FOXHOLES
Anyone whose memory needs refreshing will find in the 'Edinburgh Reviews'
of the next five years sufficient indication of the interest which Reeve
continued to take in the great questions of the day, whether at home or
abroad; but his private correspondence at this time is mainly devoted to
social or literary topics. The death of Lord Clarendon in England, of M.
Guizot in France, had deprived him of the living keys to the dark problems
of policy, and there was no one with equal knowledge and opportunities
to take their place. He was, too, in opposition. In form, at least, the
principles of the 'Edinburgh Review' differed widely from those of
the Government; and though many things even then told of a probable
_rapprochement_ of moderate Whigs and moderate Conservatives, it was still
held by most to be an extravagant dream. But even had it been otherwise,
the personal element was wanting. With Disraeli, Reeve's acquaintance was
limited; with Lord Salisbury, though on friendly terms, he had never been
intimate; his intimacy with Lord Derby was of a later date. From our
foreign embassies and from India, his communications were on a more
familiar footing; but many of these took the form of articles for the
'Review,' and of the rest, in view of the delicacy of the subjects
discussed, the frankness with which they were discussed, and the
comparatively recent date, it has seemed unadvisable to publish much. The
result of all which is that during this peculiarly busy, exciting and
important time, Reeve's available correspondence is more purely personal
than at any other period of his working life. The Journal is seldom
anything else. It records here:--
_October, 1874_.--M. de Jarnac was now French Ambassador, to my great
delight, as he was a very old and valued friend. The first planting at
Foxholes was done in the course of this autumn, but the garden was not made
till the following spring.
_November 17th_.--Dined at Lord Derby's with several of the ministers, and
was introduced to Count Schouvaloff.
_20th_.--Dinner at home to the Jarnacs, Lady Derby, Lady Cowley, Lady
Molesworth, Chief Justice Cockburn and A. Elliot. Several pleasant dinners
through the winter.
_December 22nd_.--To Paris, with Christine and Hopie. Cold. On the 26th
breakfasted with the Due d'Aumale, and went with him to the Institute.
Evening, Duchesse de Chartres. 27th, dined at Versailles with Thiers;
Mignet, Barthelémy St.-Hilaire and Vacherot. It was on this occasion that
Thiers related the story of the Duc d'Enghien.
_January 1st_, 1875.--We dined at the Embassy for the _Jour de l'an_. While
there rain fell and the streets were covered with _verglas_. I walked with
great difficulty to Thiers's at the Hôtel Bagration, three doors off, where
the scene was burlesque. Not a carriage could move; not a horse could
stand; and the company walked home with napkins tied round their feet. [But
Mrs. Reeve, who was at the dinner, wrote: Our _fiacre_ managed to crawl
home with Hopie and me. Henry, who had gone to the Thiers's, returned
safely on his feet tied up in dusters. M. Thiers suggested dusters on the
hands also, so as to go _à quatre pattes_; but Henry did not become a
quadruped. I was horribly uneasy till he came in, but his was the ludicrous
side of the question; of the tragic, I heard next day plenty of instances.]
_January 3rd_.--Dined with the Duc de Nemours, and went to the Duchesse
Decazes's reception. Home on the 7th.
_From the Rev. G. W. Cox_ [Footnote: Now Sir George Cox, Bart.]
_February 5th_.--Nothing but lack of leisure has prevented me from
expressing sooner the very hearty satisfaction and delight with which I
have read and re-read your article on Mill's Essays. I suppose it is this
article which has sent the 'Edinburgh' into a second edition. I am rejoiced
to think that it is so. The ground which you take is, I feel sure,
impregnable; but the force of your whole argument, which is much what I
have tried to work out for years past, only makes me lament the more
the folly of the line taken by most of the writers who shrink from the
materialistic and atheistic philosophy of Mill and Tyndall--for the latter
seems to put himself into the same boat. I believe that the thought of
England is, on this subject, taking, or is likely to take, a very healthy
turn, which such an article as yours must greatly promote.
_From M. B. St.-Hilaire_
Paris, February 5th.
My dear Reeve,--I have received your article on Mr. Stuart Mill, for which
I thank you. I read it with the greatest interest, and congratulate you on
your vigorous refutation of that supercilious and hollow materialism. I am
glad, too, to see that you have profited by M. Dumas's last discourse on M.
de la Rive. You have done well to record these declarations of a permanent
secretary of the Academy of Sciences. Unfortunately, M. Dumas's character
has not the moral authority which is desirable in such serious matters.
