duty of conducting the fire-ships in the attack upon the French fleet in
Basque Roads, he had lighted the fusee which was to explode one of these
terrific engines of destruction, and had rowed off to some distance, when
it was discovered that a dog had been left on board. Lord C. instantly
ordered the men to row back, assuring them that there was yet time enough,
_if they pulled hard_, to save the poor animal. They got back to the
fire-ship just a few minutes before it would have been too late to save the
animal; and when the dreadful explosion took place, were still so near the
floating volcano, that the fragments fell in heaps around them.
Sir Samuel Hood.--This gallant officer, when commanding the "Juno" on the
Jamaica station, in 1791, exhibited a noble instance of intrepid humanity.
The ship was lying in St. Anne's harbour, when a raft, with three persons
upon it, was discovered at a great distance. The weather was exceedingly
stormy; and the waves broke with such violence, as to leave little hope
that the unfortunate men upon it could long survive. Captain Hood instantly
ordered out one of his ship's boats to endeavour to rescue them; but the
sea ran so high, that the crew declared the attempt impracticable, and
refused to expose themselves to what they considered certain destruction.
The captain immediately leaped into the boat, declaring that he would never
order them on any service on which he would not himself venture. The effect
was such as might be expected: there is no danger that a British sailor
will not share with his captain; all now were eager to offer themselves.
The boat pushed off, and reached the raft with much difficulty, and saved
the exhausted men, who still clung to it. The House of Assembly of Jamaica,
to testify their sense of this undaunted exertion in the cause of humanity,
presented Captain Hood with a sword of the value of two hundred guineas.
An Uncarpeted House.--M. Eveillan, formerly Archdeacon of Angers, was noted
for his humane and charitable disposition towards the poor. On one
occasion, when a friend expressed surprise that none of his rooms were
carpeted, he replied, "When I enter my house in the winter, I do not hear
any complaints of cold from the furniture of my rooms; but the poor who
stand shivering at my doors tell me but too plainly that they have need of
clothing."
IMAGINATION AND FEAR.
Fear of Death.--It is recorded of a person who had been sentenced to be
bled to death, that, instead of the punishment being actually inflicted, he
was made to believe that it was so, merely by causing water, when his eyes
were blinded, to trickle down his arm. This mimicry, however, of an
operation, stopped as completely the movements of the animated machine as
if an entire exhaustion had been effected of the vivifying mud. The man
lost his life, although not his blood, by this imaginary venesection.
We read of another unfortunate being who had been condemned to lose his
head, but the moment after it had been laid upon the block, a reprieve
arrived; the victim was, however, already sacrificed. The living principle
had been extinguished by the fear of the axe, as effectually as it would
have been by its fall.
The Editor of the _Philosophical Magazine_ relates a remarkable instance
which came within his own knowledge many years ago in Scotland. Some silver
spoons having been mislaid, were supposed to have been stolen; and an
expression fell from one of the family, which was either intended, or was
so understood by a young lady who acted as governess to the female
children, that she had taken them. When the young lady rose next morning,
her hair, which before was dark, was found to have changed to a pure white
during the night. The spoons were afterwards found where the mistress of
the family had herself deposited them.
