commissioner. At +length the old gentleman arrived, dressed in an admiral's uniform. The +pressure of the crowd _was immense_; but, although it was the first crowd +I had ever had to encounter, I made a dash and forced my way through, +close up to the foot of the ladder and, as the old officer ascended, I +sprang through the sentinels and up the steps, and held him fast by the +skirt of his coat. The sentinels seized me and pulled me back, with great +violence. _I held fast_, and down came the commissioner and myself +together to the bottom of the ladder. The old boy stared, and the +sentinels swore, but I _still held fast_. They endeavoured to release him, +and struck me some hard blows. With one desperate effort, however I sprang +by the commissioner, and was up the ladder like a cat. I was seized at the +top to be handed back again, and as I was about to make a determined +resistance, the commissioner came up and kindly released me, and after a +gentle reprimand for placing him in such danger, I was permitted to remain +on board and to be launched in the _Prince of Wales_; having got on board +more than an hour after all other communication had been cut off from her: +and I obtained this gratification in the presence of thousands, who hailed +the success of my daring perseverence by giving me _three cheers_. This +was the first act of my life that gained me the cheers of a large +multitude, and I was not a little proud of the compliment. I believe there +were upwards of a thousand persons on board, and I was struck with +astonishment at the stupendous magnitude of a ship of war of the first +rate. On the larboard side of this magnificent specimen of the wooden +walls of old England, sat the venerable monarch George the Third with his +Queen and their fine family of Princesses in all their pride and beauty, +two or three of them at that time being remarkably fine young women. I +believe they were accompanied by one of the princes, and on the side of +the king stood the victorious hero of the day, Lord Howe, commonly called +by the sailors, _Black Dick_. In a few minutes, unknown and unobserved by +me, the signal was given, and she glided almost imperceptibly from the +stocks into the middle of the harbour, thus riding most majestically +dignified in the midst of applauding and admiring myriads who hailed her +progress with enthusiastic cheers; the king, the queen, and the princesses +all waving their handkerchiefs. Such was the beauty of this launch, and +such was the skill with which it was accomplished that the only sensation +which I felt was, that the other ships, that were along side of us, +appeared to move gently from us. A boat now came alongside of her, being +hailed by a party, of which the late John Weeks, who then kept the Bush at +Bristol, was one, and he began to descend[9] when a thought struck me, +that as I was the last person, except the commissioner of the Dock-yard, +who came on board, so I should like to be the _first_ out of her; and the +thought was no sooner conceived than I put it in execution. + +Although there were two or three persons going down the ladder on the side +of the ship before me, yet I made a spring and jumped fourteen or fifteen +feet, and reached the boat first, at the imminent risk of swamping her. I +did not get any cheers for this, but many a reprimand for my temerity. +But, as my poor father used at that time to say, that it was a word and a +blow with me; I was very quick in forming a plan, and when I had once made +up my mind, it was generally executed with the rapidity of lightening. I +returned, and dined at the Fountain Inn with the party from Bath and +Bristol, and in the evening I called again upon my old school fellow, +whose father held some situation and lived in the dock yard, but I do not +now recollect his name. He was at home, and was very happy to see me, and +having introduced me to his father, mothers and sisters, together with +some friends who were on a visit, I drank tea with them; and being offered +it, I most willingly accepted part of his bed, a valuable acquisition to +me, as a bed was not to be had, either in, or within ten miles of +Portsmouth, for love or money. + +Before I rose in the morning, my young friend informed me that, in the +course of the forenoon, I should have an opportunity of seeing the royal +family, as they were going to inspect the dock-yard, and on that account +the gates were kept closed, that they might not be annoyed by the crowd, +which would otherwise have impeded their progress. He said that he must +not appear, but he thought I might, as a stranger, take an opportunity of +getting very near them, without creating any particular notice. + +I took the hint, and thanked him most cordially for the information; and +when the royal party came round, I joined them without any ceremony. They +were attended by very few persons, among whom were Lord Howe and the +_commissioner_ to whom I had caused such a fall the day before: the latter +eyed me immediately, and shook his head, but in such a good humoured way +that it encouraged me to remain rather than otherwise. I therefore now +joined the party, at a respectful distance. At the entrance of the cable +room lay a piece of a very large cable, about six feet long, to which Lord +Howe called the attention of the royal family, by stating that it was part +of the cable of the _French admiral's ship_, and that it had been shot off +at that length by two balls from the English fleet, which were supposed to +have struck it at the same moment at six feet distance. Lord Howe also +said that there was a twelve pounder ball stuck into it also, but as it +lay on the ground, and they could not see it, he ordered one of the +attendants to heave it upon its end. It was however, too heavy, and the +man could not accomplish it, but let it fall back again. The commissioner +was calling some one to assist, when I sprung forward, and having seized +it, I heaved it upright in an instant; for which the gallant admiral as +well as the commissioner thanked me, and I held it nearly a quarter of an +hour, while the king and all the family examined it, as it was esteemed a +great curiosity, and a striking proof of the heat and severity of the +engagement. The king very politely now thanked me, and the queen +particularly so, and expressed a desire that some one should help me to +sink it down again, fearing that it was too heavy for me; but I was +anxious to shew my strength, as well as my gallantry, and I sunk it into +its place on the ground again, with great ease. The princesses deigned a +smile, which I esteemed a very high reward. After this I went round the +whole dock yard with the party, and offered my assistance whenever it was +wanted, which was accepted with the greatest politeness; the princesses +entering at times freely into conversation with me. + +At length the commissioner took me aside, and asked me how I came into the +dock yard. I stated the fact to him as it was, and he then said he had his +Majesty's command to ask my name. I told him my name, what was my +occupation, and whence I came; and the king hearing that I was the son of +a large Wiltshire farmer, asked me many questions relating to the crops, +&c. &c. all of which I answered very much to his satisfaction, and when +they departed, he politely took leave of me. The reader may easily +conceive that I was not a little proud of the opportunity I had of being +so near, and of having such means of conversing with, the royal party. + +I forgot to notice, that the _Prince of Wales_, the ship which was +launched the day before, had been got back again into Dock, the same +afternoon, and was this day exhibited to his majesty _completely +copper-bottomed_, which operation had been performed in _twenty-four +hours_ by the workmen in the yard; an instance of speed and of the power +of well-directed and incessant labour, which never was before, and +probably never has since, been equalled in the annals of ship-building. I +went on board some of the captured French ships of war, that had been +cleared up from the carnage of the battle for the inspection of the royal +visitors; but, notwithstanding the care which had been taken to put them +in a state fit to be viewed, the visible proofs of the horrible slaughter +met the eye in every direction, and the recollection of the sight, even at +this distance of time, makes the heart sicken. + +Although I was at this time in the zenith of my loyalty, I could not avoid +enquiring of myself whether all this blood and carnage, all this waste of +valuable life, was absolutely necessary? Whether no means could have been +devised to settle the point in dispute, without resorting to arms, and +sacrificing the best blood of both countries? On the one hand, the too +common feeling was, that it was absolutely necessary, and almost all those +who were the loudest in their lamentations, and who appeared most to +deplore the dreadful loss of so many gallant men, were at the same time +the greatest advocates of the war, and boldly justified it upon the score +of dire necessity; adding, that it was better a few should suffer in war, +than that the whole country should be overrun by an invading army, which +they would have us to believe was composed of such monsters as would never +rest satisfied, unless they murdered us all, young and old, male and +female. The republicans of France were described as wild beasts of the +most ferocious kind, whose only delight was in blood, and who never spared +either _age_ or _sex_. But yet it often occurred to me, should but the +opinion, the representations of my worthy friend and tutor be correct, +that not the French republicans, but those who supported the war, the +English ministers, were the bloody minded monsters; that they, as he +asserted, were the cause of the war, in order to restore the old tyranny +that had desolated France, and had for so many centuries enslaved a brave, +an intelligent, and a truly gallant people? These reflections would +frequently come across my mind; but we were told they were threatening to +invade us, and the threat of an invasion always roused the spirit of every +British heart, and made it glow with the desire to repel them. + +I had now seen nearly all the sights, and as I had been absent from home +four days, I began to bend my thoughts that way; but the reflection that I +had left my father, not only without his leave, but also against his +consent, now began to render every thing that others appeared to enjoy +very irksome to me. I, however, mustered courage, took my horse, and +reached home in the afternoon of the fifth day. At the door I met my +father, who received me in the most hostile manner. He lavished his +imprecations upon my head, and as he burst out of the room, he, in a +paroxysm of passion, ordered me to quit his house, and see his face no +more. Springing by me in a menacing manner, he repeated his denunciations, +declaring that I should not remain under his roof. He then went to the +stable, took his horse, which I had just brought home, mounted it, and +rode away towards his Farms. + +Young and foolish as I was, I felt that I had given him cause of just +complaint, although I thought his conduct displayed an unnecessary and +unbecoming rigour, in refusing me such an indulgence in the first +instance? My eldest sister implored me to endeavour to conciliate my +father, and informed me how uneasy he had been since my first departure, +and what a wretched house they had had at home. But his determined aspect +at leaving me, the threats which he held out, and the peremptory tone in +which he ordered me to depart from his house, appeared to me to admit of +no alternative; and therefore, with a desperate determination I hastened +up stairs, and packed up a small portmanteau, and, in less than half an +hour, in spite of the entreaties of my sister, I was mounted upon my own +horse, and took a final leave, as I expected, of that home where I had +passed so many delightful happy days. + +As I embraced my afflicted sister, who had fainted upon seeing my +determination, and who was now relieved by a flood of tears, I could not +refrain from calling aloud upon the angelic spirit of my dear departed +mother, who had she been alive this dreadful calamity had never befallen +me or our family. I tore myself from my sister, who was in an agony of +grief, and who now upon her knees implored me to think of my father, and +how miserable my leaving home again, under such distressing circumstances, +would make him; she used all the arguments which her reason could suggest, +to persuade me that it was my duty to bear with his temper, and to submit +to his will, however arbitrary. But, as I was now of age, and as I had +laboured incessantly in my father's business for nearly five years, and +had scarcely ever left it for a day, I was mortified at his unnecessary +severity, in denying me the privilege of a day or two upon such an +occasion; and, besides, as my father's temper was very much altered since +the death of my mother, and my home was become not at all comfortable of +late, I was unfortunately not in the humour to brook such harsh treatment; +nor indeed, did I know how it was possible for me to remain after his +determined behaviour at quitting me. I therefore, most unwisely and most +imprudently, started off as I thought to seek my fortune; determined, at +all events, if I could not live in my father's house, that I would leave +the kingdom. + +I rode to Bath, a distance of thirty miles, in about three hours, whence, +having baited my horse, I rode forward to Bristol, where I arrived and put +up at the _White Lion_, in Broad-street, about eight o'clock; having +ridden from Portsmouth to Bristol, a distance of ninety five miles, in +about thirteen hours. I was not known to any one at the inn, nor to any +one in Bristol except a Mr. Gresley, of whom my father rented Littlecot +Farm. I found him out immediately, and he received me with great kindness, +expressing himself most happy to see me, as he had repeatedly given me +invitations to come and visit him. I carefully concealed the rupture with +my father, and, very luckily for me, I was in very good hands, as my +friend, although an easy voluptuary, was nevertheless an amiable and a +good-hearted man, and took care to check instead of encouraging me in any +soft of debauchery, which a youth of my age was so likely to fall into in +such a profligate city. + +I began the very next day to look out for some situation amongst the +captains of vessels outward bound, and I was soon introduced to a very +worthy man, a friend of Mr. Gresley's, who, in the course of ten days, was +about to sail to Africa in the command of a vessel upon the slave trade. I +soon imparted to him my wish to go abroad in some active situation; but I +bound him to secrecy, even with my friend Gresley. He professed to be very +much pleased with me, but endeavoured, by every means in his power, to +prevail upon me to abandon my design; and he pointed out to me, in very +glowing colours, all the miseries and all the perils which were incident +to a sea-faring life, and did every thing that he possibly could, to +persuade me to return to my father's house. At length I told him that I +was irrevocably determined to look out for a situation, and to close with +the first captain who would give me a birth, and the longer the voyage the +better I should be pleased with it; for I was resolved upon leaving +England, as I could not bear the thoughts of remaining in this country, +and an alien from the house of my father. At last, after he had +ascertained that I was immutably resolved to go to sea, he at once made me +an offer of taking me out as his _clerk and cabin friend_. I jumped at the +offer, but told him that I had but little money, and was, perhaps, ill +prepared for such a voyage. He then made one more trial to prevail upon me +to return, but with as little success as before. Finding that it was in +vain to reason any further, he then said that be would equip me the next +morning, at his own expense, with all the necessary clothing, &c. &c. for +the voyage; and he added, that if he were successful, of which he had no +doubt, he would pay me something handsome for my services, which he +anticipated would be very valuable to him. + +The morning came without my having closed my eyes, I having been entirely +occupied the whole of the night with the thoughts of my undertaking, to +which I looked forward with the greatest enthusiasm, regardless of the +atrocious occupation upon which I was about to enter. In fact, it did not +once occur to me, that the slave trade was any worse than any other trade, +so little had I thought upon it, and so little did I know of the nature of +it at that time. Thousands being engaged in it, who were protected by the +laws, it never came into my head that I was about to commit any moral +crime. Indeed, I was driven to such a state of desperation by the quarrel +which I had had with my father, and was so indignant at what I thought his +cruel treatment, that I was a fit subject for any enterprise, even had it +been ten times more desperate than that in which I was about to engage; +and, having once made up my mind to the thing, I thought of nothing else +till my trunk of clothes was ready and on board. That being effected, I +went down with the captain, and took possession of my cabin and birth in +the vessel, which lay off King's-road, and, as she was ready to sail with +the first fair wind, I should have staid on board had not the captain +insisted upon my taking leave of Mr. Gresley, and sending my horse back to +my father. Although I considered the horse as my own, and had been offered +thirty guineas for him, yet such was the liberality and proper feeling of +the captain, that he absolutely refused to take me unless I returned the +horse, and I consequently, in his presence, hired a man to take him off +the next morning. + +I was to see Mr. Gresley by appointment at the White Lion at nine o'clock +that evening, and was to go down with the captain, at eight the next day, +to the vessel, which was to weigh anchor at ten, and drop down the Bristol +Channel with the tide. The wind being fair, we expected to be off +Ilfracombe the same night. Every thing was arranged; I had written home, +and taken leave of my father and my sister, lamenting the cause, but +rejoicing in the prospect, of my voyage; I had drank tea with the captain, +and was anxiously waiting the arrival of our mutual friend Gresley to +break the affair to him, and at the same time to take leave of him, when +the waiter announced a gentleman enquiring for Mr. Hunt. I rose to +receive, as I supposed, my friend Gresley, and was prepared to give him a +brief explanation of my intentions, when, lo! who should walk in but an +intimate friend of my father's, who had just arrived in his own carriage +from Bath, in search of the fugitive. He immediately produced a letter +from my father, not only inviting my return home, not only promising +forgiveness to me, but actually intreating _my_ forgiveness for his +harshness towards me, and imploring me to hasten home, and relieve him +from the terrible state of misery to which my absence had reduced him. The +language of his letter was such as would have melted the heart of a much +more hardened offender than I was--but, I had made an engagement with the +captain, and I told my father's friend that I was sorry that he was come +too late, but that no consideration whatever should make me run from the +engagement which I had contracted with him, at my own particular request. +It is true that I felt an irresistible impulse to embrace my beloved +father again; that to be restored to his good opinion was a treasure to +me, far surpassing all and every prospect that my sanguine hopes had +painted in the most vivid colours upon my enthusiastic imagination, and +that I felt for a moment a struggle between _honour and duty_; yet, I am +almost ashamed to relate it, but the truth must be told, that I instantly +declared that as I had gone so far, no power on earth should deter me from +fulfilling my engagement with Captain ----. This worthy, warm-hearted, and +disinterested fellow, however, instantly protested, that under such +circumstances, with such a prospect of my being restored to my family and +friends, nothing in the world should induce him to take me with him. + +At this moment, my friend Gresley arrived, and heard, from the captain and +my father's friend, my obstinate resolve with the greatest astonishment. +He assured me that, unless I instantly gave up all thoughts of going, he +would get a warrant from his friend, the mayor, to detain me by force. +This was, however, unnecessary; for, after the captain's generous and +manly avowal, I yielded without farther delay to the earnest entreaties of +all present, and I believe that the worthy captain felt as much real +delight and happiness at the result as anyone of the party. My father's +friend offered to pay the captain for any expence that he had been put to +on my account, but the latter positively refused to take a farthing, +adding, that he should sell what he had provided for me for two hundred +per cent. profit, and that he would rather lose two hundred per cent. than +forego the pleasure he felt at the idea of a reconciliation, between his +young friend and his father. + +The kindness of my father's letter had a great effect upon me; the +expressions of sorrow which it contained at my departure, and the +assurance, that he would be completely miserable till my return, recalled +all his former kindness to me, and I would instantly have set out on my +way home, although it was now dusk, and it rained in torrents, I had +already ordered my horse to be saddled--that horse which I had the same +evening paid a man twelve shillings to take back to my father's house +without his master, I was now eager to mount myself, that I might fly to +receive my parent's blessing, and acknowledge my error in disobeying his +commands. But my friends all entreated me to defer my departure till the +morning, to which I reluctantly consented, and retired to bed about twelve +o'clock, after having taken a most affectionate leave of the _worthy, +generous, and kind-hearted captain_. Good God! how often have I been since +rivetted to the earth, as it were with astonishment, when I contemplated +such a man being employed upon such a cruel, unjust, unchristian, +murderous traffic as that of the _slave trade_! + +I certainly retired to my bed, having ordered the ostler to get my horse +ready by three o'clock; but no rest did I obtain. For the first time in my +life, I now learned what it was to go to bed without being able to go to +sleep; for two long hours, I tossed and turned about a thousand times, but +deep had flown from my eyes. I heard the quarters strike, and the watchman +go his lonely round; my thoughts were all at home, and I was wretched till +I threw myself at my poor distressed father's feet, to claim with a +certainty of receiving his blessing and forgiveness. I, who, but a few +hours before, expected and intended to bid farewell to my native land, and +to leave behind me all that was dear and valuable to me in this world; I, +who was prepared to sail the next morning, almost without regret, and had +thoughtlessly undertaken to become one of those who were the most horrid +and most unnatural of all unnatural and horrid thieves and murderers; I, +who should have gone to bed and slept as sound as a rock under such +circumstances till I was called in the morning, could not, now I was about +to return to my kindest friends, and to make myself and my father happy, I +could not sleep one moment. Gracious God! upon what a precipice had I +stood! from what a world of misery was I rescued, by the kind hand of +Providence! for if I had gone upon such an errand, and if I had been +instrumental in robbing one _human being or fellow creature_ of his life, +or of what was more valuable to him--his LIBERTY, it would afterwards have +been to me a source of never-failing misery. Thank God! I was saved from +that pang. Had my father's messenger come twelve hours later, I should +have been sailed, and in all probability have been a participator in such +crimes as I should never have forgiven myself, for having joined in +committing. + +The clock struck two; I could remain in bed no longer; I jumped up, and +having found my way into the yard, I roused the ostler, and having got my +horse saddled, I passed Temple Gate just as the clock struck three; and +without drawing bit more than once, I reached home before nine o'clock, a +distance of forty-five miles. My father and my sister met me at the door; +but to attempt to describe the affecting reconciliation would be only +doing an injustice to my own feelings. My poor father, however, would +scarcely allow me to offer any apology for my undutiful behaviour; he took +all the blame to himself; he had reflected more than I had upon the +consequences of my voyage, the full particulars of which I found he knew, +he having received an account of my every movement, and known all my +plans, which had in confidence been communicated by the honest captain to +Mr. Gresley, that he might apprise my father of them and endeavour by all +the means in his power to procure for me, if possible, a reconciliation +before he sailed; he being resolved to convince himself that all hopes of +that desirable object were fruitless ere he permitted me to accompany him. +This was an instance of the most disinterested friendship, and I have +every reason to believe that he even delayed the sailing of the vessel for +several days, in order to give time for Mr. Gresley to send to my father. +This information Mr. Gresley communicated without delay, and my father no +sooner received it, than he dispatched a confidential messenger, his +neighbour, Mr. John Coward of Enford, with a strict injunction not to +spare any pains to find me, and to hasten my return home. + +My Father who had hitherto, since the death, of my mother, conducted +himself towards me with a degree of austerity and rigid discipline not +altogether calculated to conciliate my hasty disposition, now relaxed his +usual strictness, and ever afterwards proved himself not only a kind +parent, but an indulgent and sincere Friend.--He lamented upon this +occasion the severe loss of my mother, in which I most heartily joined; +for we both attributed the late dispute and separation to the want of an +amiable mediator, which, if my poor mother had been alive, she would have +been upon this, as she had been in many former instances, in which she had +been of the greatest utility and benefit, as a peace-maker and promoter of +family happiness and concord. My father, who had long since witnessed with +some anxiety my aspiring disposition, now began to dread the evil +consequences of those lofty notions of patriotism, and that disinterested +love of country, which in my earlier years he had taken so much pains to +instil into my young mind, and had been so anxious that I should imbibe. +He now viewed my daring spirit with a mingled pleasure and pain; he +dreaded the result of such ardent feelings, because he foresaw that they +would lead me into the greatest difficulties and dangers, unless he +checked them by timely control. He now freely told me that he was actuated +by this motive when he refused to give me his consent to go to Portsmouth, +to witness the effects of Lord Howe's brilliant victory over the French +fleet. He told me, too, that he had the same object in view, when, the +summer before, he refused my application, to go and see the grand review +on Bagshot Heath. It was, however, at too late a period that he began to +check my patriotic ardour; he had, himself, "bent the twig," and it had +grown too powerfully in the direction which he had given to it to be +directed to any other. Although I was no politician at that time, yet my +bosom glowed with as sacred a love of country, with as strong a +predilection for the rights and liberties of the people, with as pure +disinterested love of truth and justice, as ever warmed the youthful heart +of man.--yet, notwithstanding I was a loyal man to the backbone, I never +joined in, or approved of, the persecution of any one, for holding +opinions different from those which I, myself, openly professed. I knew +many persons who were called _jacobins_ at this time, and although I +thought them violent in their principles and professions, yet I never +quarrelled with any of them upon the score of opinion. I was always the +first to stand forward to protect the oppressed; and I began sincerely to +sympathise with the labouring poor. I had now, for some years, worked with +them side by side, day by day, week by week, month by month, and year year +by year. I had toiled in the field with the labourers of my father; I had +heard their complaints; I had witnessed their increasing privations; and +although I often checked the ebullition of their discontent, which I +sometimes attributed to disaffection, yet I never mocked their misery, I +never persecuted or oppressed any one, because he was considered a +disaffected person, or what was a synonymous term a jacobin. In fact, I +sometimes got myself into very disagreeable situations, for expressing my +love of fair play. Once, in particular, I remember I was in the boxes at +the theatre at Salisbury, when there was a violent party call for "God +save the King." I was one of the loyal who as loudly demanded this tune to +be played as any loyal man in the house; after some trifling opposition +the call was complied with, and the performers came forward upon the stage +and sung it: there was then a call for hats off, and I have no doubt that +I was as zealous in this call as any one, because, in the first place I +really was a loyal man, and I was in the side boxes with a very loyal +party. There was, however, one person, in the centre of the front row of +the pit, who kept his hat on, and steadily refused to pull it off. This +caused a great uproar, and a general call to turn him out. At length, some +persons near him attempted to pull his hat off by force; but he defended +himself for some time with great success, and kept his hat still on his +head. By this time the national air was finished, but still there was a +call to pull his hat off and to turn him out; he was surrounded now by +numbers, who, urged on by those in the boxes, not only forcibly deprived +him of his hat, but likewise began to use him ill. I was now as loud in my +demand for _fair play_ as I had been previously for hats off. They still +persisted in their endeavour to turn him out, which he as manfully +resisted, although he was surrounded with a host of foes, without any one, +not even his friends who were with him, offering to give any assistance. I +cried shame! shame! shame! as loud as I could, and demanded fair play. He +had by this time at least a dozen assailing him at once, and they had +actually got him upon the spikes of the orchestra, with an intention to +throw him over out of the pit among the musicians. I felt enraged and +indignant at such unmanly conduct, and at length I sprung out of the box +into the pit, and having rushed up to him, I dealt the cowardly crew that +were attacking him some heavy falls, and soon cleared off the gang, so +that the person, whom they had literally got hanging upon the spikes, was +enabled to extricate himself. In effecting this, I received as well as +gave many severe blows; and by some I was considered as very foolish for +interfering, while all the loyal loudly blamed me for preventing his being +turned out. Although I very much disapproved of the gentleman's taste and +stubbornness, yet I could not look on and see a fellow man ill-used for +expressing his opinion, because that opinion was contrary to my own +sentiments. However, the play now proceeded, and the gentleman, Mr John +Axford of Eastcot, was allowed to keep his seat and his hat on, +uninterrupted, to the end of the performance. + +In consequence of this circumstance, I afterwards became very intimate +with Mr. Axford, who was very grateful for my assistance, and I, although +I disapproved of his politics, could not but admire his independent +spirit. He was a man of a most amiable character, much intelligence, and a +quick penetration; a great reader of the political history of this and the +neighbouring countries, he possessed the most retentive memory, and could +repeat almost all that he read. Of the French Revolution, and of Mr. +Paine's Rights of Man, he was an enthusiastic admirer, and a determined +enemy to the war that England was carrying on against the people of +France. In fact, he was a lover of truth, justice and liberty, and +therefore was of course denominated a jacobin. He lived and died railing +against the unjust and unnecessary war which the ministers of England were +waging against liberty in France; and as he was a warm admirer of Mr. Fox, +he entered into almost all his views, and joined him in forcibly +predicting all that has since occurred, as to the ruin of the country by +debt and insupportable taxation. He was, indeed, a spirited and +enlightened advocate of genuine freedom; and he never failed, even in the +worst of times, publicly to avow his sentiments. He certainly possessed +more real political knowledge, and a more correct knowledge of the +situation and the affairs of the country, than any man with whom I have +ever met, with the exception of Mr. Cobbett. Although I knew him for many +years before I concurred in his sentiments, yet I found him a sincere +friend, and a most intelligent companion, and his death was lamented more +by me than that of any political acquaintance I ever had. He died before I +was much of a politician, and before I appeared much in public life; but +from him I learned much which I have never forgotten, and which has been, +and ever will be, of the greatest service to me as a public man. Were I +not to pay this well-deserved tribute to his memory, I should prove myself +to have been unworthy of his friendship, and undeserving of my own +approbation. + +He was always denounced as a jacobin by the ignorant, and by the +interested sycophants of the day; but his merit and his public spirit were +duly estimated by all good and impartial men that knew him, and by no one +more than by the _late_, the _first_, Marquis of Lansdown, with whom he +was particularly intimate. + +At this period, 1794, the whole country was greatly agitated with +political discussions; every one having an eye upon the bloody and +ferocious proceedings committed under the tyranny of Robespierre in Paris. +This caused great alarm in England, for fear of the progress of French +principles, and all the alarmists rallied round the Pitt administration, +and war, war, eternal war against French principles, was the watch-word of +the day. The parliament met in January, and the enormous supplies were +granted almost without any opposition. Eighty thousand men were voted for +the sea, forty thousand for the land-service, and likewise one hundred +thousand militia, and FORTY THOUSAND SUBSIDISED GERMANS. The estimates for +this service amounted to NINETEEN MILLIONS. In order to keep the people in +good humour, and to make them submit to pay the enormous increase of +taxation, the threat of INVASION was held out, and described with all its +horrors as being about to be realised. This set the John Bulls half-mad; +and, like men half-mad, half-drunk, they were ready to swallow any thing +that the minister of the day prescribed. Voluntary contributions, and +volunteer corps were raised all over the country. In the mean time Mr. +Pitt, who had deserted the cause of reform, of which, previous to his +coming into power, he had been one of the warmest and most zealous +advocates, true, _apostate-like_, took care to presecute all his former +associates, who were too honest to abandon that cause which he had +betrayed. In Scotland, that excellent and worthy man, Mr. Maurice +Margarot, and others were transported for fourteen years for having been +members of the British Convention. Mr. Thos. Walker, of Manchester, was +tried on a false accusation of high treason, at Lancaster; but was +honourably acquitted. Messrs Hardy, Tooke, Joyce, and Thelwall, were also +indicted and tried upon a pretended charge of high treason, at the Old +Bailey in London; but this premeditated cold-blooded attempt of the +ministers to destroy these innocent men, their political opponents, by +setting on the plea of constructive treason, was frustrated by the verdict +of an honest London jury. Messrs. Tooke and Thelwall were very able, and +perhaps the most powerful, advocates of liberty in England at that time; +and the ministers of the day might, with some men, have justified the +attempt to destroy such enemies upon the score of STATE POLICY; but their +attempt upon poor HARDY, who was a simple, inoffensive, harmless, plodding +shoemaker, possessing neither talent, influence, nor the smallest power to +do them any harm whatever, this was a proof of the vindictive and bloody +intentions of the men in office; and it caused a great sensation +throughout the country, and the verdicts of the jury were hailed with +pleasure by every honest thinking man in the kingdom, who was not under +the influence of an unjust prejudice. The reign of terror was now +proclaimed, and a great number of worthy men were imprisoned in dungeons, +under the suspension of the Habeas Corpus act, which tyrannical proceeding +greatly agitated the whole country. This, therefore, will not be an +improper place, to record, and bring to the recollection of the public, +_who_ were the men in power, under _whose auspices_ and by whose +directions these acts were perpetrated against the lives and liberties of +the people, and particularly against those who with patriotic energy +opposed those measures which they foretold, with a prophetic warning +voice, would bring this country to that wretched state of poverty and +slavery to which it is now reduced. Although I was too young at that time +to be much of a politician, and did not enter publicly into any of the +measures for or against these proceedings, yet, as I shall henceforward +record the particular political occurrences of each succeeding year, I +shall also take care to put upon record the names of those who were at the +head of the administration, and who took a prominent part in carrying them +into execution. Mr. PITT may be truly said to have been the ruler of the +destinies of this mighty kingdom, and by means of British gold and British +blood, he ruled also the destinies of Europe. He was the administration of +England.--He is gone, but there are some who are still alive, and who I +hope will live long enough to be brought to justice, and to answer for the +share they had in committing these atrocities upon the people. During +these times LORD GRENVILLE was Secretary of State; the Hon. Henry +Addington, now LORD SIDMOUTH, was Speaker of the House of Commons; Sir +John Scott, now LORD ELDON, was Attorney General, and conducted these +prosecutions in such a way as led to his promotion to be Lord High +Chancellor of England, where he has made such an immense sum of money, and +accumulated such a princely fortune. In the early part of this year, the +marriage of the Duke of SUSSEX with Lady Augusta Murray was made public, +which caused a great noise in the country. + +During all these eventful transactions, I was labouring incessantly in my +vocation, as a farmer, and I was now become a complete master of every +branch of the profession, there being no part of it that I had not +performed with my own hands. Perhaps to speak of my personal exertions in +this way may be deemed by many superfluous, but on reflection they will, I +hope, not consider this to be the case. Hundreds, who are now living, were +eye-witnesses of what I may almost call the prodigies of strength and +personal labour performed by myself, and some of my father's servants, and +I shall merely mention a few of the circumstances to shew the reader that +in every thing I undertook I always performed it with such an enthusiasm, +and determined perseverance, that nothing could resist the accomplishment +of my undertakings. My father encouraged this desire that I evinced to +excel, and to perform unexampled deeds of labour, and feats of strength; +although he frequently expressed his fears that I should injure myself by +too great bodily exertion, and by too frequently straining my muscular +powers to their utmost stretch. I had undertaken and performed every +species of labour, connected with a very large farming business; I had +sown more acres of ground with corn in one day than any other man; I had +thrashed three quarters of barley, each succeeding day, for a fortnight +together, and that too at a time when some of the servants complained of +the difficulty of thrashing one quarter per day; I had pitched more loads +of corn in a day than had ever been recorded of any other person: in fact, +my father confessed that I got more work performed by the same number of +hands than he ever did when he was a young man; and for _him_ this was +admitting a great deal. I did this by good words and kindness towards my +fellow labourers; by always animating and cheering them on with my +example; by always placing myself in the heat of the battle; by taking the +most difficult and most laborious part. I always began every work by +saying to those around me COME let us do this, or let us do that, instead +of GO do this, or do that. My poor father always observed that it entirely +depended upon which of these little monosyllables, COME or GO, was made +use of, whether the work was done well or ill, expeditiously or +dilatorily. When any particular work was doing, my father's servants were +always in the field, and the job was begun, before those of our neighbours +had yet left their homes; and in changeable weather we had frequently +carried our hay or corn, and finished the rick or stack, before the rain +came on, while others had yet scarcely begun and were caught by the rain +in the worst situation possible. I have frequently, in the harvest time, +when we anticipated rain, been up, and a mile out in the field, pitching +the first load of wheat by two or before three o'clock in the morning, +while the carters were harnessing and bringing out the other teams. While +this load was being drawn home I had got my breakfast, and was ready to +begin laying the first sheaf of the wheat-rick, which many times I had +finished, though consisting of thirty large loads of sheaves, before the +middle of the day; by which means, if the rain came, we had secured +perhaps one hundred sacks of wheat, and these would prove worth from five +to ten shillings a sack more than that which was left out to take the +rain. If it proved a false alarm, and the weather was fine, we got a +second rick finished by night, and thereby had secured two hundred instead +of one hundred sacks of wheat in one day. It will be asked by some, how +did the labourers relish this extra toil and double work? The answer is +easy--perfectly well. I always took care to have them amply rewarded in +proportion to their exertions; and I never failed to add something, +besides good words and kind treatment, for the cheerfulness and alacrity +with which they approached and performed the task. I always made the +wheat-ricks, and I have many times made two ricks, containing thirty loads +in each rick, in one day. This work of making wheat-ricks, in very hot +weather, which is generally the case, is much the hardest and most severe +work, if done well, belonging to the farming business; and I was so +thoroughly convinced of this, that I always allowed the person who +afterwards made my wheat-ricks, a pint of ale as often, during the day, as +he chose to ask for it. For many years had I now made all my father's +ricks of hay and corn, and the wheat-ricks were the admiration of the +whole country. I also thatched many of them; that is, I made the ricks by +day, and I frequently thatched them by night, or at least before the +common labourers came to work in the morning. I was never tired of labour +and active exertions; and at this period, the labourers possessed all the +strength and vigour of the English peasantry of former days. +Notwithstanding they began to feel the effects of war and to suffer some +privations, in consequence of the rise of price in provisions, caused by +the increase of taxation, they had yet a barrel of good beer to go to in +hay-making and harvest time, and the young men at least could gain a +comfortable subsistence of the necessaries of life by their daily labour. +Few of them, indeed, could now boast of a "pig in the sty," a treasure +which they had, till very lately, always possessed; yet they could +occasionally purchase a pound of bacon or other meat, although at a very +considerable increase in the price. They soon, however, felt, and keenly +felt, that their condition was altered, and was still rapidly altering for +the worse, they consequently grew less tractable and cheerful in their +dispositions; they went to their daily labour with more reluctance, and +became more sullen and discontented as their privations increased; but +still they were not emaciated, and become languid and weak, as most of +them now are, for the want of a sufficiency of the common necessaries of +life. As a proof of this, I will mention a day's work done by myself and +three others, all of whom are now alive, and living in the parish of +Euford; but, alas! how altered, how wretched in circumstances, compared to +what they were at the time respecting which I write, when they were able +and willing to do, and did accomplish, as much work with great ease in one +day, as would now occupy them, I am sure, for four days. In fact, such is +the alteration in their state, from having lived so badly, and worked so +hard for the last twenty years, that they are become so reduced in bodily +strength, that they would now feel more fatigue in doing one quarter of +the work in a day than they did in performing the whole at that time. The +names of the men are Barnaby Marshal, Thomas Ayres, and James Pinnels. +These three men and myself have frequently winnowed large heaps of corn in +a day, and we once accomplished the winnowing sixty sacks of wheat in one +day--thirty sacks being considered a good day's work for four men. In one +instance, two men in each of two adjoining barns had thrashed a very large +heap of wheat, which had yielded so well, that we estimated each heap to +contain _forty sacks_ of the best wheat, and every one calculated upon its +being two smart day's work to winnow it. However, on the day appointed to +winnow one of these heaps, some time in the beginning of May, myself and +some young friends in the neighbourhood, had agreed to meet in the +evening, for the purpose of shooting rooks; I therefore requested the +three persons above named to be in readiness to begin winnowing at or soon +after five instead of six o'clock in the morning. The winnowing tackle was +prepared over night, I had got the doors of the barn open before hand, and +not one of them was behind the time appointed, they well knowing that the +exhilarating jug of "nut brown ale" would not be wanting upon such an +occasion. As the church clock struck five every man was at his post, and +the merry van went briskly round. As each well knew his duty, so that no +labour should be lost, we had made such rapid progress by six o'clock, +that is to say in one hour, that Ayres in a joke said, "If we continue at +this rate, master, we shall be able to finish both heaps instead of one." +A joke of that sort was never thrown away upon me, and accordingly, I +immediately adopted the idea; for having once conceived a project, I never +hesitated, but instantly began to put it in execution. I said that it was +certainly two good day's work for four _common men_, but if they would +back me, we would see if _we_ could not do two good days work in _one_ +day. My fellow workmen, who were become almost as great enthusiasts as +myself, spontaneously replied, "With all our hearts, master, if you say +the word we will try, we are not afraid to attempt any thing you will +undertake." Two more men were employed to bring the heap from the other +barn, and add it to that which we had begun, and the result was, that when +the clock struck six in the evening, we, four of us had completely +winnowed and finished eighty-one sacks of best wheat, besides tailing, and +had loaded the waggon with thirty of them for market the next day. I +having carried the thirty sacks into the waggon myself, now washed, +cleaned, and dressed myself, and had joined my friends in the field, +partaking of the sport of rook shooting, before half-past six in the +evening; and I took care that my three fellow-labourers should be rewarded +with the first three dozen of young rooks that were killed. As a proof +that the corn was well winnowed, my father sold it at the next market-day, +at Devizes, for three shillings per sack higher than any other sample in +the market. + +I now met with a very great loss, as my worthy friend and preceptor, Mr. +Carrington, the curate, with whom I had passed so many pleasant hours, and +from whom I had received so much valuable information, and such good and +useful advice, was about to leave the vicarage of Enford, he having been +offered, and accepted, the situation of tutor to the sons of the Earl of +Berkley, and as this was the likely road to preferment, I rejoiced in his +success, although I very much lamented his absence. He was, to say the +least of him, an excellent neighbour and a very worthy man. He was +cheerful, amiable, and conciliating in his manners; he possessed a very +superior understanding, which he had much improved and embellished by his +application to the study of the most useful and refined literature, he +having received a very liberal education; and though he was an excellent +classical scholar he was neither a pedant nor a bigot; he lived a moral, +sober, and rational life, worthy the example of his parishioners, and +although he was not enabled to be very bountiful, having only sixty pounds +a year as his salary, and his house to live in; he nevertheless honestly +paid every one as he went, and saved some small trifle for a wet day. By +all his neighbours he was much beloved, and his society much courted by +those who knew how to estimate the value of a superior mind, and an +enlightened and comprehensive understanding. He took great delight in +imparting to me the knowledge which he had acquired, and when he left the +parish of Enford, no one felt his loss more acutely or lamented it more +sincerely than I did. Because he had the sense and the penetration to +discover, and the honesty to reprobate the fatal mad-headed measures of +Mr. Pitt, he was denounced by the vulgar, the ignorant, and the bigotted, +by the venal and by the corrupt as a Jacobin; but he was admired by all +good and liberal men of all parties, and his society was courted by every +rational, thinking, and intelligent man in the country round where he +lived. The society that I met at his house was my greatest solace and +comfort after the fatigues and the labours of the day. I was always +welcome, and I never passed an hour in his society without having gained +some useful information, or some substantial accomplishment. + +Many of the young people of the village, who did not associate much with +Mr. Carrington, and who were neither capable of appreciating his merits, +nor of deriving pleasure from his refined society, were delighted to find +that there was a gay young buck of a Clergyman, just returned from Oxford, +who was to occupy the situation of my worthy friend. But, alas, what a +contrast! I did not expect to find such another kind and amiable companion +and friend as him that I had lost; but I anticipated that he would be a +scholar, and a man of the world, and at all events a suitable associate +for myself. But, as he is no more, I shall be very brief: he was, in a +word, in every thing the reverse, the very opposite of Mr. Carrington. The +Sunday arrived, and my father, as the principal person in the village, +always anxious to be the first to shew his attention to a stranger, and +particularly when that stranger was clothed in the dress of _Pastor_ of +the parish, waited upon him at the Inn or Pot-House, where he had taken up +his quarters, and not only invited him to dine, but also offered him a bed +and a stall for his horse till he was better provided at the Vicarage. I, +of course, accompanied my father, and we had little difficulty in getting +over the first introduction. He was a young man of easy manners and +address, and without the least ceremony, accepted the invitation to dine, +&c; but he informed us, that he had made a bargain, and had taken lodgings +and intended to board, with the landlady at the Swan, as he could not bear +the thoughts of living in a dull country Vicarage House by himself. We +went to Church, where he _dashed through_ the service in _double quick +time_, and "tipped us," as he had previously informed me he would, a +_Rattling Sermon_, as a specimen of his style of oratory. He appeared a +clever thoughtless youth, of Twenty-five; but the rake, as my father said, +"stood confessed in his eye," and its effects sat visible upon his brow. +After dinner he took his wine like a _Parson_, and before he had finished +a bottle he was as drunk as a _Lord_; so much so, that he was utterly +incapable of performing the afternoon duty without exposing his situation +to the whole congregation. My father was shocked at his indiscretion, and +sent a hasty excuse to put off the afternoon service. As drunkenness was +not encouraged, nor even tolerated, in my father's house, he was very +anxious to conceal the circumstance of the young Parson having become so +much intoxicated at his table as to be incapable of performing his duty; +and he felt it the greater disgrace, as he was the principal +Church-warden, as well as the principal parishioner. I took the hopeful +and Reverend young gentleman, who had been so recently inspired by the +_Holy Ghost_ to take Priest's Orders, a walk into the fields, to recover +him a little, as my father thought him a very improper guest to introduce +into the drawing-room to his daughters. In the course of our walk he +professed a very sincere and warm friendship for me, and promised himself +a world of pleasure in my society; and he frankly and unblushingly +informed me, that he had brought with him from Oxford a bad venereal +complaint, which, he added, was most unfortunate, as he was fearful that +he should inoculate all the pretty damsels belonging to his new flock, +which would be a _cursed Bore_. + +I premised by saying that I should be very brief, but I fear that some of +my moral male, as well as all my female, readers will think that as to +this young Clergyman of the Church of England I have already said too +much; but sorry am I to declare that in the little which I have said, I +have drawn his character too faithfully. He lived but a short time; having +soon fallen a victim to his profligate course of life. He was little more +than a year, I think, the Pastor of the Parish, and he administered the +sacrament, and performed all the other offices of the Curate, when the +effects of his drinking did not interfere with it, and during this time he +always lodged at the public house. This was a sad example for the people +of the parish! The young farmers were already too much addicted to +drinking, but they had been heretofore kept in check, and under some sort +of controul, by the admonition and by the example of their late Clergyman, +who, during all the years that he had resided there, was never known to be +intoxicated, or in any way, disguised in liquor. To be sure he was a +_Jacobin_, but he was, nevertheless, a _sober, moral, amiable Man_; and, +although he was no bigot, he most strictly, regularly, and rigidly +performed the sacred duty he had undertaken, with great satisfaction to +his parishioners, and with great credit to himself, as a Man, a Clergyman, +and a Christian. But, during the life of his successor, they had no +Jacobin; he was a furious Church and Kingman, although a complete free +thinker over his cups, and would get drunk and roar God save the King with +any drunken loyalist in the district; and, to shew his zeal in this way, +he entered and served as a private, and dressed in the uniform, of the +Everly troop of yeomanry Cavalry just raised. He was, however, too +enervated and too emaciated to acquire any knowledge of the military +exercise; and, what was rather remarkable, there was another young sprig +of the Church to keep him in countenance, who was also a private in the +same troop of yeomanry. Although I sometimes made one of the bacchanalian +party of our Curate, yet I felt most severely the difference between this +society and that of Mr. Carrington. + +Upon the death of this infatuated young man, another Curate was sent down +by the Vicar, who was the Rev. John Prince, the Chaplain to the Magdalen, +and who it was thought would be more particular in the choice of those +with whom he trusted the care of the souls of his parishioners. Our new +Curate arrived fresh from Oxford, and as he brought letters of +recommendation to my father, from the Vicar, who was a very worthy and a +most circumspect man, he invited him to his house, and he proved to be a +much more rational young man than his predecessor. Though he did not +evince any great knowledge of the world, yet he had mixed in good society, +and I promised myself a great acquisition in his acquaintance. We soon, +however, found that he had not been educated at Oxford for nothing; he had +acquired a habit of taking his bottle freely, and, as he had not a very +hard head, he was frequently very much intoxicated before his more robust +neighbours were scarcely yet warmed with their glasses. This was a +dreadful misfortune for my young friend, as well as for myself, for he was +an intelligent young man when he was sober; but, the moment the wine began +to operate, he was one of the completest fools in christendom; he was then +as great as a king, and always when he was the most contemptible, he +fancied himself a very great man, and never failed to boast of his +superiority of education, and his having taken his degree at Christ +Church. This he was always sure to do when he had lost the little talent +and intellect that he possessed when he was sober. At the very moment that +he was looked upon with a degree of mingled _pity_ and _contempt_ by those +around him, he was sure to assume a ridiculous superiority over his more +rational companions; merely, as he professed, because he was brought up at +college. + +There was about this time great talk of an invasion by the French. The +ministers, having granted large subsidies, and having imposed new taxes, +found it necessary to frighten John Bull with the idea of being invaded. +Great alarm was therefore excited throughout the country; volunteer corps +and troops of yeomanry were raising all over the island. Provisions had by +this time increased in price, every article of common consumption was +nearly doubled, and great dissatisfaction was evinced amongst the +labouring poor; there were riots in many parts of the country, and much +mischief was done by burning wheat-ricks, and pulling down mills, in +consequence of the high price of bread. But the dread of invasion was in +every one's mouth, and nothing else was talked of. I, therefore, was one +who anticipated nothing less than an immediate attempt, and I applied to +my father, and requested that he would purchase me a proper charger, and +let me enter into a troop of the yeomanry cavalry. He expostulated and +strongly urged me to desist, and he repeated his former arguments; but I +replied that I was ashamed to stand by and to look on, with my arms +folded, while all the youth and vigour of the country were flying to arms +in order to repel the expected attempts of a desperate and powerful +invading foe. He endeavoured to convince me of the folly of my enthusiasm, +urging that most of those who had enrolled themselves in the yeomanry, +were solely actuated by a desire to take care of their own property, that +they were impelled to take up arms merely by selfish motives, and without +possessing a spark of the _amor patriæ_. He recalled to my recollection +the immense sacrifices made by our forefather, Colonel Thomas Hunt, in the +reign of the Charles's; he pointed out the noble domains and productive +estates that were confiscated by Cromwell, in consequence of my ancestor's +zeal in the cause of his prince, and he begged me to remember how he was +rewarded for his services; asking me what reason I had to expect a better +fate, or a higher reward, than my forefather had obtained for all his +exertions, dangers, and sacrifices, which were the loss of his estates and +the ingratitude of the prince that he so faithfully served? + +All this might be, and was very true, but I reasoned with myself thus: My +forefather took up arms in favour of a tyrant, to support him in most +arbitrary measures against his own countrymen; but my only wish is to arm +myself against a foreign invader, whose great object I am told is to +enslave after having conquered the people of my native land. All reasoning +with me was consequently in vain. I had made up my mind not to stand idle +and be a looker-on in such times; the fervour of my youth had been worked +upon by the delusion of the day, and it would not admit of this restraint; +therefore, without farther ceremony, in spite of my father's +expostulations, I enrolled my name as a member of the Everly Troop of +Yeomanry, under the command of the _gallant_ Captain ASTLEY. I knew the +Captain to Be a poor creature, and as little cut out for a warrior as any +man I had ever met with; he was built like Ajax, but as for skill or +valour I believed him to possess neither. I had, however, no fears of +being left to be led into the field of battle by the worthy justice. In +case it should ever come to that issue, I had no doubt that proper and +experienced officers would be appointed to lead us on. I bought an +excellent thoroughbred charger, near sixteen hands high; for, although my +own horse was a very good one, and better than eight out of ten in the +troop, yet, as he was rather under the regulation size, I was determined +to be as well mounted as any man in the regiment, and as I was well known +to be a good rider, and a bold and determined fox-hunter, the captain was +very much delighted with what he was pleased to call a "wonderful +acquisition to his corps." My father also, now I was entered, was as +anxious as myself that I should not be outdone by any one. I therefore +immediately employed a drill serjeant, who was engaged to instruct the +troop in their exercise, and who had been drilling them for some time +past; and before the first field-day arrived for me to attend, my +instructor pronounced me fit for service, and as well disciplined as any +man in the troop. Perhaps I had bestowed as much pains, and had spent as +much time, as any of them, though I had been drilled only for about a +fortnight, for I was at it every day two or three hours. In truth, I was +an apt scholar, and being already an excellent horseman, and extremely +active, I could before I had ever joined, perform most of the evolutions, +and, as the serjeant said, do any thing as well as himself. He told me +that in many of my brother soldiers I should meet with some stupid heavy +fellows, and that he could teach me more in a day than many of them would +learn in a year. The following Monday was appointed for us to assemble and +have a field day, when CAPTAIN ASTLEY and LIEUTENANT SIR JOHN METHUEN +POORE, who had gone to London for the purpose, were expected to attend, +armed _cap-a-pie_, and dressed complete in their NEW UNIFORM, as a +specimen of what we were in future to wear. + +The reader will recollect that I am now about to give a faithful history +of my military services; and I must therefore entreat his indulgence, +while I put upon record some such circumstances, and occurrences as he +will be little prepared to hear, unless it have been his fate to be a +member of some volunteer corps, under the command of such officers as +Captain ASTLEY, Lieutenant Sir John POORE, and Cornet DYKE. Without +farther comment then, the two gallant officers, ASTLEY, and POORE, started +the week before to London, to superintend the making, and to arrange with +the army taylor the particulars of the _uniform_. Having been very +particular in getting the taylor, breeches-maker, boot, and even +spur-maker, to fit them to a T, on the Friday they both appeared, +accoutred from head to toe, at Edmonds's, Somerset coffee house, in the +Strand, and really cut no small "swell" as they marched up and down the +coffee room. They would then take a turn down the Strand, as far as Exeter +Exchange, and if, luckily for him, Polito had seen them, he might possibly +have made a good bargain by chewing them amongst the other wild beasts +which he exhibited to the wondering multitude. They next showed off in +full uniform, with their broad swords by their sides, in the front boxes +of Drury Lane Theatre; and, as the Wiltshire was one of the first +regiments of yeomanry that was raised and clothed, they excited no small +curiosity amongst the Londoners. On Saturday morning they again entered +the coffee room in all their trappings, and having each purchased a brace +of excellent pistols, they appeared eager to begin the campaign without +waiting the arrival of the French troops; and as Clark and Haines, two +notorious highwaymen were at[10] this time levying their nightly +contributions upon Hounslow Heath, they more than hinted their intention +of capturing or killing these desperadoes, in case they should fall in +with them during their march down into the country, which they had given +due notice they intended to commence on that afternoon. + +About two o'clock, the captain's travelling carriage and four was brought +to the door of the coffee house. These circumstances were detailed to me +by a gentleman present, and who really was rather alarmed at their warlike +appearance and war-disposed manner and language. Having seated themselves +with all their military finery in the carriage, they carefully placed +their _two brace of horse pistols_ in the front pocket, taking care to +leave the _butt-ends_ sticking out, threateningly visible to every eye +that surveyed them. A crowd was collected round the carriage to witness +the departure of these mighty warriors, whose appearance denoted a most +determined conflict, in case any thing should occur to give them an +opportunity of showing how worthy they were to command, and to lead into +the heat of battle a body of their countrymen, who were "seeking the +bubble reputation even in the cannon's mouth." About four o'clock they +arrived at the Bush at Staines, having taken care to pass Hounslow Heath, +the half-anticipated scene of action, by day light. Having by this piece +of generalship escaped the danger so far, they slept that night at Mr. +White's excellent inn at Staines' Bridge. The next morning, Sunday, after +taking a good breakfast, dressed and armed as before, in all their +military array, they took up their pistols, which had been placed by them +on the table, and then adjourned into the garden, whence they fired them +into the Thames, at once to try how true they would carry the balls, and +to give notice to the surrounding and astonished passengers upon the +bridge that they travelled like warriors, prepared for any emergency that +might arise. Having re-loaded their pistols in the presence of Mr. Joseph +White, and each of them taken a glass of noyeau to exhilarate their +spirits, the horses were ordered too, and the carriage was now brought to +the front door. Having taken another turn round the bowling green in the +garden, to exhibit themselves to the gaping multitude, who were now +collected in considerable numbers upon the bridge, brought thither in +consequence of the discharging of pistols on a Sunday morning, and who +were waiting to see their departure, they entered the carriage in the same +formal manner as they had done at the door of the Somerset coffee house, +and having carefully and deliberately placed their pistols again in the +front pocket, with their but-ends, as before, appearing very prominent out +of the chaise window, they proceeded on their march with a sort of solemn +gravity, which excited the surprise of some few, but the laughter of the +greater portion, of their beholders. + +It was on a Sunday morning, about eight o'clock, when they started from +Staines in this warlike attitude; their helmets glittering in the sun, +like the peacock vain of his plumes. They, however, little dreamt of the +disaster that was in store for them. Having passed Virginia Water, and as +the postboy was taking them leisurely along up the steep hill leading to +Bagshot, who should ride up to the side of the chaise but a single +highwayman, who, having ordered the boy to halt, deliberately demanded +their money and watches. The yeomanry heroes looked at each other, and +then at their pistols; but neither of them had the power of putting forth +a hand to grasp either of them. The highwayman again hastily demanded his +prize, which was immediately granted, our heroes handing over to him their +purses, containing about sixty guineas and two valuable family gold +watches. It is said that Sir John Poore, after having recovered a little +from the fright, endeavoured to raise his inconsolable companion from the +stupor in which this sad misfortune had left him, by repeating the +following lines of Hudibras: + + "He that fights and runs away, + May live to fight another day; + But he that is in battle slain, + Can never live to fight again," + +_Capt. Astley_, who was too much absorbed in ruminating upon his +melancholy situation to give his friend any other answer than a long and +deep sigh, could not but most sensibly feel that they were in a still +worse plight than the knight of the rueful countenance ever was; for they +had run away without having made any fight at all. So ashamed were they of +their misadventure, that they would not have mentioned it to any one, had +they not been compelled to disclose it to the landlords of the various +inns they had to pass; for the unmannerly fellow had not even left them a +tester to pay the turnpikes. + +When they arrived at Everley, Sir John was ashamed to face the troop to +tell them the story, although we were already in the field anxious to see +our commanders dressed up in their new uniform. All the golden dreams of +glory seemed to Sir John to have vanished by this unlucky affair, and +nothing; could induce him to shew himself off to his troop, though his +charger was ready to convey him to the field, and he was urged by all the +expostulations and intreaties of the captain. He therefore sneaked off +home to Rushall, and left the gallant captain to make the best of a bad +bargain by himself. + +In the mean time we had been manoeuvring, charging, and wheeling, till we +were almost all tired, waiting for this exhibition. At length we were +informed of the disaster by one of the serjeants, Mr. William Butcher, of +Shercot, who had called at the captain's house to know what was the +matter. The mighty hero at last appeared in view, mounted upon his +charger, riding solemnly towards the troop, dressed in full uniform, the +same which he had worn down from town, with the exception, perhaps, of +_some trifling change_, which might have been rendered necessary by the +disastrous fright he had received upon the road. Some admired the dress, +some pitied the loss sustained by the poor captain, but myself, and many +of those who surrounded me, though we felt the deep disgrace which had +befallen our commander, could scarcely contain ourselves with laughter at +the ridiculous figure he cut, particularly when the event of the robbery +came across our thoughts. I had often heard of a hog in armour, but I had +never before seen any thing that appeared to convey the representation so +much to my mind as the ridiculous figure of our captain. + +The very first field-day called to my recollection the sentiments of my +father and the worthy clergyman, Mr. Carrington, as to the patriotism of +these yeomanry corps. Their conversation was entirely about keeping up the +price of corn, keeping down the price of wages, and at the same time +keeping in subjugation the labourers, and silencing their dissatisfaction. +As I rode home from the field the first day, I felt that there was too +much truth in the assertions of Mr. Carrington and my father; I was, +however, determined to do my duty to the best of my power, without +troubling myself about the views and motives of my comrades, and likewise +at all times to resist with all my influence, any act of aggression or +oppression that might be attempted, come from whatever quarter it might. +Nor was I less resolved to be always ready at a short notice to meet the +enemy whenever I should be called upon. + +Within one month after I had been in this troop, the labourers of Enford +and the adjoining parishes, smarting under the privations and sufferings +they had to endure, in consequence of the rise in the price of provisions +and the low rate of wages, which latter many of the farmers had decided to +keep down to the old standard, and urged on also by those who ought to +have known better, and who instead of secretly exciting their poorer +neighbours to acts of desperation, ought to have come forward manfully to +advocate their rights; the labourers, under the secret influence of a +designing man or two, all struck their work, and, having assembled in a +large body, they openly avowed their intention to pull down several mills, +which were pointed out, as well as to burn the corn ricks of several +obnoxious individuals. I had been from home, and when I returned, I found +several of the neighbouring farmers assembled at my father's, in the +greatest consternation. Some of those whose premises had been pointed out +for destruction were present; and, although none of my father's property +was threatened, yet several of our servants had joined the rioters, who, +we were informed, were assembled to the number of two or three hundred. +and that they were proceeding towards Netheravon, where they meant to +regale themselves at the public house till the evening, when the work of +destruction was to begin. Each farmer fled to his home, in order to save +what he could, but all were in the greatest dismay. A servant now came to +inform us that our carter, Jerry Truman, who looked after the team at +Weddington farm, had left his horses and joined the rioters, and that two +men had been dispatched up to one of our shepherds upon the down, who had +refused to join them in the morning, to compel him to leave his sheep, and +to join them immediately. + +My father, who, as well as myself, had been devising means to prevent, if +possible, the threatened mischief, now said, "though none of our property +is threatened, though we have had no share in oppressing the men, and +though those who by their arbitrary and overbearing conduct to their +servants, have greatly contributed to produce this state of things, are, +now the danger approaches, the first to fly from it, and consequently, for +their past infamously bad treatment of their labourers, and their recent +cowardice, almost deserve what they have brought upon themselves, and that +they should be left to their fate, yet, my son, it is our duty, even if it +were only in pity to the poor misguided men themselves, to endeavour to +avert by some prompt measure, if possible, the threatened calamity." He +added, "but we must be _prompt_ or our efforts will be in vain." I said in +answer, that I had made up my mind to proceed instantly to rescue the +shepherd, who was unwilling either to leave his flock or to join the +rioters; but my father advised me not to waste my time by encountering two +such ruffians as we knew were gone for him; he would, he said, take his +horse and proceed to put the sheep in the fold to prevent their getting +into and destroying the corn; and he would have me ride with all speed to +the only efficient magistrate in the neighbourhood, Mr. Webb, of Milton, +to procure a warrant for the apprehension of Truman, there being no +pretence for his rioting on account of the high price of provisions, +because he was a young unmarried man, and had for wages ten guineas a +year, and all his eatables and drink found for him in the house. "For," +said he, "if we are armed with a warrant from the civil power, I think we +shall stand a much better chance of preventing mischief, and perhaps +bloodshed, than by any thing that will be done by the yeomanry, but I very +much doubt whether the latter will muster at all, although the alarmed +parties are flying in all directions to the officers, _Astley_ of +_Everly_, _Poore_ of _Rushall_, and _Dyke_ of _Syrencot_[12], for that +purpose:" all of whom were also magistrates. I merely asked my father, +whether I had better not apply to Mr. Astley first for a warrant, as he +only lived four miles off, and in the road to Mr. Webb's, who lived eight +miles distant. His answer was, "certainly not, we must not trust to +chance, proceed at once to Mr. Webb's, for, while you are humdrumming with +Mr. Astley, who will either be afraid or not know how to act, you will +have obtained what we want from Mr. Webb in half the time." I then sprung +on my horse, which, ready saddled, had stood at the gate during this +conference, and, putting him to full speed, I was out of sight in a +twinkling. + +As I passed up the field I saw my two gentlemen striding over the fallows +towards the shepherd, whom they had approached within about two hundred +yards. Though I had made up my mind not to interfere with their scheme but +go direct to the magistrate, yet, as they were not a quarter of a mile out +of my road, I could not resist the inclination I felt to check their +progress. I therefore galloped up to them, to demand where they were going +over our private property. They at once boldly avowed their object to be +to make our shepherd leave his flock and join them at Netheravon. I +briefly expostulated, asking if they meant to compel the man to go against +his will; they replied, certainly, that he had refused to accompany them +in the morning, but they had now come to a determination that he should +go. As I found them determined, any further parley was in vain, and I +therefore jumped from my horse, which was in the habit of standing without +being held, and, placing myself before them, I demanded that they should +instantly desist, for they should proceed no further without violence. +They, nevertheless, advanced boldly and were instantly knocked down with +two blows of my fist; one of them remained quietly on the ground, the +other rose to commence a conflict, but he was instantly levelled to the +earth again, and they then both declared they would return with all speed +and leave the shepherd unmolested if I would spare them. I only demanded +that they would brush off in double quick time, with which they complied, +never staying to look behind them. This certainly was a very hasty +although a very successful method of taking the law into my own hands; but +the case was desperate and would not admit of any common remedy. + +My horse almost fled to Milton, where luckily I found the worthy and truly +efficient magistrate at home. The oath was administered and the warrant +made out in a few minutes, while his servant gave my panting steed a +little hay and a drop of water, which enabled him to carry me back as +quickly as he had brought me. As I returned, our flock of sheep were +grazing, and the shepherd, having placed himself in my way, as I passed +him, he gratefully thanked me for rescuing him from the danger with which +he had been threatened. I reached home within one hour and a quarter, +having ridden a distance of sixteen miles and procured a warrant, besides +rescuing the shepherd, in that short space of time. I found my father +waiting for me with the tything-man of Littlecot, Mr. Davis, who kept the +Swan, an old gentleman upwards of 70 years of age; and as I was made a +special constable to execute the warrant, we lost not a moment in +proceeding to the scene of action. My father having got a poney ready for +the old gentleman to ride with us, and a fresh horse saddled for me, we +soon reached Netheravon, where we learned of the Rev. Mr. Williams that +the men, to the amount of about two hundred and fifty in number, had taken +possession of a large skittle ground at the back of the Red Lion; that +they had been drinking for an hour, having already taken two quarts of +strong beer each, and were preparing to take another quart each before +they sallied forth, to put in execution the devastating scenes that they +had contemplated. I contrived to communicate with the landlord, who said +that they were so far intoxicated that he dared not refuse them beer, and +that they had taken forcible possession of his cellar, and that nothing +would give him greater relief than to get quit of such troublesome and +desperate customers. I immediately formed a plan to get them out of the +skittle ground, and then to lock the doors and keep them out of the public +house, away from intoxicating liquors, of which they had already taken too +much. I proposed to go into the skittle ground with Davis, the old +constable, and seize Truman, for whose apprehension the warrant was +granted; and if I could get him into the street I had no doubt but the +others would follow in order to rescue him--As soon as this was effected +the people in the Red Lion were to bolt and lock all their doors, and keep +them out of the house. This was thought to be a desperate and a dangerous +plan, but it was a desperate affair, things were drawing fast to a crisis, +and it was of no use to doubt or deliberate. + +Having formed my plan, I insisted upon it that my father, who was sixty +years of age, should remain without with the horses. Followed by the old +constable with his staff of office in his hand, I entered, and we had got +up to Truman, who was in the midst of them, before we were as yet scarcely +perceived by many of the groups, who were drinking, and busily arranging +their plan of operations. I shewed the warrant, and having seized Truman +by the collar, who turned as pale as ashes, I told him he must come +instantly with me, and before he had time to reply, or even say a word, I +hurried him through his companions, and I had already brought him to the +door of the yard when they came rushing after him, and had actually got +hold of him, before he was quite out of the door. With one determined +struggle, however, I dragged him by main force into the street, and, as I +had anticipated, the whole of the rioters rushed forward into the street, +and made a desperate effort to rescue him. I knew them all, and +notwithstanding they began to use violence, I held him firm, till I saw +that they were all clear of the yard, and all the doors of the public +house were closed, My father and Davis were unable to come to my +assistance, as I was now surrounded by the whole gang. Though I never felt +more confident or more cool in my life, yet the situation was one not only +of difficulty but of danger. But the principal object being attained, and +the plan having succeeded almost to a miracle, I had only to identify some +of the most determined and violent; and four of those that I knew +perfectly well, two of them being my own work-people, having proceeded to +collar me, while the others used considerable force to release him from +the grasp I had taken of his collar, I yielded him up to their +overpowering numbers; at the same time earnestly recommending to them to +disperse and retire to their homes, as the military were sent for and +expected every moment. Truman was one of the first to fly, and he returned +to his occupation immediately; and in a very short time afterwards the +whole of them had dispersed in different directions, though they might +have proceeded with impunity for aught the yeomanry did, they never having +assembled at all; and, in fact, although I was in the troop myself, I +never thought of sending for them. + +My father, and the old constable, Davis, and myself, now returned home, +not a little elated with the success of our exertions in dispersing these +deluded and desperate men. But my father observed, that it would not do to +let the matter rest there, that the persons whom he had seen use great +personal violence to me, who was acting as a peace officer, must be taught +that they were not to violate the laws in such a daring manner with +impunity; and he urged the propriety of my obtaining a warrant to take +them before a magistrate, to answer for the breach of the peace which they +had committed by assaulting me in the execution of a warrant. My father +added, that their leaving their work, their assembling at the public +house, and even obtaining beer almost by force, might have been +overlooked, particularly as no serious mischief had followed; but the +forcible and violent rescue and resistance to the execution of the warrant +of a magistrate could not be overlooked; for, if we were disposed to do +so, it would be an insult to Mr. Webb, the magistrate who had granted it; +and if we treated him, who was the only real efficient magistrate in the +district, with disrespect, we could not expect that he would be disposed +in future to attend so promptly to our representations. I therefore took +my horse the next morning, and rode to Milton before breakfast; and, +having made the necessary depositions, he granted me a warrant for the +apprehension of _Truman_ and four others, who had been particularly +prominent in the rescue, namely, _Hurcot_, _Hale_, _Sheppard_, and +_Rawlings_, all of whom had either struck or laid violent hands upon me. + +I had returned and taken my breakfast by ten o'clock, and had just got the +old constable, Davis, and was about to proceed with him to apprehend the +said persons, when four of the gentlemen of the yeomanry cavalry of the +Everly troop, rode boldly into the yard, and up to the door, like _brave +troopers_, saying that they had heard of my having a warrant for +apprehending some of the rioters, and that they were sent by Capt. Astley +to aid and assist in the execution of the warrant, adding, that they were +provided with ball cartridges, &c., and some to spare for me, if I chose +to saddle my charger and take my holsters. I could not avoid asking the +heroes, with rather a sarcastic smile, where they had kept themselves over +night, and why Captain Astley had not either come or sent some of the +troop when there was some real danger, and not waited till all the parties +were separated, and when there was little difficulty in securing the most +desperate of the rioters? I added, that as I had not made any military +show, by dressing myself up in my regimentals, when there was a real riot, +I should at all events trust to the constable's staff now it was all +peaceable; and I begged them to return to their officers with that +message. I however requested one of them, Richard Pocock, of Enford farm, +who now lives near Warminster, and whom I knew to be a tything man, to +doff his regimentals, and then I would admit him to aid and assist in his +civil, but I would not accept of him in his military capacity. This he +immediately complied with, and we took the five persons before the +magistrate, Mr. Webb, of Milton, who insisted upon committing them all to +prison the same night for want of bail, though they begged very hard for +mercy, in which petition I most heartily joined; but the worthy magistrate +would not listen to any such thing, it wanting only a month to the Autumn +Assizes, and I was therefore bound over to prosecute them, very much +against my inclination, as I thereby lost at least three valuable servants +during the harvest; and, as they appeared sensible of their error, I, for +my own part, was contented to let them depart to their homes, but the +magistrate was inexorable, declaring it to be too serious an offence to be +pardoned, without the interposition of a jury. + +A true bill was found against them by the grand jury at the assizes, and +they were put to the bar. I appeared against them, but employed no +counsel; they had engaged Mr, Jekyl, at that period one of the most +eminent counsel upon the western circuit. After the court had heard the +evidence of myself and Mr. Davis, Mr. Jekyl made a most eloquent appeal to +the jury, a _common not_ a SPECIAL jury: he called some witnesses to their +character, but no one appearing, _I offered myself_ to give three of them, +who had been my father's servants, a character for sobriety and industry, +with which the court and counsel appeared much pleased. Their case went to +the jury, who instantly found them all guilty of the rescue and assault, +upon which I addressed the Court as the prosecutor, and petitioned that +they might be restored to their afflicted families, and I promised to take +them back immediately into the situations which they had before occupied +in my father's service. The humane judge, who participated in my feelings, +after having given them a suitable admonition, and called their attention +to my disinterested kindness, telling them they were entirely indebted to +my humanity for the lenity he should shew them, and having paid me a most +gratifying compliment, dismissed them with the punishment of a fine of a +shilling each, which I immediately paid for them. The whole court were +loud in their praises of my behaviour upon the occasion; but I felt ten +thousand times more satisfaction in doing a generous act than I did in all +the compliments which were bestowed upon me. I took the men into my +father's service directly, and I can safely say that I never for one +moment since had any reason to repent the exertion I made to save them +from punishment. Some of them lived many years in my service, and Truman +remained with me as long as I was in the farming business, and actually +was one of those who followed me out of Wiltshire into Sussex, when I went +to reside there, a distance of a hundred and twenty miles. Four out of the +five men are still alive, and I would cheerfully trust my life in either +of their hands, if it were necessary; and I sincerely believe there is not +one of them but would willingly risk his life to serve me. + +I am writing this account in my dungeon, at eleven o'clock at night, on +the 20th of September, 1820, and it is impossible for any one who reads it +not to draw a comparison between my conduct and that of my persecutors. I +would not part with the sweet delightful reflection which the remembrance +of this ONE act of my life conveys to my mind, for all the wealth in the +possession of those who have been concerned in consigning me to be +incarcerated _without mercy_ in this dungeon for TWO YEARS and SIX MONTHS; +according to common calculation _full one quarter of the remaining part of +my natural life_. Let the reader only consider the spirit in which I acted +towards those who had violated the laws of their country, by resisting +with force the warrant of a magistrate, and who had violently assaulted +the peace officer in his duty in executing that warrant, and then contrast +it with the vindictive proceedings against me, for having attended a +public meeting, legally and constitutionally assembled, to remonstrate +with the throne against the cruel privations and sufferings of the people, +where no breach of the peace was committed, where not even the slightest +resistance was made or even premeditated against the civil power. "Look at +this picture, and look at that." I have had the consolation of being +repeatedly thanked in the most earnest manner by these poor fellows, for +my humanity in interposing with the court to spare them from punishment; +but I have felt still a much higher pleasure when they have offered up +their thanks to me for having ventured my life "to snatch them from the +jaws of the gallows," when they were incautiously about to rush into them, +by pulling down mills, and burning wheat ricks. These might well have been +called poor deluded creatures. These men were literally deluded, and those +who urged them on were _deluded_ by what was then called the liberal part +of the press. In fact, almost the whole daily press of that period united +in a conspiracy to delude the people, by railing at and exciting the +multitude against BUTCHERS, BAKERS, and FARMERS, to whom not only the +fools, but the knaves of the daily press attributed the high price of +provisions. + +The liberal part of the press was so ignorant and so besotted as to vomit +forth its daily denunciations against the avariciousness of millers, +butchers, bakers, and farmers, and to endeavour to inflame the suffering +people, by teaching them that these persons conspired together to keep up +the price of provisions to an unnatural height, solely to put money in +their own pockets. The ministerial press of that day, under the controul +of Pitt, (and he was cunning enough to contrive to bribe almost all the +talent belonging to the press,) chimed in ding dong with their less +cunning opponents; for they knew that it was Pitt's policy to draw the +public attention from the real cause of the distress, from the real cause +of the high price of provisions, which they were well aware was the +enormous increase of the taxes; and by the joint efforts of the Whig and +Tory press, (for there was no other at that time,) they contrived to +_delude_ the poor people, the _lower orders_, to such a degree, that there +was seldom half a year passed away without a considerable number of +persons being consigned to an untimely end, for having been concerned in +wreaking their vengeance upon some miller, farmer, butcher, or baker, or +other dealer in human food. These poor fellows might truly be stiled the +_deluded multitude_; and the _deluders_, the conductors of the public +press, were but too successful in their efforts to continue them in +ignorance. Let any sober-minded, rational, sensible man only look back to +the columns of the public press, in the years 1795, and 96--the Times for +instance; let him take a file of the Times of that day, and for many many +years after that, even up to 1815 and 1816, and compare the language, the +stile, and the tenor of their articles with the language of the present +day in the same papers. How many riots, how many hangings, how many +special commissions we can trace back, all proceeding from the delusions +of the public press! How many persons have lost their lives for +plundering, pulling down, and burning the property of millers, butchers, +and bakers; how much blood has been spilt, every drop of which blood may +be fairly placed at the door of those who urged these poor fellows on, and +instigated them to acts of violence against those classes of persons, by +falsely accusing them of being the cause of the high price of provisions. + +There is as much difference between the Times of 1795 and the Times of +1820 as there is between a _drunken riotous Church-and-King-mob_ of 1791 +to 96, pulling down and burning the property of Dr. Priestley at +Birmingham, poor Campbell of Bath, burning mills, wheat ricks, destroying +machinery, &c. &c., and the _peaceable, sober, rational, constitutional_, +assemblies of the people in 1816, 1817, 1818, and 1819, deliberately +petitioning the legislature to remove the burthens of the people, by +abolishing sinecure places, and unnecessary pensions, and praying for a +constitutional reform in the Commons' House of Parliament. My readers will +excuse the digression I have made; this subject cannot be too often dwelt +upon, but, as I shall have repeated opportunities of calling the attention +of my fellow countrymen to this particular point, I will now proceed to +the more immediate object of these memoirs. + +I was now incessant in my application to every branch of the farming +business, and, as I have before intimated, I performed prodigies of labour +upon various occasions. My father had now taken another very large +adjoining farm of nearly a thousand acres, Chisenbury farm, and was +therefore become one of the largest farmers in England, yet we managed +this business with the greatest ease; and what others called very severe +labour, I practised as a relaxation from business, such as learning the +cavalry exercise, in which I had now become a considerable adept; in fact, +I bore the character of being one of the most active, and at the same time +one of the most powerful, young men in the county; and my feats of +activity and strength were proverbial. I would mix in the frolicks of a +country wake, or revel, as they were called in Wiltshire, and contend, +generally successfully, with the first proficients of the day, in +wrestling jumping in sacks, backsword, or single stick playing, and have +borne off many a prize. I once went to a Whitsuntide revel, with my friend +and partner, Jesse Caster of Upavon, and I believe we bore off every +prize--the gold-laced hat, the wrestling prize; the gold-laced hat, the +backsword prize; a pair of buckskin breeches, the prize for jumping or +running in sacks; the old cheese, the bowling prize; and eleven +half-crowns, the prize played for at cricket in the morning: indeed I and +Caster obtained every prize; and, as I gained the majority, of course I +had the choice of the fairest damsel in the village at the dance in the +evening. There was no exercise, no exertion, no labour that ever fatigued +me. I could and did often work all day and dance all night; and this, at +particular festive seasons of the year, I have followed for a week or ten +days together without ever taking off my clothes to go to bed. There was +no excess of labour, heat or cold, winter or summer, that ever hurt me. I +remember once going up stairs, about ten o'clock, with the rest of my +father's family, but, instead of going to bed, I dressed myself, descended +the window by a ladder, mounted my horse and rode to Upper Collingborn, +where I had been invited to a dance, a distance of ten miles, and having +danced till three o'clock in the morning I returned home, mounted the +ladder into the window, and had just changed my best for my working +clothes when my father called me, as the clock struck four, to get up, +upon which I was out the first of the family, time enough to remove the +ladder before any one saw it, so that the circumstance was never known to +any one. + +The young parson of the parish was generally my companion on these +occasions, but as he was his own master, he went to and returned from the +dance at his leisure, in fact, he generally got too top heavy before the +evening was over to return home, and therefore usually slept out. I could +tell some of the most ridiculous stories and curious adventures that +happened to my young friend, when he was under the influence of Bacchus, +but as I shall have occasion to say a great deal of this personage +hereafter, I will pass it over for the present. But as, from my having +lived a very great part of my life in country places, I have spent a +considerable portion of my days in the society of clergymen, and as it is +one of my principal objects in giving a faithful history of my life, to be +particular in shewing my readers the sort of society that I kept, as well +as how I was enabled to form my opinion of mankind, I shall faithfully +delineate these characters, to the best of my judgment, always taking care +to lean on the charitable side, and to draw occasionally a veil over the +infirmities of human nature, as they were exemplified in the clergy of the +church of England. I understand that some of my readers have already +attributed to me a desire to lower the character of the clergymen of the +established church, and they instance my description of the character of +the Rev. T. Griffiths, the master of the free grammar school at Andover. +But, as a proof that I have not done him any injustice, I have had +confirmed, by the living testimony of many of my school-fellows, the truth +as well as the lenient description that I gave of his character. Mr. +Cotton of Edgerly, my tenant, and steward of my manor of Glastonbury, has +been to see me since be read the account, and he says it is a most +faithful picture as far as it goes; but he called to my recollection the +tyrant pedagogue having pulled off the ear of two boys, one in his +presence, and one in mine. John Butcher, whose father then lived at +Westcombe, was one of them, and he[11] has reminded me also of Griffiths +having taken a very thick heavy slate, and with both hands broken it over +the head of Dr. now Sir ---- Gibbs, of Bath, physician to the late Queen, +who very fortunately had a thicker scull than boys in general, or he would +in all probability have fractured it. It will therefore be seen that I did +in no way exceed the truth, and, so far from wishing to degrade the +clergy, I shall only reprobate those acts in which they degrade +themselves. I have known many excellent clergymen, Mr. Carrington to wit, +and I know many most worthy clergymen now; and I have also known some of +the most abandoned of human beings, who have been a disgrace to that holy +office. In due course I shall shortly detail the _moral character_ of two +clergymen of this diocese, as a specimen of human depravity, both of them +living under the nose of the bishop. + +I will now proceed with my narrative. The price of corn was by this time +considerably enhanced, and in consequence of a new duty, malt had risen +from 2s. 6d. to 7s. 6d. a bushel. Labourers three years before could +purchase with a week's wages, two bushels of malt and a pound of hops, +enough to make a nice little cask of good wholesome beer, for them to +carry with them into the field, in grass mowing and harvest. That quantity +was now nearly doubled also in price. Three years before they could +purchase with their week's wages twelve quartern loaves; they could now +only purchase with their week's wages six quartern loaves instead of +twelve, the quartern loaf having now risen to one shilling. The labourers +that used before to be very well off, and consequently very well +satisfied, complained loudly of these hardships, and demanded higher +wages; the answer of the farmer was, "it is very true that we sell our +corn for a much higher price than we did, but we cannot afford to raise +the wages of the labourers, for we pay all the increase of price away in +taxes, and the increase in our rents, as well as in every other necessary +of life, our tea, salt, iron, leather, &c.; you must, therefore, have +patience, and wait for better times. Our rulers, and Mr. Pitt +particularly, says we may look forward with a confident hope that we shall +soon have better times for us all." Thus the poor man, from the very first +year of the war, began to feel the cruel effects of high prices, and he +was made to suffer this for many years without any rise in his wages. +Almost all the common necessaries of life were doubled, while he was told +to wait with patience from day to day, from week to week, from month to +month, and from year to year, still buoyed up with the false hope of +better times, which were eternally promised with matchless impudence by +the prime minister, who constantly boasted of the wealth and power of the +nation, which he was wasting, and which he lavished with an unsparing +hand, to carry on an unjust, an unnecessary, cruel, and vindictive war +against the people of France, because they had made a hold, a manly, and a +successful effort to throw off the galling yoke of one of the most +infamous and detestable tyrannies that ever disgraced the character of an +enlightened people. It was very true the landholders grew rich from the +great advance in the price of land, and the farmer grew rich from the +advance in the price of grain; but, alas! the labourer began to suffer, +and has continued to suffer; his privations have increased in the exact +proportion to the increase of taxation, from that day to this. + +In the beginning of this year, (5th of April, 95,) the Prince of Wales was +married to his first cousin the Princess Caroline of Brunswick, a match +which was very much approved by John Bull, as she was young and beautiful, +possessing all those attractions which were likely to render the marriage +state happy; although there was something that John grumbled a little +about, as he had not only to pay the piper, by an additional yearly salary +for his Royal Highness, which was raised by the parliament to ONE HUNDRED +AND TWENTY FIVE THOUSAND POUNDS PER ANNUM, but he was likewise called upon +to _pay the Prince's debts_, which amounted to SIX HUNDRED AND NINETEEN +THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY POUNDS;--DEBTS on _securities_, THREE +HUNDRED THOUSAND, and _tradesmen's bills_, THREE HUNDRED AND NINETEEN +THOUSAND POUNDS, was the amount of the account laid before parliament. +John, however, was then in comparative prosperity, and the money was paid +with great good humour, in the hope that this wild prince would, now he +was married to an amiable and a lovely woman, become more rational, and +less debauched and extravagant. At this time also the trial of Mr. +Hastings was brought to a conclusion; this had been going on seven years +before the House of Lords, and he was now acquitted. There were +considerable riots and disturbances in various parts of the country, in +consequence of the high price of corn; wheat having now, for the first +time in the eighteenth century, risen as high as ten shillings a bushel. +The wages of the labourer in the parish of Enford still remained at six +shillings a week, which caused much grumbling and many complaints, as they +were become now tired of "waiting with patience for better times." The +country was considerably agitated too, by a report of a mutiny in the +Oxford Militia, who were quartered at Newhaven, in the neighbourhood of +Brighton. This also arose in consequence of the high price of provisions. +The privates of this regiment had seized a quantity of flour, and sold it +to their comrades and others, at a reasonable price. I remember that this +caused great alarm amongst the farmers, as they knew that without the aid +of the soldiers they would not be able to keep up the price of their +grain. The riot, however, was soon quelled, and those concerned in it were +tried by a court martial, many of them were severely flogged, and, to the +great joy of the yeomanry, two of them, COOK and PARISH, were shot. In the +carrying of this sentence into execution there were great doubts +entertained, by many of the officers, whether the other regiments of +militia and fencibles, which were in camp there, would not join the Oxford +regiment, and rescue their comrades. The greatest precautions were +therefore taken. The Prince's regiment, the 10th dragoons, was marched +from Hounslow and Windsor, where it was stationed to perform king's duty. +The men had ball cartridges served out to them, and they were drawn up in +the rear of the militia regiments, which were all flanked by the artillery +with lighted matches, ready to rake them if they made the least movement; +and the 10th light dragoons were supported by the Lancashire and Cinque +Port fencibles. But the sentence was executed without any resistance on +the 1st of June; the riot having occurred on the 17th of May. + +I mention this circumstance, because it caused great agitation throughout +the country, and because I am enabled to speak of the particular facts +from the information which I receive from him who is now acting as my +servant, and who was present doing his duty as a corporal of the said 10th +regiment of dragoons, in which regiment he was a warrant officer for many +years; and I find his information as to these matters most valuable to me. +Gracious God! what scenes has he been an eye-witness of! This persecuted +man was promoted to the 18th regiment of dragoons, commanded by Col. +CHARLES STEWART, the brother of Lord Castlereagh; from thence he was +removed, or rather removed himself, and was made adjutant to the +Somersetshire volunteers, which were commanded by HILEY ADDINGTON, the +brother of Lord Sidmouth. But, having detected his commanding officer, and +exposed his peculations, he was dismissed without a court martial, and by +unheard-of persecutions driven to that extremity which sent him here. He +has indeed a tale unfolded to me, enough to harrow up the soul of any one +who has not the heart of a savage. I now know what were the feelings of +the British soldiers, even at that epoch. Having arrived at that period of +life which may fairly be called manhood, I felt an interest in all the +political occurrences of the day, and had by means of the society of our +worthy curate, Mr. Carrington, been enabled pretty clearly to judge of the +views of the different political parties and factions in the country. I +was a most decided advocate for the general measures of the government, +although I abhorred some of the tyrannical acts of the ministers. I was an +enthusiastic admirer of our beautiful constitution, the history of which I +read at that time with great avidity, believing that it was in all its +material points carried practically into effect, notwithstanding my friend +and tutor had so strenuously endeavoured to convince me that it was only +the theory that deserved any admiration. + +About this time a great many public meetings were held, and a clamour for +peace was very general throughout the country; and when the king went to +open the parliament he was grossly insulted, hissed, hooted, groaned at, +and pelted, and one of the glasses of the state carriage was broken, +supposed to have been done with a ball from an air-gun. Five hundred of +the Tenth Dragoons escorted his Majesty from Windsor to Piccadilly, where +the whole regiment of the Fifteenth Dragoons was assembled to conduct the +King to the House of Peers to open the Parliament. After the Fifteenth had +relieved the Tenth, it returned from Piccadilly, and halted at +Knightsbridge barracks, which were then first occupied by it: the men had +orders to remain in readiness the whole night with their horses standing +saddled, and they themselves sleeping in the stable with them. That was +the first time the King had ever been escorted by more than a serjeant's +guard, and I think we may set it fairly down that from that time the laws +of England have been passed under the protection and the influence of the +military. This enabled Mr. Pitt to execute measures hostile to the +liberties of the people. Two bills were immediately passed; one to prevent +seditious meetings, and the other called Lord Grenville's gagging bill. +The British minister was, in fact, become the ruler of the destinies of +Europe; he had contrived, by means of British gold, to procure in France +the committal of the most atrocious and bloody deeds that human nature is +capable of, and this was inhumanly effected in order to delude mankind +with the idea that any change in the form of any government, however bad +and tyrannical, must always be followed by such deeds. In this he was too +successful; for, by these means alone, he was enabled to alarm the timid, +disgust the more rational, and prevail upon the great mass of his +suffering countrymen to submit to these arbitrary acts, and to endure +their present ills, however galling, rather than run the risk of greater +by a change. This was the policy of the British ministry, and I sincerely +believe that all the atrocities that had been committed in Paris, all the +blood that had been spilt, all the massacres that had been perpetrated, +were hired and paid for by British gold, drawn from the pockets of the +gulled and besotted people, for the purpose, as they were made to believe, +of preventing the commission of similar atrocities in our own country. In +fact, the labour, the industry, and the talent of the people, the +industrious and hard-working people of England, were now heavily taxed to +subsidize every despot of the continent; and the wealth of the nation, +drawn from the sweat of the poor man's brow, was squandered with a lavish +hand, to hire and to pay every assassin and every cut throat by trade in +Europe, to enable them to prolong the war against the liberties of France, +and thereby to prevent a reform and redress of grievances at home. In the +mean time the National Convention of France were boasting of their +victories; it was asserted that they had gained twenty-seven pitched +battles, taken one hundred and sixteen strong places, ninety-one thousand +prisoners, and three thousand eight hundred pieces of cannon. During this +year the son of Lewis the Sixteenth died in prison, and on the +twenty-eighth of July, the army of emigrants which landed at Quiberon bay +was totally destroyed. A most curious circumstance also happened: Hanover +made peace with France, so that our amiable allies, the good people of +Hanover, made peace with the King of England's most deadly enemy. It was +also in this year that Stanislaus, King of Poland resigned his crown, and +his kingdom was partitioned among his rapacious neighbours, Austria, +Prussia, and Russia. + +This year was a very turbulent one for Great Britain, there being riots in +many parts of the kingdom in consequence of the high price of bread, the +quartern loaf of which continued above a shilling, during the whole year. +At Salisbury symptoms of rioting broke out one market day; some of the +farmers, attending the market, were hustled and insulted; some of the +sacks of corn were also cut by the rioters, and the corn let about the +marketplace; and the Cornet of the Everley troop of cavalry, Mr. William +Dyke, of Syrencot[12], near Amesbury, one of the largest farmers in the +west of England, who attended the market at Salisbury with his corn, was +insulted and ill-used by the people. The windows of his carriage were +broken, and the vehicle was otherwise injured, as he was escaping out of +the town towards his home in the afternoon. The antipathy of the people +was directed towards him particularly, because he had been very +instrumental in causing the _little bushel_, of the Winchester measure, of +eight gallons, to be introduced generally in the county of Wilts, instead +of the old bushel, which contained nine gallons, and in some instances ten +gallons. My father's district contained full ten gallons, and when the +little bushel was established, four of our bushels made exactly five of +the Winchester measure such was the aversion of my father, as well as of +myself, to the, new regulation, that when the law was enforced to compel +every one to use it, even then we ever afterwards, to this day, put 5 +bushels into each sack, so that they were always of the same size and +weight as they were before the measure was altered. However, Mr. Dyke, our +cornet, was singled out, on account of his being the ring-leader, in what +the poor called a conspiracy to lessen the size of the bushel, and at the +same time to keep up the price of corn. The mob, as they pelted his +carriage with brick bats, as his horses galloped, or rather fled, through +the town, intimated that if he came the next week they would serve him +still worse. This was a great offence, and which was not to be borne. To +pelt 'Squire Dyke, the gallant cornet of the Everly troop, was such a +heinous and daring outrage, that it could not, consistently with our +honour, be suffered to pass with impunity, and every one in the +neighbourhood was made to tremble for the fate of the rioters. Every +member of the troop, and I of course, among the rest, received a formal +summons to be in readiness to join on the following Tuesday, to march to +Salisbury, to quell any riot that might take place; and, at all events, to +guard our gallant commander Mr. Dyke, while he went to the market to sell +his corn; for it was very properly considered, that, in case the cornet of +a troop of yeomanry was allowed to be deterred from attending the market +to sell his grain, no farmer would in future be able to attend without +being in danger, not only of losing his corn, but of having his head +broken into the bargain. + +The thing got wind and was the general topic of conversation all over that +part of the county. The rioters had publicly intimated their intention of +assembling on the next market day at Salisbury, and compelling the farmers +to sell their corn at a moderate price, or abide by the consequences; and +it was blazoned all over the country that the Everly troop had received +orders and meant to march to Salisbury on that day, to join the Salisbury +troop, for the purpose of chastising the temerity of the disorderly +multitude. The bloody conflict that was anticipated caused many a manly +heart to palpitate, and many a rosy cheek to lose its blooming colour and +to be overspread with a pale sallow hue. The mighty battles that had +caused such a sensation throughout the whole of the civilized world, the +terrors that had been created by the combats which had been fought by +_Moreau_, by _Jourdan_, by _Wurmser_, and all the other great generals +upon the continent, were entirely forgotten, or thought but little of, in +the vicinity of Amesbury and Everly. Nothing was talked of, or meditated +upon, but the expected dreadful battle of Salisbury: the quivering and +almost bloodless lip of every one who ventured to speak upon the subject, +showed visible signs of terror and dismay; every face, indeed, seemed to +give "dreadful note of preparation." This was my first campaign; and, as +it was the only opportunity I ever had of distinguishing myself in the +active service of my country in this way as a soldier, and as a volunteer +yeomanry cavalry man too, I must entreat the indulgence and particular +attention of the gentle reader, while I give a faithful narrative, an +unvarnished tale, of the whole affair. This being the solitary instance in +which I was called into the field of battle while I was in the service, I +must entreat those who do me the honour to read my Memoirs, to extend +their forgiveness to me if I should prove somewhat tedious; but to my fair +readers, my female friends, I will promise before hand, that there shall +be no over-strained description of the bloody work of war, &c.: I will +faithfully relate the particulars as they actually occurred, without fear +or favour; being willing to take my share of the honour as well as the +odium of the fate of war. + +It will be recollected, that Mr. Dyke was only a Cornet as yet in the +troop, and of course it was contemplated, as is usual upon these occasions +amongst the subalterns of the army, previous to an engagement, that in +case of a warm contest there would be promotion. Mr. Dyke, or rather +Cornet Dyke, rode over early on the Wednesday following to Captain Astley, +to inform him of what had happened, and requested him to give an order for +the summoning of the troop, to muster on the following Tuesday; and the +place of rendezvous was fixed at the Cornet's house, as that was on the +road to Salisbury. The gallant Captain complied immediately, and the +orderly man was hurried off to inform the different members of the corps +in time, that they might be prepared and well equipped by the important +day; so that we had all of us nearly a whole week to ponder upon the +probable chances of the impending conflict. The whole week was spent in +surmises how it would all end; some longed for the fray, others, as I have +since understood, were preparing for the worst, and occupied their time in +settling their worldly affairs, so that making of wills was the best trade +going for that week. My father, who knew all the parties well, kept up his +spirits; for he at once confidently asserted that there would be no blood +spilt, while the troop was under the command of his neighbour, Captain +Astley; and he really carried his jokes so far, that I was sometimes +almost disposed to be angry myself. "Ah, my dear boy," he used to say, "it +is very well for you that our friend Carrington in gone to Berkeley +Castle; for if he were here he would laugh till his sides cracked to hear +what is going on." I demanded, why so? "Why," said he, "your gallant +Captain is run away already; he is _gone to Boreham_." The fact was, that, +as soon as Dyke had left the Captain, he called his favourite servant +_Douse_, without whose advice he never did any thing at that time, and +having related the object of Cornet Dyke's visit, he said, "What say you, +Douse, to this affair?" "Why," replied Douse, "Damn the Cornet! he is got +into the scrape, and let him get out of it himself in the best way he +can." Douse gave this advice more for the safety of his own carcase than +for the honour of his master; for Douse, who was the groom and the +constant attendant of the Captain, fancied that he himself began to smell +powder already; besides he knew his man well, and he knew that his advice +would be acceptable. He was right in his calculation; for the Captain, +drawing himself up, said, "Right, you are right, Douse! damn the fellow, +as you say, let him fight his own battles, and get out of his own scrapes, +as well as he can. But what shall I do, Douse? What excuse shall I +make?"--"O" says Douse, "order your carriage and go to Boreham, and then +you know you will be from home, and that will be a sufficient excuse." A +beam of pleasure sparkled in the Captain's eye, and he at once adopted the +faithful groom and valet's advice. He then wrote to Sir John Methuen +Poore, the Lieutenant, and honestly told him that, as he was not concerned +in Dyke's keeping up the price of his wheat, he should not attend at +Salisbury, as he was going to Boreham, where he had particular business. +Boreham was near Warminster, not more than 20 miles from Salisbury, and +Everly was 16 miles. However, it was soon buzzed about that the Captain +was from home, and that he _was gone to Boreham_--which was ever +afterwards a _byeword_ amongst the members of the troop when any one had +sneaked out of performing his duty; the exclamation then was, "he's gone +to Boreham!" Sir John Poore took the hint, and wrote to his friend Cornet +Dyke, to say that he had particular business that required his presence in +London, where he was going the next day. This desertion in the hour of +danger, of our Captain and our Lieutenant, flew like lightning through the +district, and I shall never forget my father when he related the latter +circumstance to me; he could not get it out for the life of him for +laughing. "However," said he, "you have got the Cornet left, and he is a +_prudent man_, and I'll warrant you there is no harm will come to any of +you." + +At length the awful morning arrived, and by this time I really had imbibed +a great deal of my father's notion of the thing, and began to think that +it would, after all, turn out very little better than a hoax, or something +for the public to laugh at. I own I did not like the object of the +expedition much; neither did I relish the idea of going to draw my sword +upon a defenceless, unarmed multitude; but my father turned it all into +ridicule--he said we were only old-woman frighteners, and he quoted first +some farwell lines of Pope's Homer, addressed by Hector to Andromache, +before he went out to meet Achilles; then he quoted Hudibras, and then he +would give a few lines of the character of Falstaff, the then again of +Bobadil. The fatal day was, however, come, and I mounted in good time to +proceed to the rendezvous at our Cornet's house at Syrencot.