His taking part in public business, far from increasing his credit, has
lessened it; even his scientific standing has suffered; people doubt his
sincerity; and his interested flattery of the Empire does not show that
greatness and purity of soul which inspire confidence. He is, however,
everywhere recognised as a man of great ability, and I am truly glad that
he should be counted among the partisans of spiritualism. I believe the
other permanent secretary of the Academy of Sciences is far from sharing
these opinions; and it is, therefore, all the more important that M. Dumas
should profess them publicly. With you, materialism is an exception and
an eccentricity. With us, on the contrary, it is almost the rule of the
learned world; and the Catholic clergy, given up to superstition and
ultramontanism, do not in any way help us to combat it. It was an honour to
the 'Edinburgh Review' to adhere so stoutly to the principles you uphold;
and for this, it is indebted to you.
Agréez, mon cher Reeve, mes salutations bien cordiales, que je présente
aussi à toute votre famille. Votre bien dévoué,
B. ST.-HILAIRE.
The Journal continues:--
_March 6th_--Sir Arthur Helps died. [He caught a chill at the levee on the
Monday, and died on the Saturday.]
Charles Peel was appointed Clerk of the Council.
_22nd_.--Jarnac died--a great loss. I drove down with Lord Derby to the
funeral.
_April 1st_.--Saw Salvini in 'Othello' at Drury Lane. Very fine.
_2nd_.--To Christchurch. Roof on house at Foxholes. Garden beginning to be
made. On the 6th, lunched with the Lord Chancellor at Bournemouth. Bought
additional strip of land.
_From Professor Owen_
British Museum, May 13th.
My dear Reeve,--Two portraits would be famous and instructive and replete
with interest to all ages; to wit: the one of Miss Reeve (?) [Footnote:
Lady Smith. The (?) presumably is whether the portrait was taken before or
after her marriage.] by Opie, showing the 'human face divine' in a
female of the highest race of mankind, at her prime of beauty; and the
second--could it but be got--by Millais, of Lady Smith, giving the
characteristics of the same face, of the same individual, at a stage of
human life never again likely to be a subject for art, under the same
circumstances. For the 'Natural History of the Human Species,' such a
pair of portraits would be notable in every work thereon, as well as in
countless collateral works; and that to all time. The present opportunity
is worth every exertion to availment; if lost, it is most improbable that
it may ever again occur. Can you enlist your sympathy and aid in bringing
this about? [Footnote: Sir Richard Owen succeeded in obtaining a pair of
photographs, taken from the Ople and the life. His grandson, the Rev.
Richard Owen, has them now.]
Yours always truly,
RICHARD OWEN.
_From Lady Smith_
_Lowestoft, May 14th_.--Dear Mr. Reeve,--As we know not what the morning
mail may bring forth, I look with impatient curiosity when I see letters
on my breakfast table; so yesterday had the great pleasure of perceiving
yours, knowing I should have something pleasant to hear, but little
anticipating what followed--the news of Arthur Stanley. To be remembered
kindly by the Dean of Westminster, anywhere, is honour; but to be [so] in
so distinguished a manner and in a place dedicated to [such] a name as Fox
is an honour never to be forgotten. Besides the domestic blessings I enjoy,
I also reckon that of living to witness the progress of a new Reformation,
in which the Dean of Westminster is the brightest light; and who, like
Shakespeare among the poets, stood on a higher pedestal than they--exalted
and good men as they are. I always rejoice that the Dean of Christ Church,
Oxford, and Stanley are good friends and worthy of each other. If I could
write better, I would tell you what my friend Mr. Leson Smith said of the
Greville Memoirs,, quite approving all of it. In a second letter he turns
the shafts aimed at yourself upon the calumniator. The Dean of Oxford
also approves. I am in better health than I was two years since, and have
nothing to complain of but a failing sight, which hinders my expressions of
gratitude to you for your friendship to Pleasance Smith.
Oh that you were here to see the wild beauty of the heath and dunes--a
cloth of gold far as the eye can reach!--what was the Field of Cloth of
Gold to this!
Continuing the Journal:--
_May 20th_.--Went to Holland, by Harwich, to see the Queen. Dined with Her
Majesty at the House in the Wood. On the 24th, breakfasted with the Queen
in the boudoir at the end of the Gallery in the Wood. Charming spring
morning. Went on to Aix. Home by Ostend on the 31st.
_June 15th_.--Helen Richardson was married to Sir Edward Blackett at
Ottershaw. We went down the day before.
_22nd_.--The Queen of Holland came to London. Dined with Her Majesty at the
Sandbachs' on July 1st. She came to see the statue of Lord Clarendon at the
Foreign Office on July 2nd.