Mons. Boutibonne, a man of literary attainments, a native of Paris, served
in Napoleon's army, and was present at a number of engagements during the
early part of the present century. At the battle of Wagram, which resulted
in a treaty of peace with Austria, in November 1809, Mons. Boutibonne was
actively engaged during the whole of the fray, which lasted, if I rightly
remember, from soon after mid-day until dark. The ranks around him had
been terribly thinned by the enemy's shot, so that his position at sunset
was nearly isolated; and while in the act of reloading his musket, he was
shot down by a cannon-ball. The impression produced upon his mind was, that
the ball had passed from left to right, through his legs below the knees,
separating them from his thighs, as he suddenly sank down, shortened, as he
believed, to the extent of about a foot in measurement, the trunk of the
body falling backwards on the ground, and the senses being completely
paralysed by the shock. In this posture he lay motionless during the
remainder of the night, not daring to move a muscle for fear of fatal
consequences. He experienced no severe suffering; but this immunity from
pain he attributed to the stunning effect produced upon the brain and
nervous system. "My wounded companions," said he, "lay groaning in agony on
every side, but I uttered not a word, nor ventured to move, lest the torn
vessels should be roused into action, and produce fatal hæmorrhage, for I
had been made acquainted with the fact that the blood-vessels, wounded in
this way, did not usually bleed profusely until reaction took place. At
early dawn, on the following morning, I was aroused from a troubled slumber
by one of the medical staff, who came round to succour the wounded. 'What's
the matter with you my good fellow?' said he. 'Ah! touch me softly, I
beseech you,' I replied, 'a cannon-ball has carried off my legs.' He
proceeded at once to examine my legs and thighs, and giving me a good
shake, with a cry of joy he exclaimed 'Get up at once, there is nothing the
matter with you.' Whereupon I sprung up in utter astonishment, and stood
firmly on the legs which I believed had been lost to me for ever. I felt
more thankful than I had ever done in the whole course of my life before. I
had not a wound about me. I had indeed been shot down by an immense
cannon-ball, but instead of passing through my legs, as I firmly believed
it to have done, the ball had passed under my feet, and had ploughed away a
cavity in the earth beneath, at least a foot in depth, into which my feet
suddenly sank, giving me the idea that I had been thus shattered by the
separation of my legs. Such is the power of imagination."
JOHNSON.
Johnson and Millar.--When Dr. Johnson had completed his Dictionary, which
had quite exhausted the patience of Mr. Andrew Millar, his bookseller, the
latter acknowledged the receipt of the last sheet in the following
note:--"Andrew Millar sends his compliments to Mr. Samuel Johnson, with the
money for the last sheet of the copy of the Dictionary, and thanks God he
has done with him." To this rude note the doctor returned the following
smart answer:--"Samuel Johnson returns his compliments to Mr. Andrew
Millar, and is very glad to find (as he does by his note) that Andrew
Millar has the grace to thank God for anything."
Johnson and Wilkes.--In his English Grammar, prefixed to his Dictionary,
Johnson had written--"_He_ seldom, perhaps never, begins any but the first
syllable." Wilkes published some remarks upon this dictum, commencing: "The
author of this observation must be a man of quick appre-_he_nsion, and of a
most compre-_he_nsive genius."
Johnson and Lord Elibank.--"Lord Elibank," says Sir W. Scott, "made a happy
retort on Dr. Johnson's definition of oats, as the food of horses in
England, and men in Scotland." "Yes," said he, "and where else will you see
_such horses_, and _such men?_"
KINGS.
James the First.--Soon after that would-be _Solomon_ came to the throne of
England, he went one day to hear the causes in Westminster Hall, in order
to show his learning and wisdom, of which he had no mean opinion.
Accordingly, being seated on the bench, a cause came on, which the counsel,
learned in the law, set forth to such advantage on the part of the
plaintiff, that the Royal Judge thought he saw the justice of it so
clearly, that he frequently cried out, "The gude man is i' the richt! the
gude man is i' the richt! He mun hae it! he mun hae it!" And when the
counsel had concluded, he took it as a high affront that the judges of the
court should presume to remonstrate to him, that it was the rule to hear
the other side before they gave judgment. Curiosity to know what could be
said in so clear a case, rather than any respect to their rules, made him
defer his decision; but the defendant's counsel had scarcely begun to open
his cause, when his majesty appeared greatly discomposed, and was so
puzzled as they proceeded, that he had no patience to hear them out, but
starting up in a passion, cried, "I'll hear nae mair! I'll hear nae mair!
ye are a' knaves aleeke! Ye gi' each other the lee (lie), and neither's i'
the richt!"