[12] As I rode +along with some of my comrades, I could not avoid cracking a few jokes +about the nature of our expedition, and the unsoldier-like service on +which we were about to be employed. I shall never forget the serious or +rather gloomy appearance of my neighbour and friend, honest John Coward, +of Longstreet; his naturally long dark visage was extended to a more than +usual length, and the tender pathetic way in which he took leave of Jenny +at the door, as he mounted his charger, was a genuine specimen of the mock +heroic. At length he entreated me not to make fun of such a momentous and +solemn undertaking; then fetching a deep sigh, he said he prayed to God +that it might all end well, and that no lives might be lost. In this mood +we arrived in front of Mr. Cornet Dyke's house, where we found the horses +being led about of some few of the troop, who had got there before us. +Being invited to alight, and take some refreshment, we dismounted, and +gave our horses to the care of the men who were attending in considerable +numbers, for the purpose of walking them about while we regaled ourselves. +They were the _thrashers, carters_, and other _labourers_, of our Cornet, +and, as they well knew the errand upon which we were going, they eyed us +with no slight degree of suspicion and ill-will. We had to be sure lost +our _Captain_ and our _Lieutenant_, but we consoled ourselves with the +idea that we had got our Cornet safe; that he could not run away and leave +us in the lurch; although my friend Coward had thrown out some dark hints, +as we came along, by which it appeared to me that there was a hope in his +mind, that something _would yet turn up_, to prevent us from marching at +once to _danger_ and to _glory_; and I could see plainly enough that he +was quite willing to forego all the flattering rewards of the latter, if +he could only be sure of escaping from the former. + +When we entered the house, we found such of our comrades as had arrived +before us, seated round a table, enjoying a handsome cold collation, which +was spread thereon for the occasion. There was cold ham, fowls tongue, &c. +&c. tea, coffee, wine and beer in great profusion; and, if I recollect +right, there were no less than three rooms furnished with the same +substantial proof of our Cornet's hospitality: so that, as he arrived, +each member of the troop was provided with a liberal allowance of good old +English cheer. This being the first time that our hero had ever given a +treat of any sort to the troop, it was hailed by some as an auspicious +omen; and I could not help observing, to my next neighbour at the table, +who was Mr. William Butcher, junior, that the brick-bats which had been +levelled at our Cornet's bead had at all events opened an avenue to his +heart. A general laugh was caused by this remark; though it drew on us a +reprimand from Butcher's uncle, who was a sergeant. I also observed to +Butcher, that my friend and neighbour, Coward, not only played a good +knife and fork, but did ample justice to the _Old October_. An unusual +flush about the gills shewed, indeed, that his blood was beginning to +circulate pretty rapidly, and by the time he had taken another glass or +two he began to talk big, and crack his jokes with the best of us. As some +of the party, in endeavouring to keep up their spirits, were already "half +seas over," Mr. Serjeant-major Pinkey now very properly interposed; and as +every one had taken what was at least quite sufficient, the things were +removed, and we began to look at our watches, which showed us that time +was gliding pretty quickly away, and that we ought to recommence our +march. On our entrance we had been desired by the servants to make +ourselves welcome, but our _Cornet_ had not yet made his appearance. +Having waited a considerable time, I took the liberty to ring the bell and +desire the servant to inform his master that we were all in readiness to +start, and waited only for our commander. Although generally speaking, +this was considered as very proper, yet some of the older members thought +it was very impertinent in _me_, who was a mere stripling at the time. The +servant went up stairs to deliver the message, but still we remained +without an answer; and my new acquaintance, William Butcher, having +whispered to me loud enough for many of our comrades to hear, "That he +should not be surprised to see our leader come forth by-and-by, like +Hamlet's Ghost, armed in complete steel," this was received by some with a +_smile_, by the more discreet with a _frown_. Still, however, no Cornet +appeared. At length, in spite of sour looks and rebukes, I rang the bell +once more, and begged the servant to let us know whether his master was +coming or not. + +All my father's observations now came forcibly across my mind; I began to +thing that his quotations from Hudibras and Shakespeare had too much truth +in them; and I prepared myself for some extraordinary conduct on the part +of our Commander. It was well I did so, amazed indeed should I have been. +My last message had the desired effect. After we had been anxiously +waiting for more than an hour, the door at length opened, and in walked +the _Cornet_--but, instead of being dressed in _armour_, he had not even +got on his _regimentals_. To our utter astonishment, confusion and dismay, +instead of marching firmly forth armed "_cap-a-pe_" with nodding plume, +and his bright and trusty steel girt round his loins, eager for the fight; +lo and behold! he crept slowly and solemnly along, clad in a _long flannel +dressing gown and a pair of scarlet slippers_. Notwithstanding all my +father had prepared me for, this scene so far surpassed all that his +ridicule had anticipated, that I can solemnly aver that I had never before +felt such a sensation, and as I have never since felt any thing like it, I +am totally unable to describe my feelings. We were all struck motionless, +and every one, as he involuntarily rose, appeared to dart a look of eager +enquiry without being able to open his lips. The trembling ---- at length +broke silence, and in a faultering under tone he spoke, or rather whined +as follows:--"Gentlemen, I am very sorry for having kept you waiting so +long." One of the troop, who had been plying the Cornet's old stingo +pretty freely, interrupted him, in a voice as opposite to that of the +Cornet as the roaring of a cannon is to the chirping of a cricket, and +replied "Never mind, Sir, about any apology, but put on your regimentals +as fast as you can, or we shall get to Salisbury after all the mischief is +done." The Cornet proceeded--"I am very sorry, Gentlemen; it is very +unlucky; but, about three o'clock this morning, _I was suddenly seized +with such a violent pain in my bowels_, that Mrs. Dyke says it will be +very imprudent for me to leave the house _in my present state_, for fear +of catching cold; and in fact _I think so too_, and she insists upon it +that I shall not go with you." + +In the midst of this affecting scene I too was seized suddenly, but in +rather a different way; for an appropriate couplet which my father had +repeated in the morning, and with which I was very angry then, now came so +forcibly across my memory, that not being able to suppress my feelings, I +burst out into what is vulgarly called a _horse laugh_; in which I was +joined by Butcher and some of my comrades. The poor Cornet, however, +pitiously proceeded, as well as a man could do with such a _twinging belly +ach_, and said, "That he really was very sorry for it; but as it could not +be helped now, he trusted that we would proceed under the command of +Serjeant-major Pinkney, and he was quite sure that we should conduct +ourselves in a manner that would do credit to the troop. He added that he +would send a servant with us, who would return and let him know how +matters stood, and in case his presence was absolutely necessary, he would +endeavour to come over to Salisbury in his carriage, _provided that Mrs. +Dyke would permit him to leave home_." Heaven and earth, here was a +catastrophe! I sincerely believe, if I had not been an eye witness of this +transaction, that I should have thought to this hour that some of the +characters drawn by Shakespeare were ridiculously absurd and unnatural; +but this scene in real life so far exceeded any thing I had ever seen +represented upon the stage, that I have never since disputed the +correctness of our inimitable bard, in his conceptions of human nature, +and the justice with which he has delineated its various characters. +_Squire Dyke_ now returned up stairs to his inconsolable lady, and his +amiable anxious family; and having mounted our chargers we marched off +towards Salisbury, with the _gallant Serjeant-major_ at our head. As we +rode along, or rather marched two a-breast, my comrade was Mr. William +Butcher of Urchfont, with whom I that day contracted an intimacy which +lasted as long as we remained together in the same county, and which was +continued by a friendly intercourse up to the period of his premature +death a few years back. We were passing Bulford, about two miles before we +reached Amesbury, when we observed the Serjeant-major and Butcher's uncle, +who was another Serjeant, in deep and serious conference, upon which I +exclaimed, by G-d, Butcher, your uncle and Pinkney are holding a council +of war; and I will bet my life that some new difficulty will arise, so as +after all to prevent our marching to the scene of action. I had scarcely +spoken the words before our _then Commander_ fell back, and joined myself +and Butcher, who were heading the troop next to the officers: and Pinkney +addressed me as follows:--"We have been considering the matter over, Hunt, +and Butcher thinks that we are proceeding not only upon a hazardous but a +very foolish expedition; for he says that, as there is no commissioned +officer with us, any act of ours will, in the eye of the law be deemed +illegal. What say you to this?" Having given the wink to my friend, I +replied as follows:--"I believe that Serjeant Butcher is quite right as to +his law, and that in case any person should be killed, there is no doubt +but we shall every man Jack of us be tried for murder. But, if you ask my +opinion. I am for proceeding immediately; for we had much better be _tried +and hanged_ to boot, than live to be pointed at as fools and cowards for +the remainder of our days." "Ah!" exclaimed Serjeant Butcher, "that is +very pretty talking for you, young fellow; but we are too old to be caught +_tripping_ (I suppose he meant _swinging_) in such a way. We have made up +our minds to _halt_ at Amesbury, where we will dine; and in the mean time +we will send over Mr. Dyke's servant to Salisbury, and should there be any +_riot_ he can return and let us know, and we can quickly be there, as +Amesbury is only seven miles from thence." He likewise very prudently +observed, that "it would be exceedingly foolish to march there to create a +riot, when, by staying away, all danger or mischief might be avoided." + +As the council of war had settled[13] the business, all my sarcastic +observations merely tended to irritate, without the least chance of +changing their final determination; and we, therefore, gallantly marched +into Amesbury, where, having halted in front of Mrs. Purnell's house, the +sign of the George and the Dragon, our commander gave the word for the +landlady to advance, from whom he boldly demanded, whether she thought +that she could provide beef steaks for sixty in half an hour, as the troop +could not halt longer than an hour, they being extremely anxious to reach +Salisbury. Mrs. Purnell, who was an excellent landlady, as well as an +excellent woman, was too good a judge of business to turn away such a +spanking order; with an engaging smile she replied, that she could hardly +undertake to supply us all with beef steaks, but that, if we would +dismount, she would do the best she could. The offer was hailed and +accepted without further ceremony, and every man got as good a birth for +his horse as circumstances would admit. Another council of war was then +called, and another very grave question was discussed with all the +solemnity of a camp scene, immediately preceding a battle. This momentous +question was, how much each man should be allowed to drink after dinner, +and, on due deliberation, it was at length resolved, and proclaimed aloud, +that every one might take what beer he liked at dinner, but that no person +should take more than a pint of wine after dinner. The reader will +recollect that we had only marched about _three miles and a half since we +had all taken such an EXHILIRATING luncheon at our Cornet's house._ + +At the expiration of an hour the steaks were pronounced to be ready, and +we all fell to without ceremony. Mrs. Purnell at that time brewed her own +ale, which was very different from the nauseous and deleterious trash that +is now supplied to such houses by those common pests of society, _common +brewers_. As many of the young farmers belonging to the troop had not got +rid of the effects of what they had taken at their luncheon, they plied +the tankard of good old nappy freely with their dinner; so much so, +indeed, that before the cloth was removed there were never less than eight +or ten talking loud at a time; and, long before each man had finished half +a bottle of wine, three-fourths of the troop were drunk. The following +scene ensued. Two of the gallant heroes, being deprived of the chance of +making war upon the old women and boys at Salisbury, who had the week +before pelted their Cornet, actually stripped and had a pitched battle. +All command was at an end. The Serjeant-major fruitlessly endeavoured to +call them to order; they were all now become too vain and too valiant to +be under the controul of any one. Some had mounted their horses, and swore +that they would immediately proceed to Salisbury, as they were sure Dyke's +servant was killed, or he would have returned long, before; others were +grinding their swords; and one, having more courage or more wine aboard +than the rest, was actually seen setting his weapon upon the hone of the +barber of the place. But as the servant of Cornet Dyke had now returned, +to say that it was all peaceable, and no chance of a riot, some of the +party actually proposed to march over to Salisbury, to shew that they were +not _afraid_. As there was _no danger_, and the major part of the troop +were three parts drunk, it only required a CAPTAIN BIRLEY to lead them on, +and a SQUIRE HULTON to give the word, to have caused a scene in which, +though it would not have been equal in atrocity and cruelty to the murders +of the 16th of August, at Manchester, the blood of innocent and unarmed, +although misled persons, might, and in all human probability would have +been spilt. However, by the advice of myself and a few other, who had +retained our senses, and who felt degraded in our own estimation by the +whole of these proceedings, the Serjeant-major ordered all present to be +dismissed, and each to depart to his home in the best way he could. This +was done, but the whole of this little town of Amesbury was thrown into +confusion by the drunken and ridiculous proceedings of some of the men +before they left it--and thus ended the battle, that was to have been, of +Salisbury! + +I returned to my father thoroughly abashed and ashamed of the transaction; +but, when I related to him the account of the _belly-ach and long faced, +dressing-gown scene_, I really thought he would have cracked his sides +with laughing; and, as I had entered the troop against his wish and better +judgment, he did not spare me in some of his remarks. "And now," said he, +"young man, I hope you will another time be more disposed to attend to the +advice of your father, who has lived so many years longer than yourself, +and has been thereby enabled to form a much more correct judgement of +mankind than you can possibly do." "But," added he, "that wisdom which is +gained by experience is always the most lasting, and generally the most +advantageous, so that it be not purchased too dear." I own I did not +profit so much as I ought to have done by the sound advice of such an +excellent father; but, as he used frequently to say, as an excuse for any +indiscretion of mine, produced from the enthusiasm of my disposition, +"Well, it cannot be helped; there is no putting old heads upon young +shoulders." This was not only very liberal in him, but perfectly true; and +the wise Supreme has very properly ordained that it should be so. I have, +however, never ceased to regret my own imprudence and folly in not +listening more attentively to the kind advice and prudent admonition of +one who was so capable and so anxious to bestow it upon me. + +I had now been labouring incessantly in my avocations on my father's farms +for five years, in acquiring a competent knowledge of and clear insight +into the farming business; and I must say that my father was at all times +fully disposed to give me credit for my exertions. This season I had taken +upon myself to make one of five mowers who cut down all my father's spring +corn, consisting of very little short of three hundred acres of barley and +oats. It being a perfectly fine harvest season, we had not, the whole +time, one day sufficiently wet to stop mowing; and on a Saturday night it +was all down, with the exception of one piece of oats, consisting of +seventeen acres and a half; a very heavy crop growing upon newly broken or +burn-baked ground. On Saturday night I proposed to my partners that we +should make an effort to cut down this piece of oats on the Monday, +although it lay three miles and a half from home, adjoining Everly field. +This was thought to be an impracticable undertaking; each, however, +promised to be there by four o'clock in the morning, and to start from +home as the clock struck three. As it would take an hour to walk three +miles and a half with the scythes on their backs, it was agreed that they +should carry my scythe, and that I should bring the bottles and bag upon +my poney. + +On the Sunday I was engaged to dine and pass the day at Heytesbury, a +distance of nearly twenty miles from my father's house, where I was going +to meet a young lady, who was on a visit there, and to whom I was +betrothed, without the consent of my father. How this betrothing came +about I must now inform my readers. I had often heard my father speak in +very high terms of Miss Halcomb, the daughter of his old acquaintance, Mr. +Wm. Halcomb, who kept the Bear Inn at Devizes, well known to be one of the +very best inns between London and Bath, which inn had been previously kept +by the late Mr. Lawrence, the father of the present Sir Thomas Lawrence, +who I believe was born there. My father was always talking to my sisters +in praise of the industry and the accomplishments of this young lady, +particularly when any thing was not quite so well managed as it ought to +be; he would then exclaim, "Ah! How much better Miss Halcomb would have +done it!" My eldest sister used sometimes to reply, rather petulantly, +"Why do you not invite this lady to come and see us? perhaps I should then +be enabled to acquire some of her talent to please." "Well," said my +father one day, "I have no objection. You shall ride with me to-morrow, +and call upon her, and I will then invite Mr. Halcomb to bring his +daughters and return the visit." My sister agreed to this, and, as she +herself told me, she was prepared to dislike this lady, merely because my +father had so often made such severe comparisons, that she had almost +become a bugbear to her. Not so with me; I was already half in love with +her from my father's description, although I had never seen her; and upon +their return was eager to know when we should have the pleasure of seeing +her and her family. The day, however, was not fixed at that time; but a +remarkable circumstance ultimately produced the so much longed-for +interview with this young lady, and I own I had made up my mind secretly +to admire her person, as much as from my father's description, I admired +her good qualities. Had my father but even slightly guessed what was +working in my breast, he would never have invited Miss Halcomb to +Littlecot; he having a much higher object in view for his son, both as to +fortune and rank. + +It is rather extraordinary, but I longed excessively to see this lady. At +length the following occurrence led to the event which I had anticipated +with so much anxiety. My father had ridden to London, and taken his friend +Coward with him as a companion. On their return, having started early on a +Sunday morning, they rode, as was my father's custom, twenty miles before +breakfast, which brought them to the Windmill, at Salt Hill. They rode +into the yard, and having called for the hostler, the landlord, Mr. +Botham, came up to them and made his bow. Having learned, in the course of +his conversation with them, that they came from the neighbourhood of +Devizes, he enquired if my father knew Mr. Halcomb who kept the Bear Inn, +to which my father replied, that he not only knew but was particularly +intimate with him; a reply which led to a more familiar conversation. + +As soon as they had finished breakfast, the landlord entered the room, and +invited them to walk into the garden and take some fruit; an invitation +which was accepted. From thence they had a full view of Windsor Castle, +which being admired by Coward, Mr. Botham enquired if they had ever seen +Windsor. The answer being in the negative,--"Well, Gentlemen," said he, +"If you will favour me with your company to dinner, I will take you over +in a chaise, shew you the King's farms, the Queen's dairy, &c. after which +we will walk over the Castle, and go to the Chapel Royal where you will +have an opportunity of seeing all the Royal Family, who are at Windsor, as +they scarcely ever fail in fine weather to attend divine service." +Coward's eyes sparkled with joy at the proposal, and he looked with +anxious expectation for my father's answer. The latter replied that it +would have been a great treat to him, particularly to have inspected the +King's farms; but that he was, nevertheless, reluctantly obliged to +decline this polite offer, as they were under the necessity of reaching +home the next morning, and had made arrangements for sleeping that night +at Newbury, a distance of nearly forty miles from Salt Hill, much too far +for their horses to take them after dinner. "If that be all the objection +you have," replied Botham, "we will soon settle that: I will send a steady +man on to Reading with your horses, who shall get them well cleaned and +fed, and after we have seen Windsor, and you have dined and taken one of +the best bottles of old port my house can produce, and drank the health of +my friend Halcomb, I will put the best pair of horses I have in my stables +to a post chaise, in which you shall be taken to Reading in such style as +will give you a specimen of the way in which we conduct posting at the +London end of the Bath road. By the time that you arrive at Reading your +horses will have had good time to feed, and will be fresh to take you on +to Newbury as early as you have named." Coward begged my father to accept +so very excellent a proposal, and declared that it would not only be a +great deal better for their horses, but a great accommodation to them; and +in this Coward was very sincere, for he did not altogether like my +father's long rides on horseback, as my father seldom travelled less than +sixty miles a day, when upon a journey. But my father, who was a man of +the world, looking Botham firmly in the face said, "I assure you, Sir, +that your proposition staggers me a little. Your offer is most polite and +very generous; but, as I am not in the habit of receiving such liberality +from strangers, how am I to account for the pressing manner in which you +have offered it? I cannot for one moment believe that a person in your +respectable situation can have any unworthy motive; but you must excuse me +for declining to assent to your proposition, unless you will inform me in +what way I may have an opportunity of returning the compliment, or, at any +rate, point out some probable motive that has induced you to proffer it." +"Sir," said Botham, I will do both; in the first place, I have received +many civilities, and in fact great acts of kindness, from Mr. Halcomb +which, as he has never been here, I have never had an opportunity of +returning. I have, therefore, seized this occasion of being civil to one +of his friends. In the next place, if you will fix a day, when I can meet +Mr. Halcomb and his daughters at your house, I will pay you a visit in +return with pleasure, although it is a distance of sixty miles. We +innkeepers, you know, travel not only expeditiously, but very cheaply. +"Enough," said my father. "Give me your hand, we will chearfully place +ourselves at your disposal till four or five o'clock in the afternoon." +The business was thus settled, to the great joy of poor Coward, who was +almost dumb with fear, lest my father should decline such an opportunity +of seeing Windsor and the Royal Family. + +To Windsor they accordingly went, and were greatly entertained with what +they saw, which was every thing that was to be seen about the Castle, as +Mr. Botham was well acquainted with the upper servants in attendance +there; they also got a seat at the Chapel Royal, very near the Royal +Family, and having spent a pleasant day, Mr. Botham kept his word, by +conveying them in a post chaise to Reading, a distance of twenty miles, in +about an hour and a half. + +When my father returned he related this circumstance to me and my sisters; +and Coward overwhelmed us with his praises of Mr. Botham. My father then +said that he would fix an early day, for Mr. Halcomb and his daughters to +come and meet him. Coward observed that he must have a very great regard +for his friend, to travel one hundred and twenty miles, merely to dine +with him. "Ah! Coward," said my father, "You know little of mankind! it +did not require any very extraordinary degree of penetration to discover +that Mr. Botham entertained a greater friendship for one of the +_daughters_ than he did for her father."--"Why, yes," replied Coward, "I +now remember that he devoured your praises of Miss Halcomb with great +avidity." "To tell you the truth," said my father, "Mr. Botham informed me +that he wished for an alliance with the eldest daughter of his friend; +and, as I think it a good match, and Salt Hill will be an excellent home +for her, I will do every thing that lies in my power to promote their +union." + +For the moment, this information was death to my hopes, and seemed to +strike daggers to my heart; for I was literally over head and ears in love +with this unknown lady, merely from what I had heard my father say of her. +But as I could not learn from my father that she had in any way encouraged +the hopes of Botham, I felt, after a little reflection, no fears for the +result, and without farther consideration, resolutely made up my mind to +be his rival. This furnishes a striking example how liable young persons, +possessing minds of a sanguine nature, are to be talked into any thing. + +The day was fixed for the party, and my poor father little thought that +his son, who could not by any process of reasoning be supposed to have any +thing more than the common feeling which actuates the minds of young +people when they anticipate meeting some friends of their own age, he +little thought that his son looked forward to the day with a much more +intense anxiety than either of the individuals that he expected would play +so prominent a character, and on whose account the party was solely made +up. The day at length arrived, and my father had made such preparations as +he conceived were due to the polite attention and hospitality that he had +received at the hands of Mr. Botham. My father was not one of that class +of personages who are so very common, and who pride themselves upon being +match makers; this being the only instance in which I ever knew him to +interfere in any thing of the sort; but he, nevertheless, really appeared +to enter into this scheme with all the ardour of an old proficient. I +believe, however, that he did it with the best of motives, under the full +impression that he was serving all parties, as it struck him that it would +be an union which bid fair to promote the mutual advantage and happiness +of the two families. The reader will indeed perceive that he was not an +adept in the art of match making, as, had he been so, he certainly would +not have communicated the secret to us young folks. + +The dinner hour now approached, and a chaise drove up to the door; +containing the two Miss Halcombs, accompanied by their brother, on +horseback. My father having introduced them to me, Mr. Halcomb made an +apology for the absence of his father who was ill, and presented a letter, +which had been sent to him by the coach from Botham, directed for my +father. The latter having opened and read it, he looked very grave and +disconcerted, and said, addressing himself to the young lady, "I am very +sorry to inform you, Madam, that I find by this letter, which I have +received from Mr. Botham, that we shall be deprived of the pleasure of his +company, in consequence, as he informs me, of his unexpectedly having a +large party from town, who have ordered a dinner, which totally precludes +the possibility of his leaving home." This caused a slight blush upon the +cheek of Miss Halcomb, who very modestly replied, "that she was sorry my +father was deprived of the company of his friend; but," looking round to +me and my sister, she added with a smile, "we will endeavour to bear the +loss with fortitude, and spend the day as pleasantly as we can without +him." It might have been very natural for me to feel an inward pleasure at +the absence of one whom I had expected to meet as a rival; but to tell the +truth, I felt very differently, for I at once set him down as an opponent +not worth contending with, and I could not help despising him for his want +of gallantry. I had also eagerly watched the countenance of the lady, to +endeavour, if possible, to collect whether this Mr. Botham had made any +impression upon her heart or not; and from the apathy which it manifested, +I felt very little fear on his account. My father was sadly mortified at +the circumstance; both at the absence of his old friend Halcomb, and his +new acquaintance Botham. However, we spent a very pleasant day, and, as I +had already made up my mind to be, I _was_ over head and ears in love with +the lady. My attentions, in fact, were so pointed and unreserved, that I +saw that my father began to repent that he had ever had any thing to do +with match making. + +I found Miss Halcomb not only to possess all the good qualities that my +father had ever described, but in my estimation she possessed ten thousand +times more charms than my fervid imagination previously formed. My +attentions were received with that politeness which was becoming an +amiable, a virtuous and an accomplished female, on the first interview +with a young man, to whom she had never given one thought before; but it +was very flattering to me to find that those attentions were not +considered obtrusive or disagreeable. I perceived that my father sat upon +thorns, and that he was very much pleased to find that the young ladies +declined the invitation of my sister to remain all night, although I added +my intreaties to those of my sister, and this too in so earnest a manner, +that my father could not refrain from saying that he should be very happy +if the young ladies would remain all night with his daughter, but really +he was fearful that my _homely way_ of pressing them to stay would be +considered as being very rude. Notwithstanding they had made up their +minds to go, yet I could see that they were not offended at the _homely +way_ (as my father called it) in which I enforced my suit. I enlarged upon +the darkness of the evening, the badness of the roads, and a thousand +other obstacles which I presented to their view; but when I found that all +was in vain; I seized an occasion to withdraw, while they were at tea, and +taking off one of the wheels of the chaise I conveyed it unobserved into +the rick yard, where I secreted it under some straw. I then returned and +took my leave, saying that I had an appointment to meet some friends at a +neighbouring fair, which was actually the case. Then, mounting my horse, +off I rode. It happened as I had anticipated. When the horses were brought +out to be put to the chaise, the boy was astonished to find that one of +the hind-wheels was gone; and as it was a physical impossibility for any +one to find it that night, the young ladies were obliged to accept my +sister's offer, in which my father now sincerely joined, since he found +that I had left home: though he did not hesitate to pronounce me to be the +culprit who had, in one of my ridiculous frolics, stolen the wheel off the +chaise. Upon my return, I was charged with the act, which I freely +confessed, assigning as an excuse, my fears for the safety of the young +females, travelling such bad roads in such a dark night. + +Within a very few days after this event, I gained Miss Halcomb's consent +to ask her father's permission to pay my addresses in form; and within a +week from that time, I demanded her hand in marriage. The old gentleman, +however, very properly replied, that, although he had no objection to me +as a son-in-law, he could not give his consent to any such hasty measure, +till he had seen my father, to know if it met with his approbation. I +frankly told him that he might save himself the trouble and mortification +of applying to my father, who, as soon as I mentioned my attachment to +Miss Halcomb, and that I had offered her my hand and heart, (which at the +same time I informed him she had kindly accepted,) had thrown himself into +a violent passion, and swore, that unless I gave up my prize, and +abandoned all further intentions of marrying an innkeeper's daughter, he +would disinherit me, and cut me off with a shilling. This was quite enough +to fix my determination, and I at once told old Mr. Halcomb, that I hoped +he would act a more considerate part, for, as I had gained his daughter's +consent, and as I was of age, and his daughter very nearly so, all the +fathers in Christendom, nor all the powers on earth, should prevent me +from making her my wife. The old gentleman very clearly saw that it was of +no use to endeavour to deter me from my purpose by vain vows or threats; +he therefore took a more rational course; he endeavoured to win me over by +persuasion; and at length, by this conciliatory conduct, and by an +assurance that he would not stand personally in the way, but that he would +take every means consistent with the feelings of a man of honour to soften +down the rigour of my father, he prevailed upon me to give up all +intention of taking any hasty or premature step, which might involve us +all in very unpleasant difficulties. This was a course which was sure to +succeed with me, and I promised him that I would do nothing without his +knowledge. Now, I am convinced that if Mr. Halcomb had acted in the same +way that my father did, if he had forbidden me his house, and endeavoured +by force to prevent my access to his daughter, such was my spirit of +opposition, such an abhorrence had I of being _driven_ into or out of any +measure, such an innate hatred had I of every thing like tyrannical force, +that I am quite sure if he had so acted, I having got the lady's consent, +I am quite sure I should have run away with her in a week, in spite of all +that could have been done to prevent me. If my father, on the contrary, +had taken a similar course with Mr. Halcomb, if he had kindly advised me, +and endeavoured to prevail upon the by mild and gentle means, I do not say +that he would, or that he ought, to, have succeeded in making me give up +the lady, but I am quite clear that he would have had a much better chance +of success. Nay, if he had appeared careless, and left me to myself, I was +at that time of such a volatile disposition, that such a hasty attachment +might possibly have been weakened, or it might have worn off by time; but +the very course which he took, irrevocably fixed my fate as to marriage. I +was of age, and I had always made up my mind that I was, and ought to be, +my own master upon this subject. I am still of the same opinion; I still +hold that parents have no right to make their children miserable by any +arbitrary dictation upon a question of such vital importance as that of +whom they shall marry. Parents have an undoubted right, nay it is an +imperious duty which they owe to their children, to direct their choice +with respect to suitable connections, and they have a right to interpose +the authority of their advice and recommendation to their children. But +the law of God and of man says[14], that the parties about to be united +ought to exercise their own free choice. The law says that no person shall +marry who is under age, without the consent of his or her parents; and the +law has very justly drawn this line. The law, therefore, very properly +contemplates that no parent shall have the absolute controul over the +person of a child in this matter after that child has come of age. + +I have, probably, detained the reader much longer upon this subject than +is either entertaining or edifying, but as this occurrence paved the way +for that important part of my history, my marriage, I feel it a duty which +I owe to myself, and to those who do me the honour to read these Memoirs, +and more particularly to the Radicals, to be more explicit than I +otherwise should be, if the venal press, and particularly the profligate +Editors and Proprietors of that press, in order to gratify their political +employers and partisans, had not, upon so many occasions, and with such +brutal and savage coarseness, when they could neither answer my arguments +nor contradict the truths that I promulgated, sought to cover their defeat +and their infamy by accusing me of having deserted my wife, and left her +to starve. Fearless of the consequences, I shall, therefore, as I go +along, place the circumstances fairly and honestly before the public, and +leave them to draw their own conclusions, as to the correctness, not to +say any thing of the honesty, of the base assertions which are made by the +toots of my political adversaries. At this moment, however, I will merely +state briefly this fact, that, in the year 1802, more than eighteen years +ago, I was separated from my wife by mutual consent. We had three +children; two sons and a daughter. It was agreed that the daughter should +live with the mother, and the sons with me; but that both mother and +father should have free access to each of the children, and the children +the same access to the parents; and as I made a most liberal settlement +upon my wife, (the particulars of which I shall not withhold,) there has +been no complaint uttered by either party; no living creature ever having +heard me make even the slightest insinuation against my wife, or ever cast +the most remote reflection upon her character or conduct; neither has it +ever come to the knowledge of myself or any of my friends that my wife has +spoken one disrespectful word against me. As we have both always lamented, +as a misfortune, the circumstances which led to our separation, so we both +have carefully abstained from heightening and adding to the poignancy of +that misfortune, by mutual accusations, revilings, and recriminations, +which would have been as base as they would have been proved to he +unfounded. If, on the contrary, I had deserted my wife, after having, when +I was first married, surrounded her by prostitutes and courtezans; if I +had been intriguing with every loose and abandoned female that came within +the precincts of a profligate circle; if, after having driven her from my +home, friendless and unprovided for; if, after having personally insulted +her, I had hired spies and informers to traduce her character; if I had +employed and paid the most abandoned characters, and had suborned them to +swear away her life and her honour; if, when this plot had been detected +and exposed, and her innocence had been proved by the very means that I +had employed to blast her reputation and to destroy her; if I had still, +in the most unfeeling and unnatural manner, separated her from, and cut +off all communication with, her child, under the hollow and false pretence +that she was not a proper person to be entrusted with the care of her own +daughter; if, I say, I had driven her out of the country, and, having done +this, if I had hired another gang of base villains, not only to dog and +watch her steps, but to seduce and bribe her servants to betray her; if I +had rewarded these villains, _even with my own money_, to fabricate and +propagate all sorts of calumnies against her abroad, while their infamous +agents at home were reiterating and magnifying those falsehoods; if I had +bribed the dastardly hireling press to libel and villify her; if in fact, +I had carried my persecutions and deadly hatred so far as at last _to +break the heart of her daughter_; if, upon her return, I had made another +atrocious attempt to destroy her by means of hired, bribed and suborned +foreign witnesses; if I had done these things, or any of them, I should +have been an execrable and detestable villain, and I should have merited +the scorn of every man and woman in the universe: but, even then, even if +I had been guilty of all these horrible and unnatural deeds, it would, +even under these abhorrent circumstances, have been base in the extreme in +the doubled-faced, black-hearted villains of the _Courier_, the _dull +Post_ and the _mock Times_ to attack me in the way they have repeatedly +done about my wife; because there are not three _such abandoned profligate +unprincipled_ monsters under the canopy of heaven. Even the _virtuous_ Mr. +Perry, of the Morning Chronicle, has, when an occasion offered, +endeavoured to varnish over his own character by attacking me about my +wife. But, when I remind Mr. Perry that his wife, or at least the person +he called one of his wives, was a Miss HULL, a butcher's daughter of the +above-named town of Devizes, and that I know that those "who have glass +heads, should be very careful how they throw stones;" I trust he will be +more guarded in future. + +I now request my readers to accept my apology for this long digression, +and, without further comment, I will resume the thread of my narrative. I +have now introduced the reader to Miss Halcomb, who was destined to be my +wife; and I also have before said that I event to send a Sunday with her +at Heytesbury, a distance of nearly thirty miles from my father's house. +The reader will recollect, too, that I had engaged with my father's mowers +to meet them at four o'clock on the Monday, morning upwards of three miles +from home, in order to attack a field of oats, of seventeen acres and a +half, a very heavy crop, to see if we, (five in number,) could not cut +them down the same day. The time, however, passed so delightfully and so +rapidly in the society of an amiable and lovely female, to whom I was +betrothed, that the clock had unobserved by me struck twelve more than +half an hour; and, before I could muster up resolution enough to tear +myself from the clear object of all my hopes, the respectable family, with +whom my intended wife was visiting, had given me more than one hint of its +being past their usual time of retiring to rest. However, upon another +hint being given by the prudent matron of the family, I took my leave, and +having mounted my faithful steed I bent my course over the downs, twenty +miles across Salisbury Plain. As I quitted the village, or rather the +rotten borough, of Heytesbury, the church clock struck _one_; Which for +the first time recalled to my recollection the promise I had made, as well +as my resolution to perform an uncommon day's mowing, which was to +commence at twenty-three miles distance at four o'clock. + +With a heart as light as a feather, I reached home at three o'clock, when +my father's servant informed me that the mowers had been gone forward +nearly half an hour, and that they had left the bottles to be filled and +carried to the field by me. Finding that I was rather behind my time, I +merely then pulled off my coat and waistcoat, and put on my frock. I did +not wait to take off either my tight leather breeches, (which were the +fashion at that time,) or my boots; but as soon as the servant had filled +the bottles with ale, I mounted a poney, and reached the field of oats, +just as the other four men were stripped and whetting their scythes in +order to begin; a thing which they had never before had an opportunity of +doing, throughout the whole harvest, as the first stroke was uniformly +struck by myself. They waited while I threw off my frock and took off my +spurs, and having unbuttoned the knees of my breeches, we set to; and in +ten minutes after the sun had sunk below the horizon, the last swarth was +laid flat, and not an oat left standing; a day's work which stands +unrivalled in that country, and which is the more uncommon, as, in fact, +there were only four scythes at work during the greater part of the day; +for, it being excessively hot, one of the men, the worst mower of course, +was principally employed in riding to and from the Inn at Everly, to +replenish the bottles. This was indispensible, every man being allowed as +much ale as he could drink, with the exception of the two last bottles, +containing three quarts each, which I was obliged to prohibit from being +tapped till the oats were all down, as some of my partners by this time +began to discover evident symptoms of inebriety. As we finished the last +stroke, a very severe flash of lightning announced the approach of a +storm, which had been gathering for several hours. I advised the men to +hasten home, but they declared, now that the mowing was finished, they +would finish the bottles before they left the field, and they kept their +words. I hurried home as fast as my pony could gallop, and got in doors +just in time to escape one of the most tremendous thunder-storms I ever +witnessed; my four companions got jollily drunk, and slept upon the open +down, drenched in rain all night; and although I met two of them returning +home, the next morning at four o'clock, in a most wretched state, yet such +was their hardy nature that neither of them took the least cold. + +I have detailed this day's work as the last perhaps of the sort with which +I shall trouble the reader. It was, as I have already intimated, such a +day's work as had never been accomplished by five mowers before, or has +been since, in that part of the world; and it will be recollected that I +performed my share with out having had any sleep or rest. But to me, at +that time, I never appeared to want any rest--I frequently worked till ten +o'clock, and after taking my supper, and conversing with my father, +arranging the proceedings for the next morning, I was very often not in +bed till after eleven; yet I was very commonly up and dressed again by +half past 3, and never in the summer time was in bed after four. It is a +very extraordinary fact, that those who labour hard in the fields all day +require the least sleep; at all events the smallest quantity of time in +bed; for when they get thither, they enjoy and receive as much real sleep, +they receive as much real refreshment in four hours, as the indolent, the +idle, or the sedentary do in double the time. When the mind is active and +well employed I now find it has the same effect upon me as laborious +bodily exercise, for I sleep as sound as a rock here, and when my mind is +fully occupied, and kept upon a proper stretch during the day, six or +seven hours rest in bed is quite ample; but when my mind is less employed, +or occupied by light reading, and not exerted in its usual way, then I +require more rest in bed, and I can sleep eight or even nine hours. It is, +however, very seldom indeed that I give way to such negligence and +sluggishness. I go to rest usually between eleven and twelve, and I am +always up before seven. I was always instructed by my father to consider +indolence as one of the greatest faults; it was, in fact, a sin of the +first magnitude in his vocabulary.--Indolence, he always said was the +harbinger of every vice, of every evil. And the Songs of Solomon and his +Proverbs were on every occasion ready to support his opinion. He would say +to the sluggard, "Go to the ant, thou sluggard, consider her ways and be +wise." He would forgive many a fault in a servant, but at habitual lyer in +bed, he would get rid of immediately, unless he could break him of the bad +habit. + +My father for some time was very positive, and very determined to prevent +me from marrying an Innkeeper's daughter; and at length I undertook to +reason with him upon the subject. I demanded if he knew any thing in the +slightest degree affecting the character of the young lady? His answer was +"No; quite the reverse." I asked if he had not, at all times, and +perpetually, spoken in the highest terms of her conduct, and whether he +had not, in my hearing, held her up as a pattern of propriety, and an +example to my sisters? All this he admitted to be true: but she had no +fortune, and he had expected me to marry a lady of fortune and family; at +the same time he pointed out several, whom he should have been pleased to +acknowledge as his daughter-in-law. I then demanded, whether, if she were, +fit to be held up by him as a pattern for his daughters, she were likely +to degrade his son as his wife? But, then, she had no fortune, and she was +an Innkeeper's daughter. I begged then to know if he had any thing to urge +against her father? No, indeed, he was a truly honourable and upright man. +Then I would reply, "how often, Sir, have I been taught by you, in the +language of your favourite author Pope, to look upon "_an honest man as +the noblest work of God._"["] This would make him fly off, and, although +he would admit this to be very true, yet he would not give his consent. + +At length, having found that I persevered in my visits to the young lady, +and having ascertained from my sister that I was preparing for the +wedding, he addressed me as follows, one evening when we were alone:--"So, +I find from your sister, that you are determined, in spite of my +remonstrances, to marry Miss Halcomb? It is very true that, as you are of +age, I cannot prevent your union with that young lady; the law empowers +you to make your own choice; but, recollect the law does not compel me to. +If you had selected Miss ---- or Miss ----," naming several young ladies +of fortune, "I would have come down handsomely, and you might have lived +like a gentleman; and if you had chosen to be a farmer, you might have +occupied your own estate; but if you '_make a hard bed you must lie upon +it._' Although this is a vulgar saying, yet it is a very just one; and you +may rely upon it that it applies to your case most pointedly." I began to +be impatient, and replied warmly, that I had to thank God for a sound body +and an ardent mind, and I also had to thank him, any father, for the best +of instruction and example; and that he had given me a proof, by his own +industry and perseverance, that a man might not only be happy, but that he +might also acquire wealth, without having much capital to begin with; and +that I was not in the least afraid of the effects of lying upon a hard-bed +by night, so that I had peace and comfort by day.--"Ah, my dear son," said +he, "it is very true that I have devoted my life to business, and by +incessant application and industry have acquired a considerable fortune;" +and with tears in his eyes, he added "alas! you are now going, by one +false step, to blast my fondest hopes: by this match you are going, in one +hour, to beat down and destroy all the bright prospects, all my plans for +promoting your future well-being and consequence in life! Do you believe, +can you for a moment be so silly as to imagine, that I have toiled from +morning till night, that I have laboured with such incessant assiduity, +scarcely giving myself time to enjoy even my meals; and do you think that +I have been so anxious, merely to get money, merely to acquire riches? +Believe me, my dear son, I have never been led away by any such grovelling +notions; I have had higher and more noble objects in view. In fact, and in +truth, my great, my sole aim has always been to make _you a man of +consequence_ in the county; and although I know that riches alone will +neither make a man happy nor respected, yet without wealth I know not how +a man in this country can acquire any celebrity in it. With wealth, if a +man have but a common share of understanding, he is at once pronounced a +wise man, and he is looked up to as a prodigy; when his own native talent +alone would not more than fit him for a menial office. Look for instance +at our neighbours; there is. Mr. Astley of Everly, who is surrounded by +every comfort; he has at his command not only horses, servants, and +carriages, but he has a numerous body of tenantry, who submit to be his +mere vassals, and will do any act, however dirty or mean, at his nod. He +is your commander of the troop of Yeomanry; he keeps hounds; and has many +manors well stocked with game; and he is a Magistrate of the county, and +ignorant as he is, yet he dispenses the laws, or rather issues his +arbitrary mandates to the whole surrounding neighbourhood. In fact, he +possesses great power, and _all his power is derived from his wealth +alone._ Let me ask you, who know him well, what would he be without his +wealth? Strip him of his estates and his riches, what would he be fit for? +I wait," said he firmly, "for your honest reply."--The question was put so +home and so unexpected, and when I turned my thoughts towards our gallant +captain, without wealth and power, he presented to my imagination such a +_forlorn, helpless, wretched being_--that I actually burst out a laughing. +"Really," said my father, "I am not in a laughing mood; but tell me, +seriously, if you know of any situation in life in which, either on the +score of his talent, his knowledge, or his ability of any kind, he would +be capable of keeping his wife and family from starving? Tell me honestly +whether, if he were left to provide for himself, you do not think he would +be upon the parish books in a fortnight?" + +I answered that, in my opinion, no one who knew the captain would, for a +moment, dispute the correctness of the conclusion which he had drawn; but, +I added, "I hope, Sir, that you do not compare me to such a man as Captain +Astley; and I hope, too, that you will allow me to ask you a question in +return. Do you not believe, Sir, that if I, your son, were obliged to go +to day-labour to-morrow, I could earn sufficient to support, not only +myself, but also a wife and family, by that sort of industry and zealous +application which I have always shewn in your business?" The reply was, "I +know you are able and willing to do as much as any man; but, do you +consider that I have given you an education which cost me upwards of five +hundred pounds, and have you spent ten years and a half of your life at +the best schools, under the best masters whom I could procure you, only to +enable you to earn twenty or thirty shillings a week as a day-labourer; +have you, no higher ambition than that?" + +I rejoined warmly, "Yes, Sir, my ambition made me always aspire to much +higher things and so did the treatment which I always received from you +heretofore; but now, that you talk of abandoning me to 'lie upon a hard +bed,' and intimate that, unless I give up the object of my choice, I am +not to expect any thing from you, the scene is changed, and, under such +circumstances, my spirit would, I trust, never suffer me to be dependent +upon any one, while I have health and strength to obtain an honest though +a plain livelihood." + +I plainly perceived that this sort of reasoning did not suit my father, he +reddened, and sneeringly exclaimed, "your spirit, indeed! I suppose your +spirit will ultimately induce you to drive one of your intended +father-in-law's coaches; or, perhaps, you may be promoted to the situation +of head-ostler, and that will be a post considerably above a +day-labourer." This was said with a degree of bitter ironry that was +little calculated to lead me into submission. By such a course he meant to +work upon my pride, but his language produced a contrary effect to that +which he intended: for I found any indignation arise to such a pitch, that +I sternly answered "No, sir! whatever you may think of my spirit, you will +find that I inherit too much of my father's character either to degrade +myself by any such course, or be intimidated by any false notions of +pride, from doing that which is honourable." + +Having said this, I quitted the room, without waiting for a reply, and +retired to bed much earlier than usual. I was, however, too much ruffled +to go to sleep, and, after having tossed and turned about for half an +hour, I suddenly rose, dressed myself, walked quietly down stairs, and +going into the back kitchen I put on my boots, and then went deliberately +into the stable, where I saddled my horse, and in a few minutes I was on +my road to Devizes. I arrived at that place just as the family were +locking up to go to rest, and, while a bed was preparing for me, I +explained to Miss H. the object of my visit, which was to demand her hand +from her father in the morning, and to fix the day of our nuptials before +I left the house. The lady had often before witnessed, with some degree of +pain, the warmth of my disposition, for I was, as I have already hinted, +of a sanguine, volatile nature; and she had always observed, that, when +bent upon any particular object, I was never deterred, and seldom +persuaded, from attempting to accomplish it; but she had never before seen +me so determined and resolved upon any point as I now was. She +endeavoured, nevertheless, to persuade me from so rash a step; arguing +that she had little hope of her father being brought over to comply with +my wishes, by means of any such peremptory arguments as I had used to her. +But it was all in vain. I assured her that before I left the house, I +would solicit her father's consent to fix the day for our wedding; and +that, if he refused to comply, I should demand the performance of her +promise, to consent at once to our union without it. She first reminded me +of her being under age, and next, with a degree of firmness that I did not +expect, she expressed considerable doubts about acceding to my demand, +under such circumstances. I hastily, and as firmly, added, that the day +should be fixed before I left the house, _or never_. She started at my +vehement and peremptory manner, and with much good sense, began to reason +with me, and to shew how ill-calculated such overbearing proceedings were +either to prevail upon her father, or, what was of more consequence, to +secure her love. If before marriage I evinced such an arbitrary +disposition, and uttered my commands in such a peremptory tone, what +security, she said, should she have for my not playing the tyrant +afterwards? She, therefore, not only felt it to be her duty to refuse, but +really I had so alarmed her, that she could not give her consent under any +such sort of threat; as her compliance would appear to come rather from +terror than inclination. This was followed by her bursting into tears, +occasioned by the exertion she had made to tell me her resolve. I repeated +my protestations, and did every thing to soothe her fears, and, as she was +now summoned by her sister to retire to rest, we parted for the night, +both of us in a very wretched state of mind. + +Affected as I was by her agitated feelings, my composition was of too +determined a nature to allow me to give way; having once determined, +nothing but death could have deterred me from persevering, and, while I +was going to bed, I deliberately resolved to keep my word. Nor was this +only the start of the moment; on the contrary, I am quite sure that had +not the parties complied with my wish, to fix the day before I left the +house, I should never have been the husband of Miss Halcomb. + +I was resolved to be plain and honest with the father, and to disguise +nothing from him, and in case he should refuse his consent, I was equally +resolved to leave nothing untried to gain the consent of the lady; if she +withheld it I had brought myself, much as I loved her, to give up for ever +all hopes, all intention, of being united, or of having any further +communication, with her. With this determination I went to sleep, though +with full confidence that I should succeed, notwithstanding the repulse I +had received from her before we parted. My fair readers, will, I fear, +call me a conceited puppy for my pains; but I assure them it was not +vanity; it was part of my nature to be sanguine and determined in any +thing, in every thing, that I undertook; for I believed that success +seldom completely crowned an enterprise, unless he who wished to obtain it +had confidence that he should succeed. + +When I came to the breakfast table in the morning, I could perceive that +the fair object of my hopes had not enjoyed so much repose as I had done +daring the night. Her heart appeared to be ill at ease. I had never slept +better or sounder in my life. This is another extraordinary part of my +composition, or rather of my constitution; namely, the physical operation +of the Mental power over the animal frame. The more intense the operation +of my mind during the day, the better do I sleep at night; the greater the +object which I have to accomplish in the morning, the more serene is my +sleep; so that when I have any weighty business to perform that requires +the exertion of my whole mental as well as bodily powers, instead of being +agitated with the anxiety arising from the importance of the undertaking, +I am quite the reverse, I am perfectly tranquil, I am sure to sleep well; +and to awake so much refreshed in the morning, as to enable me to commence +the business of the day not only with vigour, but also with my senses +quite collected, and with the greatest calmness of mind. + +I appeared upon this occasion so easy and so quiet, yet altogether so +determined, that I often afterwards heard my wife say that she, for the +first time, began to suspect the sincerity of my passion; its ardour she +never doubted. The fact was, that if I had harboured all the doubts that +she did, as to the success of my application to her father, I might have +felt as uneasy as she did; and should have been thereby rendered incapable +of successfully combating his arguments or objections. + +The moment the breakfast was over I requested a private conference with +him, when I honestly told him every thing that had passed between my +father and me, and that I had given up all hopes of gaining his consent, +adding, that I had come to the resolution of laying the case fairly before +him, but that I was determined to have his answer at once whether he would +consent to our union, so that a day might be fixed, or whether he would +leave me to do my best to obtain his daughter's consent, which I was +resolved to do in case of his opposing my wishes. + +Seeing my determination, the old gentleman answered that, although he +lamented the absence of my father's sanction, yet he would keep his word +with me and his daughter, and would not withhold his consent, if it were +her desire that he should give it. He valued the happiness of his child he +said, and, as he thought I had always acted a fair and open part with him, +he would do the same by me. He would, however, leave it entirely to his +daughter; if she chose to fix the day he would not object to it; and if it +were so, he would do all in his power to render us happy. He likewise +expressed a sincere hope that his old friend, my father, would do nothing +to make us otherwise, and that he would become reconciled to the match +hereafter, even if he would not give his consent before. Mr. Halcomb then, +for the first time, hinted what sum he intended to give his daughter as a +portion. I told him that, for the present, I would hear nothing of the +sort; that, as my father would not enable me to make a settlement upon his +daughter, I would trust entirely to him, and that I never wished him to +mention the subject to me till we were married. + +I now flew to the young lady with the joyful tidings, and was received, as +I expected, with open arms; and before ten o'clock that evening the day +was fixed for our wedding, about six weeks from that time. Thus was I, at +the age of twenty-two, and very young and inexperienced of my age also, +about to take a wife against the consent of my father, without a house, a +home, or twenty pounds in the world and perfectly careless whether her +father gave its five or five hundred pounds. To have a wife was my +determination, and, now the day was fixed, I returned to my father's +house, and entered into his business again with all my usual zeal and +assiduity. + +The first opportunity I informed him of the arrangement that was made, +upon hearing which he flew into a violent passion, and vowed vengeance. +Nor did he fail to try the last effort, which was to endeavour to make Mr. +Halcomb's pride operate, so as to prevent the match. The next market day +he had a private interview with him, and did every thing in his power to +accomplish his object. His opponent had the best of the argument, but he +retorted his insinuations with such a degree of spirit, that, for a while, +my father had hopes of success. Mr. Halcomb, however, soon crushed his +hopes, by telling him that he had given me and his daughter his word, and +that nothing which he had said in his anger should induce him to break it. +My father when requested to see the young lady, which was readily assented +to. In the course of his interview with her, he made every effort to +persuade her to abandon such a "_mad project_," as he was pleased to term +it, and she listened to, and answered, all his arguments with great +modesty and forbearance. He urged the folly of such a match, and told her +he was sure she would live to repent it; he warned her that such sudden +and inconsiderate unions seldom if ever turned out well; he pointed out to +her my hasty, enthusiastic, volatile disposition; he said that I had seen +nothing of the world, and that, whatever might be her charms, when I got +into the world I might see other objects that might induce me to repent of +having been so hasty; he mentioned the probability of a large family of +children, without the means of supporting them; in fact, he tried every +thing that man could do; he begged, he prayed, and he threatened. All was +in vain. The only promise that he could obtain from her was, that she +would inform me of all he said, and that she would leave the decision to +me. + +This to him was worse than no promise at all, and he retired to the market +room and took his dinner, perfectly dissatisfied with the little, or +gather no progress which he had made. However, when the evening came, +instead of calling for his horse to go home as usual, he sent for Halcomb, +and told him that, as it was a dark evening, and he was not very well, if +he would permit him, he would drink tea and spend the evening with his +family, and take a bed there that night. Mr. Halcomb, who was a +warm-hearted, generous, forgiving fellow, readily pardoned all the +insulting language that he had heard in the morning, accepted his offer by +a hearty shake of the hand, and without further ceremony introduced him +into his private room to his family. Mrs. Halcomb, however, the +mother-in-law of the lady, having learned what had passed in the morning, +and expecting nothing less than a fresh attempt to frustrate the match, no +sooner fixed her piercing eyes upon him, after he was seated, than she +drew up, and without waiting for any explanation, began to resent the +insult which he had offered to her profession. He, however, demanded a +parley, and a truce to all hostility, as he was come to offer the olive +branch; assuring her that as a match could not be avoided, he was +determined to make the best of what must be endured. In the course of the +evening he had a private interview with the young lady, and after +extorting a solemn pledge from her that she would not inform me of it till +we were married, he gave her his consent and promised to acknowledge her +as his daughter-in-law. This solemn pledge to keep silence till our union +was completed he made her give, because he wished to see how far I would +go without his consent; and she kept her word; although the fact certainly +came to my knowledge through a third person. My father took the first +opportunity of telling me that, as I was determined to marry against his +will, he should do but little for me, compared to what he would have done +if I had married to please him. He would, he said, give me, or rather he +would lend me, the stock upon Widdington farm, and I might begin to +furnish my house as soon as I pleased; but I must do this out of the +fortune which I was to have with my wife. There was a most excellent stock +upon this farm, the rent of which was three hundred pounds a year. There +were[15] fifteen or sixteen hundred of the finest Southdown sheep, the +very best in the county, as this was a fine sheep farm, in fact, +principally so; twelve cows; six most valuable cart horses, and all other +live and dead stock complete. With this arrangement I was perfectly +content, and indeed it was much better than I had any reason to expect. +The farm was, in reality, a very beautiful one, with a very good house, +and all necessary appendages attached to it. I now seemed to be in a fair +way of obtaining the height of my ambition. This happy intelligence I lost +no time in communicating to the family at Devizes, and the necessary +orders [16] were given without delay. I left it all to the lady, as it was +to be paid for out of her fortune. Few young men entered into life with +fairer prospects in the farming line; very few farmers in the county had +such a stock of all sorts; in truth, nothing was wanting. + +The happy day at length arrived. It was the twelfth of January. My sister, +who was to be one of the bride-maids, and my friend the clergyman of +Enford, who was to marry us, [17] went over with me in a chaise. Upon +retiring to rest, having undressed myself, I sat down in an easy chair, +meditating upon the serious engagement into which I was to enter on the +morrow. In this situation I fell fast asleep, and did not awake till three +o'clock in the morning, when I had caught a dreadful cold, and was in a +shivering fit, which I could not get rid of till I arose in the morning. I +was excessively ill the whole of the day. We were taken to the church in a +post coach, and being married we returned to breakfast, where a large +party was assembled to greet us. We were engaged to dine at the Castle, at +Marlborough, which Inn was kept by my wife's brother. We, the married +couple, in a chaise, and two post coaches, each with four beautiful grey +horses, with the rest of the party, accordingly set out to Marlborough, +where we spent the day, during the whole of which I suffered great pain, +being all the time extremely ill. We returned to Devizes to tea, after +taking which we were to go home to Widdington. Just as we were about to +start, Mr. Halcombe took me aside with his son into the next room, and +holding out a canvass bag, he said, "here, my son, is all that I can +afford to give you with my daughter. In this bag is a thousand pounds. I +wish it were ten times as much; but, such as it is, may God grant you to +enjoy it! I have no doubt but it will wear well, as it was got honestly." + +This again was more than I expected, as the only time I had ever permitted +him to speak about money, the old gentlemen hinted at no more than five +hundred pounds; but I believe my father had said something which made him +double the sum. I thanked him most heartily; not forgetting to add, that +his daughter was the prize at which I had aimed, and not the money. He +replied, that he should give his other daughter the same, without +trenching upon what he meant to give his sons. In fact, he had at this +time provided for them. However, before we parted, one of his sons, +William, who was then the manager of the Bear, called me on one side, and +said, that as his brother James was just going into business, if I had no +particular use for the money, he should be obliged if I would lend him +500_l_. of it, upon their joint notes. I instantly complied, told out half +my wife's portion, and lent it to her brother, upon his word to give me a +note for it, which he did the first time that I saw him afterwards. I +believe, if they had asked me for the whole thousand, I should cheerfully +have parted with it to them. The five hundred pounds remained in their +hands for nearly ten years, and was not withdrawn by me till several years +after my separation from my wife. I mention this circumstance merely to +shew how these gentlemen felt as to my separation from their sister. In +fact they as well as myself considered it to be a misfortune which ought +to be lamented on all sides, rather than as a reason for entertaining any +vindictive feeling towards me. + +We now set off in a coach towards our future residence, Widdington Farm, a +distance of ten miles. The company consisted of myself, the bride, her +sister and mine, who were the two bride maids, and the clergyman. I had, +by this time, completely recovered from the effect of my cold; but, what +was rather remarkable, before we had accomplished half our journey, we +discovered that the bride had suddenly lost her voice, without feeling any +pain or illness. So completely had she lost it, that she could not +articulate a single syllable, otherwise than in a whisper. I was very much +alarmed at first, but as she assured us it was only a cold, and that she +felt not the least pain or uneasiness whatever; and as, with perfect good +humour, she congratulated me on being about to take to my home "a quiet +wife," the alarm gradually passed off. + +Widdington Farm lies about a mile from the turnpike road, and when the +carriage turned out of the high road I was obliged, as it was dark, to get +on the coach box to direct the post boys; and, after considerable +difficulty, we reached the house; it being a road over which a chaise +probably had not passed since my father left the farm, twenty years before +this period. Although every thing was prepared comfortably for our +reception, yet a lone farm, in a valley upon the downs, which compose +Salisbury Plain, and not a house within a mile, was quite a different +thing from the cheerful scenes to which Mrs. Hunt and her sister had been +accustomed. A deep silence reigned around; not a tree nor even a bush was +to be seen; and, since we left the turnpike road, the carriage having +passed over the turf for nearly the last mile, the well-known sound of +wheels rattling over the stones had never once vibrated upon the ears of +those who were so much accustomed to it; altogether, it was so very +different from every thing to which the ladies had ever before been +habituated, that, even after I had introduced them into the parlour, which +was well lighted up, and where the hospitable board seemed almost to +invite their welcome, yet I could see that Miss Halcombe looked at her +sister almost in a state of despondency, as much as to say, "God of +Heaven! what enchanted castle are we come to at last?" However, when we +were once seated round the table, with the door closed, the solitary gloom +speedily vanished, for we soon made it appear that there was as much +cheerfullness to be obtained in a lone farm house as there was in one of +the most public and best frequented inns upon the Bath road. Miss +Halcombe, as a matter of delicacy, had always declined to see this +residence before she was married, notwithstanding I had repeatedly pressed +her to ride over and give orders about the arrangement of the house, and +other domestic affairs. During the first fortnight that we were married, +my wife never spoke one word louder than a whisper. At the end of that +time her voice returned, to the great joy of myself and all her friends. +The honeymoon passed with uninterrupted felicity; in fact it was a +honeymoon all the year round, and we were blessed with an endearing pledge +of our loves before the honeymoon appeared even in its wane. Nearly a year +had now gone by in one unbroken scene of pleasure and gay delight. My wife +was of a cheerful disposition, and fond of company, in which I most +cordially participated, and consequently we were seldom without plenty of +visitors. As soon as we were married I purchased two more horses and a +gig; thus my establishment at once consisted of three horses and a gig, +and when to these are added grey-hounds and pointers, &c. &c. the reader +will perceive that I cut a dashing figure, whether at home, at the table, +in the field, or on the road. I drove two thorough-bred mares in a tandem, +with which I could and did accomplish, in a trot, fourteen miles within +the hour; I was almost always the first in the chase, having become a +subscriber to a pack of hounds; and my pointers were as well bred, and as +well broken, as any sportsman's in the county. + +I was now become that of which my father had always entertained the +greatest dread; namely, a complete sportsman. Frequently when he called, I +was from home, either hunting, shooting, or partaking of the social +society which is the concomitant of those who delight in the sports of the +field. He would ride round my farm, but there all was in the most regular +order, and he could find no other fault with any thing he saw going on +there than the absence of the master. Yet he was uneasy; for he well knew +that the profits of Widdington Farm would not support such extravagance +and revelry as he was pleased to call it. The stock, it is true, was in +good order, and the crops were well cultivated, and thriving; never +better. Still he was not ignorant of the expense attending a house always +thronged with visitors, a stable and kennel full of horses and dogs, and +the master entering with ardour into the sports of the field. He +remonstrated; but I was young, thoughtless and giddy; my wife was the +same. Rent-day came. Three hundred pounds was due to Mr. Wyndham for rent; +my father knew I was not prepared; he was certain, from the manner in +which I had lived, that[18] I could not have saved any money. Without +saying one word to me on the subject, he paid the rent himself. But he did +not fail again to urge the strongest remonstrances. No farm in the county +was in better condition, or better looked after; the times were good; and +if the farm had been my own, I could just have managed to live in a very +respectable way; for no man knew better how to make the most of every +thing, and very few put it into practice more rigidly than I did; yet, on +the other hand, I could very well manage to spend all the gains whatever +they were, and as my father paid the rent, as well as stocked the farm, it +was quite as good as if it were my own. My father, however, threatened me, +and remonstrated with my wife, on our keeping so much company, and being +guilty of such extravagance. But she could not be induced to think that we +did any thing in a more extravagant way than we were bred up to, which was +very true; and, as I was full as prone to the enjoyment of society as she +was, we seldom refused an invitation, and never failed to return it. + +Christmas arrived, and with it, of course, the social merry-making that at +this time was kept up with the greatest spirit in this part of the +country; where every one gave a Christmas feast, which was attended by all +the neighbours for several miles round. We were invited to the first. Some +difficulty presented itself with respect to Mrs. Hunt's accepting the +invitation, as our daughter was only two months old; but this impediment +was soon removed. The little child was in excellent health, and the nurse, +it was thought, would take great care of it in the mother's absence. This +was settled as much to my satisfaction as to that of my wife: for I +enjoyed little pleasure unless she was with me to partake of it. + +When the day came, we mounted our horses and she being an excellent +horsewoman, we galloped off to meet our friends at a distance of four +miles, and we reached the place without the slightest accident, though it +was one of the most severe frosts I was ever out in. About three o'clock +the next morning we returned in the same way. I shall never forget the +look of my father, when he saw her come into the room, and involuntarily +exclaimed "for God's sake, Mrs. Hunt, where is your child?" She answered +it was at home. He turned his eyes up and said no more; but I felt this as +a most severe rebuke, and for the, first time I began to think that a +mother leaving her child was not quite so proper. He soon took an +opportunity to speak to me aside, and having asked me whether I was mad, +to bring my wife away from a young sucking child in such weather, he +added, "you acted very prudently and firmly, I understand, when, your +child was born, as to her suckling it, but now you are going to destroy +the child by suffering the mother to remain from it twelve or fourteen +hours at a time." I listened, indeed, to this wholesome advice; but, in +the thoughtlessness of my heart, unfortunately, I passed it of without +paying it that attention, to which, coming from one with such experience +as my father had, it was so well entitled. + +What my father alluded to, about my firm conduct when my child was born, +was this. My mother having always nursed her own children, I was bred up +with the notion that it ought to be so, and I still entertained the +greatest antipathy to my offspring sucking any other woman but its +mother.