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and ' contrasts ifr with that of the continental nations , very much , certainly , to theacfvantage ^ ofthe former . Though not blind to our defects , the critic does fut f justice to oar national virtues ; his comparison , which is a striking one throughout , being , in fact , an eloquent tribute to the independence and moral strength that ' distinguish English life both national and domestic . After this introduction , M . Montegvt proceeds to give a full , but condensedV outfitter of Miss Bronte ' s life , a careful estimate of her genius , and a critical analysis ofher works ; but his main effort throughout is to solve the problem of nerpecuHarcbaracter and influence , the life and works being , in fact , but subsidiary to this end . The writer , like all who have come within the sphere of ; her influence , evidently feels the fascination of that plain , quiet , keen-eyed , shrinking , yet resolute little woman , and seeks to trace the secret of its strange power . His effort is in a high degree a successful one . We have read no ¦ analysis- of Cubreb Beix ' S character equally satisfactory and complete . In the judgment Of the author , the best criticism of Shirley e&mft from the pen- of si Frenchman , M . E . JTohcade , and appeared in the pages of the Revue des
Deux Mondes . The best estimate of the whole character and career of Char slotte Bbobte now appears in the same journal .
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THE JOURNAL OF THOMAS RAISES . A Portion of the Journal ' Kept by Thomas Eaikes , Esq ., from 1831 to 1837 . Vols . III . nrtA 21 Y . Longman and Co . These volumes derive their interest solely from the circumstance that their author held a . good position in society * and was in the habit of detailing in a private record the . gossip of the day . Personally , he was an utterly insignificant hanger-on of the Tory Clubs , a man of essentially feeble intellect , ^ redulons * garrulous , and prejudiced . But be was known at Brookes s ; parliamentary eMefe conversed with him ; the flying mats of the hour came to his ear ; in short , being well-born—to use a vulgar phrase—and opulent , liis social opportiKBtie * were considerable , and , though without the ability to dfetingttisb . himself , he . could keep a journal of amusing : trivialities . Besidfesv bis diary i » a voiee from the Taalts ; Tinder the Garltoa ; it is , the moan of an oM , oMlwr ; it is a new insight into the silliness of high life , and who tbat
exposes trie weak side of the lordl y classes-. Any one - regrets ne is not favoured by the companionship of gentlemen wbo lounge in the bowwindows of St . James ' s , and the ladies who sicken over exotics m Belgravesquare , Bas only to read the memoirs of Thomas Raikes , and be grateful . ^ JHis third volume opens in Paris , the date being July , 1836 . He was then m correspondence with . aasd -, and the whole cabal agreed that the Whigs were ruining England , tbar sole consolation being that Lord Thanet could mumble ai beawy saeer , aad that the Radicals , could be laughed at as a politiealgang ; In those days , G'Cannell was ' a purple star , and Raikes is n » a «» n ^» iiB « a 3 enowgb to ctwnpliment the Duke : of Bedford for subscribing towards * bis d ^ efence . The king thereupon ordered the Duke ' s bust to be ^ xuelled from the- gallery at Windsor Castle and barn * in a lime-kiln . Mr . the
Eaikes . very properly latrghsr , yet , had not King William assented to Kefbrm B ill , Bis satire might have been turned Into congratulation . William IV ., in and out of the Cabinet was no doubt a sorry old trembler , who forged a false popularity when be could not help it ; but Thomas Raikes ¦ was not tbe right man to throw stones at an incurable . Indeed , so intolerable Is the diarist ' s pedantry , that were it not for his industrious collection of small anecdotes , the book would be repulsive . He relates how the Duke of Wellington , arguing with an . arrogant civilian , told him that , as a military man * , he might be mistaken about Waterloo , but that as a sportsman he would , not be . contradicted about percussion caps ; bow the Stock Exchange employed nawks on the Kentish coast to intercept the pigeon expresses of certain jobbers ; how Sir William R got 10 :, 0002 . from tbe LiberaP party , and then wen * over to tb . e Tories ; and how , when news arrived t ! i « t the English h « d been beaten at Waterloo , be , Thomas Kaikes , ¦ wagerjwi . four hundred pounds that the . rumour was false : — there
