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It appears that this pillar , erected on that part of the Blackdown Hills which forms a part of the estate purchased by Parliament for the Duke , has fallen into a condition of decay not very creditable to the public spirit of the county . It cannot be from lapse of years ; it must be from the imperfection of the original design , r perhaps the niggardliness of the execution . We have been favoured with a copy of a letter , addressed to Lord Portman by Mr . Arthur Kinglake , whose name and family are identified with Taunton , whose father was foremost in the ori ginal proposal of a monument in Ij 3 l 7 , and who now conies forward energetically to redeem the character of the county from the imputation of indifference , and from the mute but deep reproach which alone the dilapidated pillar now serves to
record . Mr . Arthur Kinglake , in a small pamphlet printed for private circulation , giyes a succinct and interesting history of this monument . He thinks , with good reason , that the republication of the proceedings of 1817 , when the monument was first planned , may serye to revive that patriotic ardour which thirty-seven years of peace ( we may add , thirty-one years of protection , and a lustrum and a half of free trade ) have somewhat quenched .
The original design was grand ; it was a triangular plinth rising from a circular basement—the latter formed by a circular flight of steps , eighty feet in diameter , and eight feet in height , divided by three blocks projecting from the angle of the base of the Pillar . These blocks were to be appropriated to retreats for three military pensionersone a native of England , one of Scotland , one of Ireland ; the three faces of the plinth were to bear an inscription in three languages . The angles were to be ornamented with brass cannon selected from those taken at
Waterloo , and presented by the then Prince Begent . The shaft of the pillar supported by the plinth was to have been ninety-five feet in height , and surmounted by a pedestal crowned with a colossal statue of the Duke in the attitude of military command . This grand and imposing design , like many other similar intentions , was considerably abridged in the accomplishment . The actual pillar is described by the architect recently appointed to survey and report upon its condition , with a view to the realization of the original
scheme , as " bold and imposing , " but apparently unfinished . The main body of the outer flint wall is still sound , but the sandstone facing falling rapidly into rain . The interior and upper parts of the tower have suffered much from want of protection in such an exposed situation , and one angle , for want of a lightning conductor , has been completely rent off by the storms that sweep those hills . The monument has also suffered , like all English monuments , from the barbarism of Vandal snobs , who have removed
from time to time , and bit by bit , the greater portion of the basso relievo inscription . The present architect , Mr . Giles , suggests that in completing the original soheme , it would be better to keep the base of the pillar unbroken , and , considering the exposed site , to build a detached house for the three guardian pensioners , at a short distance from the column . For this purpose an endowment and repair fund will of course be necessary . Mr . Giles recommends , as wo think , with rare discretion and good sense , that the proposed colossal statue should be altogether abandoned . His remarks on this point are worth citing : —¦
" I should not adviso that any statuo be placed as a termination to the Monument . It is quite certain that no monuments of this kind have over , ovon in cities , fulty satisfied . A good work of art is thrown away at such a height , and a bad ono is never worth its cost . "When there is a statuo it should bo the principal object , sufficiently near tho eyo to bo thoroughly appreciated , and to it every thing elso should bo accessary . Thoro is also great difficulty and expense incurred in fixing securely largo
statues on the summit of buildings . The Nelson Monument in Trafalgar-square is seriously marred by a largo coil of ropo at its back , which mass was considered necessary to givo stability to tho figure . I boliovo that tho more nearly tho design approaches a simple pillar or tower , tho bottor for a monument intondod to bo seen at a distance chiefly , and tho loss of ornament in such an exposed situation tho less dilapidation will ensue . Should it bo ady iflod to erect a statue , aorao appropriate sito may be found in eithor of tho towns of Taunton or Wellington . "
Tho estimate of cost of rofltorution , including tjio pillars , tho house for pensioners , and tho endowment and ropair fund , with tho contingent expenses , is laid b y Mr . Giles at 3000 Z . Mr . Arthur Kinglako , in his lifctlo pamphlet , prints a letter from tho I ) uko to Lord Somorvillo , written ft-pra Paris in February 1816 , when tho Duke was in command of tho army of occupation , thanking Lord ( Somervillo for tho measures which had boon taken to erect the monument . Wo cannot forbear to reproduce this note . It bus moro warmth and colour , while- it has all tlie brevity and decision of later lottors from the same hand : —