[19] My father had, on his side, already guarded me against all the +arts and tricks played off by gossips, upon such an occasion. Upon this +subject, therefore, I had always expressed a strong and decided feeling to +my wife, in which she appeared to participate. + +When the child was born, the mother was attended by the mother-in-law, and +two or three matrons, besides the midwife, &c. &c. They all knew my +determination about the mother nursing the child, and every attempt was +apparently made to carry it into effect. At length a hint was given of +some fears as to its practicability. I would not listen to it[20] for a +moment. Another hint was given, and then a broader and a broader hint; but +I still made light of it, and said we would persevere. On consulting with +my wife I found there was no natural impediment, and that she was well +disposed to exert herself, to comply with my wishes; but I found that the +gossips, and particularly the mother-in-law, had been labouring to impress +on her mind, not only that there was a difficulty, but that there was an +inconvenience, and even impropriety. I was not to be deterred from my +purpose, and did every thing in my power to persuade her to persevere. I +saw that the child enjoyed the breast very much, and that it did not give +the mother so much pain as I had apprehended; and my mind was, therefore, +more resolved than ever to carry this point; although I had never before +had to contend with such powerful antagonists as the gossips, who affected +to treat my knowledge upon such matters with ridicule, and my interference +in them as preposterous and indecent. I ways, however, _twattle proof_; I +heard all they had to say, but I stuck to my point like a hero; and I took +care not to leave the house long at a time, for fear some scheme to thwart +my views should be put in execution. + +At the end of two days, in the evening after supper, the grand attack was +made, by three matrons and the nurse, with the Dr. or mid-wife, whom they +appeared to have enlisted into the service; though as he was a reasonable, +intelligent man, I was not in the least afraid of his hostility, and +particularly as I had previously consulted him upon the subject, and found +that I was perfectly correct as to there being no natural impediment in +the mother. While the Dr. was taking his grog with me, they all, according +to their previously settled scheme, came down stairs in a body, and all +burst upon me at once; loudly declaring, that they would not force the +poor weak mother any longer to destroy herself by such a course, that the +child must certainly die, that it was starved already, and that, unless I +would suffer them to send for a wet nurse in the morning they would leave +the house, and I might stay and kill the child myself, for that they would +not remain to be witnesses of the murder. + +I saw through the premeditated assault, and was immoveably silent. One +said that it was cruel; another said that it was indecent; a third that it +was hard-hearted; and a fourth that I did not deserve such a wife or such +a child, for I wished to kill the one and break the heart of the other. + +Had I not been cautioned by my excellent father, who, even to the very +letter of this attack, had told me what was likely to happen, I should +never have been able to withstand the treble-toned battery of their +tongues. The doctor, meanwhile, said not a word, unless it was in reply to +a question put by some one of the ladies, and then he took care to answer +in a very equivocal manner, for he saw my usual determination settled upon +my brow. I told them at last; that if they would remain below, I would go +up and consult my wife; I found her bathed in tears; for they had not only +prepared her for the occasion, but they had actually worked upon her fears +for the safety of the child, so far as to persuade her that the child +would be starved, and that she had not milk enough to keep it alive. I +soothed her; I reasoned with her; for I dearly loved her. I assured her +that the child was in the most perfect health, as was evident from its +having never cried a minute since it was born; which was now nearly three +days; that it was contented, and I was sure it would do well; and that she +herself would ultimately thank me for persevering against the will of the +gossips. Her tears were soon dried up, and the pretty babe being again +placed by her side with my own hands, she was quite convinced that it was +neither necessary nor prudent to give way always, even to gossips. + +Having left the child comfortably asleep, and the mother happy, her fears +being now dissipated, I returned down stairs to the enraged matrons. I +found them all on the tip-toe of expectation, to hear what I had to say, I +told them that I had no doubt but the mother and child would do very well, +if they would leave her alone; but this enraged them more than ever. They +insisted that the mother should at least have the help of a wet-nurse. +"Well," said I, very calmly, but very determinedly, "if it most be so, it +must. If you are of the same mind to-morrow, and the doctor confirms your +opinion, that the child requires more milk, I will kill the puppies, and +it shall suck my beautiful setter _Juno_, with all my heart; but, by G--d! +it shall never taste the milk of another woman, while its mother is alive, +and as well able to nurse it as she now is." + +I said this in such a tone, and with such a manner, as would not admit of +any further reply, and the gossips all marched off to bed, abusing me for +a great brute; but, as they afterwards told me, applauding me for +displaying so much resolution, in spite of their cabal and plot against me +being frustrated. When they were gone, the doctor, Robert Clare of +Devizes, most heartily congratulated me upon my success; adding, that he +never saw such a complete victory gained against such fearful odds, since +he had been in the practice; which was upwards of twenty years. I have +related this circumstance as a matter of duty, for the information and +guidance of all young persons, who may he placed in a similar situation, +and who may not have had the advantage of such good and able advice, as +that which was given me by my excellent father, rather than as boasting of +any merit of my own. Never was a child born that was nursed better, and +thousands of blessings did the mother afterwards bestow upon me, for my +perseverance, by which she was enabled to enjoy the most delightful of all +sensations, that of nursing her own offspring. + +Let us now return to my story. The very first time that this child ever +had a moment's illness was the day after my wife returned from the first +Christmas party. This illness was very severe, and it caused great +restlessness; the infant was, indeed, so unwell, that Mrs. Hunt sent an +excuse to the party the next day by me, she being determined to stay at +home and take care of her child, in which resolution I concurred. Still I +had no idea that the dear little thing would not do very well again, +though I was now convinced of the propriety of my father's rebuke, and had +not the least doubt in my own mind that the illness was occasioned by the +mother's long absence from her child. I went to the dinner, and my father +was the first to applaud Mrs. Hunt's prudence in remaining at home; +although, when he heard of the illness of the child, he observed, "The +experience that is bought is the best, so that it is not purchased too +dear." + +About eleven o'clock at night a message was brought me by a servant, to +say that my child was very ill, and to beg that I would immediately return +home. I mounted my horse, and reached my house half as hour before the +servant, who was upon another horse. When I entered the room--Oh God! the +child was lying dead in its mother's lap, and that mother was sitting +speechless, with her eyes riveted upon her lifeless offspring.--I +instantly caused the little delicate corpse to be removed. It had a smile +upon its lip, and looked as transparent as alabaster; for it had died +without a groan or a struggle. My wife sat petrified; she had never moved +nor spoken since the infant had breathed its last, which was nearly an +hour. The servants were fearful even to touch her or the child; she still +sat motionless with her eyes fixed upon her lap, the spot whence her child +had been removed, and where she had seen it breathe its last. She took not +the least notice of me, neither did she oppose the removal of the child. +Her look was vacant and heart-rending. I tried in vain every means to +rouse her; at length I carried her to her room, and having bathed her feet +in warm water, I was ultimately blessed by witnessing the return of her +reason, which was accompanied by a copious flow of tears. + +During the round of gaiety and pleasure which I had enjoyed since I was +married, this was the first check that I had received; but young, +thoughtless, and giddy, as we were, it was a most severe one, both to +myself and my wife. Nor was it merely the loss of our offspring that +occasioned the sorrow of my wife. Her grief was rendered infinitely more +poignant by the circumstance of the deceased infant never having been +baptised. The babe had, in fact, been so healthy, so perfectly free from +the slightest appearance of disease, that we had never thought of sending +for the clergyman of the parish to have the ceremony performed; +particularly as we intended to have it christened so soon as the +nineteenth of January, which was the first anniversary of our wedding day. +The delay will, I am sure, be thought the more excusable, even by the most +scrupulously religious persons, when I inform them, that the clergyman +lived at Milton, a distance of eight miles, that he seldom came into the +parish except on a Sunday, and that even then his visit was generally a +flying visit, as he had two or three churches to serve on that day. He was +besides an excellent sportsman, and consequently it would have been +considered by _me_ at any rate, if not by _him_, as a sort of crime to +have broken in upon a week-day for any such purpose. But I now sincerely +repented of my folly and thoughtlessness, for my wife was inconsolable. +She was bred up strictly to attend to all the forms as well as the duties +of religion, and she, therefore, accused herself of a heinous crime, even +that of having sacrificed the soul of her infant; and then the very +thoughts of having the little corpse committed to its dreary dwelling +without the rites and ceremony of a christian burial, was so dreadful to +her that it almost made her frantic, and she would sometimes break out +into the most piteous wailings, nearly bordering upon desperation. I was +myself most wretched, not so much from the loss of our child, as from the +sorrow and anguish of my wife, whom I most dearly loved; but I found it +necessary to stifle my own feelings, and exert all my soothing aid and +persuasive powers, to calm her agonized mind. At first I was but a poor +comforter. _I had never thought at all of these weighty matters_, and +therefore I felt myself very incompetent to reason upon them in such a way +as was likely to convince and console her. I had been taught, by my +excellent mother, to lisp the Lord's Prayer, the Belief, and the +Catechism, before I at all knew the meaning of it, and almost before I +could speak plainly; I had been bred up in the Christian faith, a strict +church-goer, and, such was the force of custom, that perhaps I had not ten +times in the course of my life closed my eyes, after retiring to rest, +without repeating the Lords Prayer and Belief; though it is probable that +during all that period I had not ten times seriously directed my thoughts +to investigating and reasoning upon the true import and meaning of these +prayers. Such is the strength of early habits and early imbibed notions, +arising from the repetition of a certain number of words and sentences +thrown together, and imprinted upon the young memory, before the mind is +capable of appreciating the meaning or sense of them! I had also, soon +after our marriage, received the sacrament with my wife, because I was +told that to go through this ceremony was proper and necessary. I did +this, as thousands and tens of thousands had, I believe, done before me, +from a conviction that it was right, without ever having reasoned upon the +matter. And now, for the first time, at the age of twenty three, in spite +of myself, or rather in my own defence, I was compelled to think and to +reason also, that I might bring comfort to my almost heart-broken wife. I +reasoned thus--can this be possible, that a little innocent creature, only +two months old, totally incapable of having committed any offence against +God or man, having, indeed, been incapable of acting or thinking at all, +can the all-wise Creator have doomed such an unoffending being to eternal +punishment, because its parents have neglected to have certain forms of +prayer read by a clergyman, and because it has not had performed over it +the ceremony of sprinkling its forehead with water? It was not necessary +for me to question farther, for I at once pronounced it to be not only +preposterous but impious to believe such a thing for a moment. + +Having thus satisfied my own mind, I now set about the task of convincing +my wife. I found her hanging over the corpse of our child, and bathing it +with her tears. The first thing which I did was to lead her from the +endearing object of her inexpressible woe. I then not only used the +foregoing argument, but many others of the same reasonable and natural +tendency. She was, however, not easily to be brought over to my opinion, +and besides, in spite of all I could say to remove the impression, she +blamed herself for having left the infant at such a tender age. I also +felt that in this respect I was not less censurable than she was; and I +endeavoured to take all this blame upon myself, by persuading her that she +would not have gone, had she not been desirous of obliging _me_. In +striving to tranquillize her, I had a most arduous duty to perform, yet, +painful as it was, it was at the same time the most delightful occupation +that can be imagined. To console, to comfort, to cheer the drooping +spirits, to heal the wounded sorrowing heart, to remove the dark and +gloomy doubts, and at length to inspire and provoke a smile upon the +quivering lip of her I fondly loved, was to me an entirely new scene. I +could now fully comprehend the poetical expression of "the joy of grief," +for this was the most extatic joy, it was a hitherto untasted pleasure, +and although it was of a more sober nature than any of those pleasures in +which I had till then participated, yet it made a deeper and more lasting +impression than any of them had made. So strong was it, that the very +recollection of what I then felt, on the first dawn of my wife's return to +something like her usual serenity and cheerfulness, gives me a pleasure, +even while I am locked up in my solitary dungeon, that I believe it is not +the common lot of man to enjoy. Those who really know what bliss it is to +communicate as well as receive true plea sure will never voluntarily +inflict pain. I think I hear some of my more sceptical or prejudiced +readers ask, could these be really the feelings of this man? Is this the +man who only two short months before proposed to suckle his child with his +setter? Yes, I answer, the very same man; nor, in fact, is there, to the +eye of reason, any thing contradictory in his conduct on the two +occasions. + +Let me now revert to my narrative. Though partly won over by the reasons +which I had advanced, my wife, nevertheless, was anxious to have some +confirmation of them from one of greater knowledge in such matters, and +she accordingly hinted a wish to converse with the clergyman. I told her I +had not the least objection if she desired it; but at the same time I +could not help enquiring, what consolation she could expect to derive from +one of those whom she had frequently seen inebriated at my table, and some +of whom, when they were in that state, had incautiously expressed their +opinions upon such matters with so much levity as to disgust her as well +as myself. This was too true, but yet the sanction of a clergyman carried +great weight; custom, early-initiated custom, still proved predominant; +and as I saw she had set her mind upon seeing a clergyman, before she +parted with the little corpse, I did not think it either kind or prudent +to throw any impediment in the way. + +For three days I had scarcely left her during a single moment, and, very +fortunately, as we lived in the country, we were not pestered with any +formal, and worse than officious, calls of condolence. I now took my horse +and rode to a friend, a neighbouring clergyman, and invited him to dine +and take a bottle with me. He pleaded a previous engagement; but when I +told him the object of my visit, after having, with a most enquiring eye, +looked me full in the face for half a minute, to discover whether I was +quizzing him or not, he burst forth with an exclamation, and then into a +laugh, almost hysterical: which, having enjoyed for some time, without any +interruption from me, he said, "Why really, my good fellow, I hope you +have too much sense to listen seriously to the trash that is preached up +upon such occasions!" I replied that he might make himself easy not only +about me, but almost so with respect to Mrs. Hunt, as I had nearly argued +her out of all the ridiculous notions that she had imbibed; but that yet, +notwithstanding this, I should be obliged to him, as he was one of the +elect, who had been inspired to take holy orders by "the Holy Ghost," if +he would ride with me and confirm the good work which I had begun. To this +he agreed, on condition that I would first go with him to course a brace +of hares, of which he had just been informed by a shepherd. This offer I +readily accepted, and we returned to dinner together to my house. +Unfortunately, the parson took nearly a bottle of wine before he made up +his mind to say any thing to Mrs. Hunt upon the subject for which he had +been invited; and as a bottle always set his head a "wool-gathering," he +made one of the most ridiculous exhibitions that can possibly be imagined. +Between his desire to make Mrs. Hunt believe that he was a learned and +pious divine, and at the same time his equal desire to impress upon my +mind that he did not believe a word that he was preaching to her, he got +into such a mess, that it was with no small trouble I was enabled to help +him at all out of it; and at last the tea coming in, put an end to one of +the most ludicrous scenes that ever was witnessed. It happened, very +luckily, that Mrs. Hunt was a woman of good sterling sense, and a firm +mind, accompanied by a very quick penetration, or he would, in his +bungling desire to remove, have at least revived, if he had not confirmed, +all her former doubts and scruples. + +On the following evening, with considerable difficulty, I prevailed on the +mother, to suffer the clerk of the parish to convey the mortal remains of +the little infant in a neat coffin, and deposit it in the church-yard. + +Instead of partaking in any of the long round of Christmas merry-makings +which we had so unpropitiously commenced, we now spent our evenings at +home; truly enjoying the greatest of earthly blessings, domestic felicity. +How it is possible for those who have once tasted this, the sweetest of +all human delights, how it is possible for any rational mind afterwards to +submit to be whirled round in the vortex of dissipation, to tolerate, to +endure, the empty, vain, comfortless, nothingness of fashionable +amusements, now appears to me to be almost inexplicable. The real felicity +imparted and received in a happy domestic circle, in one evening, far, +very far surpasses all the pleasures derived from the gaze and throng of +crowded routs and fashionable parties in a whole year. And yet it is not +practicable to convince young minds of this; perhaps it would be improper +to attempt it. May we not believe that few persons, if any, can enjoy +domestic bliss to its fullest extent, unless they have previously +experienced all the wearisomeness, all the unmeaning bustle of the +crowded, fashionable, common-place society of routs and balls? Happy, +however, are they, if such there be, who have minds so constituted as to +enjoy the one, without having been exposed to the previous probation of +the other. + +The usual serenity and cheerful disposition of my wife soon returned. She +was young, blooming, fair and sprightly; and whatever pleasure I had in +view, I never half enjoyed it unless she were a partaker of it. I have +always been one of those mortals who think that women were formed to +participate in all our rational pleasures and amusements; and therefore, +with the exception of hunting, I seldom formed any scheme of pleasure +where my wife could not make one of the party. Young, gay and thoughtless, +as I was, and prone to enter into all the scenes of hospitable and +cheerful society, (one fault of which I admit, at that period, consisted +in general of much too free an indulgence of the bottle after dinner) yet, +however unfashionable it might have appeared, I never admitted any such +visitors at my table as rendered it necessary for females to leave the +room almost as soon as the cloth was removed. No language or conversation +was ever tolerated at my board, to which the most chaste female ear might +not listen without a blush. In fact, no man was ever permitted to enter my +door a second time who once dared to utter an indelicate double entendre +in the presence of a female; even if that female were only a servant. It +was, therefore, always the practice at my table for females to stay as +long as they found it pleasant, without being liable to a disgusting hint +to depart, in order that the men who remained might have an opportunity of +disgracing themselves by obscene and loathsome conversation. What a +disgrace this to the national character! what a blot upon the very name of +polished society! what an everlasting stigma upon British hospitality! +what an indelible stain upon English manners! I always found that young +men who had been bred at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge were the +most difficult to keep within the bounds of decorum. The life which these +men lead at college is so dissolute that few of them ever know how to +relish the sweets of domestic virtuous society. This is the greatest +drawback upon the religion of the country, and I blush for the name of +religion while I relate it. I have, in one hour, heard more blasphemy and +more lewd language at the table of one of these clergymen of the +established church, than ever polluted the walls of my house in all my +life. I have heard more obscenity flow from the lips of one of these +hoary-headed dignified pastors of the church of England, aye, one who +resides in this county too, than I ever heard come from the lips of all +the reformers I was ever acquainted with in my life. I can point out half +a score clergymen of this county, some of them magistrates, who are in +this respect a disgrace to human nature, whose debaucheries would fill a +volume, and whose daily conversation over their bottles, after they have +driven their wives and families from their tables, is so degrading, and +consists of such obscenities, that it would even be scouted at the table +of the bribed, queen-slandering Italian witnesses in Cotton Garden. Yet +some of these canting hypocrites, I understand, now begin to prate about +morality! But I ought, and I do apologize to the reader for this +digression, which I was led into by the circumstance of a gentleman, who +dined with me yesterday, having given me a description of one of these +monstrosities, who does not live a hundred miles from this place. More, +however, of this hereafter. Should it please Providence to guard me from +poison and the poniard, I will plainly shew who are the violators of all +morality, who are the blasphemers not only of God, but of Nature also. + +My wife, as I have already said, soon recovered her wonted cheerfulness, +which was in no small degree gratifying to me; and as there was also a +prospect of our being blessed with another increase of our family, the +loss of our first child ceased to weigh so heavily upon our spirits. My +father could not refrain from expressing his satisfaction at the salutary +improvement in our manner of living. We kept less expensive company, and, +as he said, we appeared to live more for ourselves. Although he admitted +the loss which we had sustained to be a severe one, yet, as it had +operated as a check upon our giddy and extravagant mode of living, he +confessed that he did not so much regret it, especially as he saw there +was no great danger of the name becoming extinct.--He now often paid us a +visit, and I began not merely to look upon him as a father, but likewise +to enjoy his society, as one of my most valued companions and confidential +friends. At my house he was always a welcome guest, and we were always +received with the greatest kindness at his. I was now beginning to +experience what it is to enjoy true and substantial domestic comfort, and +I promised myself the greatest pleasure, as well as the greatest +advantage, from this friendly intercourse with my intelligent and +much-valued parent. Among other things on which he kindly admonished me, +he once more pointed out to me the folly as well as the unprofitableness +and ingloriousness of remaining in the yeomanry cavalry, which he strongly +advised me to quit, while I could do so with credit to myself--"for," said +he, "I cannot be insensible to your situation; I view with a considerable +degree of alarm your sanguine disposition; and I fear that your enthusiasm +will some day lead you into some serious scrape with the selfish and +unpatriotic officers under whose command you have placed youreself. I know +that you entertain a proper feeling upon the subject; that you are +actuated by the most laudable and disinterested motive, to serve your +country; but, when I reflect upon the sinister views of those who are your +commanders, I dread some disagreement with your officers, that may prove +very unpleasant, and then you may not be able to get rid of your +engagements, without their endeavouring to fix a stigma upon you, in some +way or other. I see that, already, they are all jealous of your +independent spirit. Most of your comrades are the dependants and mere +vassals of their officers; you are almost the only one amongst them that +can say you are free from any obligation to any of them. The officers +dread your spirit, and the privates envy your independence; they are most +of them actuated by selfish views, while you, on the contrary, are glowing +with the amor patriæ, and think of nothing but how you can best serve your +country. Such opposite qualities will never amalgamate together, and you +may rely upon it that there is great danger in your situation." I listened +more attentively to my father's reasoning than I had heretofore done, +because his predictions had proved so true that I was convinced of the +correctness of his judgment, and that his superior knowledge of mankind +had taught him how to estimate the views and objects of these men much +better than I could. But yet I could not bear the thought of leaving the +yeomanry at a time when an invasion was threatened by the French, and I +therefore determined not to quit the troop till the return of peace. + +During the first year of my marriage I had attended very little to the +great political events which had occurred, on the continent as well as at +home, but I shall slightly touch upon them here for the information of the +reader.--On the 7th of Jan. 1796, the Princess Charlotte of Wales was +born. Alas! poor unhappy, ill-fated, cruelly-treated princess! On the 7th +of February the notorious Daniel Stewart circulated in London, for +stock-swindling purposes, a forged French newspaper called l'Eclair. For +this fraud he was tried and convicted in a penalty of 100_l_. on the third +of July. In this year Bonaparte gained the most signal victories over +Wurmser and other Austrian, Piedmontese, and Italian Commanders, and at +the battles of Lodi, Castiglione, Rivoli, &c. established his character as +a brave and consummate general. Spain had already, towards the end of +1795, concluded not merely a peace with France, but also entered with her +into a treaty of alliance, offensive and defensive, which was this year +followed up by her declaring war against Great Britain. In Germany, a +suspension of arms was concluded between France, Bavaria, Wirtemburgh, and +Baden; and Saxony and Hesse agreed to a neutrality, while in Italy peace +was made by Parma, Sardinia, and Naples. Bonaparte and the republican +troops under his command took not less than sixty thousand prisoners in +the course of this campaign, and repeatedly drove before them all the +enemies of their country. Pitt was intriguing with the Court of Russia, +but the Empress Catherine being a decided enemy to him, she died suddenly, +and her son PAUL, who was more friendly to his views, ascended the throne. +Pitt seemed determined at all hazards not to make peace on any terms; but +his cunning friend Wilberforce, and his partizans, being alarmed at the +continuance of the war, the minister was obliged to please them, and +delude the people. For the purpose of temporising therefore, he sent Lord +Malmsbury to France, under the hollow pretence of making peace, when at +the same time he had orders not to accept of any terms. But the French +being aware of the true nature of his errand received him coolly, and +after a stay of eight weeks he was sent packing with a "flea in his ear." + +The parliament having been dissolved, the new parliament met on the 9th of +October. A fresh cry of invasion was now raised, and Pitt brought forward +his plan of defence. These preparations caused great alarm throughout the +country, and a great bustle amongst the various corps of yeomanry. Bread +had sold at a moderate rate all the year; the average price being +eightpence halfpenny the quartern loaf. The loan, which was called the +loyalty loan, was eighteen millions, and the amount was subscribed in +fifteen hours. General Washington this year resigned the presidency of +America, and retired into private life, amidst the blessings of his +countrymen; a pure and spotless patriot; a friend to the liberty of +mankind; and the brave assertor of those of his fellow countrymen. Thus +ended the year one thousand seven hundred and ninety six. + +The next year another attempt was made to negotiate a peace with the +French, but as the minister, Pitt, was not sincere, Lord Malmsbury having +been sent to Lisle to treat, the French Directory soon discovered that the +measure was only a cheat intended to keep down the dissatisfaction at +home. The negotiation was therefore soon broken off, like the last. +Ireland was in a very disturbed state, bordering upon rebellion. In the +early part of this year many provincial banks stopped payment, in +consequence of a demand on them for gold, and, to complete the climax of +this country's degradation and disgrace, an act of national bankruptcy was +declared on the twenty-seventh day of February; an order in council being +issued on that day, by virtue of which the Bank of England stopped payment +in cash. From that fatal hour, swindling, the most barefaced swindling, +has become legalized! On the eleventh of March, the King, for the first +time, refused to receive the petition of the Common Hall of the City of +London upon the Throne; those who took the lead in the liveries at that +time, basely surrendering the right of their fellow-citizens without a +struggle; and from that hour their boasted privileges were lost, and they +have ever since been degraded to the level of any common assembly. As they +have never made an effort to recover this their natural right of +presenting their petitions or addresses to the king upon the throne, it +must be owned that they have richly merited all the taunts and sneers of +the ministerial press, which have been invariably levelled at them since +that period. To add to the wretched state of the country, a mutiny broke +out amongst the seamen at Spithead, and then at the Nore, the latter of +which proved most formidable, and some blood was shed; but at length, +through the means of promises and bribes, the mutineers were induced to +compromise for some additional pay. + +The alarm of invasion having been renewed with redoubled zeal, the +officers commanding yeomanry corps received letters or circulars from the +Lord-Lieutenants of counties to enquire if, in case of the enemy landing, +they would volunteer their services to the full extent of their respective +military districts. Our district was Wilts, Hants, and Dorset. The day was +appointed for the Everly troop to assemble, and to give their answer to +this application. In the meanwhile, the officers were very busy amongst +the men, particularly _Cornet Dyke_, who was our most active officer. My +father informed me of this; and he at once declared that they, the brave +Everly troop, would, now they were put to the test, refuse to go out of +their county. I, however, stoutly maintained, that although the officers +might be so disposed, it was impossible that the men in a body could prove +themselves such despicable cowards; as, if they did refuse to extend their +services, they would ever afterwards be ashamed to look each other in the +face. My father's reply was, "mark my words. Shameful and disgraceful as +it will be, yet I have heard quite sufficient to convince me that a great +majority of them have been _spoken to_, and that they have made up their +minds to refuse to comply with the request of the government; and now, +young man, as I before told you, disgrace will be the lot of the Everly +Troop. I know the officers too well to be deceived, and I should have +thought that the specimen you had of their VALOUR, in the Salisbury +affair, would have completely opened your eyes, unless, indeed, you are +intentionally blind." I told him that I hoped they had been so gibed and +scouted, in consequence of their behaviour upon that occasion, that they +would be ashamed now to give an open refusal to stand forward, when they +were called upon in such a public manner. "Why," said he, "one would think +it is almost impossible; but I know my men so well, that I entertain not +the least doubt upon the subject; and therefore you must get out of it as +well as you can; but let me give you one word of advice." I, however, +began to be impatient of advice upon such a point; for, while we had been +in conversation, I had, as was usual with me, made up my mind how to act, +and I at once told my father that, in case they should refuse to go, I +would resign, and enter instantly into some other troop, who had +volunteered to extend their services. "Oh!" said my father, "what you are +again ready to rush headlong into fresh difficulties! If they refuse to +extend their services, it will, I own, be a very fair ground for your +resignation, and then you may thank God you have had an opportunity of +saving yourself from disgrace, for disgrace I was always convinced such +playing at soldiers must come to at last, especially when I know what sort +of officers are at your head. If you should resign, why not stay at home +with your wife, and attend to your business? Depend upon it, this mode of +acting will prove not only much more profitable to you, but much more +honourable in the end. What can you expect if you go into another troop? +Even though they have volunteered, yet you will find that ninety-nine out +of a hundred of them have entered into the troop from some interested +motive. Your disinterested patriotic intentions will consequently only +raise you enemies in those who will not know how to appreciate your +motives, and those who do comprehend those motives will only be jealous of +you, because you out do them in devotion to the cause which you wish to +promote. If you must be a soldier, give me up the farm, and I will buy you +a commission in some regular regiment at once. You may thus chance to gain +renown or an honourable death; but even there, never expect to obtain +promotion, unless you can conquer your unbending spirit. Promotion is not +gained by merit, but by parliamentary interest, and by servility to your +superior officers. Take my advice, therefore, and if the Everly troop +disgrace themselves, quit them, and think yourself well out of what I +always thought was a scrape." This wise and salutary advice was not +followed by me, though I could not but admit the propriety of it. + +The field day arrived, and I was one of the first upon the ground, which +was a beautiful sheepdrove upon the Downs, between Everly and Amesbury. I +will call this my second campaign. As the several members of the corps +arrived upon the ground, I eagerly accosted them, to know their +determination; but most of them appeared shy, and gave evasive answers. I +could, however, discover that some of them had got their _cue_; and these +began boldly and manfully to inveigh against the want of good faith in the +government, in thus striving to draw the troop into a snare. Some of them +even swore that it was as bad as kidnapping; for that the terms upon which +the troop had been raised were, that its services should not be required +out of the county without the consent of the persons who composed it. +"Aye," said I, "that is very true, and we are now, I understand, called +together to be asked if we will consent, in case of an invasion, to go out +of the county." My speech was broken short by some of them espying our +gallant Cornet, moving majestically but slowly along, over the adjoining +hill. As he approached us, he was saluted by each of the members in their +turn; but, when he came up to me, I fixed my eye upon him with a +scrutinizing glance, and so intent was I in endeavouring to trace if +possible his thoughts, that I actually forgot to offer him the accustomed +salutation, till he reminded me of my inattention, by saying, "good +morning, Mr. Hunt." I apologised for my absence of mind, but the fact was, +that as I eyed our gallant commander, the _dressing-gown scene_ had +involuntarily crept across my brain, and for the moment had so absorbed +all my attention, that I was conscious of nothing but the ludicrous +appearance of the mighty hero on the morn of the battle of Salisbury. + +The bugle now sounded, to announce the approach of the gallant captain +Astly, and the troop fell in and was passed through the various manoeuvres +by the cornet. This being over, the cornet, after a short conference with +the captain, formed us into a circle, within which, as far as I recollect, +sat on their chargers, the captain, the cornet, and the Rev. Mr. Polhill, +the chaplain to the troop, who held the principal farm at Everly, which he +rented of our captain. Having read to us the copy of the Secretary of +State's letter to Lord Pembroke, the lord-lieutenant of the county, which +stated that an invasion was meditated by our implacable enemy the French, +that the government anticipated almost daily an attempt to put it into +execution, and that his lordship requested to know whether, in case an +invasion actually occurred, the Everly troop would extend their services +to the military district of Hants, Wilts and Dorset, the cornet addressed +us in a long speech. In this speech the orator did not content himself +with leaving the decision to our unbiassed judgments, nor even with hints +of his dissatisfaction at the proposal; for he boldly expressed his +decided hostility to the measure, and strongly reprobated the idea of +farmers leaving their business by going out of the county. His very +luminous harangue appeared wonderfully successful in convincing a great +proportion of the troop that, by staying at home and looking after our +farms, and protecting our own wheat ricks, we should not only be serving +ourselves, but should also be supporting the government and opposing the +invasion, much more effectually than we should be by marching forty or +fifty miles to the coast, to meet the enemy. He proved to demonstration to +his willing hearers, that it was our duty to stay at home, and +consequently to send an answer to say that, as we had entered the troop +for the purpose of keeping in order the turbulent in our own district, we +did not feel ourselves justified in leaving the county under any +circumstances. He, however concluded in a most heroical strain, by +declaring that, in giving this advice to the troop, he was not actuated by +any fear, (oh no!) of meeting the enemy; on the contrary, he lustily +threatened that if ever they should dare to come into the county of Wilts, +at least near Everly or Syrencot[12], they should receive an exemplary +chastisement for their temerity, and all the world should know of what +sort of men the Everly troop was composed. + +I listened to this address with considerable impatience; for such was the +effect of example, that I found several of those who, in the morning, had +expressed their determination, at all hazards, to vote for going; now drew +back; and when I looked at them during this speech I perceived that their +eyes dropped down upon their holster pipes. As soon as the Cornet had +concluded, I put spurs to my charger, and darted out of my place into the +centre of the circle, where, having doffed my helmet, for the first time +in my life I addressed myself publicly to a body of my fellow-countrymen. +I began with these words: "Comrades, if not fellow-soldiers, at any rate +fellow-men, fellow countrymen." I then implored them to reflect upon the +consequences of sending such an answer as had been recommended by the +Cornet; and I warned them, that, if such an answer were sent, an eternal +stigma would be fixed upon the character of the troop. Our conduct upon +the Salisbury affair was, I told them, little known out of the county, and +we had now an opportunity of wiping off the stain from our character; but +if we publicly and deliberately refused to go out of our county to meet +the enemy, in case of invasion, we should justly deserve to be branded as +poltroons and cowards to the latest posterity. This language excited +considerable signs of disapprobation, some few laid their hands upon their +swords, and I recollect two of the troop, Gilbert and Workman, threatened +aloud. I was, however, not to be deterred. I proceeded in my address to +them, and explained the nature of the law in case of invasion; my father +having taken down Blackstone's Commentaries, and read to me an extract +respecting the _posse comitatus_. I pointed out to them, that the law +compelled every man to bear arms against invaders, and that the Yeomanry +Corps, who had been trained, would of course be among the first who would +be compelled to act whether they would or not; and that consequently, if +they did not feel a desire burning within their breasts either +successfully to resist the invader, or fall gloriously in the attempt, if +they did not possess any of the _amor patriæ_, yet sound policy ought to +induce them to offer voluntarily those services which the law had the +power of inforcing against their will. + +Although this was my first attempt to speak in public, yet, as my +sentiments flowed from my heart, as they were the spontaneous effusions of +an ardent spirit, burning with impatience to evince by deeds, as well as +words, that I really loved my country, and was willing to lay down my life +in its defence, and as I felt indignant at the attempt that had been made +by the Cornet to seduce them, as I thought, from their duty, I did not +want words to express myself, and I believe that it was quite as eloquent +a maiden speech as is made by some Honourable Members in the Honourable +House. At any rate it was prompted by a conviction of public duty, and I +have never regretted it, though I believe that it made me some rancorous +enemies, who have never lost an opportunity, from that day to this, of +speaking ill of me behind my back, and doing me an ill turn when they had +it in their power. + +The Cornet scowled, and many of my comrades looked black, and muttered +dissent; but no one seemed inclined to debate the question. At length, +after having in vain waited a short time, to see if any one would come +forward to second my proposition, our worthy Chaplain, the Rev. Mr. +Polhill, gracefully took off his hat, and stepped up between me and some +of those who, unable to refute me, and dreading the result of my appeal, +were almost disposed to draw their swords upon me for the lecture which I +had given them. I shall never forget the venerable air of this truly pious +man, who was upwards of seventy years of age. It commanded instant +attention, and as he fixed his eye steadily upon me, the most solemn +silence reigned around. All the angry passions that my speech had excited +were now calmed into the most serious and silent attention, in the +expectation that he was about to give me a severe reprimand for my +intemperate, and, as some considered it, not only indiscreet but audacious +speech. After some short pause he began. I was, at first, rather in doubt +what course he meant to pursue, though, from his well known honourable and +independent character, I was not in much dread. To the vexation and +astonishment of the troop, his first sentence was a warm eulogium upon +what he was pleased to call my eloquent appeal to their feelings as men, +and to their hearts as Englishmen; and this compliment to me he followed +up with a strain of impassioned eloquence, enough to have made the veriest +coward brave. He repeated all my arguments, but in a style of language far +superior; and, while the tears flowed down his furrowed cheeks, he +implored them to save their character from the disgrace which appeared to +be hovering over them. He said, that however galling had been the words +which had dropped from the lips of his young friend, yet, as he could not +find any others that were more appropriate, he himself must repeat them; +and must plainly tell them, that, if they returned such an answer as was +recommended by the Cornet, they would deserve to be handed down to +posterity as poltroons and cowards. He would, he said, go still further; +they would not only deserve to be thus branded with infamy, but they would +actually be so; and their pusillanimity would be a taint in the blood of +their children's children. He begged, he prayed, he intreated, he implored +that they would not disgrace the name of man by conduct at once so +cowardly and so foolish. But he begged, prayed, intreated and implored in +vain--his venerable character protected him from the boisterous +disapprobation that they had shown towards me, but they heard him unmoved, +or rather as hogs would have listened to the harmonious notes of Orpheus, +with a _grunt_. Still persisting, however, in his efforts to wake a spark +of courage in their cloddish bosoms, he declared that, when the day +arrived that a foreign foe set foot upon British ground, if he could +procure no other conveyance, he would crawl upon his hands and knees to +the coast to meet them, and there, old and feeble as he was, he would make +a bulwark of his shattered frame, to check in the first onset their daring +attempt to destroy our rights and liberties. In fact, he did every thing +that man could do, to persuade them to perform their duty, and to save +their character from such foul irretrievable disgrace. It was, however, +all in vain; for with the exception of myself and the venerable chaplain, +they all held up their hands against going out of the county, and it was +decided that they should send an answer to that effect to the Lord +Lieutenant. I made one more effort, in a short but spirited appeal to +their honour as men, to their character as Englishmen; but all +remonstrance was thrown away. With one accord they stamped the degrading +name of coward upon the colours of the Everly troop of Yeomanry, and I +immediately handed over my sword and pistols, or rather indignantly threw +them upon the ground, declaring that from that hour I no longer belonged +to them, and adding that I would, the next morning, enroll my name in any +corps which had extended its services to the military district, unless +there was one that had volunteered for unlimited service, in which case I +would enroll my name in that corps. I then shook bands with the worthy +chaplain, who warmly applauded my conduct, saying that he never would +attend them again upon any occasion, and that he would much rather have +sacrificed his life than have lived to see so fine a body of his +fellow-countrymen desert, at such a moment their duty to themselves and +their country. I felt so ashamed of their conduct that I put spurs to my +horse and galloped from the field in disgust, lest, by my remaining even +for a short time, I should become contaminated by some portion of their +vile spirit. Thus ended my military career in the Everly troop of +Yeomanry, among the members of which were many private friends, for whom I +entertained a very sincere regard, and who would never have disgraced +themselves in such a way had it not been for the unworthy recommendation +and advice of their officers. + +As my father's house lay in my way home, I called on him, to inform him of +the result of the meeting. As I rode into the yard he met, me, and seeing +I had left my sword behind, "Ah!" he exclaimed, "I see that it is just as +I predicted." When I had related to him all that had passed, "Well!" said +he, "this is really too bad to laugh at. The expedition against the old +women at Salisbury was truly ludicrous; but this deliberate act of +cowardice they never can get over; it must and will be blazoned throughout +the whole country. You have done rightly, you had no choice; the man who +after this decision remains a moment in that troop must expect to be +laughed at and despised as long as he lives. But mark my words: prepare +yourself for all sorts of ill nature and slander. They who have not had +the spirit to follow your example will never forgive you, and to gloss +over their own baseness, they will load you with all possible calumny, and +will miss no opportunity to do you an injury. As by your resignation you +have exposed Astley and Dyke to great odium, be careful how you get into +their clutches, or they will squeeze you, rely upon it." I demanded how +they could injure me? "Oh!" said my father, "you know but very little of +mankind; they that seek an opportunity will seldom want an occasion to do +a malicious act. You have been a great sporting crony of Astley's, and +have frequently hunted with him; he keeps a pack of hounds, and has hunted +over my property, and my farms, for many years, and we have sometimes, +though sparingly, sported in return over his. Depend upon it, this will +all be put a stop to now." + +I replied that upon an average Astley had hunted ten times over my +father's farms, where we had sported upon his estate once; that Mr. +Astley's hounds met once a week all the season at Littlecot Furze, and +that he could not start a hare upon his own estate, or any part of it, +without a great chance of her running over some part of my father's +property. "That is all very true," said my father, "but, if he cannot be +revenged of you in any other way, he will give up his own hounds, in order +that he may prevent you from coming over any part of his estate." I had +often heard of a man cutting off his own nose to spite his neighbour, but +I did not think that, in this instance, it was very likely to happen. +"Trust me," said he, "within one month he will forbid you from going over +his lands; therefore be on your guard; for be assured that I know the +littleness of his soul better than you do, and he will spare no pains to +be revenged upon you." + +I dined with my father, and returned home in the evening, whither I found +the news of the disgrace of the Everly troop had flown before me. My wife +heartily approved of my conduct; for she came from the wrong stock to +approve of any thing dishonourable. I was received with open arms, as I +always had been; but if I had returned and told my wife that I was one of +the number that had refused, in case of invasion, to go out of the county +to oppose the enemy, I sincerely believe, that I should, for the first +time, have met with a very different reception. At all events I should +have deserved it. + +On the following morning, before I was quite dressed, a messenger came +with a letter from Lord Bruce, the colonel of the regiment of Wiltshire +yeomanry. I broke the seal and read a very flattering eulogium from his +Lordship, on my gallant conduct in resigning my situation in the Everly +troop, in consequence of the troop having, as his lordship expressed +himself, disgraced itself in such a way as rendered it impossible for an +honourable man to remain in it. After paying me many very high +compliments, he solicited the honour of enrolling in his troop, (the +Marlborough troop,) the name of a gentleman who had acted such a gallant +part. After I had breakfasted, I sat down to write an answer; but before I +had finished it, another messenger arrived, from an officer of the Devizes +troop, to request that I would honour that corps with my name. As, +however, Lord Bruce had applied first, and as in that troop I happened to +have a particular friend, Mr. Thomas Hancock, the banker of Marlborough, I +complied with his lordship's pressing invitation, and enrolled my name in +the Marlborough troop the next day. + +How true the prediction of my father was, will be seen hereafter, and it +soon began to be verified. Before the week was out, I was honoured with a +visit from old John Sainsbury, the Everly keeper, who served me with +notices from Mr. Astley and all his vassals, not to trespass upon any part +of his estates; or from henceforth I should be treated as a wilful +trespasser. At the same time he informed me, that his master was grown +exceedingly fond of seeing the hares very plenty upon his manors, and that +he had _disposed of his hounds_. This was so precisely what my father had +anticipated, that I almost began to think that he possessed some +extraordinary means of becoming acquainted with the intentions of men, +more than those furnished by common observation. I sent my compliments to +the gallant Capt. and desired him to mark his hares, by burning them in +the horns, and to teach his keepers to persuade them to stay at home; for +if I caught any of them straying upon my father's property, I should +certainly make them pay forfeit, and would, if I could, prevent a single +one of them from returning to tell the fate of their companions. The +reader will understand that the property at Everly belonging to Mr. +Astley, joined my father's, without any other division than a mere furrow +struck with the plough, between the arable lands; and that the division +between the down lands consisted of old bound balls, which were merely +small heaps of the sod thrown up together, perhaps some hundred years +before; so that those who were not aware of this circumstance, might pass +over the plain twenty times, without ever observing that there was any +thing to mark the separation; so slight and imperceptible are the +landmarks that divide all the estates that are situated upon Salisbury +plain. + +The first field day of the Marlborough troop came and I joined their +ranks. I was fully equipped; the whole of the regiment being dressed in +the same uniform as that which was worn by the Everly troop, no alteration +was