_July 6th._--I took the Queen of Holland to see the Novar pictures. Meadows
Taylor stayed with us. Christine went to take the waters of St.-Honoré in
France.
Robert Lemon [Footnote: Son of Robert Lemon, a clerk in the State Paper
Office, and editor of some of the Calendars of State Papers, who died in
1867.], my clerk for thirty-three years, died in a fit.
Reeve deeply felt the loss of one who had been for so long associated with
him; but, independently of this, Mr. Lemon's death at this particular time
had an important influence on Reeve's immediate future. For some months he
had been contemplating retiring from the office, which he had now held for
close on forty years, in the view of devoting himself more exclusively to
literary work--apparently to a task of some magnitude. He had also been in
correspondence with Mr. Longman on a proposal from the firm that he should
act as their literary adviser; and thus, after long consideration he had,
on July 5th, mentioned, in a semi-official manner, his wish to retire in
October. On July 6th he wrote to Mr. Longman, provisionally accepting the
offer of the firm; but the next day had to write again--
What a world is this! On Monday I told the Duke [of Richmond] I would
resign on October 25th. Yesterday evening, my chief clerk, Robert Lemon,
had an apoplectic fit, and he died in the course of last night. He was a
most excellent and valuable assistant to me, and I looked forward to him
to drill in my successor. It may now become impossible for me to leave the
office as soon as I meant to do, for poor Lemon and myself are the only two
men who know the detail of the business, and I can't leave the department
derelict.
It is a most melancholy and distressing occurrence.
_July 14th_.--It is clear that the vacancy which has occurred in this
office will detain me here six months, and perhaps a year longer than
I wished or intended. This being so, our arrangements must remain in
abeyance, with entire liberty to you to renew or withdraw your offer. At
this distance of time it is superfluous to discuss details, but if I accept
the duties you propose to me, I should of course adapt my movements and
residence to the exigency of the case. At present, I find my work here
vastly increased, because I have to look more to the detail of the
business.
The contemplated arrangement was thus postponed for the time, and was not
again taken up in that form. Reeve continued--as he had long done--to act
as confidential adviser to the firm; but he remained at the Council Office
for another twelve years, and when he ultimately retired, it was not with
the view of undertaking any heavy additional work. The Journal goes on:--
_August 2nd_.--To Paris. Met Christine at Dijon on the 3rd. Then by Dole to
Vevay. Binet came. Met the Wodehouses. Visit to the Blumenthals at their
_chalet_. 13th, to the Gorges du Trient, and so to Chamonix, with Binet
and Christine. Splendid weather at Chamonix. 16th, St. Martin's; full moon
rising behind Mont Blanc. 17th, to Chambéry, St. Laurent du Pont, and the
Grande Chartreuse--very interesting. Geneva on the 20th, and back to Vevay
on the 21st. Thence to Besançon, Belfort, and Nancy. 27th, Metz. Drove
round the fields of battle of Gravelotte and St. Privat. To Brussels, by
Luxembourg. Bought furniture at Brussels for Foxholes. Home by Antwerp on
September 1st.
_October 7th_.--To Bournemouth, to look over Foxholes. 26th, Timsbury.
_November 20th_.--House nearly finished. Christmas at Farnborough. The
workmen left Foxholes on December 28th.
The Government bought the Khedive's shares in the Suez Canal. I attacked
the bargain in the 'Edinburgh Review.'
But from the earliest inception of the Suez Canal, Reeve had strongly
opposed it. He held, and in fact all history warranted him in holding,
that the opening of a water-way through the isthmus would be more than
prejudicial, would be destructive, to English interests. He was very far
from being alone in this opinion; it was one which he shared with several
of the most able and experienced men of the day, quite irrespective of
party. France, on her side, indulged in golden dreams. The wealth and
grandeur of mediaeval Venice was to find its counterpart in the commercial
prosperity of Marseilles; and it is permitted us to believe that much of
the enthusiasm which the scheme excited was due to the hope that it would
irretrievably damage England. Hence, too, the ill will rising out of the
disappointment, out of the conviction forced on the people of France that,
far from injuring us, it has turned out altogether to our advantage. French
skill constructed the canal, French capital paid for it. England stood
aloof till success was achieved, and then hastened to reap the profit;
then, by buying up the shares, doubled that profit; and since then, by the
occupation of Egypt, has usurped the control of the whole. Never has there
been such a case of the _Sic vos non vobis_; and the French are very
angry. Reeve's constant and familiar intercourse with French society had
necessarily taught him the opinions so universally held in France, and had
persuaded him that the only safe plan for England was to have nothing to do
with the pestilent thing. Disraeli, on the other hand, with a wider grasp
of the situation, understood that, in this, at any rate, inactivity was
not masterly, and that by boldness the enemy would be hoist with their own
petard.