Frederick the Great.--Frederick the Great rang the bell one day, and nobody
answered. He opened the door, and found the page sleeping on a sofa. About
to wake him, he perceived the end of a billet out of his pocket, and had
the curiosity to know the contents: Frederick carefully drew it out, and
read it; it was a letter from the mother of the young man, who thanked him
for having sent her part of his wages, to assist her in her distress; and
it concluded by beseeching God to bless him for his filial goodness. The
king returned softly to his room, took a roller of ducats, and slid them,
with the letter, into the page's pocket; and then returning to his
apartment, rung so violently, that the page came running breathlessly to
know what had happened. "You have slept well," said the king. The page made
an apology, and, in his embarrassment, he happened to put his hand into his
pocket, and felt with astonishment the roller. He drew it out, turned pale,
and looking at the king, burst into tears, without being able to speak a
word. "What is the matter?" said the king, "what ails you?" "Ah, sire,"
answered the youth, throwing himself at his feet, "somebody would wish to
ruin me; I know not how I came by this money in my pocket." "My friend,"
said Frederick, "God often sends us good in our sleep. Send this to your
mother. Salute her in my name, and assure her I shall take care of her and
of you."
Frederick, conqueror as he was, sustained a severe defeat at Coslin in the
war of 1755. Some time after, at a review, he jocosely asked a soldier, who
had got a deep cut in his cheek, "Friend, at what alehouse did you get that
scratch?" "I got it," said the soldier, "at Coslin, _where your majesty
paid the reckoning_."
Frederick was very fond of disputation; but as he generally terminated the
discussion by collaring his antagonist and kicking his shins, few of his
guests were disposed to enter the arena against him. One day, when he was
particularly disposed for an argument, he asked one of his suite why he did
not venture to give his opinion on a particular question. "It is
impossible, your majesty," was the reply, "to express an opinion before a
sovereign who has such very strong convictions, and who _wears such very
thick boots_."
Desertion.--Frederick, in surveying one evening some of the advanced posts
of his camp, discovered a soldier endeavouring to pass the sentinel. His
majesty stopped him, and insisted on knowing where he was going. "To tell
you the truth," answered the soldier, "your majesty has been so worsted in
all your attempts, that I was going to _desert_." "Were you?" answered the
monarch. "Remain here but one week longer, and if fortune does not mend in
that time, I'll desert with you too."
Louis XIV., playing at backgammon, had a doubtful throw; a dispute arose,
and all the courtiers remained silent. The Count de Grammont came in at
that instant. "Decide the matter," said the king to him. "Sire," said the
count, "your Majesty is in the wrong."--"How so," replied the king; "can
you decide without knowing the question?"--"Yes," said the count, "because,
had the matter been doubtful, all these gentlemen present would have given
it for your majesty."
Louis was told that Lord Stair was the best bred man in Europe. "I shall
soon put that to the test," said the king, and asking Lord Stair to take an
airing with him, as soon as the door of the coach was opened he bade him
pass and go in, the other bowed and obeyed. The king said, "The world was
right in the character it gave of Lord Stair--another person would have
troubled me with ceremony."
While the Eddystone light-house was erecting, a French privateer took the
men upon the rock, together with their tools, and carried them to France;
and the captain was in expectation of a reward for the achievement. While
the captives lay in prison, the transaction reached the ears of Louis XIV.,
when he immediately ordered them to be released, and the captors put in
their places, declaring, that "Though he was at war with England, he was
not so with all mankind." He directed the men to be sent back to their
work, with presents--observing, "That the Eddystone light-house was so
situated as to be of equal service to all nations having occasion to
navigate the channel between England and France."
Charles II. was reputed a great connoisseur in naval architecture. Being
once at Chatham, to view a ship just finished on the stocks, he asked the
famous Killigrew, "If he did not think he should make an excellent
shipwright?" He replied, "That he always thought his majesty would have
done better at any trade than his own." No favourable compliment, but as
true a one, perhaps, as ever was paid.
Louis XII.--Josquin, a celebrated composer, was appointed master of the
chapel to Louis XII. of France, who promised him a benefice, but contrary
to his usual custom, forgot him. Josquin, after suffering great
inconvenience from the shortness of his majesty's memory, ventured, by a
singular expedient, publicly to remind him of his promise, without giving
offence. Being commanded to compose a motet for the chapel royal, he chose
the verse of the Psalm, "Oh, think of thy servant as concerning thy word,"
&c., which he set in so supplicating and exquisite a manner, that it was
universally admired, particularly by the king, who was not only charmed
with the music, but felt the force of the words so effectually, that he
soon after granted his petition, by conferring on him the promised
appointment.