necessary; and as each person supplied himself, at his own expence, +with uniform and accoutrements, the arms alone being given by the +government, I required nothing but a sword and a brace of pistols, with +which I was instantly provided. My new comrades had all volunteered to +extend their services, which was my inducement for joining them; but they +cut a very sorry figure in the field, both as to their accoutrements and +regimentals, and they were not half so well mounted as my late comrades. I +could have selected half a score of horses out of the Everly troop that +were worth the whole of those of the Marlborough; and as for their +discipline, if they had been drilled every day for a year, they would not +have been equal to the troop which I had left. Lord Bruce, the colonel, +was a complete novice, and he suffered himself to be led by the nose by a +serjeant of the 15th, of the name of Walker, who knew little more about +the matter than himself. I, however, attended from day to day, without any +one attempting to teach me any thing. There were certain fines levied for +particular faults, in all these troops, such as for absence without +sufficient cause, talking in the ranks, coming to the field too late, not +being dressed in uniform, &c. &c.; but I was never reprimanded, fined, or +sent to drill, while I was in the troop. We had a dinner at the Castle, at +Marlborough, his Lordship in the chair; but as most of the troop were +composed of his father's, Lord Aylesbury's tenants, and his dependants, +and tradesmen, or belonged to the corporation of the rottenest of rotten +boroughs, Marlborough and Great Bedwin, there were very few, except myself +and my friends, Hancock and Hitchcock, who dared to say their souls were +their own. His lordship was always very polite to me, but he did not +appear to relish my delivering my sentiments, which I did with great +freedom, upon these occasions. In the field, in the ranks, I knew how to +conduct myself, and never failed to pay implicit attention to my duty, nor +ever deviated from the strictest discipline; but, when I was at his +lordship's table; or at a mess with the troop, I knew of no distinction; I +never felt any other controul than that which was dictated by politeness +and good manners. Perhaps, young as I was, I might have been thought to +have delivered myself upon some occasions, and upon some subjects, with +too much freedom; and being always bred up with the idea that nothing was +so base and degrading as a slavish disposition, I might, in my endeavour +to avoid this, have erred by falling too much into the opposite extreme; +but the natural bent of my disposition always led me to avoid giving +offence to any one intentionally. My maxim was, never to offer an insult +to any one, and to be particularly careful not to say any thing to hurt +the feelings of any person in an inferior station of life to my own; never +to take umbrage lightly; but if anyone, be he who he might, gentle or +simple, offered me a premeditated insult, always to resent it upon the +spot, whatever might be the consequence of my so doing. + +I now contracted a very intimate acquaintance with Mr. Thomas Hancock the +Banker, and always made his house my home when I went to Marlborough, +though my wife's elder brother kept the Castle Inn, where I was always +welcome. This brother and myself were, however, never particularly +intimate, for we were of very different dispositions. He had been, as I +have often heard his father say, and himself acknowledge, a very wild, +dissipated youth; but as the "wildest colts make the tamest horses," so +had this gentleman put on a very sober sedate demeanour, while he was yet +but a young man; and the loss of his wife, who left him with a large young +family, increased rather than diminished the grave turn of his mind. His +acquaintance lay mostly among the dependents and tenants of his landlord, +Lord Aylesbury, and as his chief pursuit appeared to me to be directed +towards amassing a fortune, and as our tastes were cast in a very +different mould, our friendship, though we were upon very good terms, was +not of the inseparable kind. He was very much respected among the persons +whom I have before described, with whom he associated; and as he knew well +on which side his bread was buttered, he took good care to pay particular +attention to the steward of Lord Aylesbury. Nor, as the "grey mare was +always the better horse" in that family, did he forget to pay due court to +the steward's lady, who, to my taste, was one of the most disgusting of +disgusting women, both in person and manners. When he first lost his wife, +who was a pretty, amiable, fascinating woman, he seemed as if he would +sink under the loss, and we at one time feared that he would never recover +from his dejected state. We were, however, agreeably disappointed, as we +found that "time wore off the deepest afflictions;" but I own that I +imbibed rather a prejudice against him, when I soon after discovered that +he was upon the point of marrying another lady, a buxom widow, the very +reverse sort of woman to his deceased wife. This lady was the widow of a +grocer, who had left her some little property, and she was therefore too +much of a lady to marry an Innkeeper, and she had sufficient influence +over him to make him quit the Inn, and commence gentleman coach master +before she gave him her hand. + +One day, in the beginning of August in this year, just as I was preparing +to commence harvest by wheat reaping, I received a message from my father, +to say he wished to see me, as he was not well. I enquired of the servant +whether my father was seriously indisposed, and I received for answer that +he had kept his bed all day. At this season of the year, I had generally a +horse standing saddled in the stable, and although my dinner was just +going upon the table, I mounted, and having desired my family not to wait +for me, I appeared at my father's bed-side, who lived at a distance of two +miles from Widdington, in less time than that in which many persons who +were called active would have put on their boots and changed their coat. I +had always been bred up to act with decision, and make all my movements in +quick time; and as the servant had also made no delay, my father expressed +his surprise and pleasure at the rapidity with which I had attended to his +wish. I found him flushed in the face, and with a strong quick pulse. He +told me that be had had the misfortune to run a thorn in his leg as he was +getting through a hedge the day before, that he had endeavoured in vain to +extract it, that it had caused him considerable pain, and had brought on +so much fever in the night as to produce delirium. He had had it fomented +in the morning, and was in hopes that he was better, but now the +inflammation was so much increased that he was fearful of another restless +night. I begged to see his leg, and I found it to be so much inflamed, +that I wished him immediately to send for the family surgeon, or some +better advice. He answered that, if he were not better, he would in the +morning. In the mean time, he requested me to look round his farms, and +attend to his servants. I told him that I would most cheerfully do so, but +that I must entreat him to let me send for some medical man. I had no +opinion of our family surgeon, yet I thought, as he was a man of very +extensive practice, that he would, at any rate, give my father something +to abate the irritation and fever, without the possibility of doing harm. +As my father would not consent to have any other person sent for, it was +agreed that I should dispatch a messenger to Pewsey, a distance of five +miles, while I rode round his farm, to see what the servants were doing. + +As soon as I got down stairs I mounted my horse, and, not choosing to +trust to the uncertainty of sending a servant, I galloped the five miles +in about twenty minutes. The doctor was from home, but I soon traced him +out, and by intreaty I got him to make his old mare put her "best leg +before," and he was in a very short time in my father's bed room. After +having heard his statement, and examined his leg, he recommended bleeding, +which was immediately performed. Young and inexperienced as I was, I +suggested the propriety of some cooling cathartick; but our doctor said +no; my father required sleep, he must take a little warm gruel, and he +would send him some physick in the morning. As my father felt drowsy, he +requested me to go home; and hoping that he should have a better night, he +requested that I would look after his business next day, and that I would +come and see him in the forenoon. He had a most excellent nurse in my +eldest sister, who was his housekeeper; and I left him I own without any +sanguine hopes of finding him much better in the morning, although I did +not apprehend that any thing very serious was likely to arise from his +accident. + +When I got home, I told my wife that I was fearful my father was laid up +for the harvest, and I must have her assistance more amongst my servants +than I had before required of her, as I was convinced that I should have +to attend to the whole of my father's large and extensive business as well +as my own, and I must make my arrangements accordingly. Instead of waiting +for the forenoon, I called upon my father before 4 o'clock the next +morning. When I reached his house my sister was up; she had not been in +bed since I saw her; my poor father's leg had been very painful all night, +and his fever had again occasioned delirium. I found him in a burning +fever, and his inflammation alarmingly increased in his leg: since I left +him, he had not, he told me, slept a single moment. I at once proposed to +have better advice, and urged the necessity of procuring that advice in +time. But who should we get? I recommended my surgeon, Mr. Robert Clare of +Devizes. My father had always professed an objection to him, because he +said he was a drinking profligate character, but I pleaded that he was an +intelligent surgeon, and I soon got over my father's scruples, which I had +no sooner done than I was for effecting the object. Devizes was twelve +miles distant, but with me the greater the distance the less delay was to +be made. I therefore ordered a trustworthy servant to do his best to +manage the business, and I was at Devizes and had called the doctor up and +was at breakfast before the clock struck six. In ten minutes after that +time our horses were at the door, and the proper medicines being prepared, +I had them in my pocket and was mounted. Mr. Clare's foot was also in his +stirrup, and, he was giving some directions to his assistant, when a man +came galloping up to the door with one of his hands wrapped up in a +handkerchief, streaming with blood. We enquired what was the matter, to +which he replied that he was a birdkeeper, and that wishing to draw a +charge of shot he had held the gun upside down, with the intent to shake +the shot into his hand; but by some accident the gun had gone off, and the +charge had passed through the middle of his hand. At this moment up came +another man on horseback, to say that a neighbouring lady was taken in +labour, and that the doctor or his assistant must come that moment, as +"'twas missusses vust child, and mayster was vrightened out of his +senses." Clare dispatched Duffet his assistant off to the good lady in the +straw; and then said, "Harry, if you will get off your horse and assist +me, we will manage matters for this poor fellow." "Ah," said the man, +"_cut off my hand_ as quick as you can, sir, for I have left all the rooks +eating my master's corn, and I long to get back again to send them about +their business." The doctor smiled as he unbound his hand, which was in a +most shocking mangled state. Instead of proceeding to amputate the hand, +the doctor, after having washed it in warm water, informed him that he +would save his thumb and little finger, if he would stand steady while he +took off the three middle fingers. "Very well, sir, if you please, but be +sharp," was his reply.--I held his arm, and Mr. Clare, who was a skilful +surgeon, in a very few minutes took out the three middle fingers nearly up +to the wrist, and having bound up the wound and pressed the thumb and +little finger nearly together, he desired the man to ride slowly home, and +told him that he would see him again on his return from my father. + +The doctor always rode excellent horses, and having mounted one of his +very best, and the road lying over the Downs, we arrived at my father's +house twenty minutes before eight o'clock. I had already ridden a distance +of twenty-six miles. Mr. Clare having examined my father's leg, pronounced +the case to be a serious one, and at once recommended that Mr. Grant, an +eminent surgeon of Bath, should be called in, as well as Dr. Hill a +physician, (for form's sake) from Devizes. He said to my father, whom he +knew to be a man of an uncommonly firm mind, "I know you will not be +alarmed, Sir, but we must have good advice and assistance, or your leg is +in such a state that I fear amputation may be necessary. I have therefore +desired your son to send or go for Mr. Grant, of Bath, to assist me, who +is one of the most eminent men in the profession." My father firmly +replied, "if you think, Sir, that it is absolutely necessary, never wait +for Mr. Grant, but take off my leg at once."--"No, Sir," replied Clare, "I +shall not advise that at present. I will do all that is necessary for you +now; but let your son depart for Mr. Grant immediately. I know your son's +expedition, and I know that he will be more likely to prevail upon Mr. +Grant to come than any one we can send. In the mean time I will bring over +Dr. Hill from Devizes, and see you in the afternoon." + +This was so settled, and without delay I had changed my horse and galloped +back to Devizes; with Mr. Clare, in my way to Bath. As we passed along he +informed me, seriously, that my father was not merely in a dangerous +state, but that he had not even the slightest hopes of his recovery. I was +thunder-struck; I had hardly ever thought of such a thing. My father, at +the age of 63, was one of the most healthy, vigorous, active men in the +kingdom, and had scarcely ever had a day's serious illness in his life. To +see him walk, ride, mount his horse, or in fact do any thing; he was so +active, so alert, that his motions were more like a youth of eighteen or +twenty than those of an old man; and to look upon him, no one would guess +his age to be much above forty, though his hair lead been as white as the +driven snow for years. The truth was, that he had all his life been an +active, temperate, prudent man, and at the age of sixty his constitution +had never received a single shock. I have often heard him say, that he had +never been ill since he had the small pox, which he caught in the natural +way, when a boy at the age of eight years. In the drawing-room, he +frequently shamed myself, as well as all the young men of the village; for +he was the most polite and attentive man I ever saw. If a lady dropped her +fan, her shawl, her handkerchief, nay even a pin, he was the first to +spring to her aid and pick it up; and this he would do in less time than +one of our modern yawning, lounging, dandies would take to drawl out "pray +Maam shall I have the honour, &c." He would take a cheerful bottle, and +make one of the merriest of the gayest party, but never to excess; for he +was arrived at that time of life that he knew how to enjoy every pleasure +in moderation. He had acquired wealth sufficient for all his wants, and +enough to assist a friend; and, where he had a confidence, he was +unlimited in his generosity. If he saw a man persecuted unjustly, he was +sure to become his friend. In one respect this had led him into a great +error, he having advanced to a brewer of Bath as much as seven thousand +pounds, without much better than personal security. He had the finest +farms in that part of the county, and they were cultivated like gardens; +no man was surrounded with brighter prospects, or was possessed of greater +worldly blessings; and When Mr. Clare seriously told me that he had no +hopes of his recovery, I was absolutely overpowered with astonishment and +anguish, and was incapable of uttering a single sentence. "If," said he, +"your father ever recovers it will be a miracle; it is too late to attempt +amputation. If I had seen him yesterday, before he was bled, his life +might have been saved; but my opinion is, that if the Pewsey doctor had +taken a pistol and shot him through the head, he would not have been more +instrumental to his death than he was at the moment when he took a pound +of blood from him in the state in which his leg must have been last night. +Between you and I, he is a murdered man, and I do not believe that all the +surgeons on earth can save him without a miracle; but we must see what can +be done. I know you will not be long riding the thirty miles, to Bath. +When you return, call at my house, and leave word at what time Mr. Grant +will come, and I will accompany him to Littlecot, either to-night or +to-morrow morning. As you go through Devizes call likewise upon old Hill +the physician, and make him ride over this afternoon. We must let him earn +a guinea or two, as he wants it badly enough, and there is no chance of +his doing any harm, for he will not venture to alter what I have ordered, +unless I am present. As soon as Grant comes we will do our best; though I +assure you I cannot give you any hopes." + +As I had to ride a distance of sixty miles, I calculated the time I should +be on the road, and as I was to go thither and back on the same horse, and +it was very hot weather, I somewhat slackened my pace, that I might not +knock up the poor animal. As I passed through Devizes, I left word for Dr. +Hill to repair immediately to my father's; and without loosing one single +moment for my own refreshment, I reached my friend's, at the brewery in +Walcot Street, a few minutes before one o'clock, having come the thirty +miles in some thing less than three hours. Two men were instantly set to +clean and refresh my horse, to prepare him for my return, while I hastened +to find Mr. Grant. He was visiting his patients, for he at that time had +the best practice in Bath. Seeing my distress, his servant readily +accompanied me to that part of the town where he was most likely to meet +with his master; and we soon found the doctor, coming out of a gentleman's +house in Brock Street.[21] Upon my accosting him with considerable +earnestness and agitation, he invited me to return with him into the +house, where I informed him of my earnest desire that he should proceed +forthwith, in a chaise and four, to see, and if possible, save my father. +To this pressing application he replied that, sorry as he was to be +obliged to refuse, he must nevertheless do so, it being impracticable for +him to leave Bath; but he added, that his old friend, Bob Clare, was as +able a man, and as good a judge how to proceed in such a case, as himself +or any surgeon or physician in England. I urged that it was Mr. Clare's +most particular wish that he should come; that Mr. Clare had not time to +write, or he would have explained that it was a peculiar case. I then +described it, together with the symptoms, as well as I could. He shook his +head, and said at once, "I fear, if I could go, that I should be too late. +That Pewsey doctor can kill much easier than I can cure. The taking of +blood away at such a moment was most stupid, it was most damnable; he +ought to have put blood into him, instead of taking it away. I fear, after +that, there is no hopes. What says Bob Clare?" "I am sorry to say, sir, +that you are too well agreed in your opinion; but for God's sake lose no +time to fly and do your utmost to save the best of parents." He repeated +that it was impossible; for that he had the most important engagements +that evening, to break which would never be pardoned, either by his +patients, or by the medical men who were coming over, one of them from +Clifton, on purpose to meet him. He said, however, that he would recommend +me to a friend, who would, perhaps, be able to attend me; and he assured +me that he was a very clever man, quite as capable as himself in such an +affair. No, this would not do for me; Mr. Clare wished the assistance of +Mr. Grant, and I would not accept of any one else. I implored, I wept, +and, in agony of supplication, I knelt and seized his knees, declaring +that I would not loose my hold till he had promised to go to see my +father. I offered him any sum that he might demand, and assured him that I +would engage to procure such post horses, as would take him there and back +in six hours. He gazed upon me with astonishment. At length be exclaimed, +"your uncommon filial piety has triumphed. No money should have induced me +to leave Bath under my present circumstances; but such devotedness, such +unfeigned and unusual affection in a son for a father, I never before +witnessed:" and turning round to the lady of the house, who, with her two +daughters, had been drawn to the spot by my raving agony, he said, "I +should be for ever ashamed of myself if I did not yield to the prayers of +such unbounded filial affection."--Then addressing me, "return," said he, +"my young friend, and inform Clare that I will take him up in the morning +at six o'clock, and we will be at your father's before eight. I see that +you think there is great delay in this, but nothing on earth could induce +me to leave Bath before I have seen my patients here. I have an important +engagement, a consultation, which will not be concluded before one in the +morning. Instead of going to bed, I will start at two in a chaise with +four horses, and will be at Devizes by six; and do you take care that Bob +is ready, so as not to keep me waiting, for I shall be there to a minute." +I could not help sighing, and looking doubtfully, and as he took my hand, +I said, "are you sure that you will come? Are you sure that nothing will +prevent you?" "My good lad," he replied, "in our profession we are so +often put in mind of the uncertainty of life, that we are sure of nothing +but _death_. But this you may rely upon, that if I am alive and able to +come, I will be at Devizes at six o'clock, and at your father's by eight." +I thanked him most earnestly, and enquired if I could do any thing to +forward his good intention, by hiring or bespeaking the horses for his +carriage. To this enquiry he replied, that his servant would take care of +that; but that I might order horses to be ready for him at Devizes. I +consequently assured him that four of the best post horses in the kingdom +should be ready and waiting for him at Mr. Clare's door, by the time he +arrived there; and this I could safely promise, as I had the interest to +procure such from the Bear Inn. I now took leave of him, and he gave me +the most friendly salutation; and so did the lady and her two daughters, +who had looked and listened to my entreaties with a great degree of +interest. Nor had they confined themselves to silent good wishes, for they +had most fervently joined in supplicating the doctor to comply with my +request; and they now expressed their earnest hopes for the recovery of my +father; which was balm to my ears. + +I returned to my friend's, where I had left my horse; and, having taken +some slight refreshment, I proceeded without loss of time towards home. +Such a melancholy journey I never took before, nor have ever taken since! +My mind was wholly absorbed in the reflection that it was possible I +should so soon lose the best of fathers, of whose real value I seemed +never to have had a true estimation till now that I felt the dread of +losing him. A thousand sad forebodings hurried across my brain, and I +began already to feel that I had lost the best, the truest and the most +sincere friend whom I had in the world. Thus it is with poor weak mortals; +they seldom know how to appreciate the most inestimable blessings, till +they are in danger of being deprived of them! In this sad state I soon +reached Devizes, a distance of nineteen miles, on my return, scarcely +having noticed any of the objects which I had passed. I called upon Mr. +Clare, and left a note for him, to be ready by six o'clock in the morning, +and I ordered four of the best post horses at the Bear to be in waiting at +Mr. Clare's door at that hour. Then, without making any other delay, I +spurred forward, and reached my father's house within a few minutes of +three o'clock. I found him much in the same state as when I left him at +eight in the morning. My journey to Bath and back, _sixty miles_, I had +completed including my stay there, in seven hours; having now ridden, in +the whole, upon two horses, a distance of eighty-six miles. + +My poor father, who had been anxiously expecting my return, expressed +great satisfaction at my speed; and taking my hand, he said, "Ah! you are +a generous, kind-hearted soul. I told your sister that, if you could find +Mr. Grant in any reasonable time, you would return by three o'clock. I +knew the horse would carry you the sixty miles in six hours; and I also +knew that nothing on earth would delay you when your father's health, +probably his life, was at stake. Well," added he, "what says Mr. Grant, +will he come?" "Yes, sir, he will be here by eight o'clock in the morning +or before; in the mean while, I find that Mr. Clare has ordered you to +take some medicine that he has sent." "And has he not ordered any thing to +be done to my leg; no fomentation or any other thing?" "No, sir." "Why +then," said he, "I fear he gives it up for lost; because, unless something +is done to stop the inflammation that is going on there, a mortification +must follow"--and having said these words he sunk back upon his pillow, +resigned and composed. His leg was not quite so painful as it had been; +for the fact was, that mortification had actually taken place, when Mr. +Clare first saw it in the morning. + +My father now said that, after my very great exertion, in riding such a +distance, which he had reckoned up, while I was gone, as being eighty-six +miles, rest must be necessary for me; and he therefore did not choose that +I should ride any farther, for fear I should make myself ill also; +otherwise, he felt a great desire to know how the reaping went on, as +neither of us had seen the reapers since they began. I gaily told him I +was not at all exhausted; and that if such a thing could in the least add +to his pleasure or his comfort, I knew that I could ride to Bath and back +again without any difficulty. I added, that as to the reapers, I had +anticipated what would be his wish, and consequently, before I came in, I +had ordered the saddle to be put upon his horse; and, after my sister had +given me some tea, I intended to see all the reapers, both upon his farms +and my own--"Ah, my dear son!" he replied, "it must be all yours during +this harvest at any rate; no cure that can be performed upon me will +enable me to get about during this harvest. I am delighted with your +alacrity to please me; and, as I have full confidence in you, and know +your capability, I shall not give myself one moment's uneasiness about the +business." + +Having taken some tea with my father and sister, I mounted the third +horse, and rode round the fields, and saw every one of the reapers and +other servants. I recollect that there were seventy-six reapers at work in +my father's fields, and twenty-eight in mine, making in the whole one +hundred and four persons, who had that day begun reaping our wheat crop, +which was remarkably fine. I had an opportunity, for the first time since +I left home, which was about half-past three in the morning, to call and +see my wife; of whom I had not had a sight, though I had passed by the +house both in going and returning to Devizes and back, and to Bath and +back, four times during the day. I informed her of the true situation of +my father, and told her that I should return and sit up with him all +night. + +By the time I had performed my task it was between nine and ten o'clock, +and I had literally tired the third horse. My poor father objected so +strongly to my sitting up, that about twelve o'clock I retired to an +adjoining room to rest myself, but to sleep I found it impossible. I rose +again at four, and after I had enquired how he had passed the night, I +rode again round the farms more to pass away the hours previous to the +arrival of the surgeons and the physician than for any other purpose. A +little before eight, according to their appointment, they drove into the +yard in Mr. Grant's chariot with four horses. Oh God! what a moment for +me! I shall never forget the agitated state of my mind, divided as it was +between hope and fear. At the same instant that I hastened them to the +bed-room of my father, I would have given any thing to have delayed the +fatal, much-dreaded decision. But no time was to be lost. Seeing the agony +in which I stood speechless before them, Mr. Grant took me by the hand, +and said, "my good young friend, you must exert all your courage, and be +prepared for the worst; my old friend Clare has given me such a +description of your father's leg, that I have no hopes of a favourable +result." Old Dr. Hill, the physician, now said, "come! come! Mr. Grant, do +you bear up; do not make the young man down-hearted, "there are a great +many slips between the cup and the lip." It is not so bad as you imagine." +Good Heaven! what a strong recollection I at this moment have, of the look +of scorn and contempt which Mr. Grant bestowed upon the old Devizes +physician! He did not utter a word, but his look was enough. + +Having informed my father of their arrival, they all three proceeded to +his bed-room; a most awful anxious moment for me, and I never before +prayed so devoutly for any thing in my life, as I now did for a propitious +decision from Mr. Grant. After the first salutation was over, the surgeons +began to examine his leg; and Mr. Grant pointed out to Clare a deep red +streak, that passed up the inside of his thigh, quite up to the body. He +asked my father whether he had any objection to have his leg opened; to +which my father promptly replied "not in the least. I beg you will do any +thing you think proper." Mr. Grant then said it would be necessary to make +a pretty deep incision, to ascertain the state of the inflamed part. +"Proceed as you please, sir," said my father, "I am quite capable of +bearing pain." Mr. Clare then made an incision in the calf of his leg, +three inches deep, quite down to the bone, and five or six inches in +length. The flesh appeared as black as mahogany, and very little blood +flowed. This my father bore without the least flinching. Some cloths were +wrapped round it, and they desired him to lie down, and compose himself a +little. "I will lie down, sir," he replied, "but I hope that I do not +appear discomposed." All this while I stood like a statue, as pale as +ashes, watching every look of Mr. Grant with intense anxiety. "Well, sir," +said Mr. Grant, "I will consult with Mr. Clare, who understands these +matters quite as well as I do, and, in fact, as well as any surgeon in +England, and we will settle the course you shall follow. Your leg is in a +dreadful state, but we will see what can be done for you." + +Mr. Grant now took my father by the hand, and was wishing him good +morning, when my father, holding his hand, firmly raised himself upon his +bed, and said, "I am very much obliged to you, Mr. Grant, for the trouble +you have taken to come such a long journey to see me; and my son will most +cheerfully remunerate you. There is, however, one thing more which I shall +request you to do before you leave me. It is that you will give me your +candid and honest opinion of my situation. Have you any well-grounded +hopes of my recovery? If you have not, you will confer a great obligation +upon me by saying so." Doctor Hill, who was standing at the other side of +the bed, prevented any answer, by saying, "Come! come! Mr. Hunt, you are +low spirited; come! come! you must not indulge in any such notions; you +will do very well again by and by." Upon which my father, turning +indignantly round, replied with a firm and rather strong voice, "stand +back, and keep your peace for once, Dr. Hill, and do not expose +yourself--I am neither low-spirited, nor so weak as to be put off by your +common-place cant. Have the modesty, at any rate, to listen with patience +to what I am going to say to Mr. Grant, who appears to be a sensible, +honest man, or else be so obliging as to leave the room." Then, turning +back to Mr. Grant, he said, "I have, sir, contrived so to live as not to +fear to die. You are a perfect stranger to me; but you have the character +of knowing your profession well, and also of being a humane man; at least +my son informs me that you have been induced to take this journey more +from humanity than for your fee. I have therefore, a perfect reliance upon +your judgment with respect to my case; you see that I have nerve to hear +my fate; and it will be a great relief to my mind, and it will afford me +even comparative consolation, to be informed of it from your lips, rather +than be left in suspence. Nay, I appeal to your humanity, to speak the +truth boldly at once, to save my poor afflicted son the pain of +communicating it." + +Having said this, my father paused, to receive a reply. Oh! what an +agonising, heart-rending moment was this for me! Mr. Grant took my +father's hand, and seriously delivered himself as follows:--"After what +you have said, sir; after the calm and manly appeal which you have made to +me, and with so laudable and rational a desire to spare pain to the +feelings of your son, I should be doing an injustice to my own sense of +duty, and be imposing upon you, if I were to withhold any longer my honest +opinion; which is this, that, as a mortification had taken place, for many +hours even before Clare first saw you, and as it has approached your body, +I cannot, unless some very extraordinary interposition of Providence shall +occur, see any hopes of your recovery." + +My father, who, during this sad speech, had looked him firmly in the face, +calmly and rather cheerfully replied, "I thank you, sir, most sincerely. I +am content! the Lord's will be done! Pray take care of my poor son." The +last words of the Doctor had produced such an awful effect upon me, that, +unperceived by them, I had sunk senseless into a chair. + +As soon as I recovered a little I was led out of the room, more dead than +alive; and even at this moment the words of Mr. Grant vibrate afresh upon +my ear. Though I had anticipated such an answer, and had, indeed, no +reason to expect any other, yet when the blow came, it was much more +stunning, much more overwhelming, than I had any idea of. I was dumb with +sorrow; I now, by cruel experience, understood, what dumb sorrow meant. I +could neither speak nor give vent to my feelings by tears. The agony of my +poor sister, who saw enough to convince her what was the fatal sentence, +and who immediately went into violent hysterics, was the first thing that +recalled me to myself. The sight of her distress roused me from my +lethargy; yet it was with a sort of stupor that I moved to her assistance, +and when she had in some degree recovered, my brain was still whirled +round and bewildered. I had received such a shock that all the world +appeared as one vacant blank before my eyes. + +Mr. Clare, at length, called my attention to the wish of Mr Grant to +return; and the chaise being brought to the door, he reminded me of the +doctor's fee. I asked Clare what would be proper; to which he replied that +twenty guineas would be handsome. I, however, gave him thirty, with which +he expressed himself very well satisfied; and on his departure he politely +requested that he might be numbered among my friends. I made my friend +Clare promise to return in the evening; and poor Hill, who had eyed with a +mixture of surprise and envy the large sum paid to Mr. Grant, received his +two guineas for his two visits, and left the place, cursing, I have no +doubt, Mr. Grant in his heart, for having spoken out so plainly as to +render his future visits useless, and thereby deprived him of three or +four more guineas in fees. + +The moment they were gone I returned to my father, endeavouring to +suppress my sorrow as much as possible. Taking me by the hand, he said, +most tenderly, "My dear son, though I do not feel myself weak, yet, as we +must part so soon, pass as much of your time with me as you conveniently +can; for I feel at present in very sound mind, and I shall be enabled to +give you some good advice, which I hope will be of lasting service to you; +and, as it will be given at such a time as this, I am sure that it will +sink deep into your heart. In the first place you must not give way to +sorrow; for you must be a father to your sister, and to your unfortunate +little brothers, who are at school in London. I shall not for one moment +repine upon my own account. I am not afraid to meet a merciful Creator; he +is not the implacable being that some find it their interest to represent +him. I always have had, and shall, to the last, continue to have, full and +implicit confidence in his loving kindness and mercy. Be you, therefore, +calm and temperate in your grief, and consider that you have a great duty +to perform. It must be your task to comfort your father in his last +moments, when, perhaps, by the exhaustion of his bodily powers, he may +become weak in mind. If this be the Divine will, which, however, may +Heaven avert, be it your care to soothe, to comfort, and to cherish; and, +if possible, collect and controul my wandering senses. Promise me that you +will not leave me long at a time. In you I place my trust, and I know you +will not deceive me." I solemnly assured him that I would not leave the +house. "Nay,["] said he, "do not say so; all our large farms, with two or +three hundred servants, require your attendance, sometimes; but do not +leave me long at a time. I feel no symptoms of my approaching end. Send +for your wife. She will comfort and be a good companion for your sister, +and will assist her to nurse me. I know that you will all make me as +comfortable as you can while I remain here." To which I replied, by +entreating him not to doubt my affectionate attention. + +Mr. Clare and Mr. Grant had both told me that they thought it impossible +that he could live more than three days at the most, as the mortification +had approached the vital parts.--As he was a very hearty strong man, with +a sound constitution, it was possible that he might live full three days; +but, nevertheless, as some change might bring on his dissolution much +sooner, he ought, they said, to lose no time in settling his affairs. He, +himself, began on this subject, by saying, "You know that I made my will +since your mother's death, and I see no cause to alter the distribution of +my property. I have dealt fairly by all my children. You will possess the +manor and estate of Glastonbury, by heirship, in addition to what I have +given you. I wish to make a codicil, to appoint you a trustee, in the +place of one of those whom I appointed when you were a minor." My uncle +Powell, my mother's brother, who was named as a trustee, and his attorney, +were, therefore, sent for, and the necessary alteration was made without +delay; and without giving my father any trouble, or uneasiness whatever. + +As the mortification encreased, his leg grew less painful, and in the +night he had some sweet sleep; but I could not be prevailed upon to leave +his bed-side for a moment. I devoured every syllable that fell from his +lips; and I thought I had suffered the greatest loss if he required any +thing, and I was not upon the spot to furnish him with it. My sister was +quite knocked up; nature was over-powered; and as I now found the +assistance of Mrs. Hunt to be absolutely necessary, she was sent for in +the morning. Without her we should have been greatly at a loss; for my +poor sister was now more in need of being nursed herself than able to +assist in nursing my father, whom we contrived to keep perfectly easy and +free from any serious pain till his death. His amazing strength of +constitution went beyond the calculation of the doctors; for he lived four +days and nearly five nights, after the mortification had visibly passed +into his body. During the whole of this time, even to the very last, he +was perfectly sensible, and not till he ceased to exist, did he cease to +possess all his faculties in the soundest state. + +The next morning after Mr. Grant had been, and confirmed his approaching +end, he begged to have my sister's piano forte brought up into his bed +room; and when he grew fatigued with giving me his kind admonitions, he +was much pleased and refreshed by my sister's playing and singing. He was +always passionately fond of music, and was a tolerable amateur himself, +and it appeared to give him as much pleasure as ever to hear her play and +sing "Angels ever bright and fair," &c. &c. Sacred music was mostly his +choice upon this occasion, yet he would sometimes request a lively and +cheerful air. These tunes frequently lulled him into a sweet sleep, which +he now and then enjoyed for an hour at a time; during which period I never +failed to watch over him with the most pious care, never suffering him to +be disturbed upon any occasion. + +During the whole of this time he talked of his approaching dissolution +with the greatest calmness and composure; and he gave orders how he would +be buried, and named those of his servants who should carry him to the +church, to lay him by the side of his dear Elizabeth. He often repeated +Pope's universal prayer, and frequently expressed his gratitude that he +did not feel as his beloved wife Elizabeth had done at her decease, the +moment of which he greatly lamented was clouded with doubts and fears; a +circumstance which he had always attributed to bodily weakness; and he +prayed devoutly to the author of his being not to suffer his mind to be +impaired while he had life in his body. He felt that he had lived the life +of an honest man, and had never failed in strictly doing his duty towards +his neighbours; he declared that he had gone regularly to church, as an +example to his servants and his family, but believed that one private act +of devotion was more acceptable in the eyes of a benificent and all-wise +divinity, than any mere outward form of public worship. It was, he said, +the greatest consolation to him in his last trial, to reflect that he had +been honest and upright in all his dealings, and that in his conduct to +his fellow creatures, he had uniformly kept in view the sublime precept of +"Do unto others as you would they should do unto you." This, he said, was +his chief consolation in the hour of trial; and he most emphatically urged +us to follow his example, particularly in that respect, as "honesty was +the best policy." Recalling to his memory and mentioning all the little +menial errors that he had committed, he assured us that they gave him not +the least uneasiness; that God was too wise, too just, too good, and too +forgiving, to record such faults, and to make his creatures suffer for +them where they had not been vicious and premeditated. + +In this way, for four days, he spent the close of his existence, +principally with me; urging and inculcating every good, honest, and noble +principle; cautioning me against the effects likely to result from my +great enthusiasm, and pointing out to me the path which he thought would +lead to happiness, honour, and renown; and he constantly offered up the +most pious and devout thanks to Heaven, for having permitted him to remain +so long after he had received notice of his approaching dissolution, as to +enable him to give me so much good advice. He anticipated that I should do +well and prosper in the world, if my daring independent spirit did not +lead me into difficulties; he continued to express great doubts about the +prudence of my remaining in the yeomanry cavalry; he said that he had +always dreaded some great evil would arise out of it to me; and he +submitted whether it would not be much to my advantage to leave it. His +death, would, he said, be a most ample reason for my quitting it, as I +should have such a large business upon my hand, that it would require +every moment of my time to attend to it. "And if you want an excuse," +added he, "say it was one of the last wishes of your father that you +should do so; but recollect, my dear son, I do not bind you down to any +promise of the sort; I only throw out this hint, if you choose to make an +excuse. I must, however say, that an honourable and brave man, should +never think it necessary to make any excuse for doing that which be deems +right and proper. You will recollect these observations and feel their +justice, after I am dead and gone; when you will have no sincere friend to +advise and admonish you. I own I wish I could have lived another year or +two for your sake; as we were now just begun to live as father and son +ought to live, upon the most friendly footing. You would have assisted and +protected me in my old age; and I know, and you will so feel, that I +should have been of the most important service to you. You decide too +hastily; you are quick and impetuous; your young hot blood leads you on +incautiously into unnecessary dangers and difficulties. The truth is, you +are young; and therefore I would not have you otherwise disposed than you +are. I have long discovered a noble generous spirit to be the ruling +passion of your soul; and all your faults even result from an amiable and +a praiseworthy enthusiastic desire to excell. You only want prudence and +experience to direct you; but that experience which you might have +acquired from me you must now purchase. To have lived to direct, to advise +and admonish you, would have been a great happiness to me. But the Lord's +will be done! I have given you a good education; I have made you a +complete master of your business, as a farmer; God has blessed you with a +strong mind, and a sound body; and few young men of your age will begin +the world with brighter prospects; you will have a large business upon +your hands, that will keep you out of idleness; though, in fact, I do not +suspect you of any tendency to idleness; but I hope this fine business +will keep you out of mischief. You must be a father to your poor little +brothers, who are so unfortunate as to require double care. Your uncle +Powell has promised that he will take care of your sisters; but be sure +and give them repeated advice not to be led away, against their better +judgment, to adopt his form of religion, that of a Quaker. I have not the +slightest objection to the Quakers; but I have always found the church of +England quite good enough for those who have been bred up in that +persuasion. I do not think any one would be justified in dissenting from +the church of England till he has acted up to all the Christian precepts +of that church. But now, that we are on the subject of religion, and the +church of England, mark what I say upon my death bed. It will, I know, +sink deeper into your young mind than any thing that I could have said at +any other time. Do not, my dear son, for one moment imagine that I wish to +inculcate the idea that, as I approach my Maker, I profess to believe all +those mummeries that I have hitherto dared to disbelieve and dispute. You +know that I never joined in Saint Athanasius's Creed. All such unchristian +denunciations I ever held, and I still hold, to be blasphemous +impositions. Many of the forms of the church also are superstitious and +ridiculous; but the moral precepts of the Christian faith are wise and +good. I have never meddled in religious discussions; I have always formed +my own opinion to the best of my judgment and belief; and if in any of +those opinions I have erred, I have not the least shadow of doubt upon my +mind that a wise, just and beneficent Creator and father of all, will +pardon my errors. I do not feel the least disposed now to investigate, or +puzzle myself, in my last moments, in a vain endeavour to enquire whether +I have been right or wrong; the Lord's will be done, say I, and may he in +his goodness assist you to continue an honest and an upright man amongst +your fellow men. Do your duty by your neighbour, and worship your Maker +agreeably to the dictates of your own conscience, and you will live happy; +and when the time comes (for, recollect that it must come with ALL) and +when it comes with you, my dear son, may you be as well prepared as your +father is to enter the presence of your Maker." + +I have, I think, shewn the reader enough to impress him with the idea of +the incessant pains, the unwearied exertion, of my excellent parent, to +inculcate the true principles of honour, morality, and religion upon the +mind of his son. He well knew that what he said upon these matters, at +such an awful period, was sure to make a lasting impression upon the +memory of his son: for whose benefit he appeared to live even to the last. +When, at times, he became exhausted with his anxiety to serve me, he would +say, "now, my dear boy, go down stairs and get some refreshment, while I +meditate, while I commune with God in private, and silently adore his +goodness. Come again soon; but, in the mean time, do not let any one +disturb my meditations." When I crept quietly back again, I sometimes +found him with his hands clasped, still in the act of silent prayer. On +seeing me, he would cease, and say, "it is all well;" and then he would +return to the most interesting discourse with me. At other times I found +him in the most sweet and delightful sleep; his countenance as placid as +in the most happy and prosperous moments of his life; as if he were +blessed with health and spirits. He always awoke cheerful, and apparently +refreshed, and would relate some delightful dream which he had had, +frequently consisting of a happy meeting and heavenly conversation with +his dear departed Elizabeth, my mother. God of heaven! what did I not feel +in those interesting and trying moments! Any weeping, any gloomy sorrow in +his presence, he forbad; for he said we all ought to bless the hour, and +to rejoice to see a beloved parent upheld at such a moment by his Creator, +so as to be enabled to die with such serenity and firmness, and to set +such an example to his children. In this manner passed away three days and +nights after Mr. Grant had pronounced it impossible for my father to +recover. As all the medical men had agreed that it was not probable that +he would survive more than two days, I had every now and then a faint hope +that the strength of his constitution would overcome the mortification. +Mr. Clare, however, who attended daily, repressed that hope by pronouncing +it impossible for my father to live. His predictions were verified by the +event. On the morning of the fourth day it was evident that my parent grew +weak; his voice failed him, he had much greater difficulty in holding any +conversation, and his breathing was much less frequent; yet he was calm +and cheerful, and felt pleasure in hearing my sister play upon the +piano-forté, which caused him a short slumber after each tune. + +About the middle of the day, he desired to be alone with me; and taking my +hand, with a benignant smile, he said, in a weak but tender tone, "my +dearest son, your father's time for quitting this mortal life is arrived. +I find that the hand of death is upon me." After a pause of half a minute, +to recover from the exertion, he continued, "you will soon lose your best +and truest friend. I would not wish to make you a misanthropist; I would +not, because it is unnatural at your age, have you suspect all mankind; +but of this you may rest assured, that there are few, very few in the +world, who will not flatter you if they can get any thing by it. There are +none who will tell you of your faults with the candid kindness of a +friend; some, indeed, may taunt you with them, in order to irritate and +provoke you; but, before another sun rises, you will have lost the only +one who must be naturally anxious to advise and admonish you with a pure +and disinterested friendship. Young and sanguine as you are, you will be +thrown upon the wide world, to think and act for yourself; but your +prospects are bright, your father has done his best for you, and in his +last moments he will pray for your success and happiness in life. My only +sorrow is at leaving your little unfortunate brothers. You must be a +father to them, and I have left them an ample fortune, to repay you well +for any trouble you may have with them. I know you will be a kind brother +to them, and I hope, in return, that they will be grateful to you. I have +little dread on your account, for though you are young, yet God and your +father have done their duty towards you so bountifully, that there is +every prospect of your doing well in the world. I only wish I could have +lived to have seen you well out of the yeomanry cavalry! Recollect my last +words--you will always find 'honesty the best policy;' therefore always +'do unto others as you would that they should do unto you,' and take care +so to live that, when death calls, you may be prepared to follow him, as I +now am, in humble but confiding hope, and without repining." + +My poor father held me firmly by the hand and looked me steadily in the +face, though his eyes grew dim, and his voice was so interrupted by the +difficulty of respiration, which now much increased, that he was greatly +exhausted. At length he sunk gently back upon his pillow, ejaculating "the +Lord's will be done; the Lord be praised." His eyes were fixed and death +had overspread his face with a sombre hue; he held my hand about three +hours, but never spoke more; lying all the while perfectly still, +apparently without the least pain or uneasiness, either in body or mind. +In this state he continued till near eight o'clock in the evening, of the +27th of August, 1797, when the best of fathers drew his last breath, and +gently slid into the arms of death, without a groan, a struggle, or even a +sigh, to the inexpressible grief of his affectionate and deeply-afflicted +son. His hand still retained its hold of mine, and I now gave vent to that +unbounded sorrow which I had heretofore suppressed and smothered, because +I would not make him uneasy. It is to me in my dungeon a source of +never-failing pleasure to reflect that all that it was possible for one +man to do to save the life of another I did, to save his life; and at any +one moment, after his doom was pronounced by the doctors, I would have +sacrificed my life, nay, if I had had a thousand lives I would have died +by torture a thousand times, to have saved his life. But he had taught me +not only by precept, but by example, to bow to the will of God. There +never lived a better man, nor a better father; nor did ever a son sustain +a greater loss than I did by his death. It has been said, with great +truth, that he was the second founder of his family. + +After he drew his last breath, I remained kneeling by his bed-side +absorbed in grief and silent prayer for nearly an hour, before any one of +the family came to me. At length my wife came to my aid, and being roused +by her I performed the sad sacred office of closing his eyes for ever. + +I shall not make any apology to the reader, for having dwelt so long on +this melancholy scene. I trust that it will prove one of the most +instructive parts of my history. In fact, and in truth, I would not write +another line, if I did not fondly hope that almost every part of my life +may prove instructive, as well as entertaining, to my fellow creatures and +the rising generation; particularly to those who may embark upon the wide, +rough, boisterous, and dangerous ocean of politics. When I recite my own +errors, and it has already been seen, that I have committed many and great +ones, I am rewarded for the pain I feel in the recollection of them, by +the hope that they may prove a beacon and a warning to those young persons +who may do me the honour to read these pages; and where they find that the +impulse of honourable generous feelings, unguided by prudence, has led me +into a wrong course, I trust that the young reader will learn, from my +mistakes, how to temper his zeal with that discretion which may enable him +to steer clear of those perilous quicksands upon which I have so +frequently struck. + +What a great misfortune for me was the death of my father! Before I was +yet twenty-four years of age, with a mind unformed, and I may say, in the +common acceptation of the phrase, very young of my age; here was I left in +the uncontrolled possession of one of the largest farming concerns in the +kingdom! I had a young wife, and a family of my own coming on; and had +five sisters and brothers, younger than myself, left without father or +mother. I was immediately obliged to attend to the farms, which had had no +master to look over them for the last week, that week the most busy one in +the year; and I had likewise to give orders for the funeral of my departed +father. Exertion was indispensable. It was no use for me to lie down and +cry God help me! Necessity, however painful to my feelings, compelled me +to see to every thing, because I had no friend either to do it for me, or +even to assist me. The whole lay upon the hands of myself and my wife, who +was of the greatest assistance to my poor sister, who almost sunk under +her afflicting loss. + +It was fortunately fine weather, and the wheat harvest was nearly finished +before my father was buried. When the awful day of his funeral came, I +performed the last sad and solemn office for him, as I had faithfully +promised to him that I would, and saw him laid by the side of my poor +mother in the silent grave, the tomb and vault of his ancestors, in the +chancel of the parish church of Enford, in the county of Wilts. + +This melancholy scene made the most lasting impression upon my memory, and +such was the effect of the kind benevolent and endearing conversations +which I had held with my father, during the four last days of his life, +after he knew that he could not survive his illness, that for seven years +afterwards, I used in my sleep to hold the most delightful converse in my +dreams with the spirit of my beloved parent; in all of which he appeared +most anxious for my welfare, and advised, admonished, and kindly cautioned +me against every impending evil; so that he was not only the best of +fathers when living, but he proved my kind and fostering guardian angel +after his death. No young man ever had better advice bestowed upon him +than I had; unceasing kind and paternal advice, as well as the best +example. Nor was any one ever more sensible of the great and irreparable +loss be had sustained than I was; or ever more sincerely deplored the loss +of a beloved parent, than I did the loss of my father. Mine was not that +sort of sorrow which puts on a gloomy outside, the garb of woe, while the +heart beats to a merry tune. But, though I did not assume any hypocritical +outward sorrow, yet I was really and truly most sad at heart. The constant +employment of the body and the full occupation of the mind is, however, +always the very best antidote to grief, and those my business furnished me +with, to the fullest extent. When my father died, what he rented, and what +he left of his own, was nearly all the tything of Littlecot, as well as +Chisenbury farm, and I was in possession of Widdington farm, about two +miles distant. All the farms were now in my occupation, and, as I thought +it proper to live more centrical, I took Chisenbury House, a large +old-fashioned, handsome mansion; and as soon as I could fit it up and +furnish it, I went to reside there. This was considered by some as being +rather an imprudent and extravagant step; for it would require a +considerable income to keep up an establishment such as a house like that +demanded. The reader will be able to estimate its size, when I inform him +that there were not less than fifty two windows in it to be paid for to +the assessed taxes; the number of them, however, I had the prudence to +reduce considerably. But, in spite of all my prudence, it could not, +considering the scale on which my arrangements were formed, be otherwise +than a very expensive residence. Still it was not more, perhaps, than I +was fairly entitled to, as the profits arising from my large well +cultivated farms enabled me to vie with men of five or six thousand a +year, in my domestic establishment. My stables were stored with hunters; +my kennels with dogs; my cellars were well stocked with wine and the best +old October; and my table always amply furnished the best of viands to my +friends. My wife, who was quite as fond of company as I was, made her +female guests uniformly welcome. We kept a hospitable house, and we never +wanted for company to fill it, or a parson to say grace to a good dinner. +At this time we had another daughter born, and every thing went most +prosperously with me in the world. My friend, Dr. Clare of Devizes, who +was a sporting man, purchased at Lord Audley's sale a handsome curricle, +which he offered me, and we soon struck a bargain. Curricles were all the +vogue at that time; therefore a dashing young man without a curricle was +nothing; and as my wife was a great driver, as well as a good horsewoman, +a curricle was almost indispensable. + +Let no one suppose, from reading this, that I was become a careless +squanderer. The habits of economy which, almost from my infancy, I lead +imbibed in consequence of the example that I had always before my eyes, +did not desert me even under these circumstances. By management I lived as +well, kept as good a house, and had my whole establishment so arranged, as +to make quite as good an appearance for a thousand or fifteen hundred a +year as many persons make who spend more than thrice that sum. I had at +all times plenty of money, and I had every comfort and luxury about me; +but in the midst of all this apparent extravagance, I never forgot the +poor. All my servants were well paid and well fed, and I scarcely ever +failed to attend the parish pay table, to see that those who held the +office of overseer turned no one away, who was really in distress, without +affording him relief. Thus early I gained the character of being _the +friend of the poor_. I always pleaded the cause of the widow, the orphan, +the aged, and infirm; and, being the largest paymaster in the parish to +the fund of the poor, I never pleaded in vain. The idle, the indolent, and +the dissolute, I left to fight their own battles; but the infirm, the +aged, the widow, and the orphan never fruitlessly sued when I was present, +and, as I have just said, I seldom failed to attend; if I did I was sure +to hear complaints. My readers will recollect that I am writing these +Memoirs during the life-time of hundreds who can speak to this fact; and I +speak of it not as boasting, but with the firm conviction that it can be +substantiated by hundreds who lived in the parish, and that there is not +one who will contradict it. The _friend of the poor_ is a title which I +earned very early in life, and I hope that I shall deserve to carry it to +my grave. Sorry, however, as I should be to lose this honourable title, I +would ten thousand times rather lose it than lose the heart-cheering, +soul-inspiring reflection that I have always been their friend not for the +name, but for the pleasure I felt in protecting and assisting my less +fortunate fellow-creatures, when they were in distress. It may be said, if +you are really so, why not rest satisfied with the pleasure of knowing it? +Why do you sound your own trumpet, and endeavour to blazon it forth to the +world? My answer is, because my being incarcerated here for _two years and +six months_ has induced me to become my own historian, and I will +endeavour to be so faithfully; and I feel that I have need to put upon +record all my good qualities, as a set-off to balance my bad qualities. Of +the latter I have disclosed a great many already, and as I proceed I shall +have to record still more. Now, as we are told that charity covers a +multitude of sins, if I possess this good quality of charity, and if I +prove that I always exercised it, I think I should not be doing common +justice to myself or to my friends, if out of false modesty I were to keep +silence. Those who have read my work hitherto will not fail to have +discovered that, from my early days, I have proved myself to have been +animated by an ardent love of country, that I possessed a sort of inherent +patriotism, without having at all entered into politics. A patriot I +consider to be a man who is devoted to the laws and constitution of his +country in their purity; a defender of the rights and liberties of the +people, and one who does his best to promote their happiness and welfare. + +Merely possessing the good quality of being charitable, by no means makes +a patriot. Therefore, I am not professing any claim to patriotism, on the +ground of my being at that period a friend to the poor. In the first +place, I believe that charity and a sympathy for the sufferings of my +fellow-creatures are inherent qualities of my breast; at any rate I know +that I felt them in all their purity as long ago as I can remember. In the +next place, I was taught to practice charity by the example of my amiable +and excellent mother, who possessed as much christian charity, as well as +piety, as any mortal that ever lived; she was, indeed the very milk of +human kindness; and although my father taught me to exercise the virtue +with more discretion, yet he never checked it. + +When my father died he was the Vicar's churchwarden, as well as the +principal overseer of the parish of Enford; and, of course, as I came into +possession of his estates and farms in that parish, I continued in the +parochial offices, as his substitute, till the next Easter. During that +time it was a severe winter, and I exercised my own discretion, and +without any ceremony raised the pay of the poor, particularly of the aged +and infirm, those whose labours were done. I found their pay at two +shillings and sixpence per week each; I raised it to three and sixpence +each, and in some instances, as in cases of infirmity, still higher; and, +when some of the parishioners mentioned their objections, to the measure, +I declined to reduce the allowance, but offered to pay out of my own +pocket the advance which I had made, in case of my conduct being +disapproved of at a meeting or vestry. No meeting, was, however, called; +nor in this large parish, where the population is above six hundred, was +there any complaint made to the magistrates by any pauper against me +during the whole time I was in office. + +When Easter came, I being the largest paymaster in the parish, it was my +turn, by rotation, to serve the office two years longer, and my name was +placed at the head of the list that was sent in to the magistrates for +their approval. The practice is, for the parishioners, at the annual +Easter meeting, to send in a list of three or four names, to give the +magistrates a choice in the appointment of two: but as the two names that +are placed first and second are those that are considered by the resident +proprietors as the proper persons, and whose turn it is to serve the +office, the magistrates seldom or ever, without some very substantial +reason, pass them over and appoint any of the others, whose names are +placed, as a mere form, below them. In this parish, which was known to be +well conducted, the circumstance of passing over the recommendation of the +principal inhabitant was never known to have happened. My name being the +first, I had no doubt but that I should be obliged to remain in this +disagreeable and troublesome office. I was, however, deceived. My +disposition to give to the poor more liberal relief than had been +heretofore granted to them, had been too evident during the short time +that, in the winter season, I had been in office. The considerable and +permanent advance that I had made to all the old people in the parish, who +were no longer able to labour, had got wind, and this was canvassed +amongst the magistrates, who were all farmers, some of them very large +farmers in the neighbourhood; and who should be the magistrates of this +district, but the valorous officers of the gallant Everly troop, Messrs. +ASTLEY, POORE, and DYKE, the latter being nearly as large a farmer as +myself, and employing a great number of labourers! It never entered into +my head for a moment that I should be objected to; on the contrary, I +should rather have expected that this worthy bench of JUSTASSES would have +been pleased with the opportunity of fixing me in what was generally +considered a troublesome and harassing office; one which in such a large +parish would require a considerable portion of a man's time to execute it +properly: even when there was least to be done, it occupied three or four +hours every other Sunday to attend in the vestry room, at the pay table, +to hear the complaints and to relieve the wants of those who were in +distress. This I had never neglected, nor left, as others had frequently +done, to the care of servants. + +The parish books were returned from the justices, and lo and behold! my +name was passed over, and a little apron farmer was appointed in my stead. +At the first view of the case, I felt a weighty responsibility and trouble +taken, as it were, off my shoulders; and I was, as I conceived, released +from a great deal of labour which I had anticipated; and I heartily +despised the petty malice, the little dirty insult, intended me by the +magistrates, who, in their desire to annoy me, had in fact rendered me a +great service. On my speaking of it in this way to my old housekeeper, who +first brought me the news, she archly addressed me as follows:--"Ah, sir! +I know your heart too well to believe that this will save you any trouble. +Though you are not in office, yet as you pay so much towards the relief of +the poor, and feel so much for them, you will not desert them. You will, I +am sure, still attend the pay table and see justice done them at any +rate." This was quite enough for me. While she was speaking, a thousand +ideas crowded my imagination, and like lightening, I resolved to put them +into execution. I said nothing, but the next Sunday, after the service of +the day was over, I attended the pay table, as I had constantly done while +I held the office. It was so unusual for any one to attend but the two +overseers, that it was instantly noticed by the poor who were in waiting. +I sat silent, but that was quite enough; every one was paid the same as +they had been the week before, when I was the paymaster; though I knew +that it had been agreed upon to dock them. + +There was scarcely a single servant of my own whose name was upon the +books; for my wish was, that they should always earn sufficient by their +labour to support their families, without going to the parish. While I was +in office myself, I acted on this system, without making any remonstrance +with those farmers who paid their labourers about half price, and sent +them to the parish for the remaining sum which was required for their +support. But I now made up my mind not to bear this grievance any longer, +without an effort to remove it. I, therefore, got the overseers to call a +special meeting at the vestry, to take these matters into consideration. +At this meeting I proposed that every farmer in the parish should raise +his servants' wages, to enable them to keep their families; at any rate +those who were able bodied men. There was scarcely any objection made to +this, and it was carried unanimously. But I soon found that this measure +was eluded, and of course would not answer. Several of the farmers turned +off half their servants, and others all of them, and hired servants out of +the parish, whom they could procure for less wages. I, however, always +persisted in engaging my servants to earn enough to keep themselves and +families without going to the parish; which most of them did, till all +sorts of provisions were risen to double if not treble their usual price. + +One thing I shall here _forestall_, which is the fact that I continued for +nine years afterwards to occupy a very great portion of the parish, and +consequently to pay a great portion of the parish rates; but, though my +name was placed at the head of the list and sent in to the _magistrates_, +every Easter during that time, yet I was never appointed _the overseer of +the poor_; and this because I had set an example of too great liberality +towards them when I was in office. Notwithstanding this, I never failed to +advocate, and with success, the cause of the aged, the infirm, the widow, +and the orphan, not only in my own parishes, but also in those surrounding +me; and every act of oppression that was practised in the district where I +lived was always communicated to me, and as far as I had it in my power I +obtained redress for the oppressed. I very soon, therefore became an +object of suspicion and dread amongst the petty tyrants of that district; +and by them I was denominated "a busy meddling fellow;" but as a set off +to this, I received the thanks, the blessings of the poor, and the love of +my servants, whom I looked upon as my friends and neighbours. I had as +much work done for my money as any man; I paid my servants well; but I did +what was of much more consequence to my interest. I treated them with +kindness, and addressed them as fellow-creatures and fellow-freemen; +instead of doing as many did, and which is unhappily much too frequently +the practice, to treat labourers and servants as if they were brutes and +slaves. By these means I managed a very large business with the greatest +ease imaginable. My servants looked up to me as a friend and protector; as +one who was at all times ready to stand forward to shield them from any +oppression; and, on the other hand, I placed the greatest confidence in +them to guard my property and my interest: I was seldom deceived; for I +not only found them faithful at that time, but they are grateful even to +this day. All this I attribute solely to my always treating them with +kindness and _justice_. No part of their affection did I ever obtain by +any unfair or surreptitious means. I never encouraged indolence, idleness, +or profligacy of any sort, and an habitual drunkard I never kept in my +service. + +Contrary to my father's advice, I still continued in the Marlborough Troop +of Yeomanry Cavalry. His last words were, however, quite prophetic as to +the danger that I was in, by remaining amongst a set of men whose notions +were so very far from being actuated by a pure love of country. Still, as +the threat of invasion continued to be held up to the country as likely to +be executed, I could not make up my mind to quit their ranks. I felt an +ardour to be one of the first to meet a foreign foe, if ever they dared to +invade us, and I therefore continued to join the troop as often as it was +convenient; and as I was perfectly acquainted with my duty, and resolved +to perform it, I was never once fined for any breach of the rules or +regulations, which were made and agreed to for the guidance of the members +of the troop; and I was upon particular good terms with the commander of +it, Lord Bruce, the eldest son of the Earl of Aylesbury, who always +treated me with polite attention. + +The officers of the Everly Troop of Yeomanry had, as they thought, offered +me an insult, and one which I had no power to resent; they were his +Majesty's Justices of the Peace, and if they chose to mix up their revenge +with their duty of conservators of the peace, I had no power to prevent +it, nor, as they kept their own council, could I ever remonstrate. Aware, +as I was, of the insult intended by their passing over my name; yet, as I +was glad to be out of the office, and had taken such a course as would +enable me to protect the poor from any partial or unjust treatment, and as +I still was appointed the Vicar's Churchwarden, I felt little or no +resentment on that account. I had expected neither candour, liberality nor +_justice_ from them, and they had not disappointed me; I was therefore +quite indifferent on that score. But as my father always had a sort of +presentiment that something would turn out unpleasant to me before I got +quit of the volunteer service, I was exceedingly guarded in all my +movements in the Marlborough troop; and was particularly careful never to +omit any part of my duty, or to do any thing in violation of the rules or +regulations; and I believe that I was almost the only man in the troop +that had not been fined over and over again. In fact, as the fines were +very moderate--for instance, I believe it was only half a crown for being +absent from the field days, and not even that if there were a reasonable +excuse for non-attendance--they did not inspire the members with much +dread. This was the only punishment for non-attendance. + +In the midst of all my fancied security, a circumstance, however, occurred +that proved all my father's prognostications to be well founded. The +reader will not have forgotten that I was become an expert sportsman; and, +agreeable to my usual enthusiasm in all that I undertook, he will not be +surprised to hear that I was also become what is called a good shot. +During the month of September I had killed one hundred and twenty brace of +partridges, and I was engaged to take the first day's pheasant shooting, +on the first of October, with my friend and comrade, Mr. Thos. Hancock, +the banker, of Marlborough. Lord Aylesbury, the proprietor of Marlborough +Forest, possessed very extensive estates and large manors round this +district, almost the whole of which he made _one large preserve_ of game; +but, as it was necessary that he should keep his tools, the members of the +corporation of his rottenest of rotten close boroughs, Marlborough, in +good humour, he allotted one small manor, at a distance of several miles +from his principal preserve, where all his tenants and the inhabitants of +the town of Marlborough and their friends, were allowed to shoot and sport +without interruption, whenever they pleased. To this place my friend +Hancock had promised to take me for a day's sport; he himself being, as +will presently appear, a very poor shot. I went to Mr. Hancock's to sleep +the night previously, and, like a true and keen sportsman, I was up and +dressed, eager for the sport, before it was day-light. In fact, it was +necessary that we should be early, as there was a host of cockney and +other sportsmen, who always sallied forth from Marlborough on that day; +and as the manor was not large the ground was generally pretty thickly +occupied before sun rise on the first of October; for it will be +recollected that, on these gala days, _"tag, rag, and bobtail,"_ all had +leave, whether they were qualified or not, and all who professed to be +sportsmen hurried there, whether they had certificates or not. + +My friend and myself, attended by our servants, mounted our horses, and as +we rode along we passed two or three parties who were on foot, and who had +got the start of us; but we soon reached farmer Edward Vezey's, of Grove, +upon whose farm we intended to take our day's sport. As we had ridden a +distance of four or five miles the sun was now up, and as we heard several +shots fired we put up our horses and proceeded immediately to the field; +being too eager sportsmen to wait to take the breakfast which Mrs. Vezey +had prepared for us. The farmer informed us that the game was very +plentiful; and when we entered the first stubble field, we saw a nide of +fourteen pheasants run into the hedge row. This was a fine earnest of our +sport; and as I had never before been a shooting where they were so +plenty, I expressed great anxiety to begin the slaughter without delay. +The farmer, however, checked my ardour, and increased my surprise when he +told me that he had ten such nides upon his farm. The sport began; and, +having a double barrelled gun, I killed a brace, a cock and a hen; my +friend and the farmer both missed. The latter requested me not to kill +hens, as he would procure me plenty of shots at cocks. We had with us my +dogs, which were staunch and steady, and they were now pointing again. I +brought down a brace of cocks with another double shot. My friends both +missed again, and laughed heartily at each other; particularly when they +found that I was sure to kill enough for all the party. As we proceeded I +killed a leash more, so that I had three brace and a half out of the first +nide of fourteen. Several of the others had been marked down, and the +farmer said we were sure to find them all again; but I proposed to look +for fresh birds, instead of following those which had escaped. This was +agreed to; and, at the further end of the very next field which we +entered, we discovered another set running into the hedge row. When ten +o'clock arrived I proposed a cessation of hostilities, that we might +retire and take some breakfast; for I declared that I was ashamed to kill +any more. I had had twenty shots, and had bagged nine brace and a half of +cocks and one hen pheasant; having been lucky enough, as my dogs brought +all their game, to save every bird without a feather being scarcely +rumpled. My friends had thirty shots between them, and had killed one +bird; in fact, they were altogether as bad shots as I was a good +one.--Though, during the whole time, we had not been a quarter of a mile +from the house, yet, I believe that while I was out, I heard at least a +hundred shots fired--so thickly were we surrounded with the rotten borough +sportsmen and their friends. After this we returned to the farmer's house, +where Mrs. Vezey had provided an excellent breakfast, not only for us but +for my dogs, which were caressed as prodigies; and the game, consisting of +ten brace of cock pheasants and a hen, was spread in triumph on the floor. + +Having enjoyed such a breakfast as keen sportsmen are accustomed to take, +in the course of which we talked over the feats of the morning, and +bestowed many well earned encomiums upon the staunchness and sagacity of +my dogs, my friends proposed to start again for the field, till dinner +time. I, however, positively refused to budge an inch, declaring that I +would not fire another shot that day. I was, I told them, more than +content with having killed ten brace of pheasants in one day, and +therefore I would remain at home with Mrs. Vezey, till they returned. They +tried hard to prevail upon me to accompany them, but I resisted their +entreaties: they then endeavoured to rally me out of my plan, but I had +made up my mind not to go out again, and consequently all their bantering +was of no avail. I was not to be moved even by the good humoured jokes of +the farmer, about my remaining alone with his wife; and, finding me to be +immoveable, they set out by themselves. At length they returned, bringing +with them one solitary pheasant, though they acknowledged that they had +had ten shots each; and they were afterwards candid enough to confess that +the dogs had actually caught that. Nothing daunted by their bad shooting, +after they had dined and taken a sufficient quantity of good old stingo, +and once more tried in vain to persuade me to bear them company, they +sallied forth again, for the evening's sport; the best time of the day for +pheasant shooting. About eight o'clock they came back, but they had only +killed another pheasant, notwithstanding they assured me that they had +actually seen above one hundred. Thus had these two sportsmen only killed +three pheasants in the whole day, having had between them upwards of +_fifty shots;_ while I had killed ten brace at twenty shots, in about +three hours. Of course I laughed at them heartily; in which I was joined +most sincerely by Mrs. Vezey. I am quite certain that if I had continued +in the field, and followed up the sport as my friends did, I should have +killed _fifty_ pheasants instead of _twenty;_ and that too without having +made them appear much thinned, so plentiful was the game in that country. +After spending a very pleasant evening, we returned to Marlborough, where +I slept with my friend Hancock, and shot my way home the next day; having, +previously to my setting out, _equally divided the game_ between the +_three_, which was always the case in those friendly parties where I made +one of the number. + +This account has, I dare say, appeared to the reader to be a digression +upon a trivial subject, but I shall now show him that the seemingly +trifling circumstance which I have been narrating, led to a very important +event of my life. About four or five days after this, I received a letter +from Lord BRUCE, merely saying, "that my services were no longer required +in the Marlborough Troop of Yeomanry, and he, therefore, requested that I +would return my _sword and pistols_ by the bearer." I wrote a brief +answer, to say that I was astonished at his communication, but that I +should attend on the next field-day, for an explanation, and that I should +not fail to bring my arms with me. I own that I was at a loss to +conjecture the cause of this unceremonious and laconic epistle of his +lordship, and I conjured up a hundred imaginary reasons for this abrupt +dismissal of me from his Troop of Yeomanry. I had been in it for many +months; I had never been once _fined_, or received the slightest reprimand +from his lordship or either of the other officers; nor could I recollect +any one instance in which I had either failed to perform or neglected my +duty as a soldier. But, though I could not recollect this, I now +recollected the last sad foreboding words of my dying father--_"I only +wish I could have lived to see you well out of the Yeomanry Cavalry!"_ + +On the following day came a letter from my friend, Hancock, the banker, +which unriddled the mystery. He informed me that he also had received a +similar communication from our colonel, Lord Bruce; that he knew of the +dismissal which had been sent to me, and that it was a current report +amongst the tools of Lord Aylesbury, at Marlborough, that we were +dismissed from the troop, because we had shot so many pheasants on the +first of October, upon one of his lordship's manors: what I meant to do on +the subject, he was, he said, desirous to know, as he should like to go +hand in hand with me; at the same time vowing vengeance against our +colonel. I sent him a copy of the answer which I had written to his +lordship, and apprised him that I would be at his house early on the +morning of the next field-day, in my uniform, as usual, to accompany him +to the place of exercise. + +The day arrived, and we rode together to the field where we used to +perform our evolutions. It was upon one of the plains in Savernake Forest, +about half a mile from his lordship's house, but within full view of it. +When we reached the ground the troop was assembling, and _we_ fell into +the ranks as formerly, to the utter astonishment of his lordship's +vassals, who composed a great portion of the troop, and who had heard of +our being discharged or dismissed, or, in plainer terms, turned out of the +troop by the colonel. + +After we had remained a little time, one of his lordship's _toad-eaters_ +came to reconnoitre; and, as soon as he discovered us in the ranks, he +retreated to carry the astounding intelligence to his patron. Messages now +passed backwards and forwards, from the troop to his lordship's house, for +nearly an hour before he made his appearance; a delay which had never +before occurred. The cause was not only anticipated by Hancock and myself, +but by all the members of the troop, and just as I was proposing to march +to his lordship, since he did not appear disposed to come to us, he at +last made his appearance, riding on his charger with slow and solemn pace. + +I have since understood that, during this delay, several messages passed +between his lordship's house, Savernake Lodge, and Tottenham Park, the +seat of his father, the Earl of Aylesbury. Before I proceed, it may not, +perhaps, be amiss to make the reader acquainted with the origin of this +business. It turned out that Lord Bruce had been induced to write the +aforesaid letters to me and Mr. Hancock at the earnest suggestion of his +father, Lord Aylesbury, who had prevailed upon him, much against his own +inclination and better judgment, to turn us out of the troop; though he +had no other complaint to make against me but that I was too good a shot +at his father's pheasants, and consequently a very unfit person to oppose +the French in case of an invasion. His lordship saw and felt the +difficulty of his situation, and for a long time he held out against the +entreaties of his father; but the old earl was inexorable, and I am told +that his mandate was at length delivered in such a _tone_ and such a +manner, that his son did not feel it prudent to resist any longer. The +particulars I subsequently learned from one of the keepers, who was +present at the interview when the earl came down from London; which I +understand he did on purpose. Some envious and cringing tool of his +lordship's having heard of our successful day's sport at Grove, on the +first of October, wrote up to him an exaggerated account of it, stating +that I, in company with Mr. Hancock, had killed an immense number of +pheasants upon his lordship's manors; but at the same time this worthy +intelligencer took care not to state where, and upon what manor we had +been sporting. The old earl, who was the most tenacious, perhaps, about +his game of any man in England, no sooner got the letter than he came post +from town, in a great passion; and when he arrived at Tottenham, he +immediately summoned all his keepers, to demand an account of their +conduct for suffering his game to be destroyed in such a way. It was in +vain that they all declared that we had not been into or near any of his +preserves; that we had only been shooting upon a distant manor, where his +lordship did not even appoint a keeper; and which manor he had expressly +appropriated for the sport of the people of _his Borough_ of Marlborough, +and their friends. This was all to no purpose; he would hear no excuse; +and as soon as he found that we were in his son's troop of Yeomanry, he +dispatched a messenger for him. In the mean time he threw himself into the +most violent fits of passion with the keepers; so much so, that he was +frequently obliged to retire and recruit himself, by reclining upon a +sofa, and when he had recovered his strength a little, he returned to the +charge again with redoubled violence. The keeper, who was my informant, +assured me that several times they were fearful, or, more correctly +speaking, expected that he would break a blood vessel, by giving himself +up to such unbounded fury. It seems the family at Tottenham did not know +of the precaution that is used upon such occasions, by a testy old baronet +of this county, who does not live a hundred miles from Stoneaston, which I +am credibly informed is as follows--whenever the baronet has one of these +sudden and violent paroxysms of passion, which is not very unfrequently, +her ladyship prevails upon him to sit down while she pours copious +libations of cold water over his head, as the only means of cooling his +blood, and saving him from the rupture of a blood vessel upon the brain. +At length his lordship's son, Lord Bruce, arrived, and the same scene was +repeated; and it is said, that nothing but a promise from the gallant +Colonel of the Wiltshire Regiment of Yeomanry, that he would immediately +write to me and Mr. Hancock, and dismiss us from his troop, would pacify +the old earl. This promise was performed in the way which I have +described, by his lordship writing to each of us, to say "that he had no +further occasion for our services." But now to return to the troop, which +we left drawn up on the field of exercise: our colonel having at length +arrived in the front of the ranks, he continued to direct his eyes quite +to the opposite flank to that in which I was, and I could never catch his +eye directed even askance towards me. After a considerable delay, the +serjeant pulled out the roll-call, with which he proceeded till he came to +the number filled by my name; he passed it over, and began to utter the +name of the next man; but the name was scarcely half out of his lips, when +I put spurs to my charger, and brushed up so furiously to him, that he +reined back several paces ere he stopped; which he had scarcely done, with +my horse's head almost in his lap, before I sternly demanded by whose +authority he had passed over my name? In a tremulous voice he stammered +out, that "it was done by order of Lord Bruce." I wheeled my horse +suddenly round, and his head coming across the serjeant's breast nearly +unhorsed him. I then rode briskly up to Lord Bruce, who reined his charger +back also. I saluted him as my officer, and firmly demanded by what +authority, or for what cause, he had given orders to have my name struck +out of the muster-roll? Conscious of being about to persist in a +dishonourable and unworthy act, after hesitating a little, he said, "Pray, +Sir, did you not receive a letter from me?" I hastily answered, "Yes, and +I am here to demand in person an explanation, and to know what charge you +have to make against me, either as a soldier or a gentleman." He now +seemed still more confused, and he looked everywhere except in my face. He +then cast his eyes towards the troop, as much as to say, will you not +protect me? will you not assist to get me out of this dilemma? but all was +as silent as the grave, and every eye was fixed upon him. At length he +mustered courage to say, _"I make no charge against you; neither do I feel +myself called upon to give you any reason for my conduct. I--I, as +commanding officer of this regiment, have a right to receive any man into +it, or to dismiss any man from it, without assigning any reason for my so +doing."_ + +This was a critical moment of my life. It is in vain now to lament my want +of discretion. I was young--I was devoted to the service of my country--I +was a soldier--I was insulted without the shadow of a pretext to justify +the insult--I was wounded in the most tender part--my patriotic zeal! At +such a moment I could take no counsel of cold, calculating prudence. I +sternly replied, "then, my lord, you are no longer my officer--you have +offered me a deliberate insult, which it seems you are not prepared to +explain or apologise for; I therefore demand that satisfaction which is +due from one gentleman to another; and mark me well, unless you give me +that satisfaction I will post you as a coward:" upon which I took my +pistols from the holsters, and was taking my sword from the belt, in order +to cast them with defiance at his horse's feet, these arms being the only +thing that I possessed belonging to the government. Expecting, perhaps, +that I was going to make use of them in a different way, his lordship +wheeled suddenly round, and clapping spurs to his charger, he was, without +once looking behind him, soon out of sight; he having wheeled into the +gateway of Savernake Lodge, his lordship's residence. + +While this was passing, I had hurled the sword and the brace of pistols +upon the ground, and my friend Hancock had moved out of the ranks and come +up to me. As long as our gallant commander was visible I kept my eyes +fixed upon him; and when, on his disappearance, I looked round, I found +the whole troop staring with astonishment, which, when they had recovered +from a little, was followed by a general laugh. My friend Hancock was +talking loud and in rather a coarse way, which I checked; and then riding +up to the centre, in the front of the troop, I addressed my comrades, +something in the following strain:--"Gentlemen, you have lost your +commander, You have seen and heard the cause. As, however, a troop without +a commander is like a ship without a sail or a rudder, I, for once, will +give the word. To the right wheel--dismiss--every man to his quarters." +Upon this, every man made the best of his way home, and I returned to +Marlborough to dine and spend the evening with my friend Hancock. + +If I had paid more regard to prudence, and not acted with such +precipitation, I should have put this lord so much in the wrong, that he +would have had no small difficulty in satisfactorily accounting for his +unwarrantable conduct; for, without much vanity, I may say, that there was +not a better soldier in the regiment, a man more devoted to the service of +his country, and very few indeed, if any, who would have so "greatly +dared," in opposing its enemies with his fortune and his life. The affair, +as it was quite natural that it should, soon got wind throughout the +county, and particularly amongst the members of the various corps, the ten +troops of Yeomanry. His lordship, however, did not choose to meet me, but +rather preferred to settle the point in the courts of law. + +In the following term a criminal information was filed against me, for +challenging the noble lord and gallant colonel to fight a duel. As I could +not deny the fact, I suffered judgment to go by default, rather than try +the question in the Court at Salisbury; my counsel, Mr. Garrow and Mr. +Burrough (the present Judges), having informed me, that it was useless to +defend it, as I could not plead the provocation, however great, with any +chance of obtaining a verdict. But they were of opinion that, when the +affidavits on both sides came to be read, the Court would never call me up +for judgment. + +In this conclusion they were incorrect; but it is not wonderful that such +a conclusion should have been drawn by them; for the late Lord Kenyon +expressed a very great unwillingness to proceed, and, term after term, he +intimated to my counsel that he hoped I had seen my error, and that I +would make an apology to his lordship, which would save the Court the +trouble of taking any further steps in the affair. My counsel answered, +that they were not instructed to say whether I would do this or not. His +lordship then stated, that in case I did so before the next term, he +understood that the other party would not press for judgment; and Mr. +Erskine and Mr. Vicary Gibbs, who were employed against me, added, that so +far from wishing to degrade me, they did not even wish that I should make +any personal apology to his lordship. If my counsel would say for me, that +I admitted the offence against the law, and regretted the uneasiness that +I had given to his lordship, there should be an end to the business. + +This offer Lord Kenyon strongly urged my counsel to accept. Mr. Burrough, +who was junior counsel, said, that he knew my feelings upon the subject so +well, that he would undertake, although in my absence, to say, that I was +perfectly sensible that I had been provoked to offend the laws of my +country, and that he was ready to make the most ample apology to those +offended laws; but that, as I considered Lord Bruce to be the aggressor, +he could not, on my part, undertake to make any apology to him, and he was +fearful that I should never be persuaded to do it, though he would +communicate the wish of his lordship and the court upon the subject. + +This affair had now been before the Court four or five terms, and had been +as often put off by Lord Kenyon. In the mean time, the affair created a +considerable sensation amongst all the Yeomanry Corps in the kingdom, and +in none more than in the different troops of the Wiltshire Yeomanry; and +the conduct of their Colonel was canvassed very freely. Every gentleman in +the regiment, and, in fact, every member of the whole of the volunteer +force of the country, felt that it was a common cause, as he might be +placed in a similar situation, and, consequently, if I were punished, he +himself might be liable to arbitrary and unjust dismissal by a superior +officer. The Court felt and knew this. Many, very many, members of the +Wilts regiments, declared that they would immediately resign if I were +sentenced to any fine or imprisonment; and several of my particular +friends and acquaintances never failed to, _what they called_, keep up my +spirits, by volunteering this declaration as often as I met them. Mr. Wm. +Tinker, of Lavington, with whom I was particularly intimate, and my +friend, Mr. Wm. Butcher, of Erchfont, both unequivocally declared that +they would not remain in the regiment another moment after I had received +any sentence. + +The next term came, and when my counsel were again called upon to know +whether they were instructed to make the necessary apology, the answer +was, that I was sorry for having violated the laws of my country, but that +the illegal and unjustifiable provocation given by Lord Bruce was such, +that I had declined to make any submission whatever to his lordship. Lord +Kenyon begged Mr. Garrow to do his duty by his client, and make it for me; +and Mr., now Lord, Erskine also begged his friend Garrow to do it, +declaring he would accept the slightest acknowledgment made in his, Mr. +Garrow's, own way; that he felt for me, and did by no means wish to +degrade me in the slightest degree. + +Mr. Garrow rose, and in a spirited manner said, "that he thought I had +offered quite a sufficient apology to the offended laws of my country; and +that he, for one, did not feel that, under all the circumstances, Lord +Bruce was entitled to any apology whatever. If Mr. Hunt had felt disposed, +of his own accord, to suffer him to say that he was sorry for having +challenged his lordship, he would have done it with all his heart, without +believing that the slightest stigma would have been fixed upon that +gentleman's character, either as a soldier or a gentleman. But Mr. Hunt +had a right to have his own feelings upon the subject, and he could not +blame him; and so far from making any apology for Mr. Hunt, in his +absence, without his consent, he, as his counsel, with all the respect +which he entertained for the court, yet would not take upon himself to +advise him to do it against his inclination." + +Mr. Erskine appeared to assent to this; but Mr. Vicary Gibbs jumped up, +and with great petulance said, "Well, then, my lord, we demand that he may +be brought up. We pray the judgment of the court." Lord Kenyon said, it +must be so, then; and he fixed a day in the following Michaelmas Term, for +me to attend to receive judgment. + +As this will bring me to a very important epoch in my life, I shall pass +over briefly several minor occurrences, that would have been considered as +great events in the history of many persons who have written an account of +their own lives. I shall, however, slightly touch upon one or two +circumstances which, within the last month, have been brought to my +recollection in the following rather extraordinary way. A lady, travelling +from London to Bath, in her road to Ilchester, accompanied by the gaoler +of that place, was questioned by a fellow passenger, a gentleman, how far +they were travelling westward? The gaoler, naturally enough wishing to +disguise his name and occupation, answered, "I am going to Bath, sir; and +that lady is going on to Ilchester." The word Ilchester was no sooner +pronounced than his hearer turned to the lady, and said, "Ah! that is +where Mr. Hunt is confined, and treated with so much severity. Perhaps you +will see him, madam?" She replied that it was possible, as she had some +slight knowledge of me, and in return she wished to be informed if he knew +me. He replied that he knew me very well, and had known me ever since I +was a boy, and that he also knew my father and all my relations, as well +as Mrs. Hunt and her relations. This naturally enough excited the +curiosity of the lady, who knew me personally only, and who was sure to +see me, as she was coming to visit a gentleman at the gaol; and as for the +gaoler, any information that he could get about my private affairs and my +family would be a great treat, he having no knowledge of me except as a +public character. His curiosity was, consequently, whetted to a very keen +edge; and my readers will not have much difficulty in believing, that, +during the remainder of the journey, Mr. Hunt was a subject of +conversation; and I have no doubt that all the actions of my life were +canvassed with great freedom and some earnestness. + +This, to them, unknown gentleman was Charles Gordon Grey, Esq. of Tracey +Park, near Bath, who was as communicative as our passengers could wish; +and the lady's, as well as the gaoler's, curiosity was gratified almost to +satiety. The lady has, however, candidly confessed to me, that, although +Mr. Grey was a great political opponent of mine, yet, altogether, his +account of me had prejudiced her in my favour; and she has related to me +many anecdotes of my life, that had totally escaped my recollection. One +of them was as follows, of which, I believe, Mr. Grey was an eye-witness, +and, therefore, could speak to it with perfect accuracy. I was, as I have +already informed my readers, always an enthusiast in any thing I +undertook, and in nothing more so than as a hunter. One day, at the end of +a very severe stag-chace, after a run of nearly thirty miles, the hounds +pressed the beautiful animal so close, that they caught him as he was +swimming over a deep part of the river Avon, between Salisbury and +Stratford. Myself, with the master of the hounds, Michael Hicks Beach, +Esq. of Netheravon, and two or three gentlemen, amongst whom was, perhaps, +Mr. Gordon Grey, were up with the hounds at the time; and we were all very +much distressed to see the noble animal, which was a large red deer, and +which had afforded us so much sport, becoming a prey to the hounds, +without it being possible for us to save him. Mr. Beach at first urged the +whipper-in to attempt it, but he declined, adding, that as he could not +swim well enough to encounter so many difficulties as he should meet with, +the hounds would certainly drown him, as well as the stag, if he were once +to venture into the deep water. While every one was lamenting in vain the +sad fate of the poor animal, which appeared nearly exhausted, as the +hounds had repeatedly pulled him under the water, I had slipped on one +side, hitched my horse's bridle to a stake in the hedge, and stripped in +_buff_, before the rest of the sportsmen had perceived what I was doing. I +sprang to the river's brink, plunged at once off the high bank into the +midst of the foaming stream, and swam to the assistance of the almost +expiring stag. The moment that I dashed head foremost into the stream, the +remainder of the pack, which had not before ventured into the watery +element, but had kept yelping and baying upon the banks, now to a dog +leaped in after me. None but those who were eye-witnesses of this scene +can have any idea of the danger in which I appeared to be placed. Many of +the hounds, that had been worrying the stag, seeing a naked man rise as it +were from out of the deep, for I had been obliged to dive several yards to +break my fall from off the steep bank, instantly quitted the hold they had +on the stag, and swam towards me, as if to seize upon more tempting prey. +My fellow sportsmen, who had scarcely recovered from their astonishment at +seeing me unexpectedly plunge into the water, and who now apprehended my +inevitable destruction by the hounds seizing upon me, gave all at once an +involuntary scream, and implored me to retreat as quickly as possible; +but, having once made up my mind to accomplish an object, the word +_retreat_ was not in my vocabulary. Nothing daunted, I swam boldly up, and +faced the approaching pack, calling each hound by his name, which I +fortunately knew, and, which was still more fortunate, my voice was as +well known to them. I swam and fought my way through them, cheering and +hallooing to them, as if in the chace. They all turned, and continued to +swim with me again up to the poor stag, with the exception of one old +hound, _Old Trojan_, who, unperceived, seized fast hold of me by the thumb +of the right hand, which at once checked my progress and gave me great +pain. I called him by his name, but it was in vain, for he held fast; upon +which, with considerable effort, I dragged him under water, and seizing +him by the throat with the other hand, I held him there till he let go his +hold. During this struggle we both disappeared under the water together, +to the great consternation of the anxious beholders. Up we came together +again, but I continued to grasp him firmly with my left hand by the +throat, and I, for a short time, exhibited the caitiff in this state, with +his mouth open and his tongue out; to shew how completely I had subdued +him, I gave him one more ducking under water and let him go: I then +continued my course without further interruption towards the stag, who +had, meanwhile, drifted twenty or thirty yards down with the current, +which was very rapid, surrounded by every hound in the pack (twenty-two +couple), with the exception of poor Old Trojan, who now kept at a very +respectful distance behind us. + +We soon came up to the stag; but now the most difficult part of the task +commenced; now "the tug of war" began, for I had no sooner laid my hand +upon the poor animal than the whole pack began their attack upon him with +redoubled vigour. One of the gentlemen threw me his whip, which I applied +to the backs of the dogs with one hand, while I held the stag with the +other. This, however, had little or no effect; they were too much +accustomed to the lash to be driven from their game in this way. One of my +friends, therefore, called out to me to take the other end, which I did, +and laid on about their heads and ears lustily. Still I found that they +would not let go their holds without I almost beat out their brains; and I +was consequently obliged to take another course, which was this--the first +hound that I came near to I grasped by the throat till he let go; and in +this state, with his mouth still open, I held him a short time under +water. This mode of proceeding had the desired effect, and I continued it +with every hound till I set the poor animal perfectly free. By this time I +was almost exhausted myself, for I had been in the water at least twenty +minutes; and that too at the end of a very severe chace, in a cold day in +February. My friends on the bank kept giving their advice, and amongst the +number was Tom, the whipper-in, who had refused to venture into the water; +and, as a punishment for his cowardice, I requested my friends either to +make him hold his tongue, or throw him in and give him a ducking. In the +midst of all this I recollect to have hailed the huntsman, and desired him +to take my clothes off the wet meadow, and to lead my favourite mare about +to keep her from taking cold. Some of my readers will wonder how I could +be so much at my ease under such circumstances, and particularly as I have +said I was nearly exhausted. This I shall easily explain. The hounds being +all checked off, the stag, poor fellow, lay most patiently floating upon +the stream; and, as I had now taken him round his velvet-skinned neck, I +supported myself with great ease, and gained strength to swim with one +hand while I held him with the other, till I arrived at the opposite bank, +where my brother sportsmen were waiting, with the greatest anxiety, to +assist in taking him out of the water. But, as the water was nearly ten +feet deep, I of course could gain no footing; and as the bank was four +feet above the river, those on the outside could not reach him. I +contrived, however, to fasten the thongs of their whips round different +parts of his body, so that they were enabled at length, with great +difficulty, to drag him safe on shore, without the poor stag having +received any material injury. As soon as this was accomplished, and not +before, was I dragged out in the same way, with the thongs of my fellow +sportsmen's whips. I was certainly so exhausted that I could not stand +without holding, while they rubbed me dry with their pocket handkerchiefs; +but I soon recovered, and having put on my clothes, I mounted my favourite +chesnut mare, Mountebank, and rode with my friends, who all accompanied me +to the [22]Inn, the _only house in the borough_ of Old Sarum, where this +story is frequently related to this day. + +Such is one of the anecdotes that Mr. Gordon Grey related of me, and which +circumstance, with a hundred others of a similar nature, had entirely +escaped my memory, and would never have been related here, had it not been +for the journey in the Bath stage coach; although the mark, which Old +Trojan's tooth made on the thumb of my right hand, is always present to my +view, particularly when I am writing, and which mark, I observed at the +time, would always bring the event to my recollection, as I should carry +it with me to the grave. That I shall carry it there is certain, for it is +still perfectly visible, though it was inflicted twenty-eight years ago. + +Such was the man whom Lord Bruce dismissed from the Marlborough troop of +yeomanry, as unworthy to rank amongst those who had volunteered their +services to repel the invasion of a powerful, menacing foreign foe! Such +was the man and such was his zeal and enthusiasm--such his devoted +patriotism, that, had it been practicable to lay a mine of gunpowder under +the Boulogne flotilla, he would, with the same alacrity as he now rescued +the stag, have dashed into the sea with a lighted torch in one hand while +he swam with the other! Such was the man who would have fearlessly applied +the torch to the train, and freely have blown them and himself together +into the air, to have saved his country! And this was the sort of man that +Lord Bruce _knew_ me to be when, to gratify the rage of his father, he +undertook to dismiss me from the Wiltshire Regiment of Yeomanry Cavalry, +because I had, forsooth, killed ten brace of pheasants at twenty shots! + +Well, the day at length arrived for my attending the Court of King's +Bench, to stand, for the _first time,_ upon its floor to receive judgment. +Mr. Justice Garrow and Mr. Justice Burrough were my counsel; and the +former made an eloquent appeal to the court, declaring that he would much +rather be placed in my situation than that of the noble lord; and winding +up his speech with a high eulogium upon my character, he said, that if he +lived in my neighbourhood, I should be the first man that he would seek +for as a friend, &c. &c. The present Lord Erskine and the late Sir Vickery +Gibbs were employed to pray for the judgment of the court against me; but +his lordship conducted himself with the greatest moderation and even +kindness towards me, and never uttered one single offensive or unkind +sentence in the whole of his eloquent harangue. But the little, waspish, +black-hearted viper, Gibbs, whose malignant, vicious, and ill-looking +countenance was always the index of his little mind, made a most virulent, +vindictive, and cowardly attack upon me, which was so morose and +unfeeling, and so uncalled for by the circumstances, that, if I had not +been held back by any attorney, I should certainly have inflicted a +summary and a just chastisement upon him upon the spot, by dashing back +his lies, together with his teeth, down his throat. I was, however, +restrained, and sentence was passed by old mumbling Grose, that I should +pay ONE HUNDRED POUNDS to the King, and be committed to the custody of the +Marshal of the court for SIX WEEKS. There sat, squatting upon the bench, +KENYON, Chief Justice, GROSE, LAWRENCE, and LE BLANC; all four of them +gone, long, long ago, to receive their sentence from the Judge of another +and a higher court, the JUDGE of JUDGES; and the _Lord have mercy on them! +say I._ I paid the fine immediately, and two friends, who were in court, +entered into recognizances in five hundred pounds each, and myself in one +thousand pounds, to keep the peace towards this gallant lord for three +years. + +I was handed over to a tipstaff, who very civilly conducted me and my +friends in a coach to the King's Bench, which place I had the evening +before been to reconnoitre with my friend Mr. Wm. Butcher, who had come to +town with me, and had voluntarily become one of my bail. My friends +anticipated that I should be committed to the King's Bench, as I had made +up my mind not to offer any apology to Lord Bruce. + +At this time Mr. Waddington was a prisoner in the King's Bench, for +forestalling hops; and as he had conducted his defence before the court +with great energy and considerable talent; and, as he was convicted upon +an old obsolete statute, he was not esteemed guilty of any moral crime. I +had imbibed a notion that the debtors in the prison were generally a set +of swindlers, and I was, therefore, anxious to avoid their society, or +having anything to do with them; which feeling, however erroneous, +increased my desire to become acquainted with Mr. Waddington. The chief +temptation, however, undoubtedly was his being a man who had become +celebrated for the spirit which he had several times evinced before the +court, in defending himself against what was generally considered as a +mere political prosecution. I made several inquiries about him, but I only +learned that he was not within the walls, and that he had apartments over +the lobby, without the gates. I was, as yet, too great a novice to +comprehend what was meant by imprisonment without being in prison. + +I arrived at the prison about two o'clock, and was conducted into the +coffee room, kept by Mr. Davey, the Marshal's coachman, where we were soon +accommodated with a very good dinner. In the mean time I had made the +necessary inquiry for an apartment, but the prison was represented to be +very full; and I was shewn one or two rooms, where the parties occupying +them had no objection to turn out, to accommodate me, for a certain +stipulated sum. Amongst the number I was shewn up into a very good room, +which was occupied by a lady, who, it was said, would give up her room for +ten pounds. When we entered the room she was singing very divinely, she +being no less a personage than Mrs. Wells, the celebrated public singer. +With great freedom she inquired which was the gentleman, me or my +attorney, who accompanied me; and upon being informed that I was the +prisoner, she eyed me over from head to toe, and then, with that art of +which she was so much a mistress, she simpering said, that "she was loath +to part with her room at any price, but that, as I appeared a nice +wholesome country gentleman, I should be welcome to half of it without +paying any thing." As I was not prepared to enter into a contract of that +sort, I hastily retired, and left my attorney to settle the quantum of +pecuniary remuneration with her. + +We dined very pleasantly, I think six of us; and, before the cloth was +removed, I had a visit from my friend, the Rev. John Prince, the chaplain +of the Magdalen, and vicar of the parish of Enford, whose churchwarden I +was. I stated to him the difficulty I had in procuring a suitable +apartment; which he no sooner heard than he volunteered his services to go +immediately to his friend and neighbour, the Marshal, with whom he had no +doubt he should readily arrange that matter for me to my satisfaction. I +was much pleased to have such an advocate as Mr. Prince, a man so well +known, and so much esteemed for his piety and goodness of heart. But he +soon returned, looking very grave, and said, that he could do nothing with +the Marshal, who would not enter into any conversation with him upon the +subject; but told him, that if Mr. Hunt wanted any thing, he was ready to +do whatever lay in his power to serve him, but that his attorney was the +proper person to transact such business, and that it was quite out of the +worthy parson's line. + +My attorney, Mr. Bird, immediately waited upon the Marshal; and, while he +was gone, Mr. Prince informed me, that his old friend Jones had behaved +quite rudely to him, and expressed himself very much surprised that a man +of his calling should think of interfering in such matters. Poor Prince +was, therefore, fully impressed with an idea that Mr. Jones would do +nothing to accommodate me, as he had quite huffed him. In ten minutes, +however, Mr. Bird returned, with the news that he had settled every thing +with the Marshal; that I should have an apartment over the lobby, but that +I must go with him to the Marshal, and enter into security not to escape, +&c. &c. I immediately complied; and, as we went along, he informed me, +that I was to give a bond for five thousand pounds not to escape; and that +it would not be necessary for me to return again within the walls. This I +readily agreed to, and the matter was settled in ten minutes. I was to +have the room over the front lobby, and the run of the key. + +I returned to my friends elated with the prospect of my being so +comfortable, as I had been very much disgusted with the scenes of +profligacy and drunkenness that I had already witnessed within the walls. +Mrs. Filewood, the principal turnkey's wife, who kept the lobby, was to +prepare my bed, and get every thing ready for me in my room by ten +o'clock, the time at which my friends were to leave the prison. When the +hour arrived, I was shown into a very spacious room, nicely furnished, +with a neat bureau bedstead, standing in one corner. My hostess, who was a +pretty, modest-looking woman, was very communicative, and so attentive +that I really felt quite as comfortable as if I had been at an inn. It +was, in fact, much better than the apartments I had been in at the inn, in +London, the Black Lion, Water Lane. There was a good fire in the room, and +every thing bore the air of cleanliness and comfort, and I went to bed and +slept till day-light, as sound and as well as I ever slept in my life. + +As I lay in my bed, thinking of the new situation in which I was placed, I +lamented that I had not overnight made some inquiries about Mr. +Waddington, as I still felt very anxious to become acquainted with him; +and I was devising all sorts of schemes how I could gain an introduction +to him, when my hostess knocked at my door, to say that Mr. Waddington, +the gentleman who lodged in the room over me, sent his compliments, and +wished that I would favour him with my company to breakfast, which he +would have ready in half an hour's time. This was to me a most gratifying +invitation, which I cheerfully accepted with as little ceremony as it was +made. + +Having dressed myself I was shown into his room, which was immediately +over mine; I being on the first and he on the second story. Having read a +great deal about him in the papers, I had formed to myself an idea of Mr. +Waddington; but instead of meeting, as I expected, a tall, stout, athletic +person, I found him rather a short, thin gentleman, who approached me +quite with the air and address of a foreigner. He, however, received me +very politely, and having shaken each other by the hand, we had a hearty +laugh at the expense of our prosecutors, and the ridiculous situation in +which we were placed. From that moment all reserve was laid aside between +us, and before we had finished our breakfast, we agreed to mess together +during the six weeks which I had to remain: he being sentenced for six +months. It was arranged that my room should be the dining and his the +drawing-room, and, whoever might visit us, that he should pay the expenses +of the first day, and I of the next, and so on alternately. We had our +meals provided by Mr. Davey, at the coffee room, and sent to us, and we +settled our bill of the preceding day every morning at breakfast. Without +once having deviated from this plan, we passed our time, for the six +weeks, in the most profound harmony and good humour with each other, never +having had the slightest disagreement during the whole of the period that +we were together. + +I soon discovered that my new acquaintance was a great politician, and +that he was a decided opposition man, or rather a democrat, a sort of +being which I had hitherto been taught to look upon, if not with an evil, +at least with a suspicious eye. I was a professed loyal man; but, before +we had been together four and twenty hours, he pronounced me to be a real +democrat, without my being aware of it myself. I found him a cheerful +companion, who, whatever I might think of his political feelings and +information, was at any rate possessed of a great share of mercantile +knowledge. His opinions upon political matters were many of them new to +me; and his arguments, though there was much ingenuity in them, were not +altogether calculated to carry conviction to the mind. His conversation, +however, gave me an insight into many matters that I had never before had +an opportunity of investigating or of hearing discussed. + +On the second day, I was for the first time introduced to Henry Clifford, +the barrister, who was one of Mr. Waddington's counsel, and who came to +dine with us. I was very much pleased with him, and though he advocated +the same principles that were professed by his client, yet he did it in +such a way, and in such plain intelligible language, that every word, +every sentence, carried conviction with it. He conversed of rational +liberty, of freedom as the natural rights of man, and as the law of God +and nature. He put the matter clearly and distinctly, undisguised by +sophistry; and, as far as I could discover by his discourse, I had already +an inherent love of that liberty of which he spoke: I was naturally an +enthusiastic admirer of freedom, and an implacable foe to tyranny and +oppression; and this I admitted to him, at the same time that I disclaimed +any participation in those principles which were designated as +jacobinical, and professed myself a loyal man, and a friend to my king and +country. + +With the greatest good-nature, Mr. Clifford smiled at my folly; "but," +said he, "my worthy young friend, and I am proud to call you so, I see +that you have in reality imbibed the best, the most honourable of +principles; the seeds of genuine patriotism are implanted in your heart, +it only requires a little time to rear them into maturity, and, I have not +the least doubt but they will, ere long, produce good and useful fruit. I +believe you are a really loyal man, a sincere friend to your king and +country; and if I thought you were not, our acquaintance, I assure you, +should be very short, but, as you are one, I hope our friendship will only +cease with our lives." I shall take leave to say that this wish was +accomplished to the very letter, as I ever afterwards lived in the most +friendly habits of intimacy with him till the time of his decease. + +Our discourse now became more general. Mr. Waddington had listened with +great attention to his friend Clifford's clear and undisguised manner of +initiating, as he called it, the young countryman into the science of +politics; and he appeared much delighted to find that "the bait took so +well." Clifford reproved his expression, and added, that the young +countryman, as he was pleased to term me, required nothing more than a +little practical knowledge of corruption, to make him shake off all his +natural prejudices, and become as good and sincere a defender of liberty +as either of them. + +By this time, our friend Clifford, who was then a _two-bottle man,_ had +taken his glass too freely to make himself intelligible any longer, and I +resisted the proposition of Mr. Waddington to uncork another bottle, as I +was very much shocked to see one of the most intelligent and truly able +men in the country, reduced to a mere idiot by the effect of wine. Mr. +Waddington, who was naturally an abstemious man, agreed with me, and, as +we had previously given a general invitation to Clifford to dine with us +twice a week, we now came also to a resolution, that, in future, we would +not be deprived in such a way of his instructive and agreeable society. To +accomplish our purpose, we agreed, therefore, that we would limit the +quantity of wine to be drank when he was at our table, and that, as soon +as the quantity was gone, coffee or tea should invariably be introduced. + +Our friend and guest literally reeled down stairs when he took leave of +us, and I could not help observing, what a misfortune it was for such a +brilliant man to drown his senses and obscure his intellect with wine. +Though I had for some years, at least since I was married, kept that sort +of company which led me to take my glass freely, yet I seldom took it to +excess, and never to inebriate myself. This melancholy example of Mr. +Clifford had a very great effect upon me. To see a man of the most +brilliant talent, of the most profound erudition, so far forget himself as +to become an object of pity and contempt, imbecile, and even beastly, was +a sight which made a deep and lasting impression upon my mind, and I began +to think that my own partial indulgence in the practice of drinking so +freely after dinner was an act of great weakness and folly, which, if not +checked, was likely to degenerate into one of the worst of crimes. + +In these sentiments my friend Waddington agreed with me, and he readily +joined in a determination never to suffer any thing of the sort to take +place at our table again while we remained together. This resolution we +managed to keep, though we had a difficult task to perform when Mr. +Clifford and the Rev. Dr. Gabriel dined with us, which was regularly twice +a week. The reverend doctor, in particular, we found it incumbent upon us +to keep within strict bounds; for, when he had got a little too much wine, +though he was an old man, and a dignitary of the church, it was with great +difficulty we could restrain him from indulging in obscene conversation, +with which my friend and myself were equally disgusted. The doctor was a +wit and a scholar, but, as Mrs. Waddington and her family, as well as +other amiable females both of her and my friends, frequently visited us, +his language was not to be tolerated, and, consequently, I undertook one +morning to remonstrate with the doctor upon the subject. He freely +acknowledged his error, but attributed it to a foolish habit that he had +acquired at college, of which he could never afterwards wholly break +himself. At the same time, he pleaded that he never forgot himself so far +as to disgrace his profession, unless he had taken too much wine--which, +by the bye, was every day when he could get it. I made known to the doctor +our resolution to limit him to a bottle, and that