Tlkowwa * a . ball that , night at Six ; George * . Talbotfa ; , and when I arrived about eleven , o ' clock , I found , the whole house in confusion and dismay ; ladies calling for their carriages , and others fainting in the anteroom , particularly the Ladies Pagetr , who seemed ) in the utmost' distress . The mystery , however , was soon cleared np t iM&y Cbsldeireagb hadjusfc made : her appearance in the . ballroom , with the offi--cial account , of the battle * and » partial list of the . killed and wounded , which had caused , ho mwiix distress among the various relatives of the sufferers . She had been at a grand dinner given by Mrs . Boehm in St . James ' s-square , to the Prince Regent , during-wfefoh Colonel Pesoy > having- first drivem to Caxlton . House * had arrived in a chaise and Sour at th * houaey ami presented , to hi » royal highnesa at the table , the official despatches from , the nuke of Wellington ([ recounting his victory ) , aa well as the French eagles , which he had brought as trophies with him in his carriage . Tfie Duke of Tork dined frequently with Mr . Raikes , and Mr . Raikqs entertained a high opinion of the Duke of York . " If he bad lived to -come' to- ttoe . throne , I showltt never have been where I , am . " George IV . he liked , but despised . " He never had any private , friends 5 ho selected his ¦ confidants from , his minions : "—
In the latter , daya of . his reign , and before his health had rendered it necessary , he very seldom ¦ went , out , oven in his favourite low phaeton and ponies , at "Windsor ; his more general habit was to remain in his robe de ohctmbre all the morning , and never dree ^ tsa the honV of' dinner . In this dishabille he received ) his . ministers ,, inspected the a » rMjgtt »» t ,. of . all the curiosities -which now adorn the gallery iu the Oastlo , and are Btandingnxonumenta of his good taste , amused himself with mimicking Jack Kadford , the stud gropm , who came to receive orders , or lectured Davison , tlie tailor , on the cut of the last new coat . His dress was an object of tbe greatest attention to the . last ; andy incredibleins it may , appear , I have . been , told by those about him , and by Bachelor , who , on the . death of the Duke of York , entered his service as vafot de chamhre , that a plain coat , from its repeated alterations , would often cost £ 002 , ' before it met his approbation .
Kwtltetr couldremember George Selwyn , with Beau Brurnmell , Boottiby who- ah © t v hiinaelf because be was- tjroa o £ dressing , and . was fiimoHiar android Blnot Hangar , ' JLoxxl Coleraine , a dnrjdw ., of tho finest water , always beautiful ^ powdered ,, n * a light-green coat with a rose in his buttonhole , and moreover an unmitigated fool : —
I remember many years ago the Duchess of York made a party to go by water to Richmond , in which Coleraiae was included . We all met at a given hour at Whitehall Stairs , and found tbe Admiralty Barge , with the Koyal Standard , ready to receive us . ; , but by some miscalculation of the tide , it was not possible to embark for near half > art hour , and one of the watermen said to the DucheSs , "Your Royal Highness must wait for the tide . " Upon which Coleraine , with a very profound bow , remarked , " If L had baen . the : tide , I should have waited for your lloyal High-Watier ' s Club , the great Macao gambling-house , was a place of which Mr . Raikes understood the mysteries . It was very genteel , he says , and no one ever quarrelled there ; but among the members was Bligh , a notorious madman
:--One evening at the Macao table , when the play was very deep , . Brummell having lost a considerable stake , affected , in his farcical way , a very tragic air , and cried out , " Waiter , bring me a flat candlestick and a pistol . " Upon which Bligh , who was sitting opposite to him , calmly produced two loaded pistols from his coat pocket , which he placed on the table , and said , " Mr . Brummell , if you are really desirous to put a period to your existence , I am extremely happy to offer you the means without troubling the waiter . " The effect upon those present may easily be imagined , at finding themselves in the company of a known madman who had loaded weapons about him . . Concerning the Watier Club there is a suggestive paragraph , broken by a still more suggestive blank : — The club did not endure for twelve years altogether ; the pace was too quick to . last : it died a natural death in 1819 , from the paralysed state of its members ; the house was then taken by a set of blacklegs , who instituted a common bank foe gambling . To form an idea of the ruin produced by this short-lived establishment among men whom I have so intimately known , a cursory glance to the past suggests the following melancholy list , which only forms a part of its deplorable results . .