' To the Bight Humble , the Lord Somerville . Paris , Feb . 1 , 1816 . * ' I received b y the last post your letter of the 22 nd , and I assure you that I am much flattered by the measures which have been adopted , with a view to erect a Monument f or the Battle of Waterloo , on the estate of "Wellington . "I have received Mr . Kinglake ' s report ; I have so little knowledge of _ my own affairs , and . possessing no former report to which I can refer I can form no opinion
" My opinion has long been , that ; I have either too much or too little property in the neighbourhood , and I will readily , as depends on me , follow your advice in increasing it , either by the way of inclosure or purchase . I shall be obliged to you if you will give such directions as you may think necessary respecting the same . " Ever , my dear Lord , yours most sincerely , "Weiiinoton . "
The Duke subsequently , says Mr . Arthur Kinglake , " identified himself with the feelings and interests of this county , by a personal inspection of the Pillar , and a special visit to the town of Wellington . " The foundation-stone of the Monument was laid o » the 27 th of October , 1817 , by Lord Somerville , in the presence of a concourse of ten thousand persons , just twenty-two months after the meeting held at the Thatched House Tavern in London , at which the project was first advanced , and the subscription list commenced , in which the Prinee Regent , the other Princes of the Blood , and Marshal Blucher , among other great names , figured conspicuously . We now come to a in the of this
rather discreditable circumstance history monument . The Prince Regent , on the application of Lord Somerville , had granted a certain number of heavy ordnance , captured in the Peninsula and at Waterloo , to be selected for the purpose of ornamenting the base of the column . These cannon were sent round by water to Exeter , and there remained unclaimed , in the Council Chamber of that city , as a security for unpaid freight , wharfage , &c . "Application , " writes the present Mayor of Exeter to Mr . Arthur Kinglake , " was made subsequently to various quarters , but no owner could be found , and on the present Council taking office they became their property . "
" Some years back notices were ( as by act required of unclaimed goods remaining in the Council ' s cellars ) given , and those remaining unclaimed after such notice , were again advertised for sale and public auction held , and at this sale a brass cannon out of the lot was sold , the remaining being only worth old metal , as cast iron , were planted round the Exeter Quay , as boundaries for a certain enclosure , and where they now remain " Really this neglect is unpardonable after such a violent display of " British feeling , " patriotism , and urratitude , as we find embalmed in the after-dinner oratory of the " gentlemen of the first distinction in the county , " who sat down to a good dinner at the " White Hart Inn on October 17 , 1817 , and" —after
the cloth was removed , and— " the yeomanry dismissed , " toasted , " Our good old King" ( how queer this sounds to our ears !) , the Duke of York , and other " loyal" toasts , " with appropriate respect . " We are afraid that the excitement of that evening must have been succeeded by more than the usual depression . At any rate , the enthusiasm of these county gentlemen lias remained laid up in ordinary ever since . Apropos of the cannon , Mr . Arthur Kinglake says
well" A letter from tho Mayor of Exeter , in answer to my inquiries relating to tho Waterloo cannon , and intended as an adjunct to tho present monument , forms a painful feature in local history . Tho trophies gathered from the greatest victory in modern times have found , I grieve to say , an ignominious destiny . Truly tho old familiar Latin quotation is correct , which tolls us that ' wo may reap wisdom from our enemies . ' Tho Bridge of Austorlitz , and the Column in tho Place Vondomo might have suggested to Englishmen a happier application for cannon , taken at Waterloo , than to ' form tho boundaries' of certain inclosuros . "
The meeting of tho " aristocracy of Somerset , " who wore opportunely called together at the instance of Mr . Arthur Kinglake on tho occasion of tho funeral of tho Duko , to take measures for restoring the monument , and redeeming tho reputation of their county , and of their fathers , who bad not tho courugo to accomplish what enthusiasm had begun , was in many respects interesting . It was called together by tho representative of an old county fnmily , tho son of tho gentleman who originated the design in 1817 : it was attended in moro than ono instance by tho sons of
thoso who laid the foundation-stone ; and wo are glnd to remark that it took pluco before dinner . Wo truHt the enthusiasm displayed on this occasion , sustained by tho oloquonco of Mr . liickhum Escott and tho lino fooling of Colonel Tynto and others , will not evnpomto so soon on that of tho 100 gentlemen who drank to " Our good old King" at tho Whito Hart , on tho 27 th of October , 1817 . Wo hnvc hoard it whispered , howoyor , to our grout regret , that tho patriotism of tlio prtiHunt generation of tho HomernutHhiro aristocracy in rutljor lukewarm on the subject now that tho llrat flush of feeling has faded away . Wo bqpo that in