his visits were to be +continued upon that understanding. To this he readily assented, and +thenceforth we found him to be a well-informed and entertaining companion, +on the two days in the week that he was invited to dine with us. The +doctor was reduced in circumstances, and was living within the rules. It +was he who built the octagon chapel at Bath, of which he was the +proprietor, and where he preached for many years. He was a man of letters, +and, when sober, a perfect gentleman; but, when ever so little elevated, +he betrayed, even to us comparative strangers, that he was a complete free +thinker. Many of my readers will recollect the literary controversy which +took place between him and, I believe, Doctor Gardiner, of Bath. I forget +what were his politics, but I believe he was a Whig. One thing I perfectly +recollect, which was, that when he was going to relate an obscene story or +anecdote, he always gave us a preliminary intimation of it by _sneezing_. +He was, on the whole, one of the most extraordinary of the numerous +extraordinary characters that I became acquainted with while I remained at +the King's Bench, during my first visit there of six weeks, in the years +1800 and 1801. + +This was a very distressing season for the poor; and Mr. Waddington and +myself gave a ton of potatoes to the poor prisoners in the King's Bench +every week; nor, during the time that I was there, did we ever fail to +relieve not only every applicant, and they were numerous, but also to seek +privately for objects of distress within the walls; and wherever we found +an unfortunate object, we did our best to alleviate his misery. Some we +found almost naked, without clothes or even bedding; some who were pining, +in secret, silent want, who were ashamed to make their wretchedness known. +These we never failed to succour. The Marshal likewise assisted us in +these acts of charity, and did every thing that humanity and kindness +could suggest, to ameliorate the condition of the unhappy prisoners in his +custody. + +It being now the season when those who toil for us naturally expect some +proof of our friendship and gratitude, to enable them to enjoy their long +anticipated merriment, I sent home directions to Mrs. Hunt to have my +usual Christmas present given to each of my servants. It consisted of a +good piece of beef, some potatoes, and faggots to dress it with, the +quantity given being in proportion to the size of the family. This good +custom I learned from my father, and I regularly continued it every year; +but it was always done, I hope, with a becoming spirit, without any +ostentation. I never, as many did, caused my little charitable acts to be +blazoned forth in the public newspapers. I will venture to say, that, +while we were in the King's Bench, Mr. Waddington and myself gave away, +privately, a larger sum, in comparison with our incomes, than, any of the +publicly blazoned forth charitable men in the city of London, who were +lauded up to the sky for their benevolent disposition. Every Christmas, +each servant, who had worked for me during the year, received a present of +beef enough to keep each person a week, which was never noticed in any of +the public newspapers, though they constantly teemed with pompous accounts +of the _generosity, benevolence_, and _charity_ of my more opulent +neighbours, who never gave half so much; in fact, who never gave a +twentieth part so much as myself, in proportion to their means. + +A circumstance of this sort, which happened not a hundred miles from this +place, and the description of which was given to me by a farmer, has +caused me a hearty laugh. It was lately paragraphed in all the country as +well as the London papers, and spread far and near, that a worthy and +reverend magistrate, in this neighbourhood, had, with great liberality, +given away an ox to his parishioners; some, in their great bounty, added +eight or ten sheep to the boon. I was one day speaking with due praise of +this act before a farmer of the neighbourhood, who had called to visit me; +upon which he burst into a loud horse laugh, and exclaimed, "Oh, the old +cow!" The fact was, as he informed me, that the worthy magistrate had an +old Norman cow, that had done breeding, and consequently gave no more +milk; and as every farmer in the country well knows that the Devil himself +could not graze an old cow of this sort to make her fit for the butcher, +the worthy parson very properly gave her away amongst his parishioners; +and the praises of this mighty gift were hawked about in almost every +newspaper in the kingdom! + +I do not give any name, neither do I, in the remotest degree, bring +forward the circumstance by way of taunt or ridicule. There was nothing +improper in it, but the contrary; and, of course, the old cow afforded +many a hearty meal, and many a porridge-pot full of good wholesome broth +to those amongst whom she was divided, who, no doubt, were very thankful +to the worthy justice for the present. I only mention it to shew that it +"is not all gold that glitters," and how such a thing is trumpeted forth +when it is once set a going. I know it is the practice of many persons to +give a trifle at this time of the year, and then get one of their +dependents to send, and not unfrequently they themselves send, an account +of it to the county paper. Away goes the news, and a person's name is +blazoned forth all over the kingdom, as a most charitable man or woman, +when it often happens that a great deal of misery, poverty, wretchedness +and want presents itself to their view all the year round, without their +ever once extending that aid which, to bestow in private, would afford +them ten times as much heart-felt pleasure, and real satisfaction, as they +can gain from their ostentatious annual newspaper fraud. I have given away +four times the value of this said cow, every Christmas, for ten or fifteen +years together, without having ever once had, or wishing to have, my name +held up in a public newspaper, as an example of charity and liberality to +the poor. Yet, twenty years ago, before I was known as a reformer, when, +for instance, I was in the King's Bench, a pound note, a fifth part of +what Mr. Waddington and I gave away privately, besides the ton of +potatoes, would have caused my name to cut a pompous figure in all the +vehicles of news, both in town and country. I may, without boasting, +declare, that scarcely a month in my life ever passed without my having +given away more than the value of the said old cow, to relieve and assist +my fellow creatures in distress; and yet the public well know how my name +has been bandied about in every newspaper in England, Ireland, and +Scotland, and, of late years, in almost every paper in Europe, as the +greatest enemy of the poor, as their deceiver, their deluder, their +plunderer! I have been held up, for political purposes, by the venal +press, as a sort of ferocious monster, who longed to gorge upon the +life-blood of my fellow countrymen! It will be asked by some, how comes it +that _all_ the public press has been induced to represent you as a monster +of this description? The answer is easy. For this plain reason: because +all those who belong to the _public press,_ the _liberal press_, have been +the agents or the, tools of one or the other of the two great political +factions, nick-named Whigs and Tories; because throughout the whole of my +political life, I have honestly opposed the peculations, the plunderings, +and frauds of the borough-mongers of both those two factions upon the +people, upon the earnings of the poor; because I have never in any way +been, nor ever would be, linked on to either of those factions; because I +have fairly, manfully, and openly stood up for the political rights of my +_poorer fellow countrymen,_ and never for one moment of my life have +compromised those rights, in order to secure or promote my own interest. + +I repeat again, that I have not introduced the subject of the old cow with +any invidious motive. As far as the thing went it was a praiseworthy and +charitable act. I have myself many times done the same thing; have fatted +an old cow, and given the beef away to the poor, which has been worth, to +them, from ten to fifteen pounds; very excellent meat to eat, and I have +partaken of some of it in my own family; though it would have scarcely +fetched any thing to have been sold to a butcher. And if this should meet +the eye of the worthy justice, he will take it as it is meant, and not as +any sarcasm at him, though the said justice is one of the number who was +induced to sign the infamous order to exclude my female friends from +visiting me; which I would fain hope he did against his own judgment, and +I am sure, from the personal kindness I before received of him here, he +did it much against his inclination. Some may say that my statement, of +what I have done, is an egotistical digression; that I am sounding my own +trumpet; and that to do so is no proof of a truly charitable disposition; +but let them recollect that I am compelled to this digression, in order to +do justice to my own calumniated character; let them recollect that I am +writing my own history, and that, as _all the press_ of Europe has been +sedulously and malignantly employed to prejudice the public against me, I +owe it to myself, to my children and family, to the myriads of my fellow +countrymen who have honoured me with their confidence; I owe it to them, +to show, past all contradiction, that my accusers are slanderers; that my +conduct deserves to be otherwise spoken of than it has been; and this duty +I can perform only by speaking candidly and boldly of such facts as may +tell in my favour; facts, be it remembered, which admit of being proved or +disproved by thousands of living witnesses. I make no assertions which are +morally or physically incapable of being refuted; I appeal to evidence, +which is still in existence; and if my enemies can convict one of having, +in my defence, gone beyond the limits of truth, I will be content, ever +after, to listen in silence to their calumnies. + +But it is now time to change the scene again to the King's Bench. I was +there every day in the society of men who had not merely mixed in the busy +scenes of the metropolis, but of whom I found that many had been connected +with the government; many had borne a part in all the dirty tricks, +frauds, perjuries, and bribery practised at elections. Of such +abominations as I did not think it possible ever to have occurred, the +reality was clearly proved to me, by those who had been eye witnesses of +them, and who had participated in the plunder. _Circumstances_ brought me +into strange company, and here I saw men of all persuasions in religion, +and of all parties in politics. + +The year 1800 was a very busy year, and the price of provisions was at its +height, in consequence of which, there were many riots both in London and +the country. The parliamentary remedy for this evil was, an act, passed on +the 12th of February, forbidding the sale of bread till four and twenty +hours after it had been baked. + +Towards the close of 1799, Buonaparte became the first consul of France, +and he immediately wrote a letter himself to the King of England, offering +to treat for peace. The British ministers, however, treated the offer with +contempt, and they were sanctioned in their conduct by the legislative +bodies. Oh, fatal policy! if this offer had been accepted, millions of +lives might have been spared--oceans of blood and hundreds of millions of +money might have been saved to the nation. Mr. Fox and Mr. Whitbread +opposed the address in the House of Commons, but it was carried by 265 +against 64. High debates and strong divisions took place in the Irish +House of Commons, upon the Union, when Lord Castlereagh began to make a +figure by his intrigues; British gold prevailed over Irish patriotism, and +the majorities were in favour of the Union. Mr. Waithman now first began +to figure upon the stage of politics in London, and a motion which he +made, in favour of peace, was carried unanimously at a Common Hall. The +House of Commons, on the motion of Mr. Tierney, divided 44 for peace and +143 for war; this was on the twenty-sixth of February, and on the eleventh +of May, at a field-day in Hyde Park, a shot wounded a young gentleman, who +stood near the King, for whom no doubt it was intended. The same evening +his Majesty was at Drury Lane theatre, when a man in the pit, whose name +was Hatfield, standing up on one of the benches, fired a pistol at him; +but he was pronounced to be deranged in his intellects, and he was +confined accordingly. + +All our magnanimous allies had by this time deserted us, with the +exception of the Emperor of Germany, whose friendship was purchased by +another loan of two millions of money, to be raised in taxes upon John +Bull; or, to apply a more appropriate name, _John Gull_--for, so zealous +were his faithful representatives in the Commons, that they voted away +forty-eight millions for the service of the year; and to prevent, or +rather silence any grumbling, the Habeas Corpus suspension act was passed. + +On the fourteenth of June, the great battle of Marengo was fought, between +the French, who were commanded by _Buonaparte_, and the Austrians under +Melas, whose army he completely defeated, killing six thousand of them, +and taking twelve thousand prisoners, and forty-five pieces of cannon. In +this battle Napoleon proved himself not only the bravest, but the best +general of the age. Immediately after this battle an armistice followed, +and peace was ultimately concluded between France and Austria. + +On the eighteenth of this month, July 1800, the atrocities of Governor +Aris, and his abettors, in Cold Bath Field's prison, were exposed in the +House of Commons, by Sir Francis Burdett; and on the fourteenth of August +following, the indignant populace assembled to pull down this prison, +which they very properly called the English Bastile. The conduct of Aris +was such that he was driven in disgrace from his situation, and another +more humane governor was appointed in his place, in order to tranquillize +the people, who were justly enraged almost to desperation against this +monster. What a disgrace, not only to the administration of the country, +but to the character of the age to suffer a malignant fiend to have the +control over the liberties of persons sentenced to be confined in a +prison! How much have those magistrates and sheriffs to answer for who +suffer these devils in human shape to tyrannize over and torture the +victims consigned to their custody! How necessary is it for sheriffs (high +sheriffs I mean), to visit their prisons in person, and see in what manner +their prisoners are treated! I do not mean a _formal visit_, when the +gaoler has notice of his coming, that he may be prepared to deceive him. +But I say it is the duty of a sheriff to go unawares, at times when he is +not expected, and then to visit the prisoners _by himself_, taking care +that those jacks in office, the turnkeys, do not go before him, to prepare +the prisoners, and to caution them not to make any complaints. What a +farce is kept up by the parade of visiting magistrates, who pass through a +gaol, for instance, once a month, "like a cat over a harpsichord;" +inquiring, most likely, in the _presence_ of the gaoler or turnkey, if any +of the prisoners have any complaint to make to the magistrates! Oh what a +horrible farce is this. A planter in the West Indies may just as well +expect to hear the truth if he were to enquire of the negroes, in the +presence of their _drivers_, whether any of them have a complaint to make +against any of the said negro-drivers! + +When I first came to this gaol, one of the poor prisoners, who was +assisting to repair my dungeon, was telling me of an act of cruel +injustice and torture that had been inflicted upon him by one of the +turnkeys. Upon which I said to the man, "Did you not make a complaint to +the magistrates? I am sure they would not suffer a prisoner to be treated +in such a way with impunity." The poor fellow looked at me very +steadfastly, for some time, to see if I were in earnest; at length he +replied, "Lord, Sir! you will know better after you have been here a +little while. I have been here nearly two years, and I never knew any +prisoner make a complaint even to the gaoler, and much less to the +magistrate, without being punished for it. I never knew a man make a +complaint who was not locked up, in solitary confinement, within a week +afterwards, for _something_ or _other_. A prisoner is sure never to get +any redress, for the turnkeys will say any thing, and what one says +another will swear; and the gaoler always believes them, or pretends to +believe them, in preference to the prisoners; so do what they will with us +we never complain." + +I am sorry to say that I have found that there was too much truth in this +assertion. I know it is the practice of some lords of manors, never to +hire a gamekeeper unless he will engage _always to swear_ that which, +right or wrong, will convict a poacher: and I now believe that it is also +a requisite qualification for a turnkey to swear that which will please +the gaoler. I am quite sure it is the case in _some_ gaols, in which, +unless a turnkey will do this, he will never get promotion, or a rise in +his salary, nor have his rent paid, &c. &c. The principal object of these +fraternities appears to be deception; and particularly if a magistrate or +a sheriff should be a conscientious, humane man, their study, their +occupation is to deceive him, in which they are very likely to succeed; +for a clever gaoler, surrounded by such pliant helpmates, will deceive the +very devil, if he be not aware of their tricks; and how easily then may +they cheat an honest, unsuspecting country justice! I have been led into +this excusable digression from the recollection of Aris's exposure in the +House of Commons; and what a tale shall I have by and by to unfold, of the +scenes that are perpetrated with impunity in this gaol. Some of the most +atrocious acts are here made a merit of, and the gaoler even boasts of +them in the public-houses, amongst his pot-companions. + +To return to my narrative. On the 3d of October, the Common Hall, on the +motion of Mr. Waithman, resolved to present an address to the King upon +the throne, for peace; but, for the first time, the King refused to +receive it, except at _the levee_. Thus were the livery of London deprived +of their right, their ancient right, of approaching their sovereign to +present their petitions to the throne. Thus were all future Common Halls +reduced to the level of any common assembly by George the Third. Thus did +those who took the lead in city politics concede the rights of their +fellow-citizens, and surrender their proudest privileges, without a +struggle. From that day to this, the Livery of London have never exercised +their constitutional privilege of addressing or petitioning the throne. +Mr. Waithman and Mr. Favel have persuaded the livery not to petition the +throne, because they were not permitted to present it to the throne: +unlike Beckford, they had neither the courage to demand the right, nor the +sincerity to give it up. By such temporising means they have altogether +compromised the rights of their fellow citizens. I made one effort to +rouse the livery into a sense of their duty, and moved for the appointment +of a committee to search for precedents; but the Whig cabal frustrated my +intentions, though I was supported by Mr. White, of the Independent Whig, +and many other patriotic members of that body. By and by, I shall lay open +to public view the despicable intrigues of this faction in the city of +London. The mass of the livery are honest, honourable and patriotic, and +real lovers of fair play; but the tricks and intrigues of the factions, +who have strutted upon the boards of the Common Hall for the last twenty +years, are without parallel; and, when I come to that epoch of my history +at which I became a liveryman, it shall be my business to unmask many a +hypocrite, and to exhibit these mock reformers in their true colours. In +performing this duty I shall divest myself of every personal +consideration; and in drawing the true characters of the great rivals, +Wood and Waithman, I will, if possible, divest myself of prejudice, and do +them both justice. The result of the last general election for the city +not only speaks the sense of the livery, but it is a pretty fair criterion +by which the public may estimate the value of each of these characters. +The inestimable conduct of Mr. Alderman Wood, with regard to the affairs +of the Queen, has placed him upon that eminence to which his honesty and +public spirit so eminently entitle him. + +On the third of November, the Emperor Paul of Russia laid an embargo on +three hundred British ships, and sequestered all British property in the +ports of Russia. Thus he who, at the commencement of the year, was our +most vigorous and magnanimous ally, became, at the latter end of it, one +of our most powerful and inveterate foes. British gold and British +influence could, however, now command the use of the bow-string in Russia, +as it had heretofore directed the use of the guillotine in France; for, on +the 23d of March, he was found murdered in his chamber, and his _amiable_ +and _ingenuous_ son, Alexander, the present tyrant, succeeded him, he +being understood to be better disposed to listen to the proposals of the +Cabinet of St. James's. + +On the last day of this year, the Union was completed between England and +Ireland, and the degradation of that brave and high spirited people was +celebrated in London, on the first day of the nineteenth century, by +hoisting a standard upon the Tower, and an imperial ensign was displayed +by the foot guards. A new great seal was also used on account of the +Union. The Imperial Parliament also met on the first day of the year, and +commenced its first session. + +The commencement of the new century had been celebrated the year before, +on the first day of the year 1800; but it was now discovered, by the +wisdom of John Gull, that the new century did not commence till the old +one was finished, and therefore millions, who had before celebrated it, +now performed the ceremony over again. I was then, as I now am, in a gaol, +but I was in a very different gaol from this. When St. Paul's clock struck +twelve, all the bells in the metropolis struck up a merry peal. I had sat +up later than it was my custom, on purpose to welcome in the new year; and +as Mr. Waddington was retired to rest, I had called up Filewood, the +turnkey of the lobby of the King's Bench, and had treated him with a glass +of grog and a pipe. Twenty years ago, at this very hour of twelve, I was +smoking my pipe in a gaol. Gracious God! the scenes that I have since +witnessed, how they crowd upon my memory! The recollection of that night +is as familiar to my imagination as if it were yesterday. I was in a +prison to be sure, but I had every accommodation that was necessary; all +my friends had free access to me, from daylight till ten o'clock at night; +and my family might have remained with me the whole time, day and night, +if I had chosen that they should do so. I was never locked into my room, +and I could at all times pass into the yard, and was within call of the +turnkey and his family; and the communication to my friend Mr. +Waddington's apartments was always open. In fact, it would have been truly +ridiculous had it been otherwise. The same apartments which I inhabited +had been previously occupied by Mr. Horne Tooke, Lord Thanet, and many +other eminent political men who had fallen into the clutches of the +harpies of the bar and the bench; and never did the slightest +inconvenience arise to the marshal, or any of his officers, in consequence +of treating such prisoners committed to his custody with that sort of +consideration which made them easy and contented under unpleasant +circumstances. Such liberal treatment always produced a corresponding +feeling and action in the prisoners, and I never heard of any instance of +disagreement between them. I know that, in our case, so far from any +complaint being made on either side, Mr. Waddington, myself, and the +marshal always continued, and we parted, upon the best terms, mutually +satisfied with each other. But what a contrast was that to my present +situation in _this_ gaol, one of the most confined, unhealthy, and +inconvenient gaols in the kingdom! Since the high sheriff came to my +relief, my confinement is considerably softened, particularly by the +admission of the female branches of my family: but the contrast is yet +such as to beggar description. In the first place, I am shut up in a +complete dungeon; it is true, I have a window, but that is rendered almost +useless by its opening into a small yard, of about ten yards square, +surrounded entirely by a dark wall, nearly twenty feet high. This being +situated on the north side of a very high building, both light and air are +excluded. I have not caught a glimpse of the sun from this yard or room, +since October. In the next place, no friend or any other person is +admitted till nine in the morning, and not after four in the afternoon; so +that my family, who, in consequence of Sir Charles Bampfylde's +interference, are now permitted to see me, are yet compelled to submit to +the inconvenience and expense of passing _seventeen hours_ out of the four +and twenty at the inn, to be enabled to see me for the remaining _seven_. +At six o'clock in the afternoon I am locked up in solitary confinement, in +my room, (some time back it was at _five_); all the outward doors +surrounding my burying vault of a yard are also closed for the night; and, +as my dungeon is situated in a remote part of the gaol, I never hear the +sound of a human voice till the door of my cage is opened, at seven +o'clock in the morning; so that, for thirteen hours, I have no possibility +of making any one hear, let what might happen, either from illness or +accident; a month back it was fifteen hours, from _five_ till eight. To +remove this unpleasant and brutal inconvenience, a worthy and considerate +visiting magistrate, Aaron Moody, Esq. of Kingston, very properly ordered, +amongst many other necessary improvements of my den, that a bell should be +hung, to enable me to call one of the officers of the gaol, when I might +want any thing; but I am now deprived of this common and necessary +accommodation by the order of Mr. Gaoler, who forsooth has caused the bell +to be muffled, and the wire pegged, so as to render it totally useless. +The reader must find it difficult to discover the motives for this and a +hundred other daily acts of petty tyranny that are practised upon me here; +and, to render this conduct the more pointed, unjust, and odious, the +_bell_ which was hung at the same time, and for the same purpose, in the +room of my fellow-prisoner, Mr. Kinnear, remains untouched, for his +constant use and convenience. And yet I understand my gentleman gaoler +complains of what he calls my attacks upon him, although he cannot deny +the truth of one of my statements. + +From the comparison which I have drawn, the reader will perceive, that +_one month's_ imprisonment in this bastile, is worse than _a year's_ +imprisonment in the King's Bench. In the King's Bench I enjoyed the +rational society of all my friends, and I was particularly pleased with +the society of Mr. Clifford. I have since suffered many great +inconveniences and disappointments, which I might have avoided, if I had +given credit to some of his statements, which, at the time, I thought +totally impossible to be correct, but which I have since, by experience, +and to my cost and sorrow, found to be true to the very letter. I was +induced by him to believe many of the infamous acts attributed to the +ministers and their agents, and the cruelties practised by their tools and +myrmidons; but it was not possible for me to give full credence to many of +the stories and anecdotes which he recounted of the _Judges_ upon the +bench, in connivance with the _gentlemen_ at the bar. It was difficult to +make me comprehend and credit, the infamous and disgraceful practice of +the masters of the crown office, in procuring and packing a special jury, +which he assured me was constantly and invariably done in every political +cause, where the crown was the prosecutor; but he brought me so many +proofs, that, at length, it was worse than self-deception to doubt it. But +that the _Judges_ upon the Bench, in violation of their solemn oaths, +would lend themselves to _delay_, to _deny_, or _sell_ justice, was a +crime which I could not be persuaded to imagine was within the verge of +possibility, though he solemnly assured me that all this was not only +done, but that it was the every day practice, particularly in political +matters. To think that, upon the ex-parte statement of one of the counsel, +a Judge would submit to make himself acquainted with the case before he +came into court; to think that a Judge could be _spoken with_ privately, +upon a cause that he was going to try openly in public court, that he +would be influenced by unworthy motives, or take a _bribe_, was so +abhorrent to every notion of justice that I had imbibed, it was to me so +horrible, that I could scarcely listen with any degree of temper to his +recital of numerous instances of the kind, which, he assured us, had come +within his own knowledge. + +If I could have had the wisdom to have listened and have improved from the +excellent information that I gained from Mr. Clifford, how many painful +and useless exertions I might have saved myself, how many difficulties +might I have avoided! But it was not in my nature to believe such things, +or to think mankind, and particularly the Judges of the land, such +hypocrites, or such base tools as he represented them to be. And such is +the natural feeling and habits of an Englishman, that he imbibes the +notion of reverence for the Judges of the land at a very early period. We +are taught this almost as early as we are taught the Lord's prayer, and it +is nearly as easy to eradicate the one, as the other, such is the effect +of early impressions. Poor Clifford! how often have I heard him exclaim, +"of all tyrannies, that which is carried on under the _forms_ of law and +justice is the worst." How well he understood the practice of the courts, +and the trickery of the Judges; every word he ever communicated to me upon +this subject I now believe to be true, my own experience has since +confirmed it. He gave us the history, a full account, of the treatment of +those persons who were confined in dungeons for political purposes under +the suspension of the Habeas Corpus act; and amongst others he described +the cruel and unnatural treatment of poor Colonel Despard, who was then +confined in the Tower, and who had been imprisoned at that time for five +or six years. Mr. Clifford was employed by Colonel Despard, and offered to +convince me that his description of his treatment was correct, by +introducing me to him any morning that I would accompany him to the Tower; +which I promised to do the first opportunity, and a day was fixed +accordingly for the interview. + +I received frequent communications from home to say that all my large +farming concerns were going on well, in fact those were glorious times for +farmers; the price of corn and all sorts of agricultural produce was +enormous, and as I had grown most excellent crops that season, my profits +were very ample. My bailiff wrote me word, that he continued to obtain the +highest price in Devizes market for my corn, both for wheat and barley, +and one week he sold wheat for five guineas a sack, and barley for five +pounds a quarter. This was once thrown in my face by an upstart of the +name of Captain Gee, when I was standing a contested election at Bristol. +The gentleman put the question to me upon the hustings, whether I had not, +or whether my father had not, sold his wheat for fifty pounds a load in +Marlborough market? I was saved the trouble of an answer by the +observation of a sensible, shrewd mechanic, a freeman of that city; who +said, "Well, and suppose he did, what has that to do with the merit or +demerit of a representative who is contending for our rights and +liberties? Was Mr. Hunt not justified in selling his corn for the best +price that he could obtain for it? It is only a proof that he had a good +article to get a good price for it. Suppose that he had sold his wheat for +five pounds a load, while other people were selling it at fifty pounds a +load, do you mean to tell us, that _we here in Bristol_, should have got +our flour or our bread any the cheaper for it?" The captain was silent, +and my apologist continued, "Do you believe, sir, if Mr. Hunt had given +away his corn, that the millers or the bakers would have sold it to us any +the cheaper? then let us have no more of your nonsense; what would you +have said if your old uncle, the tobacconist, had sold his tobacco for one +shilling a pound while other people were selling it at three shillings a +pound?" As his scheme did not answer, the captain slunk away and asked no +more questions. I always felt great pride in obtaining the highest price +for my _corn; because_ it was a sure proof, that I carried the best corn +to the market, and the farmer who grows the greatest quantity of, and the +finest, corn, not only benefits himself, but, instead of being an enemy to +the poor, he is their best friend, as he contributes the largest share to +the common stock of provisions for their support. + +My family meanwhile remained at home, it not being deemed advisable, under +such circumstances, to remove them to London, for so short a time as six +weeks. Mrs. Hunt had to take care of an infant son, now about four months +old, and, besides, I had no one but her to depend upon, to manage the +domestic concerns of so large an establishment as I then kept up, and +which was absolutely necessary for so large a farming business as I +carried on. Every thing, however, went on smoothly and prosperously; and I +had no lack of visitors, who were very numerous, both from London and the +country, and perhaps no nobleman in London was better supplied with game +than I was. I received daily presents from all quarters, particularly from +the members of the yeomanry cavalry, not only of the county of Wilts, but +from various other counties. + +Though the whole body of the yeomanry considered themselves insulted in my +person, yet the boasted resolution of those members of the Wiltshire +yeomanry, who had declared that they would resign if I had any punishment +inflicted upon me, was never carried into effect, with one solitary +exception, which was that of my friend Mr. Wm. Butcher, who wrote from +London, the day after my sentence, and sent in his resignation, assigning +openly as the cause, that he would not continue in a service in which he +was liable to be insulted with impunity, by the caprice of a superior +officer, or liable to be prosecuted, if he resented a wanton insult with +the spirit of a man of honour and a gentleman. But Wm. Tinker of +Lavington, who had so often volunteered to resent what he called an insult +offered to every man in the regiment, never resigned, or mentioned the +subject afterward; and he, amongst all my numerous friends, was the only +one who failed to send me some game, though he was a great sportsman, and +did me the favour to hunt and shoot over my farms in my absence. + +Unlike some other gaolers, the marshal of the King's Bench was not above +his business; he never for a moment neglected his duty to the prisoners. +He did not act, as if he felt it to be his only business to tyrannize +over, to harrass, to oppress, to punish, and to torture those unfortunate +persons who were committed to his custody. On the contrary, he took +especial care to protect his prisoners from insult, imposition, or +cruelty. Instead of employing his time to devise means of annoyance +against those who were placed in his custody, he occupied it in a very +different manner. He knew that it was his duty (and he acted up to the +letter and spirit of it) to take every means in his power to make each +prisoner as comfortable as his situation would admit, and, above all, to +shield him from any insult or ill treatment from the officers of the +prison; and to take care that the prisoners were not imposed upon by those +who served them with provisions and necessaries. He made a point of going +frequently into the prison during market time, and if he found any bad +meat, butter, or other provisions, brought into the prison, he would, for +example sake, have it seized and destroyed; and he frequently, without +previous notice, went round with his officers to examine the weights and +measures, so that his prisoners were completely guarded from imposition +and extortion; and a man in the King's Bench prison could lay out the +little money he had to spend, to as much advantage as he could in any +market in the kingdom. In fact, Mr. Jones, the marshal, was a humane as +well as a charitable man, and he encouraged the prisoners to make +excellent and just regulations for their own government; but the +refractory, those who would not be governed by the rules of well regulated +society, and who violated all moral obligations, were made to feel the +weight of his power. He was a magistrate of the county of Surrey, it, +therefore, was not necessary for him to perform the farce of sending for a +_visiting magistrate_. Any ungovernable delinquent was brought before him, +and after a fair hearing, if it appeared upon oath that he merited it, he +was committed for a month to Horsemonger Lane prison, or sentenced to be +confined in the refractory room. I do not remember a single instance of +any one being punished by him unjustly. When it was necessary for the +marshal to use severity against any man, it generally had the sanction of +an immense majority of that man's fellow-prisoners. The only one that was +punished, during the six weeks that I was there, was a drunken captain, +who, in one of his paroxysms, had smashed all the chapel windows, and +committed several other depredations upon the property of his fellow +prisoners. He was put into the strong room till the next day, when he was +brought up, and after an open and patient hearing, it being found that he +had nothing to urge in his defence except drunkenness, he was sent to +Horsemonger Lane for a month. No secret inflictions, no acts of torture +were permitted in this gaol. Punishment, when requisite, was given openly, +and fairly, and consistently with the true principles of justice, and +every one knew what measure of it was meted out to the offender. As there +are frequently a great number of profligate characters within the walls, +it was highly necessary to have some good rules and regulations, _some +local laws_, to protect the well-disposed, the innocent, and the +unfortunate, (of whom there was always a great number) from the insults +and depredations of such abandoned persons. These _local laws_, though +they were administered with strict justice by Mr. Jones, yet, as far as my +own observation enabled me to judge, they were invariably tempered with +mercy. There were frequently six or seven, and sometimes eight hundred +prisoners within the walls, and the marshal had a great responsibility +upon his hands, yet every thing was conducted with liberality. He had +extensive power, yet I never saw any man exercise power with more +discretion and moderation than he did. + +The reader will recollect that this is my opinion now, my confirmed +opinion at this period, after having been three times committed to his +custody by the _Honourable_ Court of King's Bench. A second time, for +having given a good thrashing to a ruffian who was hired to assault me as +I was riding along the high road, and who was proved to have actually +assaulted me first. The Judge, Baron Graham, upon the trial at Salisbury, +instructed the jury to find me guilty of an assault, though he admitted it +to be clearly proved that the fellow had committed the first assault. His +argument, if so it may be called, was, that I had given him more than an +equivalent beating in return: had I, he said, only struck him once, I +should have been justified; but, as I had struck him three times with my +fist, it was an assault; and for this I was sentenced to _three months_ to +the custody of the marshal. But it will be recollected that I was then +become a political character, and had been the means of calling two +meetings for the county of Wilts. The third time was preparatory to my +visit here--but more of these things at the proper period. + +While I was in the King's Bench, many anecdotes came to my knowledge, +relating to certain political characters, which it would be neither just +nor prudent to mention here, and indeed it might justly be considered a +breach of confidence. I must, therefore, withhold the publication of them +till I have the permission of those who communicated them to me. There +were also numerous most important matters, communicated to me by Mr. Henry +Clifford, with whom, as the reader has already been told, I soon became +closely intimate, which I do not feel justified in promulgating, as they +are of an extraordinary character, and would be scarcely credited, the +parties not being alive either to contradict or to confirm them. + +Henry Clifford was a most intelligent man, and Doctor Gabriel was likewise +an intelligent man; and these two individuals gave me a clear insight into +the practice of the persons who were concerned in the courts of law, and +the church. I was not more astonished at the trickery, deception, and +complete delusion of the former profession, than I was at the cant and +hypocrisy of the latter. I soon became a disciple of Clifford's, yet so +astonished was I with his account of the mummery of the courts, and the +farcical deception of what was called the administration of justice, +particularly in all political matters, that I really looked with such +astonishment, and sometimes with such a suspicious and unbelieving eye, +that he frequently thought it necessary to bring me living proof, and +incontrovertible demonstration, of the truth of his assertions; nor was it +till he had done so, that he could bring me to acknowledge that I was +convinced of their correctness. To the doctrine so unequivocally +maintained by the worthy dignitary of the church, Dr. Gabriel, I became a +convert with even still more tardiness. + +Mr. Waddington was an intelligent man, and he had seen a great deal of the +world. As a citizen of London, he had called a public meeting, at the +Paul's Head Tavern, to _petition for peace_; and this public-spirited and +truly constitutional act was at that period quite sufficient to draw down +the vengeance of Pitt and his myrmidons. His ruin was decided upon by +them, and he was handed over to the care of the minister's pliant, +powerful and dangerous tools, the Judges of the then Court of King's +Bench, the chief performer being Lloyd Lord Kenyon. Mr. Clifford assured +me, that which was afterwards proved in the same court, that there was +neither law nor justice in Mr. Waddington's persecution; but that the +minister had determined to destroy him for his decisive opposition to his +measures in the city; and he had not the least doubt but they would +accomplish the ruin of his fortune, though he was then worth one hundred +and twenty thousand pounds. It will be shewn hereafter how completely this +prediction was verified. + +One morning, while we were at breakfast, Mr. Filewood came in, and told us +that two very elegant ladies were brought into the prison for debt, and +that they were in the greatest distress, as they appeared to be deserted +by all their friends, and had scarcely money sufficient to procure the +common necessaries of life. This was quite sufficient to induce Mr. +Waddington and myself to interest ourselves in their behalf, and we made +the necessary inquiries, in which we were assisted with great alacrity by +the officers of the gaol, and we learned that the parties were, a +gentlewoman and her daughter; the mother being arrested for a considerable +sum, and being sent into the gaol, the daughter had accompanied her. A +polite letter, tendering our humble aid, was sent to the ladies, +accompanied with an invitation to dinner. This invitation was accepted, +but a difficulty arose, as we were without the walls, and the ladies were +within, which appeared at first view to be an insurmountable obstacle to +their visiting us; for, although we could pass into the prison, yet no +prisoner within the walls could pass out, unless by a day-rule in term +time, or the special permission of the marshal, which no one expected to +obtain without giving sufficient security. I, nevertheless, determined to +apply to the marshal, as we were not to be driven, without an effort, from +the pleasure of doing a kind action after we had once made up our minds to +it. We knew the character of the marshal to be that of a gentleman, and as +I felt no dread at the idea of placing myself under an obligation to such +a man, I, without further ceremony, waited upon him, and communicated the +circumstances and our wishes upon the subject. Without the slightest +hesitation he granted my request, and having called his deputy, he +demanded the reason why he had not been made acquainted with the situation +of the ladies who had been brought in the night before, and he called for +the books to know who the lady was, and what sum she was in for. It was +found that her name was M----e, and that she was detained for three +hundred pounds. I immediately offered to the marshal to become security +for the sum, if he had any difficulty about it. His only answer was, "Your +word, Mr. Hunt, is quite sufficient;" and turning to the officer, he said, +"Recollect, sir, that Mrs. M----e and her daughter have free access to Mr. +Hunt's and Mr. Waddington's apartments, to dine, drink tea, and spend the +evening whenever they please to invite them; and take care also that they +have a good room provided for them, if they have not already got such +within the walls." Thus it was at all times with this worthy man. I never +knew him interpose to prevent an act of kindness or of charity to a +prisoner; but, on the contrary, he was always ready to promote their +comfort, and willing to assist in relieving the distresses of those who +were in affliction. + +Mrs. M---- and her daughter arrived at the hour appointed. She was a tall, +elegant figure, apparently upwards of fifty, and her face, though clouded +by misfortune, bore evident traces of no common beauty. Her manners and +address were at once graceful, dignified, and unembarrassed. Her daughter +was a pretty little interesting girl of eighteen, and, though she was very +accomplished, yet it was easy to discover that she had not received that +highly refined education, nor enjoyed those advantages which can only be +acquired by associating with persons who have moved in the first circles +of fashionable society; all which advantages her mother evidently +possessed in a very eminent degree. Mrs. M---- appeared to be well +acquainted with Mr. Pitt, Mr. Dundas, and some of the royal family; but as +the conversation turned upon general subjects, we did not enter into any +further particulars on the first visit. We confined ourselves to making +arrangements for the future comfort of the ladies, while they remained +within the walls, and this object, Mr. Waddington and myself, with the +cheerful cooperation of the marshal, easily contrived to promote. + +After a visit or two I became enthusiastically interested in the fate of +Mrs. M----. I discovered that she had moved a great deal in the higher +circles, and was particularly well acquainted with the ministers of the +crown, and a certain great personage. As she saw that she had excited, if +not an interest, at least a great curiosity in my breast, she told me that +she was the natural daughter of the late, the great, Marquis of G----, and +that, as her's had been a most eventful life, she would relate to me some +very extraordinary incidents in it, if I would favour her with an +interview some morning. This was readily assented to, and our meeting was +fixed for the following day. Her history was briefly as follows:--she had +been brought up by the Marquis of G----, and educated by him, with great +care and tenderness. She married young, and was an early widow. After the +death of her husband, she fell a victim to the seductive powers of old +Harry D----s, and became his mistress, which she continued to be for many +years. During that time she had an opportunity of seeing a great deal of +Mr. Pitt, of whom and his associates she told me a vast number of +anecdotes, which will not do to mention here. Her old paramour at length +became tired of her, and a very extraordinary event led to an opportunity +of shifting her off his hands, without the inconvenience of making her a +settlement. A certain great personage was at that time labouring under a +distressing malady. The physicians in attendance came to the conclusion, +that it was necessary that their patient should have a female attendant +during the night; and the finding of a proper person for the occasion was +the only obstacle which interposed to prevent their carrying their wish +into effect. Old Harry D----s proposed to obviate this difficulty, by +making a sacrifice, as he pretended, of his favourite mistress, upon +condition that an annuity of four hundred pounds should be settled upon +her. This proposal was immediately accepted, and the terms were acceded to +by the family of the afflicted personage. Though the wary old Scotchman +was delighted to get rid of his mistress upon such advantageous terms for +himself, or rather to drive such an excellent bargain, yet he all the time +professed that he was making the greatest sacrifice in the world, and +doing the greatest violence to his feelings, by parting with a beloved +object; a sacrifice which he was induced to make solely from the love and +veneration which he bore to his afflicted master. She assured us of her +belief that, by these means, he obtained the greatest favours and the most +splendid reward, while she, for the sum of four hundred a year, consented +to submit to the embraces of a madman. + +The patient recovered, and she was turned adrift, without her salary being +regularly paid. She had contracted a debt of three hundred pounds, for +which she was sent to the King's Bench prison, though she convinced me, by +documents that she produced, that she had at the time seven quarters of +her salary, seven hundred pounds, due to her from the said great +personage; less than half of which would have saved her from a gaol. + +This circumstance, however extraordinary it may appear, was not only +confirmed by very credible witnesses, but also by most indisputable +documentary proof; and, as a confirmation of its correctness, Mr. Dundas, +who was subsequently Lord Melville, a few days afterwards came in person +to bail her into the rules, which I sincerely believe that he never would +have done, if he had not heard of the _company_ that she had fallen into. +Mrs. M---- and her daughter were at dinner with Mr. Waddington and myself, +when Mr. Dundas sent for her out; but we made him wait till she had +finished her dinner, declaring that we would be her bail, rather than she +should submit to receive a favour from such an unnatural being. This lady +gave me a history of the then court, and she was familiar with +extraordinary anecdotes relating to most of the persons connected with the +ministers as well as the royal family. The recital of so much infamy and +intrigue, when coupled with what I had heard from Mr. Clifford, of the +practices of the law and the courts of justice, and from Dr. Gabriel, with +respect to the debaucheries of the most dignified members of the church, +and the hypocrisy of many of its puritanical preachers, really made me +almost believe that I was got into a new world, and that the men and women +of which it was composed were a different species from those with whom I +had been in the habit of associating; in fact it opened to my view such +scenes of villainy, fraud, hypocrisy, and injustice, practised upon +mankind by those who contrived to govern them by what is called religion +and law, that I involuntarily re-echoed, with an exclamation, the +sentiments of Mr. Clifford, and pronounced aloud, "That there is no +tyranny so infamous as that which is carried on under the _forms_ of law +and justice." + +I had here an opportunity of meeting men of talent and men of experience, +and particularly some eminent men of the law, who, although they were not +public characters, like Mr. Clifford, and therefore did not promulgate +their sentiments so publicly as he did, yet all admitted the truth of his +description of the state of the courts of law; and my Lord Kenyon was +spoken of with great freedom, and his decisions were canvassed with very +little ceremony. + +I have already mentioned, that Colonel Despard was confined in the Tower, +by the Secretary of State, Lord Hobart, in virtue of the suspension of the +Habeas Corpus act, and that Mr. Clifford had promised that he would take +me to the Tower, and introduce me to the colonel. The day having at length +arrived for the performance of his promise, Clifford called on me, and we +walked together to London Bridge, where we took a boat to Tower stairs. + +After entering our names in the book, which has been invariably the +practice at the Tower, we were admitted to the apartment of Colonel +Despard. He was a mild gentleman-like man. + +Mr. Clifford introduced me by name, as a country friend of his, and the +colonel received me with great courtesy and politeness. During our stay he +inveighed with some warmth against the injustice of his treatment, and the +protracted length of his imprisonment, which he said, I think, was then +nearly six years. Two beef-eaters were always in the room with him, when +any person was admitted, and they never left the room, even when his wife +came to see him; but, as far as was in their power, consistent with the +orders which they had received, and were obliged to obey, they conducted +themselves with great propriety and civility toward the colonel and his +friends. He laughed heartily at the idea of a visit from me, who was at +the time a prisoner in the King's Bench, and Clifford surprised him when +he said, that I had entered my name "Mr. Henry Hunt, King's Bench," which +I had done. + +To shew me the stile in which the procession accompanied the prisoner, Mr. +Clifford proposed a walk upon the terrace. He had described this ceremony +to me, and it appeared so preposterous, that he saw I looked doubtful as +to whether I should believe him to be serious. When he observed that I +looked suspicious, he always took uncommon pains to convince me by some +unequivocal proof, and this was his motive for proposing a walk. A guard +of soldiers was called, and the procession was as follows:--One of the +beef-eaters walked first, with his sword drawn; then followed two +soldiers, carrying arms, with their bayonets fixed; then came Colonel +Despard, with Mr. Clifford and myself, one on each side of him; +immediately behind us marched two more soldiers, carrying arms, with fixed +bayonets; and another beef-eater, with a drawn sword, brought up the rear. +In this manner we walked the parade or terrace for about half an hour, +taking care to speak loud, so that the whole of our conversation was heard +by the beef-eaters. After our walk we sat with him a short time, and then +took our leave. + +Anxious to hear something more of the particulars relating to the +confinement of the colonel, I called a coach, and ordered the coachman to +put us down at the King's Bench, where Mr. Clifford had engaged to dine +with us. As we rode along, I began to ply my companion, to inform me what +desperate offence Colonel Despard had committed, which called for such +rigorous treatment. His answer was this--"He served the government +faithfully and zealously, as a soldier; he advanced money for them upon +some foreign station; but the government was ungrateful and ungenerous to +him, and in consequence of some quibble, they have refused to repay him +what he advanced on their account. He complained and remonstrated, he +became importunate for justice, he was considered troublesome, and for +complaining they have sent him to prison, under the suspension of the +Habeas Corpus act, as the only effectual means of answering his just +complaints." "And can it be possible," I asked, "that justice will not in +the end be done to this unfortunate gentleman?" "Depend upon it," replied +Clifford, "he is too honest ever to gain redress. If he would crouch and +truckle to his persecutors, he might not only be set at liberty, but all +that they have robbed him of would be returned. This, however, he never +will do. He, poor fellow! expects that when the operation of the Habeas +Corpus act is restored, he will be able to bring his cruel persecutors to +justice; but he will be deceived! He is marked out for one of that +monster, Pitt's, victims. When he comes out, which will be when the +suspension act expires, and not before, I know that he will demand to be +put upon his trial. But the ministers, who have always a corrupt majority +at their beck, will easily procure an act of indemnity; and as they have +nothing to charge him with, they will refuse to give him a trial, and they +will laugh at him. And this is the boasted freedom of the people of +England! This is the way in which the ministers serve those who oppose +them! These are the methods they take, first to punish, and then to drive +their opponents into violence and into acts of desperation!!! I know that +he will complain, and that he has just cause of complaint, and I dread the +consequence, because I know full well their arts, and the power which they +have to carry their diabolical plans into execution. If he be troublesome, +they will stick at nothing, and I should not be the least surprised if +they were ultimately to have some of their spies to swear away his life!" + +Gracious God! I little thought how prophetic these words were. Was this +really the case, Mr. _Justice Best_? you were his counsel upon his trial; +you must know if this were really the case!!! But more of this hereafter. +After the death of poor Despard, Clifford and myself never met that I did +not recall to his recollection, the prophetic conversation that took place +in the coach, as we passed over London Bridge, and up the Borough, on our +return from the Tower. + +All the particulars of the trial and the execution of Colonel Despard are +fresh in my memory; but I shall be much obliged to some friend, who may +chance to read this, to send me the _Trial_ itself, through my publisher, +Mr. Dolby. I shall also be much pleased, if some one will furnish me with +the names of those persons who were waiting in readiness to come forward +and prove that the witnesses, who swore to the facts against the colonel, +were persons of the most infamous character, and not worthy to believed +upon their oaths; which persons were neglected to be called by Mr. +Sergeant Best. Clifford told me their names often, but they do not occur +to me now; therefore I shall be obliged to some one to furnish me with the +particulars. + +When we got back to the King's Bench, we were informed, by Mr. Waddington, +that there had been a great inquiry for me in my absence, as some friends +out of the country had been to visit me, and had, foolishly enough, made +much stir in the King's Bench in their endeavour to find me. Mr. +Waddington, however, having learned what was going on, satisfied their +inquiries so far as to induce them to be quiet, and promise to call the +next day. Some of my readers will be surprised that a prisoner should have +been from home! But the fact was, that I was committed to the _custody of +the Marshal of the Court_ for six weeks, and I had given him ample +security for being at all times ready to appear, in case he should be +called upon to produce his prisoner. They were not then so particular as +they now are. + +The visit to the Tower made a lasting impression upon my mind, and, after +what I had witnessed, I was easily persuaded by Mr. Clifford that the +account which he gave me of the treatment of other prisoners confined +under the suspension of the Habeas Corpus act, was perfectly true. These +horrible facts created in my breast a deep-rooted never-ceasing antipathy +to that tyranny which is perpetrated under the disguise, under the false +colour, the mere forms of law and justice, and sanctioned by the +hypocritical mummeries of superstition, instead of real religion. After +dinner, Clifford described to us a scene of which he had been a spectator +in the Tower, the week before, when he went there with Mrs. Despard to +consult with the colonel, and to make his will; the colonel being then, +and having long been labouring under a serious complaint, which had been +brought on by the length of his confinement, and which was considered as +dangerous by his physician. During the whole of that time the beef-eaters +remained in the room so that even the sacred obligation of making his last +will could not be performed, unless it was done in the presence and in the +hearing of the officers of the Tower; and they actually became the +subscribing witnesses to his will. + +I had now become acquainted with many political characters, and I was +frequently invited by Mr. Clifford to go down to Wimbledon with him, on a +Sunday, to join the public parties of Mr. Horne Tooke, from whom he +promised to insure me a hearty welcome. Deep-rooted vulgar prejudice +against this extraordinary and highly gifted man had, however, got such +possession of my feelings, that I continually made some excuse; for I had +imbibed a notion that he was an artful intriguing person, of an +insinuating address, who frequently led young politicians into scrapes and +difficulties. My idea of him in politics was, that he was a violent +Jacobin, and an enemy to his King and country; and this was quite enough +to make me avoid his company. The real fact was, that I was afraid to +trust myself in his society. I had no wish to become a politician, and as +I found that the principles of liberty, which Mr. Clifford inculcated, had +made a considerable impression upon my mind, I was afraid to encourage too +far my natural propensity to resist injustice, oppression, and tyranny. I +did not wish to fan the flame which Mr. Clifford's eloquence and +convincing arguments had lighted in my breast. Another reason for my +refusing to make one of the Wimbledon parties was, the probability that I +should there meet with Sir Francis Burdett, whom I was induced to look +upon almost as a political madman, a dangerous firebrand in the hands of +Mr. Tooke, who appeared to me to be nothing less than a designing +incendiary. Mr. Clifford took some pains to persuade me out of my +ridiculous notions; yet, in the account which he gave me of Mr. Tooke's +character, he in some measure confirmed me in the opinion that I had +previously formed, as Mr. Tooke certainly made Sir F. Burdett a puppet to +carry on his hostility against those ministers who had persecuted him, and +aimed a deadly blow at his life. + +Mr. Tooke was a man of profound talent, a persevering friend of liberty, +and an implacable foe to the measures of Mr. Pitt. But he only supported +partial, not general liberty: he was no friend of universal suffrage; he +supported the householder, or rather the direct tax paying suffrage. To +those who contended for universal suffrage, namely, the Duke of Richmond, +Major Cartwright, and others, he made this comprehensive, intelligible +reply, "You may go all the way to Windsor, if you please, but I shall stop +short at Hounslow;" thus implying, that he was not prepared to give +political freedom to more than one half of the people, that he would not +go farther than Hounslow, which is not half way to Windsor. Sir Francis +Burdett gloried in being thought a disciple of Mr. Tooke. + +The Sunday parties at Wimbledon were composed of the disaffected persons +in London and Westminster. Amongst the number stood pre-eminent the noted +Charing-Cross tailor, Frank Place, who was always an avowed republican _by +profession;_ poor Samuel Miller, the shoemaker, in Skinner-street, +Snow-hill; poor old Thomas Hardy, and many others, with whom I did not +become acquainted till some time after this period, though I collected +their characters from my friend Clifford. Mr. Thelwall had cut the +concern, and set up in another line, that of a fashionable teacher of +elocution. + +At this period my taste leaned more to the sports of the field, to +hunting, shooting, and fishing, than to any thing else; and as these +amusements were more congenial to my habits and my large farming concerns +in the country, I never, while I was the first time in prison, sought much +for political information, though I necessarily heard a great deal of +politics from my friends Waddington and Clifford, as well as from numerous +political characters with whom I became acquainted, in consequence of +their coming to visit the former gentleman. Indeed, seldom a day passed +without