None of the dead reached the average age of man . Throughout the volumes there are frequent suppressions , which , in many instances ^ entirely destroy the meaning of the passage . The following had better have been omitted altogether : — An event has occurred i n London that causes the utmost dismay in society . *• " The first intimation , which I had of it was in a letter shown to me by Lord Lowther from Croker , in which he says * has levanted and gone abroad . * * * After winning considerable sums of money at whist from Mr . — — and others , he has been detected in playing with marked cards at Graham ' s Club , and i s disgraced for ever . Mr . Raikes , criticising the Wraxall memoirs , trusts that his own may be allowed to have more claims to veracity . ' He denies , for example , the venality of Pitt , and bis predilection for strong port : — of much virulent
No Minister was ever the suDject of so many caricatures , or so abuse from the Opposition , as Pitt ; even his predi lection for a bottle of port , which after his violent exertions in debate was probably necessary to his existence , was imputed to him as an . excess . One of the best of these , called "Uncorking old Sherry" ( alluding to the debate on the Eegency Bill , when some remarks from him roused the ire of Sheridan ) , represents Pitt uncorking a bottle and completely inundated with the effervescent contents , while the bloated countenance and red nose of Sheridan is apparent in the foanu One vulgar paper gave the following character of him in dog-Latin : — " Warcarryonissimus , taxgatherissimus , vinum guzzleando potentissimus , prettygirlibus indifferentissimus , et filius bitchse damnatissimus . " When Ewart and Roebuck were rejected by the constituencies irr 1837 , Mr . Raikes thought the new House would be " more respectable than the last , " and . with unction , he says , " Monday , July 2 nd , Hume and O'Conuell were hooted in the streets . " # . This journal is a book to be described by extracts ,- it contams a multitude of amusing paragraphs , of which we quote a few specimens . Mr . . Raikes records a scandalous rumour , concerning the Pope , of 1839 : — outward
The pope is frequently intoxicated in his own palace ; and indeed his appearance coirobprates . the imputation . Louis Philippe , who has finesse enough to turn the failings of others to Ms own advantage , lately sent him , as a present , 1000 bottles of the best champagne , and as many of the best claret , as could be procured in France . , „ We are afraid that this anecdote of Talleyrand is not new : — Alvanley mentioned an anecdote of Talleyrand : —Some one stated before him that Chateaubriand complained he was growing deaf . Talleyrand replied , "II ae croit sourd , parce qu'il n ' entend plus parler de lui . " Mr . Raikes had few scruples asto the gossip he bequeathed to his executors : —* - Paris ,-Friday , January BUt . —Parliament has reduced the grant to Princo Albert to 30 , 000 £ The Queen wanted 100 , 000 / ., and Lord Melbourne had great difficulty in persuading her-to consent to the ministerial proposal of 50 , 000 / . His next allusion ia oracularly vague : ¦—Monday , $ i / i . ~ -A letter from London mentions that Princo Albert has shown somo Tory feelings which ate not palatable at tho palace .
We have an abundance of court gossip : — The Dulse of Sussex claims from tho Whig ministry the public acknowledgment of his marriage with Lady Cecilia Underwood , and an addition of 6000 / . a year to his income . This is the » explanation on the occasion of Princo Albert ' s precedonco : they first applied to the , Duke of Sussex for bis acquiescence , which ho most violently refused . They then went to the Duke of Cambridge with the same request , to which he made less difficulty , saying , that ho wished to promote harmony iu tho family i and as it ) conld no * : prevent frimt from being- the son of his father , if the Duko of Sussex consented , ho should not object . Loyd Melbourne then returned to the latter , saying ,, that the Duke of Cambridge had agreed at once ; upon which Sussex , finding that he should lose all the merit of the concession , wont straight to tho Qucon , ana professed ; to bo the first to moot lieu wishes-, but stipulating also , that ho oxpoctcd ft great favour for hhnaelfin return . This now proves to have been his object in view . Prince : Albeit seems anxious to conciliate matters at tho palace ; tho Queen ia becoming more civil to the Tory party , and they are invited raoro frequently . Wo never beard of Mr . Kaikoa as an author ; but it seems that ho wvoto books and offended Montrond : —
Montrpnd is . very angry nt my having censured tho revolution of July iu my hook upon France , and crieB it down everywhere 1 but even hie aulkiness ia amusing . When Harriet said to > him , "II paraifc , one v < aus manages peu l ' ouvrage de raon pore , " ho unsircred , " Voua 6 tes le . soul ouwcage do votre poro quo j . ' flime . " This , answer la very characteristic of the neatness of his turn of wit . Tho journal contains somo froo references to the Queen : —
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7 TEI LEADi ' B ' B . [ No . 384 * . Jjlvgv&v-I ' * 1657 .
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Aug. 1, 1857, page 738, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2203/page/18/
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