George the Second, when returning from his German dominions, on the way
between the Brill and Helvoetsluys, was obliged to stay at an obscure
public house on the road, while some of his servants went forward to obtain
another carriage, that in which he had travelled having broken down. The
king ordered refreshment, but all he could get was a pot of coffee for
himself and Lord Delawar, and two bottles of gin made into punch for his
footmen; however, when the bill was called for, the conscientious Dutchman,
knowing his customer, presented it as follows: "To refreshments for His
Sacred Majesty, King George the Second, and his household, £91." Lord
Delawar was so provoked at this imposition, that the king overheard his
altercation with the landlord, and demanded the cause of it. His lordship
immediately told him; when his majesty good humouredly replied, "My lord,
the fellow is a great knave, but pay him. Kings seldom pass this way."
A similar anecdote is related of another monarch, who, passing through a
town in Holland, was charged thirty dollars for two eggs. On this, he said,
that "Eggs were surely scarce in that town." "No, your majesty," replied
the landlord, "but kings are."
Charles V. of France.--The last words of this patriotic monarch are
memorable for the noble moral for kings which they contain. "I have aimed
at justice," said he to those around him; "but what king can be certain
that he has always followed it? Perhaps I have done much evil of which I am
ignorant. Frenchmen! who now hear me, I address myself in the presence of
the Supreme Being to you. _I find that kings are happy but in this--that
they have the power of doing good_."
George III. on Punctuality.--The celebrated mathematical instrument maker,
Mr. Ramsden, was frequently deficient in punctuality, and would delay for
months, nay, for years, the delivery of instruments bespoken from him. His
majesty, who had more than once experienced this dilatory disposition, once
ordered an instrument, which he made Ramsden positively promise to deliver
on a certain day. The day, however, came, but not the instrument. At length
Ramsden sent word to the king that it was finished; on which a message was
sent him, desiring that he would bring it himself to the palace. He,
however, answered, that he would not come, unless his majesty would promise
not to be angry with him. "Well, well," said the king, "let him come: as he
confesses his fault, it would be hard to punish him for it." On this
assurance he went to the palace, where he was graciously received; the
king, after expressing his entire satisfaction with the instrument, only
adding, with a good-natured smile, "You have been uncommonly punctual this
time, Mr. Ramsden, having brought the instrument on the very day of the
month you promised it; you have only made a small mistake in the date of
the year." It was, in fact, exactly a year after the stipulated time.
Doing Homage.--Mr. Carbonel, the wine merchant who served George III., was
a great favourite with the king, and used to be admitted to the royal
hunts. Returning from the chase one day, his majesty entered affably into
conversation with him, and rode with him side by side a considerable way.
Lord Walsingham was in attendance; and watching an opportunity, took Mr.
Carbonel aside, and whispered something to him. "What's that, what's that
Walsingham has been saying to you?" inquired the good-humoured monarch. "I
find, sire, I have been unintentionally guilty of disrespect; my lord
informed me, that, I ought to have taken off my hat whenever I addressed
your majesty; but your majesty will please to observe, that whenever I
hunt, my hat is fastened to my wig, and my wig is fastened to my head, and
I am on the back of a very high-spirited horse; so that if any thing _goes
off_, we _all go off together!_" The king accepted, and laughed heartily
at, the whimsical apology.
The Horse Dealer.--The king having purchased a horse, the dealer put into
his hands a large sheet of paper, completely written over. "What's this?"
said his majesty. "The pedigree of the horse, sire, which you have just
bought," was the answer. "Take it back, take it back," said the king,
laughing; "it will do very well for the next horse you sell."
The following affords a pleasing trait in the character of George the
Third, as well as an instance of that feeling which ought to subsist
between masters of all ranks and circumstances and their domestics:--
_Inscription in the Cloisters of St. George's Chapel, Windsor._
King George III.
caused to be interred near this place the body of
MARY GASKOIN,
Servant to the late Princess Amelia; and this tablet to be
erected in testimony of his grateful sense of the faithful
services and attachment of an amiable young woman to
his beloved daughter, whom she survived only three
months. She died the 19th February, 1811, aged 31
years.