_From Lady Smith_
Lowestoft, December 5th.
Dear Mr. Reeve,--It gave me pleasure to see your handwriting again, and
some surprise. In the first place, I must mention that I think you would
prefer Opie's original portrait to that which I possess, which, though by
Opie, is the copy of my portrait. When I last saw the original picture it
was in the Royal Academy; where it is now, I do not know; but [that] may
perhaps be ascertained. I must add that from its long residence in
London it looked very dingy, and required a refreshment from some good
picture-mender, and fresh varnish. If this picture is not come-at-able, I
shall be happy to send that I have here, of which you will acquaint me, and
send particular directions of the place and time it may be expected.
I am glad to hear you, and Mrs. Reeve, and my amiable young friend your
daughter are well. I hear you are building a superb mansion at Bournemouth;
a charming place, I have no doubt. My kind regards to you and them, from
your attached friend, PLEASANCE SMITH.
Very sorry am I to hear of Lady Augusta Stanley's hopeless illness, and
happy am I to observe the Dean's perpetual vigour. Long may he continue to
illume the realm of mist in that Temple of Reconciliation where his light
shines in so brilliant a lustre. In what a remarkable period do we live!
The picture by Opie was exhibited from Mr. Botfield's [Footnote: Beriah
Botfield, of Deckel's Hill, Shiffnal, Shropshire, and Grosvenor Square;
died 1863.] collection (at one of the Old Masters' Exhibitions) about nine
or ten years ago.
The Journal notes:--
_January 1876_.--I meant to go to Paris, but gout came on, and I gave it
up.
_March 28th_.--Sent down furniture, &c. by vans to Foxholes.
_April 2nd_.--Took possession of Foxholes; cold and windy, and I gouty.
_To Mr. T. Longman_
_Foxholes, April 19th_.--Lady Holland has written me a note quite as
amiable as her brother, and all the family seem to be satisfied with my
article. The little crack of the whip just nicked the fly on Abraham's ear.
A touch is often more keenly felt than a blow, when dealt in the right
place.
The only fault to be found with living here is that life glides away too
rapidly, and I feel as if I should hardly have time to read over again the
works of the Immortals, before I go to join them.
We have just got a splendid billiard table, and Hopie and I intersperse
cannons and winning hazards with literature.
And the Journal:--
_April 27th_.--Returned to town. Very bad fit of gout. This was the year
of my grand climacteric (sixty-three), and I was uncommonly ill. I went to
Aix, May 30th; but was worse there, and came back, June 19th.
_July 7th_.--Garden party at Holland House; the only thing I was able to go
to this year from incessant gout.
_12th_.--Came down to Foxholes. Great heat; no rain from April till August.
_To Lord Derby_
62 Rutland Gate, April 28th.
My Dear Lord Derby,--I cannot forbear to express to you our very great
and cordial sympathy in the great loss you have sustained.[Footnote: The
Dowager Countess of Derby died on April 26th, 1876.] It was Gray, I think,
who said that a man can have but one mother, and in losing her one loses
the only real witness of the tenderest part of the growth of life. Nobody
else has any memory for infancy, childhood and youth, and no one else has
the same claims to dutiful affection. The loss is irreparable. I find it so
myself every day. Lady Derby had the happiness to see you combine with the
most affectionate regard for her the public duties and honours which are
almost hereditary in your family. Few women have seen life played out on a
nobler scale. She was the link between two generations of statesmen,
and lived in the entire intimacy and affection of both. But these
considerations cannot alleviate sorrow!
With every assurance of sincere regard to yourself and Lady Derby from Mrs.
Reeve and myself, believe me, always faithfully yours,
H. Reeve.
Continuing the Journal:--
_August 12th_.--Disraeli made Earl Beaconsfield.
_14th_.--From Southampton to Havre and Rouen with Christine and Hopie.
Dined with the Cardinal de Bonnechose; Circourt joined us there.
_17th_.--To the Château d'Eu; found there the Duc de Montpensier and
Infanta Christine, Duc and Duchesse de Chartres, Mme. de Rainneville and
Lambert de Sainte-Croix. Drive in forest; very hot.