this case , at least , they will not yield to the ennui which the protracted and cumbrous ceremonies of the ¦ tate funeral , and the tedious bewailing of "The Duke , " sur tous les tons , by mere tradere in death and fame , has undoubtedly created . There are already many local monuments , chiefly statues , more or less execrable in taste , and more or less disgraceful to the country , erected to Wellington in his life-time . But there should be one national monument worthy of his name , of his services , and of his country . We cordially and entirely agree with the gentlemen of Somerset in thinking , that if a site is to be chosen for such a monument ,
none can be found to compete in national advantages and in local associations with this grand outpost of the Blackdown Hills , overlooking one of the loveliest vales of England , and visible " from sea to sea . " Let it not be forgotten that Wellington was by ancestry and descent a Somersetshire man . The family of Wellesley , originally " Wellesleigb , " take their name from the manse of that name , in a hamlet one mile distant southward from the ancient and beautiful city of Wells . The Duke emphatically recognised " his county" when he visited Taunton in September , 1819 . It is customary to laugh at " Zuramerzet" bumpkins ; indeed ,
we are not quite sure that we can acquit our own conscience of having indulged in some such feeble joke in the heat of last July , or rather of the contested elections in that month . On another occasion , perhaps , we may do justice to the squires of that county by noticing the honourable conciliation that has knit together hostile parties , since the affirmation of Freetrade by a Protectionist Ministry , in united exertions for agricultural improvement . But , not to digress too far from our present subject , be it
remembered that Somersetshire , though wise men did come from the East , can boast , within a circuit of a few miles , a monument to Wellington , one to the great Lord Chatham , one to Lord Hood , and one where the good King Alfred first raised his standard . Not many miles off , in the same county , is the birthplace ( without a monument , ) of Locke . Somersetshire , therefore , is not Bceotia , save in the fatness of her teeming soil : in men , she has been Attica , and Sparta too .
It would surely , we submit with great deference to the gentlemen present at the meeting last January , be a real honour to the county , to erect a national monument worthy of the name , solely and wholly at tho county ' s expense . Jealousy of extraneous contributions would be not simply a feeling to be pardoned , but to be admired . Mr . Gore Langton , one of the members for the western division of the county , urged that subscriptions should " not be confined to the countv of Somerset . " We
can appreciate this feeling . No doubt Mr . Gore Langton meant to say , that a national monument should be the result of a nation al subscription . Mr . Langton is evidently not so much a local as a general patriot The public will , we are sure , be glad to accept his suggestion ; unless , as we would fain believe probable , ( we do but whisper the hint , ) the gentlemen of Somerset come forward at once , with such a response to Mr . Arthur Kinglake ' generous appeal , as shall at once make a national monument local , and a local tribute national .
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YANKEE CHALLENGE . AccoKBliro to an American paper , a meeting of the New-York Yacht Club was held on the 4 th of February , and an invitation was given to all tho world to go and con ( on d for a prize in October next . " Tho attention of tho English and Russian press to this official publication , was especially invited . Tho prize offered may bo considered a very small one ; but in this regard our club was guided by tho prize offered by tho ltoyal Yacht Club in 1851 , which was 100 J . And so in relation to the decision not to allow any time for difference of tonnage . Such ia the English rule , and our own custom ia abandoned to mako ^ it conform to their rule . Wo cannot doubt but this invitation will bo accepted in the spirit of generous rivalry in which it is offered ; and wo promiso all who come—to whatever nation they may belong—d frank and hospitablo reception , and some wonderfully fast craft with which to contend , and to carry off tho p ' rizo from which will bo sufficient honour to compensate for tho comparatively small value of tho prize itself . New York Yacht Club , Now York , Feb . 4 , 1853 .
At the first gonoral meetiuL' of the dub for tho present yoar , it was resolved , that this club offer a prize of tho viUuo of fivo hundred dollars , to bo sailed for on tho 13 th of October noxt ( 1853 ) , open to yachts of all nations , provided ono foreign yacht b « entered for tho race . Tho course to bo from Itobiiia' Jtoof Light in tho harbour of Now York , around a vessel to bo anchored east by south , half south , twolvo miles from tho beacon on Sandy Hook , passing to tho . southward and wc-Btward of tho Southwoat Spit , and to tho eastward of tho buoy on the woat bank , going and roturning . Tho ontrioB to cIobo on the 22 d of September . Tho raco to bo under tho direction of the regatta committee , subject to the ruloa and regulation * of tho club , except that no timo Bhall bo allowed for differenco of tonnage .
The course indicated is ono of thoso over which the yachts of thia club annually contond fur prjzen , ipqgthemM ) . by plaoing the outer stake boat fiyo miloa further than usual
Untitled Article
March 12 , 1853 . ] THE LEADER . 249
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), March 12, 1853, page 249, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1977/page/9/
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