A very bold caricature was one day shown to his majesty, in which Warren
Hastings was represented wheeling the king and the lord chancellor in a
wheelbarrow for sale, and crying, "What a man buys, he may sell." The
inference intended was, that his majesty and Lord Thurlow had used improper
influence in favour of Hastings. The king smiled at the caricature, and
observed, "Well, this is something new; I have been in all sorts of
carriages, but was never put into a wheel-barrow before."
LAWS AND LAWYERS.
A Bold Trick.--The following anecdote serves to exemplify how necessary it
is upon any important occasion to scrutinise the accuracy of a statement
before it is taken upon trust. A fellow was tried at the Old Bailey for
highway robbery, and the prosecutor swore positively that he had seen his
face distinctly, for it was a bright moonlight night. The counsel for the
prisoner cross-questioned the man so as to make him repeat that assertion,
and insist upon it. He then affirmed that this was a most important
circumstance, and a most fortunate one for the prisoner at the bar: because
the night on which the alleged robbery was said to have been committed was
one in which there had been no moon: it was then during the dark quarter!
In proof of this he handed an almanack to the bench,--and the prisoner was
acquitted accordingly. The prosecutor, however, had stated every thing
truly; and it was known afterwards that the almanack with which the counsel
came provided, had actually been prepared and printed for the occasion!
Horse Trials.--In the art of cross-examining a witness, Curran was
pre-eminent. A clever repartee is recorded of him in a horse cause. He had
asked the jockey's servant his master's age, and the man had retorted, with
ready gibe, "I never put my hand into his mouth to try!" The laugh was
against the lawyer till he made the bitter reply,--"You did perfectly
right, friend; for your master is said to be a great bite."
Erskine displayed similar readiness in a case of breach of warranty. The
horse taken on trial had become dead lame, but the witness to prove it said
he had a cataract in his eye. "A singular proof of lameness," suggested the
Court. "It is cause and effect," remarked Erskine; "for what is a cataract
but a fall?"
Erskine.--On Mr. Erskine's receiving his appointment to succeed Mr. Dundas,
as justiciary in Scotland, he exclaimed that he must go and order his silk
robe. "Never mind," said Mr. Dundas, "for the short time you will want it
you had better borrow mine!"--"No!" replied Erskine, "how short a time
soever I may need it, heaven forbid that I commence my career by adopting
the _abandoned habits_ of my predecessor!"
Erskine is said to have once forgotten for which party, in a particular
cause, he had been retained; and, to the amazement of the agent who had
retained him, and the horror of the poor client behind, he made a most
eloquent speech in direct opposition to the interests he had been hired to
defend. Such was the zeal of his eloquence, that no whispered remonstrance
from the rear, no tugging at his elbow could stop him. But just as he was
about to sit down, the trembling attorney put a slip of paper into his
hands. "You have pleaded for the wrong party!" whereupon, with an air of
infinite composure, he resumed the thread of his oration, saying, "Such, my
lord, is the statement you will probably hear from my brother, on the
opposite side of this cause. I shall now beg leave, in a very few words, to
show your lordship how utterly untenable are the principles, and how
distorted are the facts, upon which this very specious statement has
proceeded." He then went once more over the same ground, and did not take
his seat till he had most energetically refuted himself, and destroyed the
effect of his former pleading. He gained the cause.
A similar circumstance happened in the Rolls Court, in 1788. Mr. A., an
eminent counsel, received a brief in court a short time before the cause
was called on, for the purpose of opposing the prayer of a petition. Mr.
A., conceiving himself to be the petitioner, spoke very ably in support of
the petition, and was followed by a counsel on the same side. The Master of
the Rolls then inquired who opposed the petition? Mr. A. having by this
time discovered his mistake, rose in much confusion, and said, that he felt
really much ashamed for a blunder into which he had fallen, for that,
instead of supporting the petition, it was his business to have opposed it.
The Master of the Rolls, with great good humour, desired him to proceed now
on the other side, observing, that he knew no counsel who could answer his
arguments half so well as himself.
Fools.--A lawyer of Strasburgh being in a dying state sent for a brother
lawyer to make his will, by which he bequeathed nearly the whole of his
estate to the Hospital for Idiots. The other expressed his surprise at this
bequest. "Why not bestow it upon them," said the dying man; "you know I got
the most of my money by fools, and therefore to fools it ought to return."