seeing some half dozen or half score of them. Mr. Waddington's +friends were almost all opposition men in politics; but his relations were +one and all backbone loyalists, or rather royalists. + +My young friend, William Butcher, was delighted with the society of Mr. +Clifford. Butcher was a disciple of Thomas Paine; he had been bred up in a +country village, where the clergyman, Mr. Evans, of Little Bedwin, who was +his associate, had instilled into his mind all the principles of Paine, +both political and theological, and consequently Butcher was delighted +with the society that he had met with at our table. Butcher was a famous +great arm-chair politician; over the bottle he would be as valiant as any +man, yet he would never _act_. The reason he used to assign for never +meddling in active politics was, that, except in a republic, no private +citizen could ever attain the eminence of being the first man in the +country; and no man, he thought, could have a proper stimulus, unless he +could hope to be placed at the head of the government. Washington was his +idol, and the American constitution was his creed in politics. He was +enraptured to hear me listen with so much earnestness and attention to the +political dogmas of Clifford, as he was pleased to call them; for Mr. +Clifford never professed to wish for a republican government; he always +contended that the English constitution, if it were administered in its +purity, was quite good enough for Englishmen. In this opinion I then +concurred with him, and from this opinion I have never once in my life +swerved, up to this hour. A government of King, Lords, and Commons, so +that the latter are fairly chosen by all the commons, would secure to us +the full enjoyment of rational liberty. I am for that liberty which is +secured and protected by the government of the laws, and not by the +government of the sword. But those laws must be such as are made by the +_whole_ commons, the whole people of England, and not the arbitrary laws +that are made by the few for the government of the whole; not the laws +that are made by the few, for the partial and unjust benefit of the few, +at the expence and cost of the whole. + +Mr. Clifford was the brother-in-law of Sir Charles Wolseley, the worthy +Baronet's first lady being Mr. Clifford's sister. My good and excellent +friend, and true radical, Sir Charles Wolseley, baronet, is, as well as +myself, the political disciple of the honest Counsellor Clifford. If +Clifford, poor fellow! were now alive, how he would laugh to see two of +his staunchest and most disinterested political disciples caught in the +toils of the boroughmongers! But he would also laugh to see the melancholy +state to which the said boroughmongers are reduced! Now they have caught +us they do not know what to do with us. + +Through Mr. Clifford I learned how they managed matters in the courts, and +Mr. Waddington, who by this time had had considerable experience, was most +violent against the injustice of the persecution which he had experienced. +At this period he possessed a large quantity of hops, perhaps half the +hops in the kingdom, which he had purchased upon a speculation, that there +would be a very bad crop. His calculations turned out to be correct, and +the hops that he had purchased at ten pounds a hundred were now worth +twenty-two and twenty-three pounds. They were all in the Borough, and he +was selling them off, at this advance in price, when the conspiracy was +formed against him, at the head of which was Mr. Timothy Brown, of the +firm of Whitbread and Brown. Mr. Pitt, in order to punish Mr. Waddington, +for calling the meeting at the Paul's Head Tavern, in the City, to +petition the King for peace, and the removal of ministers, lent himself +and his agents to further the objects of this conspiracy of brewers +against Mr. Waddington; and as Kenyon, the chief justice, was a devoted +instrument of the minister's, Mr. Waddington was not only fined and +sentenced to six months imprisonment, for forestalling hops, but acts of +parliament were passed to permit the brewers to use foreign hops, quassia, +or any other drug, or ingredient, as a substitute. By these unjustifiable +and partial proceedings, the very same hops that were worth, and had been +selling at, twenty-three pounds a hundred, were reduced down to five +pounds, and even to three pounds a hundred. + +Mr. Timothy Brown was at the head of those brewers who acted as the tools +of the minister, to persecute Mr. Waddington, not for forestalling hops, +but actually for standing up to do his duty in the city of London, as a +liveryman, to oppose the ruinous system of ministers; and it is the best +proof that can be given of his earnestness and sincerity, that they never +relaxed in their persecutions against him till they had ruined him. He was +a merchant, a banker at Maidstone, and a trader, and, of course, he was +largely concerned in money transactions. Now the government can always +silence any man in this situation, or ruin him and his credit, if he +becomes really sincere in his opposition to them; and this is one good +reason why we radicals have nothing to expect from merchants, bankers, and +traders. The ministers have no objection to those persons who carry on a +_regular whig opposition_, because that is all in the way of business. +They are all in the regiment, and although they are upon what is called +half-pay, yet they belong to the regiment, and are always in the +expectancy of being called into active service again. The ministers +generally employ some of these expectants to do their dirty work for them; +and any measure that is prosecuted by the Whigs is, _at least was_, at the +time of which I am speaking, thought by a great number of well-meaning but +ignorant people, to be perfectly justifiable. As I pass along I shall be +able to prove to the reader, how well the _factions_ manage these matters, +how skilfully they always play into each other's hands, against the +rights, the property, and the liberties of the people. For instance, if +the ministers want any obnoxious measure brought into parliament, such an +one as, if it were to be suggested by themselves, would create a great +public feeling, alarm, and hostility to it, throughout the country--to +wit, if they want to carry a corn bill, to raise or keep up the price of +corn three or four shillings a bushel, the effect of which is, to lay a +tax of twenty or thirty millions a year upon the people who consume it, +they are cunning enough to put forward one of those _shoy-hoy_ Whigs. _Sir +Henry Parnell_, an Irish Whig baronet, must, forsooth, be the ostensible +parent of the measure, while the ministers are professing openly to be +doubtful of its expediency and policy. When all this has been done to +sound the people, they, at length, with a seeming reluctance, yield to the +suggestions of the landed interest, and the urgency of the state; and +should the people begin to be importunate, and remonstrate against the +measure, why then it is only necessary to bring upon the scene their +principal _shoy-hoy, Westminster's pride,_ to wit; and if he will but just +say at a Westminster meeting, "_that the measure is of little consequence +either to him or his constituents_;" and if, when he is called upon in the +House, by my Lord Castlereagh, to speak honestly his sentiments respecting +the measure, he will get up and merely tell the Noble Lord "_that he +deserves to be impeached; but that as to the corn bill it will be all the +same to him whether it is passed or not, that he is as much for it as +against it, but that he does not care which way it goes;_" why then the +juggle is rendered complete. Oh, what a farce! What a delusion! but the +ministers having got this hero on their side, the measure passes, and the +people are duped and deceived. As I proceed in my history, I shall be able +to shew to the public how necessary these _shoy-hoys_ are to the +ministers, and how often they have successfully played them off against +the people. So it was in this case. The Judges knew that there was no law +against Mr. Waddington. It was, therefore, necessary to make a shew of +great feeling and interest for the welfare of the people; and this Mr. +Timothy Brown, who was a Whig, and a partner of Whitbread, was selected as +the instrument upon this occasion. He was so selected because he bore Mr. +Waddington a personal hatred, and was glad to pursue him with vindictive +hostility, for a harmless joke which Mr. Waddington had played upon him. +Nor did he cease his attacks upon him till he actually ruined him. + +I will now explain the cause of his hatred and hostility. Mr. Waddington, +who was an active, intelligent, persevering man of business, and who, +besides being a banker at Maidstone, in the heart of East Kent[23], was +also engaged in the hop trade, as a hop merchant in the Borough; was a +great speculator in this speculating business, which always was considered +as a business of chance rather than of judgment. As, however, games of +chance are greatly governed by the penetration of those who play them, Mr. +Waddington payed that attention to the growth of hops, that he made it +rather a game of certainty than of hazard. In the spring and summer of +1800, this gentleman thought that he discovered a considerable stagnation +in the growth of the vine, as well as such a degree of disease generally, +in the crop of hops near Maidstone, that he was determined to make a +peregrination on foot through the gardens in all the hop districts in Kent +and Sussex. He carried his determination into effect; and having made such +observations as led to the conclusion, that it would be a very short crop, +he made large purchases of the growers, to be delivered at a certain price +when picked: this was called fore-hand bargains, and was the invariable +custom of transacting business between the farmers and the factors. Mr. +Waddington then started into Worcestershire, and having made a similar +survey of the growing crops in that county, and having come to a similar +conclusion, he made large purchases also upon the same terms as he had +done in Kent. As he returned through London he called upon his friend, Tim +Brown, and, in the true spirit of friendship, he communicated to him the +result of his travels, and his inspection of the hop gardens, both in Kent +and Worcestershire; and, as a proof of his conviction that there would be +a short crop, he informed him of the large purchases which he had made; +and added, that he should still increase his stock as the season +approached; advising, at the same time, his friend Brown, by all means, to +lay in a good stock of old hops, and purchase early and largely of new +ones.--Mr. Brown affected to hold Mr. Waddington's information very cheap, +and in fact treated his advice rather with ridicule than attention. + +At length picking time came, and Mr. Waddington's predictions were +realised to the very letter; there being not more than a quarter of a crop +grown that year. Mr. Brown had not only failed to follow his friend's +advice, but, relying upon some other information, had actually neglected +to lay in the usual stock for the house of Whitbread & Co. Mr. Waddington, +rather piqued at the slight put upon his judgment by his friend Brown, and +elated with his own success, sent Mr. Timothy Brown a GOOSE, as a quiz +upon him for his want of discernment, and lack of faith in his +representations. This innocent joke, which, I understand, was at that time +frequently practised by speculating men in the city, so enraged Mr. Brown, +that he vowed revenge; and smarting under the loss of not having had the +foresight to purchase his hops earlier, before they had risen a hundred +per cent. which they had now done, he became one of the remorseless +persecutors of, one of the conspirators to prosecute, Mr. Waddington upon +an obsolete law, for _forestalling_. + +A verdict having been obtained against Mr. Waddington, for forestalling in +Herefordshire, and being about to be tried in Kent, [24]the prosecutors +moved, the Court of King's Bench to remove the _venue_ out of Kent, upon +the ground, that the farmers were prejudiced so much in favour of Mr. +Waddington, that they could not obtain a fair jury. Mr. Law, who was +afterwards Lord Ellenborough, was his leading counsel; and upon his +argument, and the authorities which he cited, although they were strongly +opposed by the counsel on the other side, yet, as the prejudice was +proved, Lord Kenyon, upon the principle that the administration ought "not +only to be pure, but that it should be above suspicion," made the rule +absolute, and the cause was tried in Westminster Hall, by a Middlesex +jury. It was mainly upon this case that I rested my application, for the +court to remove the cause of the King against Hunt and nine others, for a +conspiracy, out of Lancashire into Yorkshire. The Middlesex jury was, +however as tractable as that in the country, and he had a second verdict +against him, for which he was sentenced to the custody of the Marshal of +the King's Bench. + +It was while he was undergoing his sentence, that, as I have already +mentioned, I became acquainted with him, and I passed my six weeks as +pleasantly as I ever passed any six weeks of my life. To be sure it put me +to a great expense, and a considerable loss, in taking me from my family, +home, and business; but I gained more real information, more knowledge of +the world, and of men and manners; more insight into mercantile, +political, and theological affairs than I should have gained in so many +years, if I had continued in the country, employing my time in farming, +shooting, fox hunting, and attending to the exercise of the yeomanry +cavalry. It is more than probable that I should never have taken the lead, +(such a lead!) in the political affairs of my country, if I had not thus +early been placed in such a situation, and in such company, by the +sentence of the Court of King's Bench. Before that period I had, it is +true, a natural and an inherent abhorrence of tyranny and oppression, and +my excellent parent had instilled into my breast a pure love of justice, +and an invincible attachment for fair play; and, therefore, it is not +likely that I should ever have been a tool of arbitrary power. Yet, if it +had not been for this circumstance, I should never have been such an +enthusiast for equal rights, and such a determined enemy to a corrupt, a +sham representation. + +Mr. Clifford found in me a willing, a zealous proselyte to the cause of +rational liberty, and a warm admirer of the principles of universal +political freedom. He recommended to my notice the political works of +Paine, particularly his _Rights of Man_, and applauded my determination +never to mingle religious with political discussions, and never to risk +the cause of liberty by doing any thing which could excite religious +prejudices. Mr. Clifford was a _Catholic_, a _rigid Catholic_, +notwithstanding which, there never lived a more sincere friend of +religious as well as of civil toleration. Some of our party were +frequently introducing theological discussions; and _some_, who ought from +their profession to have known better, denounced all religion as relics of +superstition. Mr. Clifford, as well as myself and Mr. Waddington, +discountenanced, and ultimately prohibited, those subjects. We each +professed our faith, and we did not choose to be dictated to, any more +than we wished to dictate to others, in matters of conscience. + +On my return into the country, I was met at Marlborough by my friend +Hancock, who accompanied me to Devizes, where we were joined by a large +party of friends, at a dinner, which was provided for the occasion, at the +Bear Inn. Some of my more rustic neighbours expressed great surprise to +see me look so well, after coming out of a prison; their idea of which had +led them to expect to see me look _thin, pale_, and _emaciated_. On the +contrary, they found that I had lost none of my usual ruddy and florid +appearance, and, instead of looking as if I had been fed upon bread and +water, I had grown stout and fleshy, although I had taken regular +exercise, and, compared with my usual habits in the country, had lived +moderately, and in fact abstemiously. Yet, with all my precaution, I had +so much increased in bulk, that it was very visible to all my friends who +had not called on me in London. + +I found my wife and children in perfect health, and they warmly greeted my +return. In fact, my absence was nothing more than passing six or seven +weeks in London. I found all my business going on with great regularity, +my stock in good order, and my hunters in excellent condition; and as I +longed to taste again the sports of the field, and to mingle in the +pleasures of the chase, my favourite mare was ordered to be ready on the +following morning, at the usual hour, that I might ride to join the +hounds, which threw off for the occasion within three miles of my house, +as the sportsmen were to meet upon the down of my farm at Widdington. + +Here I met my old brother sportsmen, who appeared rejoiced to see me once +more amongst them; but they one and all declared, that my scarlet coat was +grown too small for me. Some said, that I was grown a stone heavier; +others, that I was increased two stone; and some bets were made, +corresponding with these contending opinions; all, however, agreed, that I +was increased very considerably in weight. Like a true sportsman, I knew +my weight to an ounce before I went to London. It was twelve stone five +pounds. In the midst of this conversation, as we were riding along I +espied a hare sitting at a considerable distance; she was started, and off +we went, to the music of the many pack of harriers, supported by +subscription, but kept by Mr. Tinker, of Lavington. + +I was more than commonly elated, and enjoyed the sport with great +pleasure; in fact, I entered into the spirit of the chace with the +greatest enthusiasm. My beautiful high bred hunter was in admirable +condition and spirits, and appeared to participate with the rider in the +full zest of the sport; she almost fled with me across the downs, keeping +pace with the fleetest of the pack. The hills and vallies upon that part +of Salisbury Plain very much resemble those of Sussex, in the +neighbourhood of Brighton race-course. Persons unused to such countries +would consider them as almost precipices. Our horses, however, as well as +their riders, being accustomed to them, mounted them with apparent ease, +and generally descended them at full speed. I had been spanking across the +downs for nearly an hour, with the highest glee, and was going with great +speed down the well known steep hill which leads into Waterdean Bottom, +pressing on my mare, so that she might be enabled to ascend half way up +the opposite hill by the force of the increased velocity that she had +acquired in descending the other, which is the common practice of all good +sportsmen and bold riders in such a country. In passing with great speed +over some rather uneven rutty ground, at the bottom of the hill, I +received a violent and sudden shock, by my poor beast coming all at once +to a stand still. I jumped off without her falling, though she was nearly +down. She stood trembling, and I was shocked to find that she had _broken +both of her fore legs_: the right short off above the knee, and the other +below the fetlock joint. This was a most distressing accident, and the +miracle was, that she had not fallen, and I, her rider, been smashed in +the fall. But her wonderful courage saved me from almost inevitable +destruction, for we were going at the time with the velocity of an arrow +shot out of a bow. + +The other horsemen had gone on, and were soon out of sight, and I was left +in this situation upon the open down, a distance of two miles from my +home. Seeing the deplorable state of my poor horse, and knowing, from the +nature of the injury she had sustained, that it would be impossible to +recover her, I determined to proceed on foot to my home, that I might send +some proper person to release her from her misery; and I had gone some +little distance on my road, when, on looking round, I found the poor +creature hobbling after me, indicating, that it was her wish not to be +left alone and abandoned in such a pitiable state. My heart bled for my +faithful and noble beast, and I instantly attended to her apparent call +upon my humanity. I took the rein, and she followed me home, nearly as +fast as I could walk. When we[25] reached there, she was instantly +relieved from her pain by the last sad resource, the fatal unerring ball, +which, when directed by a skilful hand, produces instantaneous death, +without a groan, or scarcely a convulsive struggle. I dropped a tear when +she had breathed her last; consoled only by the reflection, that my life +had been spared by a merciful and beneficent Creator; for had the poor +animal fallen, at the swift pace she was going, my destruction must have +been inevitable. What is very remarkable, I never before or since ever +knew a horse break its legs, when going at full speed, without falling. +But this noble animal, in the struggle, in the amazing effort to save +herself from falling, when the bone of her right leg snapped, actually +fractured the other. I had the fractured bones of both legs preserved, for +the inspection of the curious, for many years afterwards. + +This sad accident was a great drawback to the pleasure that I had promised +myself in the chase during the spring of the year, subsequent to my return +from the King's Bench; and to add to my mortification and disappointment, +the first time I mounted my next greatest favourite hunter, I found that +it was brokenwinded. I had lent her, during my _residence in town_, (for +it is a farce to call it imprisonment) to a gentleman of the name of +Tompkins, who lived at Oakley House, near Abingdon; and he had returned it +in the state which I have described, so that my hunting was spoiled for +that season. + +Upon my being weighed it was not difficult to account for the lamentable +fate of my lost favourite. I found that I had increased _two stone two +pounds_ during my six weeks comparative inactivity in the King's Bench; +for, although I had taken much more exercise than my fellow prisoner, Mr. +Waddington, yet it was so very different from, and so much less than, that +which I had been in the habit of taking when I was in the country, that I +had increased in size and weight in the rapid manner which I have +described; and to this increase must be attributed the melancholy accident +which occurred to my unfortunate hunter. + +My friend Tompkins, who had returned my other hunter broken-winded, in +consequence of his servant's mismanagement in feeding, or his own +indiscreet riding, upon being informed of the circumstance, very coolly +answered, that he was sorry for it; and, in the true stile of a knowing +sportsman, he proposed to accommodate me in return--not by lending me one +of his hunters for the remainder of the season, but by selling me one, a +young horse, as he said, of great power and promise, which would just suit +me; and as a great favour he wrote me word, that he would part with it to +me, as a friend, at the same price which he had given for it. He invited +me to his house to see it, and I accepted his invitation, notwithstanding +his sister-in-law, not knowing of his intention to _oblige_ me with it, +had previously informed me that he was very much dissatisfied with his +purchase; that he had a most unfavourable opinion of the grey horse, and +that he would be happy to part with him at a loss, rather than not get rid +of what he considered as a very bad bargain. From the lady's description +of the horse and of the bad qualities for which Mr. Tompkins wished to +dispose of him, I had, however, formed a more favourable opinion of him, +and I was therefore determined to trust to my own judgment, and go and see +him, particularly as he was well bred. I accordingly visited Oakley for +the purpose, and without one word of higgling I gave him his price, which +was _forty guineas_, my _friend_ assuring me that he did it to oblige me, +and that he considered himself as doing me no small favour. Thus had this +sporting friend, to make amends for the loss he had occasioned me, by +breaking the wind of a favourite and valuable hunter, worth little less +than a hundred guineas, palmed upon me, for forty guineas, as a pretended +boon, a young three years old horse, which he did not think would ever be +worth sixpence! So much for sporting, horse-dealing friendships! However, +I had no reason to repent of my bargain. I got my horse into condition +before I tried him, and he turned out one of the best and most valuable +hunters in the kingdom, to the great mortification of my envious and +obliging friend; for, early in the next season, when he was only four +years old, the Honourable George Bowes, the brother of Lord Strathmore, +offered me three hundred guineas for him. I, however, never parted with +him, which I had reason to repent, for, a few days after I had refused +five hundred guineas for him, my friend Wm. Butcher's horse got loose in +my stable, and by a kick broke his fore leg, when I was obliged to have +him killed, and so ended poor OAKLEY! + +I was rather unlucky in my sporting acquaintance, as will be seen by the +following circumstance. Soon after my return from my imprisonment, my +friend Wm. Tinker, of Lavington, and his family came to visit me; after +dinner, amongst other things that I was relating, relative to what had +occurred during my stay at the King's Bench, I mentioned the toast that +was usually drank first by the prisoners every day, which was, "Plaintiffs +in prison, and defendants at liberty." Mrs. Tinker asked whether I and Mr. +Waddington had joined in this toast? I answered, yes; and added, that I +believed it was the first toast drank every day after dinner. This she set +down at once for a very disloyal sentiment, because my nominal plaintiff +or prosecutor was the King against Hunt, and she consequently pronounced +me, as I thought in a mere joke, to be a disloyal man, a jacobin. In this +opinion of hers she was confirmed, by learning that I had called upon +Colonel Despard in the Tower, and hearing me inveigh, in rather warm +language, against packed juries, treacherous lawyers, and corrupt judges, +and also venturing to call in question, "a la Clifford," some of the +measures of the heaven-born minister, she therefore set me down at once in +her mind as a rank jacobin; and, as the sequel will prove, she did not +fail to act upon this impression--for, about a month afterwards, I +received a letter from my only paternal aunt, to say that Mrs. Tinker had +informed her, that, since I had been in London, I became a disloyal man, +and that I had actually drank at my own table the most disloyal toast, +wishing the King to be imprisoned. All my forefathers, said my aunt, had +been loyal men, and one of them, Colonel Thomas Hunt, had been by nothing +short of a miracle saved from losing his head for his loyalty to King +Charles the Second; as therefore I had chosen to take a different course, +by professing different principles, she should alter her will, and leave +that fortune which she had intended for me to some other persons. She most +religiously kept her word; though in my reply I unequivocally disclaimed +any intention of offering the slightest insult to the King, or saying any +thing that could, without the most wanton misconstruction, be deemed +disloyal. Yet I claimed the right to think for myself, and did not admit +that, because I professed the most unbounded loyalty to the King, I ought +to pledge myself to a blind subserviance and attachment to all the +measures of his ministers. All that I could urge against this breach of +confidence, in betraying, nay, in misrepresenting a conversation at my own +table, and the malignity of Mrs. Tinker's motives, were of no avail. +Although this aunt died without any children, and I was her nearest of +kin, yet she made my quondam friend, Tinker, her executor, and never left +me a shilling. The reader will easily conceive that this neither changed +my politics nor increased my confidence in sporting friends. The fact was, +that this old lady was an illegitimate daughter of my grandfather, by a +relation of this Mrs. Tinker, whom he afterwards married. My grandfather +had been induced to leave this daughter a very considerable patrimony, at +the suggestion of my father; and, as she died without issue, it would have +been only an act of justice to have restored the money to its lawful +source. But the kind interference of Mrs. Tinker has sent it in another +direction, and I sincerely wish it may prosper with those who have +obtained it. I envy them not; I have retained my opinions, and they have +got the cash--much good may it do them, I say. + +Had not this Mrs. Tinker been a great croney of Mrs. Hunt's, the connexion +would have ceased from this time. I was, however, always very cautious +what I said afterwards, when Mrs. Tinker was of the party. By her +perversion of a conversation which occurred at my own table, by her +officious misrepresentation of me, she had been the cause of my losing +some thousand pounds. This was the first instance in which I experienced +the serious consequences of sporting liberal opinions. But it was not the +only instance in which this good lady (who was always called _mother_ by +her family and friends, from her very motherly habits) had an opportunity +of doing me a good turn in the same way. Another elderly lady, Mrs. Watts, +of Lavington, who had voluntarily made her will, and left me property and +estates, as being her nearest and only relation, upon being taken ill +desired that I should be sent for; but my evil spirit, Mrs. Tinker, who +was a neighbour, sent for another lady, and they contrived, as they said, +to get the old lady to _alter her will_ in her last moments, and leave her +property away from me to other persons. This was effected in such _a +manner_, and _at such a time_, and _under such circumstances_, that I +should have disputed the will had I not been afraid of exposing a relation +of my own, who was privy and instrumental to this mysterious transaction. +It is sufficient to say, that the old lady never signed her name, although +she wrote a most excellent and legible hand, this precious instrument +bearing only her mark; and the maid servant, who attended her, would have +proved quite sufficient to have set aside the will, and exposed the +parties concerned; but, as one of them was a very near relation of mine, +and one whose faults I have always been anxious to conceal and palliate, +rather than expose and condemn, I put up with the loss without opposing +the proof of the will. There is one fact more connected with this case, +which I will state, to show to what extent the cruelty of some persons +will lead them, when they wish to accomplish a bad action. The maid +informed me, and offered to swear it, that her mistress had constantly, +during several days illness, expressed the most urgent desire to see me, +and was anxious not to sign or to do any thing about her will, till I +arrived. She was, however, as repeatedly put off, by the assurance that I +had been sent for, and did not choose to come, though I was the whole time +at home, at a distance of a few miles, and never received the slightest +intimation of her illness till after her death. + +By this circumstance I may with great fairness reckon myself minus about +five thousand pounds; so that the politics which I had learned in the +King's Bench were not to me a source of profit; but, on the contrary, had +proved hitherto most detrimental to my pecuniary interests. But, thank +God! I was never a trading politician; for if I had been such, my losses +would have very soon made me a bankrupt in the cause. + +At this time, however, though the sentiments which I entertained upon +public matters were never concealed, but were, when occasion required, +expressed openly, and without reservation, I attended much more to my +business, to the sports of the field, and to my own pleasures, than I did +to politics. My farming concerns were well regulated and attended to, +though I spent a great portion of my time in fox-hunting and shooting, and +likewise kept a great deal of company; scarcely a day in the week passed +that I was not out at a party, or had one at my own house, but much more +frequently at home. This period I consider as far the least interesting +portion of my life. I kept an excellent table, had a good cellar of wine, +and there was never any lack of visitors to partake of it. The old adage, +"that fools make feasts and wise men partake of them," I cannot refrain +from acknowledging to have been pretty much realized at Chisenbury House. +When I look back, and recollect the train of hangers-on that constantly +surrounded my table, amongst the number of whom was always a parson or +two, I am induced to exclaim, in the language of Solomon, "it was all +vanity and vexation of spirit!" My life was a scene of uninterrupted +gaiety and dissipation--one continued round of pleasure. I had barely time +to attend to my own personal concerns; for no sooner was one party of +pleasure ended than another was made. The hounds met at this cover to-day, +at that to-morrow, and so on through the week. Dinners, balls, plays, +hunting, shooting, fishing, and driving, in addition to my large farming +concerns, which required my attendance at markets and fairs, and which +business I never neglected, even in this heyday of levity and vanity; all +these things combined, left me no leisure to think or reflect, and +scarcely time to sleep--for no sooner was one pleasure or amusement ended +than I found that I had engaged to participate in another; and I joined in +them all with my usual enthusiasm. In the midst of all this giddy round of +mirth and folly, I enjoyed less real pleasure and satisfaction, than I had +done at any former period of my life. I saw and felt that there was little +sincerity in the attachment of my companions; for there was no real +friendship in their hearts, though they would praise my wine, admire my +viands, and bestow the most unqualified compliments upon the liberality +with which they were dispensed. Their praise on this score was certainly +merited; for whether it was a dinner party or a ball, at Chisenbury House, +no expense or trouble was spared to make the guests happy, and to send +them away delighted with the entertainment. + +What a scene is this for me to look back upon. I might be said to have got +into the whirlpool, into the very vortex of endless dissipation and folly! +I saw and felt my error, but I knew not how to retreat. My wife, too, +entered into the very marrow of this round of pleasure and gay society. +The means to support all this were never wanting; for I found myself in +possession of landed property in Wilts and Somerset, at Littlecot and +Glastonbury, of the value of upwards of six hundred pounds a year, besides +all the large farming business which my father had left me. There was, +therefore, no deficiency of money; and I owe it to myself to say, that +large as was my expenditure, I took care never to live fully up to my +income; but had every year something considerable to lay by or to assist a +friend with. + +Fond as I then was of pleasure, no man attended more strictly to his +farming business than I did; and the farms of no man in the kingdom were +managed better, or were in higher condition. My farms at that time were +like gardens, and much cleaner and freer from weeds than most gardens; and +I had the best flock of Southdown sheep in the country, bearing the very +finest fleeces, the wool of which I sold for the very highest price in the +kingdom. I one year sold my wool, consisting of _four thousand fleeces_, +for a penny a pound more than was given for the boasted wool shorn from +the flock of the famous Mr. Elman, of Glind, in Sussex. When, at an +agricultural meeting, he was told of this fact, he very coolly answered, +that his wool was most decidedly the best, and that the superiority of +price which Mr. Hunt had obtained arose merely from the want of judgment +in the purchaser. This question was, however, set at rest the very next +year--for the wool dealer who had purchased Mr. Elman's wool, having heard +of my flock, came all the way out of Sussex, from the neighbourhood of +Chichester, and purchased my fleeces at _three half-pence_ a pound more +than he had given for the crack Sussex wool, and he paid for the carriage, +a distance of fifty miles, into the bargain. After this, Mr. Elman never +disputed the point as to the superior quality of my wool. I mention this +circumstance merely to show how determined I was to excel in every thing +which I undertook--at least, that I did every thing with enthusiasm. I +afterwards sold eight thousand fleeces at once, to some manufacturers, +Dean, Forsey, and Co. of Chard, in this county, at the highest price that +any wool sold for that season. Mr. Dean subsequently purchased _twenty +lambs_ at my sale, that he might have some of the stock; which he sold to +me again, when I called upon him some time afterwards. Out of this +circumstance, an infamous and scurrilous falsehood was propagated in the +columns of the _Taunton Courier_, representing me as having swindled my +friend Mr. Dean out of a flock of sheep. When I come to that period of my +history, I shall fully explain the affair to the satisfaction of every +candid person, and I shall convince every honest man, that the columns of +the _Taunton Courier_ have been made the vehicle to promulgate the most +barfaced and wanton falsehood against me, to serve a political purpose; +and that, in this instance, the _Taunton Courier_ has never been exceeded +in infamy, even by the falsehoods of its brother _Courier_ in London. + +In the year 1801, I grew twelve quarters of best oats per acre, upon eight +acres of poor down land, at Widdington, the rent of which was not more +than ten shillings an acre. They were sown after an uncommonly fine crop +of turnips, that averaged fifty tons to an acre. The land had been very +highly manured, both from the farm-yard and the fold, for the turnips, +which had been hoed three times. It was the heaviest and finest crop of +oats that I ever saw, and they stood full six feet high in the straw. I +was sitting on horseback, looking on while they were mowing them, and I +recollect that when Thomas Airs, one of the mowers, who was full six feet +high, swept his scythe into the standing corn, the ears of the oats +frequently struck his hat as he walked along. It was very fine weather, +and they were carried in and made into a rick by themselves, without +taking any rain. In the spring they were thrashed out, and all sold for +seed, at three pounds a quarter. Now, as they averaged twelve quarters an +acre, the sale amounted to thirty-six pounds an acre; nearly three times +the value of the fee-simple of the land. There was also more than three +tons of straw upon each acre, and as, during that season, straw sold at +six pounds per ton, the actual value of the produce (taking off one pound +a ton for the carriage of the straw) was 50_l_. per acre, while the +fee-simple of the land would not have sold for 20_l_. per acre. + +I have related this to shew what enormous profits were gained by good +farmers at those times. About this period it was, that the late Lord +Warwick, speaking in the House of Lords, of the state of insolence to +which the farmers had arrived, and alluding to their extravagant course of +living, assured his right honourable hearers, that some of them had +reached such a pitch of luxury, that they actually drank brandy with their +wine. This caused a laugh, but their lordships little knew how literally +true the assertion was. His lordship alluded to a gentleman farmer, of the +name of Jackson, who lived at ---- farm, in the county of Warwick, and who +then always took brandy with his wine. I, too, remember a humorous farmer, +and a very worthy fellow, of the name of Mackerell, of Collingbourn, who +frequently afterwards did the same thing, at the principal market room at +the Bear, at Devizes; at the head of which table I at that time presided +every week. Mackerell used to call this liquor (brandy and wine) Lord +Warwick; and another farmer used always to drink a nob of white sugar in +each glass of claret; for, be it known to the reader, that I have +repeatedly seen drank at that table, on a market day, by twelve or +fourteen farmers, two dozen of old port, and, as a finish, two dozen of +claret. Then they would mount their chargers, and off they would go in a +body, each of them with two or three hundred pounds in his pocket; and the +Lord have mercy upon the poor fellow who interrupted them, or failed to +get out of their way upon their road home! No set of men ever carried +their heads higher than they did; no set of men were ever more inflated or +more purse proud, than were the great body of the farmers during these +times of their boundless prosperity. For many years, the average price of +wheat was fifteen shillings a Winchester bushel; and as I recollect, and +shall never forget, the way in which they carried themselves during these +halcyon days of their happy fortune, I should like much to have a peep +into Devizes market now, of a Thursday, or into Warminster market of a +Saturday, just to see the contrast, just to observe how they look, and how +they conduct themselves, now they are selling their best wheat for seven +shillings a bushel, which is less than half the former price, while the +rent is the same, the taxes the same, and the poor rates are higher, +instead of lower! At that period, it only took me a hundred sacks of wheat +to pay my rent of Widdington farm. How many sacks must farmer Maslen sell +now to pay his rent of the same farm! I should not wonder if three hundred +sacks would fall short of paying it this year. At that epoch Mr. Pocock, +who rented Enford farm of Mr. Benett, could pay his _rent_, _taxes_, and +_poor rates_, for the sum at which he could sell _three hundred_ sacks of +wheat. The present tenant, Mr. Fay[26], must, in this present year, 1821, +sell _one thousand_ sacks of wheat, to raise the money to pay his _rent_, +_taxes_, and _poor rates_. What a falling off for the farmers! Let us hope +that they will display somewhat more fortitude and patience, in the days +of their adversity, than they did moderation, Christian forbearance, and +temper, in their days of prosperity. + +On the ninth of February, in this year, peace was signed, at Luneville, +between our beloved ally, Austria, and France. On the second of March, the +state prisoners were liberated, some of whom had been cruelly confined for +many years under the suspension bill; and, on the seventeenth of March, +1801, there was a complete change in the British ministry, by a deep +juggle of Mr. Pitt, who resigned. He and his colleagues were succeeded by +Mr. Addington, the Speaker of the House of Commons, and his family and +friends. On the twenty-first, Sir Ralph Abercromby was killed at the +bloody battle of Alexandria, in Egypt; and, on the same day, negociations +for peace were entered into, between England and France, by Lord +Hawkesbury and M. Otto. On the second of April, the Danish fleet of +twenty-eight sail, anchored off Copenhagen, was all taken or destroyed by +Lord Nelson. Such was the fury of the battle, and such was the bravery +with which the Danes defended themselves, that, after great carnage on +both sides, some of the English ships employed on the occasion were nearly +silenced by the batteries. Nelson, perceiving this, sent in a flag of +truce and offered terms, which the Danish governor accepted. On the +nineteenth, the Habeas Corpus Suspension Act, and the Seditious Act, +passed by a large majority, in both Houses of Parliament; and immediately +afterwards, the ministerial indemnity bill also passed. On the sixth of +May, the famous motion was made by Lord Temple, the present Marquis of +Buckingham, for a new writ for Old Sarum, to exclude Mr. Horne Tooke from +the House of Commons; he having been elected for that rotten borough by +Lord Camelford, who was then the proprietor of it. The ground of his being +ineligible to sit in the Honourable House was, that he had formerly taken +priest's orders. This fact being proved, a law was passed, by which Mr. +Horne Tooke was excluded from sitting in future. Lord Camelford was so +enraged at this measure, that he threatened to return his black servant as +the member; and it is thought he would have actually done so, if it had +not been for the earnest entreaties of Lord Grenville, who was a relation +of Lord Camelford. On the twenty-second of July, there was a grand review +of the volunteer corps in Hyde Park. The number assembled was four +thousand eight hundred. + +On the first of October, preliminary articles of peace, fifteen in number, +were signed, between England and France, by Lord Hawkesbury and M. Otto. +On the 10th of October, Old Michaelmas-day, Gen. Lauriston arrived in +London, with the ratifications of the Treaty of Peace between Great +Britain and France; and the General was drawn through the streets by the +populace. There were very violent debates in both Houses of Parliament, +against the Preliminaries of Peace. The opposition dissented from calling +it a Glorious Peace; but the ministers carried it by very large +majorities. During this year, the price of bread and all sorts of +provisions had been remarkably high; at one period the quartern loaf sold +for _one shilling_ and _tenpence halfpenny_, and the poor suffered very +much throughout the country. The great mass of the people, therefore, +hailed the approach of peace with France, in hopes of better times; and +every one appeared rejoiced at the cessation of the horrible carnage of +war, which had been raging with so much violence. The French ministers +were very well satisfied with the Court of St. James's, who had at last +formally acknowledged Napoleon as the head of the French Government. +Although there were many, amongst the opposition, who denounced the +preliminaries as a hollow truce, declaring that if peace was concluded +upon so unsatisfactory a basis, and so disadvantageous for Great Britain, +the English Government would soon be obliged to violate the treaty, which +must lead to fresh hostilities; I, for one, sincerely rejoiced at the +return of peace; for I had long been convinced that the war was carried +on, not to preserve this country from the horrors of the French +revolution; that it had never been waged for any of its avowed purposes; +that it had from the beginning been a war against the principles of +liberty, established by the revolution in France, which had been attacked +by every despotic power in Europe; every one of which powers the French +troops had, under the banners of liberty, defeated over and over again. I +now looked upon the object of the war with a very different eye from what +I had formerly done, and I took a more correct and dispassionate view of +its cause, and the intentions of those who first declared hostilities, +than what I did when I first enrolled my name amongst the members of the +yeomanry cavalry. I had now had time to reflect, the six weeks which I had +passed in the neighbourhood of the King's Bench, where I had access to +some of the most experienced and intelligent men in the kingdom, had not +been spent in vain. The time that a man spends in a prison is not always +thrown away, as I have found by experience; and I shall, I trust, be able +to prove by and by, to the satisfaction of my numerous readers, that the +time I have spent in this Bastile has been the most valuable part of my +life. I never before knew what real leisure was. I have enjoyed retirement +as much as any man in England; but then I have been always surrounded with +my family and friends; I have never, before now, known what it was to have +seven or eight hours of a day exclusively to myself. I am locked up in +solitary confinement in my dungeon every night, at six o'clock, without my +having the power to go to any one, and without any one having the power to +come to me, excepting the turnkey, which, thank God! never happens now +after locking-up time, though it used to be the case very frequently when +I first came here. It is considered a violation of the rules to go near a +prisoner, unless upon a great emergency, after he is locked up; but it was +not deemed any violation of rules for the turnkey to be constantly coming +to my dungeon, and, with an authoritative rattling of the lock of the +door, marching in to say that Mr. Bridle, the gaoler, wanted a newspaper, +&c. &c. However, that is all at an end, and I am never interrupted. I can +sit down with a book or a pen at six o'clock, almost with a certainty of +not being interrupted by any living creature, for six, seven, or eight +hours at a time. My keepers think this the greatest punishment that can be +inflicted upon me; but, on the contrary, I contrive to turn their malice +to advantage, and make this the most valuable time of my life. Few men can +boast such a luxury. I really enjoy it beyond description. No thanks to my +persecutors; and I should not be surprised if, when they read this, which +I know they all will, if they were to devise some means to deprive me of +this comfort of retirement. I have made them feel, and I will continue to +make them feel, that though I expose their petty tyranny, and their little +acts of meanness towards me, yet, that my mind is above the reach of their +vindictive malice. I understand that some of them are praying for the +suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, that they may have me delivered over +to their power; that I may be left to their unrestrained will, to inflict +torture upon me in secret--well! and what then? I will laugh at their +torture, and make them painfully conscious of their own insignificance, +even while they stand over me and inflict it. + +When I was in the King's Bench, I had none of those trials. My time passed +very pleasantly, and as a great portion of it passed in the best of +society, amongst some of the most intelligent men of the age, my time was +not thrown away. I was induced to think for myself, and to form my own +opinion of public men and public measures, without placing, as I had +hitherto done, an implicit reliance upon the opinions of others whom I +supposed to have had more experience, and better means of judging of such +matters, than I had. I began not only to think but to act, for myself. +Among the many facts that I ascertained, not the least important was, +"_that common fame was a common liar_." Mr. Clifford had brought me +acquainted with all the tricks, frauds, and deceptions of the public +press; and, to convince me that almost the whole of the public press of +that day was venal and corrupt, he proved to a demonstration, by some +_practical experiments_, that for a _few pounds_, any thing, however +absurd, might be universally promulgated; particularly if the absurdity +was in favour of the ruling powers. For instance, he wrote a paragraph, +the greatest hoax that ever was, in praise of the mild and amiable +manners, the courtesy, and the humanity of Harry Dundas. Now, said he, to +show you how this will be promulgated by the venal press, and how it will +be swallowed by John Bull, give me _five shillings_, and I will put it +into the hands of one of the runners for collecting information for the +papers, and you shall see it in all the newspapers, both in London and the +country. I produced the crown-piece immediately, and out it came, in one +of the morning papers, the next day; and as he had predicted, it was +copied into all the London and country papers. Thus the humanity and +suavity of one of the most unfeeling and impudent Scotchmen that ever +crossed the Tweed, was cried up to the skies, and he was eulogised by some +of them as the very cream of the milk of human kindness! Then as to public +opinion, and the popularity of the leading characters of the day, Mr. Fox, +to wit,--Mr. Clifford has a hundred times declared to me, that this great +Westminster patriot was never drawn home in his carriage from the hustings +in his life, by the populace, without the persons who drew him being +regularly _hired_ and _paid_ for it. The price was always _thirty +shillings_, to be divided amongst twenty persons, a shilling _dry_, and +six-pence _wet_, each person. Clifford assured me this office, of hiring +the men to draw their candidates home, was frequently allotted to him, and +that it was invariably the same with Mr. Horne Tooke, and Mr. Chamberlain, +alias John Wilkes; and that he would undertake to have me or Mr. +Waddington drawn through the streets of London, from Whitechapel to +Piccadilly, for the same sum. At this time there was in fact very little +disinterested patriotism amongst the working classes of the community. +They had, for so many years, been made the regular dupes of those who were +called the Opposition Members of Parliament, without that faction, +denominated the Whigs, having ever done any essential service for the +people at large, that public feeling, amongst the labouring classes of +mechanics and manufacturers, was at a very low ebb. Nor is this to be at +all wondered at, because none, not one, of these great leading public +characters ever professed to accomplish any thing that would openly, +tangibly, and immediately give any political rights to the people at +large.--Whenever the Opposition or Whigs wished to oust their opponents, +or harrass them in their places, they used to call public meetings in +London, Westminster, and other places; and they never failed to get the +multitude to pass any Whig resolutions which they might choose to submit +to them; there never being, at that time, any body to oppose or expose +their factious and party measures. The people, in London and Westminster, +always supported the Opposition against the Ministers; but they had +nevertheless, sense enough to discover that there was no direct intention +in the Opposition to render any immediate or effectual benefit to the +people. Whatever the Whigs promised, it was all remote and in perspective. +It cannot, therefore, excite surprise that there should have been none of +that enthusiasm which has been so evidently manifested by the people +within the last seven years. How many score times have I been drawn by the +populace?--and yet it never, in the whole course of my life, cost me or +any of my friends, the value of a pot of porter for any thing of the sort. +It is easy to account for this alteration in the popular feeling. The +change has been brought about in consequence of myself, and those who have +acted with me, having openly avowed our determination to endeavour to +obtain for the people equal political rights, which will lead to equal +justice; to procure for every sane adult a vote, an equal share in the +representative branch of the government, in the Commons' House of +Parliament; to procure for every man that which the constitution says he +is entitled to, and that which the law presumes he has, namely, a share in +choosing those Members of the People's, or Commons' House of Parliament; +who have a third share in making those _laws_, by which the lives, the +liberties, and the property of the people are regulated and disposed of. + +But to return to my narrative--I was now living in the zenith of +thoughtlessness, if I may be permitted to call it by so mild an +appellation. I had a large income, and I contrived to live nearly, though +not quite, up to it, by keeping a great deal of expensive company, and an +expensive establishment, both within and without doors. In all this my +wife fully participated; but I attribute no blame to her for this. It was +_my_ business and my duty to know better, and to act otherwise. There is +no excuse for me, as I did know that I was leading what might be fairly +and justly called a dissolute life: I do not mean to admit that there was +any thing which is generally termed criminal in my conduct, but I must +say, if I tell the truth, which I am determined to do at all hazards, that +I led a very dissipated existence. + +When I look back soberly, and divest myself of fashionable prejudices, I +cannot conscientiously call it by any milder name. In fact, though my +habits at that period were similar to those of thousands and thousands of +fashionable families in the country, who are looked upon as most +respectable and correct people, I cannot look back but with regret upon +the manner in which I spent this most valuable portion of my time. +Hunting, shooting, coursing, or fishing all day, and every day; and then +at night, instead of passing it with my family and children in the calm, +serene, delightful joys of a domestic and rational fireside, I had always +a large party at home, or made one amongst the number at a friend's house. +Seldom were we in bed till two or three o'clock in the morning. The next +day brought sporting, and the next night a ball, or a card party, or a +drinking party; and thus I was hurried from one scene of dissipation to +another, without ever allowing myself time scarcely to look round, seldom +to look back, and never seriously to reflect. It was with me even in +dissipation, as it was in every thing else that I engaged in, that I was +enthusiastic. In this record of my errors and failings, the reader must +therefore prepare himself to hear, at any rate, of some thumping faults; +and although I do not deserve, and do not expect, to escape the deep +censure of some, yet I rely upon the liberal indulgence of the more +virtuous portion of the community, who know that it is the lot of man to +err, but that it is godlike to make allowances for human infirmities, and +to forgive them. And, after relating all my errors, I shall boldly say, in +the language of our Saviour, "Let him that is without fault cast the first +stone." + +In the midst of this life of thoughtless gaiety and pleasure, I was always +greatly attached to female society, and I gave the preference to those +amusements where females were of the party, such as dancing, music, and +those card parties where they could join. In consequence of this, I +frequently escaped those Bacchanalian carousals to which many of my +intimate friends and companions were strongly addicted. Not that I mean to +pretend, that, when I made one of those parties, I ever flinched. No; I +took my bottle as freely as any of them; but, thanks to a good +constitution, never to excess, or rather never so as to become inebriated. +Dancing I enjoyed, and participated in to excess. My partiality to female +society led me into many extravagancies, and into some difficulties; for I +could not pay moderate attention to a lady. My partner, if I admired her, +received my enthusiastic attention; for, though I was a married man, yet I +suffered no single man to outdo me in polite assiduities to my partner. +This sometimes drew down upon me the anger, and upon one occasion the +unjust suspicion, of Mrs. Hunt. A young lady, who was upon a visit in our +family, had attracted my particular notice. She was handsome, elegant, +lively, and fascinating, and I was at first led to pay her more marked +respect, because I discovered that it excited the envy of a widow lady of +Andover, who came with her on a visit to our house. She, like many of her +fellows, because she never possessed any of those personal charms, or +acquired accomplishments, that please all who come within the reach of +their influence, was uncommonly envious of those who did; and, setting +herself up as a sort of duenna to this young lady, undertook to take her +to task, for receiving with so much ease and unconcern, my extremely +marked attention, which she declared made my wife very unhappy.--This was, +at that moment, a barefaced falsehood of the old hag, though she contrived +afterwards by her arts, insinuations, and fabrications, to produce that +effect in the breast of Mrs. Hunt. The old widow, whom I shall for +convenience sake call Mrs. Butler, at first was successful in thwarting, +as she said, her young friend's amusement, and in rendering miserable the +person whom she affected to pity; but at last, by carrying her calumnies +too far, she failed altogether in her diabolical schemes; for, having +represented to Mrs. Hunt that she had seen me take a gross and indecent +liberty with the young lady, the falsehood struck my wife so forcibly, +that the object of it was very visible even to her jaundiced eye, and +without ceremony she ordered her carriage, and packed the slanderer off to +her own home, very properly forbidding her ever entering her door again. + +Though my wife behaved with becoming spirit upon this occasion, by +banishing such a fiend in human form from her house, yet the latent sparks +of jealousy which had been lodged in her breast were still too visible to +be concealed. I was stung by being subject to such unjust suspicions, and, +instead of taking the prudent and proper course, conscious of the purity +and innocence of my feelings with respect to our young visitor, I +continued, nay, redoubled, my zealous devotion. Instead of healing the +breach that this fracas had made, I braved it out; and what before was +only the polite attention, which I was always in the habit of paying to an +interesting female, became now, to all outward appearance, an enthusiastic +attachment. Unfortunately, too, the young lady, feeling indignant at the +groundless and unjust ideas of Mrs. Hunt, too readily fell into my views, +and appeared to be very much pleased with my open and increased +assiduities. This added fuel to the fire; it led to the most unpleasant +consequences, and laid the foundation for those little bickerings which +are too apt to create, at length, a mutual indifference. However, after +having braved the affair out for a few days, the young lady returned +amongst her friends, who had the sincerity and candour to represent to her +the imprudence of her conduct; and this flirtation, which was so innocent +in fact, but so injurious in its result, was at once put an end to. I have +related this seemingly uninteresting affair, first to shew and admit the +folly of which I was guilty, for folly it was, to say the least of it; and +next, as a warning to my young readers, to avoid the rock of tampering +with and irritating the feelings of those whom they ought to love and +cherish. I sincerely believe if a man once excites jealousy in the breast +of his wife, whether well founded or not, the virus that it engenders is +of such a corroding nature that it is seldom, if ever, totally eradicated. +Married persons, therefore, can never be too circumspect in their conduct. +Though I never offered the most distant insult, or ever took even the most +innocent liberty, with this young lady, yet I admit that I was guilty of +an act of gross and wanton imprudence. I was guilty of great injustice to +the young lady, and of greater injustice to Mrs. Hunt; and I feel at this +moment, that, to induce the reader to forgive this faulty part of my +conduct, will require a considerable portion of liberality and good +nature, and of that amiable Christian virtue which teaches a person +conscious of his own innocence, to look with charity upon the failings of +others. + +END OF VOL. I + + + +ERRATA IN VOL. 1. + +[1] _for_ Stafford, _read_ Strafford. +[2] _for_ a great, _read_ at a great. +[3] _for_ preading, _read_ dreading. +[4] _for_ scenes which, _read_ scenes of misery. +[5] _for_ five, _read_ three. +[6] _for_ Dr. Stills, _read_ Mr. Stills. +[7] _for_ Barwis, _read_ Barvis. +[8] _for_ loud, _read_ old. +[9] _for_ ascend, _read_ descend. +[10] _for_ this time, _read_ at this time. +[11] _after_ Westcombe, _read_ was one of them, and he. +[12] _for_ Sycencot, _read_ Syrencot. +[13] _for_ settled to the, _read_ settled the. +[14] _for_ say, _read_ says. +[15] _for_ wer, _read_ were. +[16] _read_ were given without delay. +[17] _read_ went over with me in a chaise. +[18] _for_ hat, _read_ that. +[19] _for_ mothers, _read_ mother. +[20] _for_ listen to, _read_ listen to it. +[21] _for_ Brook-street, _read_ Brock-street. +[22] _for_ the Bear-inn, _read_ the inn. +[23] _for_ East-street, _read_ East Kent. +[24] _read_ the prosecutors moved, the Court of King's + Bench to remove the venue out of Kent, upon + the ground, that the farmers were prejudiced + so much in favour of Mr. Waddington, that + they could not obtain a fair jury. +[25] _for_ when she reached, _read_ when we reached. +[26] _for_ Mr. Foy, _read_ Mr. Fay. + +[Note: The errata listed here have been applied to this text. The +page & line originally quoted have been replaced by alphabetical markers +[n], which refer to similar markers placed in the text where such +amendments were made. + +[12] Sycencot -> Syrencot--referred to a single page/line. Syrencot is the +location of Dyke's house; it occurs at 3 other places in the text--these +have been changed and marked. +[16] deletes 'for furniture &c.' +[17] replaces 'went over in a chaise to Devizes the evening before.' +[24] replaces 'he moved the Court of King's Bench to remove the _venue_ +out of Kent, on the score of a prejudice having been raised against him in +that county.' ] + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Memoirs of Henry Hunt, Esq. 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