_21st_.--Celebrated our silver wedding at Eu. To Dieppe and back by Havre
on the 24th. William Longman came to Foxholes. Saw Lady Charlotte Bacon
[Footnote: See _ante_, vol. i. p. 88.] again.
Mrs. Reeve gave 'Ianthe,' whom they met at a luncheon party at Bournemouth,
a fuller notice. She wrote, 'A bad husband and narrow means kept her out of
England for thirty-five years or so, and she is now a corpulent matron of
seventy, with no trace of those charms sung by the poet.'
All this autumn an immense agitation was kept up, chiefly by Gladstone,
on the 'Bulgarian Atrocities.' Meetings were held all over the kingdom. I
published an article in the 'Review' in October, which Lord Derby said was
the first thing that turned the tide. It soon turned altogether; and in a
few months the people were as anxious to attack the Russians as they had
been to coerce the Turks.
To Mr. Dempster
_Foxholes, October 17th._--Can you, who know all the genealogies of
Scotland better than the Red Lion himself, tell me what relation Countess
Purgstall was to Dugald Stewart? [Footnote: She was his wife's sister.] I
know she was a Cranstoun; but was she related to the great Professor? When
my father was in Vienna in 1805, she received him very kindly, because he
had known Dugald Stewart, and followed his lectures in Edinburgh.
I enjoy my life here above all things. Four months have slipped away in
this Olympian calm, between the sea and the sky, and I fancy that the New
Forest is the Highlands; but it is time to be up and doing, and next week I
return to London, with a large stock of health and good spirits.
Matters look very black in the East. I am afraid it is a deep-laid Russian
plot, which Gladstone has done not a little to promote and encourage. You
will see that I have held to my own line in the Blue and Yellow.
To Mr. T. Longman
_Rutland Gate, November 1st._--I have a great dislike to the proposal of
reprinting an article of my own in a cheap form. It seems to me to be
descending to the level of Mr. Gladstone's sixpenny agitation. Moreover,
the political situation is now considerably altered. Many things which
were said hypothetically on October 12th have assumed a different shape on
November 1st. But if any arrangement can be made to supply the Mayor of
Bristol with one hundred copies of the 'Review,' at a cheap rate, I shall
be very glad of it. The cheap republication of the attractive article would
be just as injurious to booksellers who have copies of the 'Review' on hand
as the distribution of copies of the 'Review.' Both measures interfere with
the regular course of sale, and are therefore mischievous.
The Journal notes:--
_January 23rd_, 1877.--The Folkestone (Ritualist) case [Footnote: Ridsdale
_v._ Clifton and others. See _Times_, January 24th and following days.
Judgement, _Times_, July 19th.] heard by the Judicial Committee, by eleven
privy councillors, and five bishops. It lasted nearly a fortnight.
_January 24th_.--Christine and I went to pay a visit to the Duke and
Duchess of Cleveland at Battle Abbey. It was singularly interesting and
agreeable. Nothing could exceed the vivacity of the Duchess, or her
attention to her guests. The party consisted of Maud Stanley, Charles
Newton, Banks-Stanhope, Raglan Somerset, and the Mercer Hendersons.
I have known the Duke these forty years, having first met him at the
Duchesse de Mailly's, in Paris, about the year 1836. He is the only
Englishman I ever knew who is perfectly at home in the best French society,
and as Lord Harry Vane he was extremely popular in Paris. There is now
nobody living who has known so many of my oldest and best friends--most of
whom are now no more--both in Paris, Geneva, and London; and our talk of
these old times was most abundant.
Battle Abbey is certainly one of the most curious and beautiful remains in
England, and as it was built on the morrow of the Conquest (1067), it
is astonishing how much remains. The present drawing-room is a long,
low-arched room, with Gothic arches springing from columns of Purbeck
marble. Much of the great refectory and part of the cloisters still
remains. This is part of the original building of William the Conqueror.
The great gateway and outer wall is of the time of Edward III. The great
hall is about two hundred years old. The Abbey was given by Henry VIII. to
Sir Anthony Browne, and afterwards purchased in 1722 by the Websters, from
whom the Duke of Cleveland bought it a few years ago.
The Duchess drove us over to call at Ashburnham, about three miles on the
other side of Battle. There we saw a most beautiful Sir Joshua of Lady St.
Asaph (the present Earl's grandmother) and the shirt King Charles wore on
the day of his execution. Lady Ashburnham told us that old women had,
in our time, asked for leave to spread the cloth which is with it over
children to cure the King's evil.
Lord Ashburnham [Footnote: He died in June 1878, in his eighty-first
year.] is himself a sight--a man of eighty, in high boots, very deaf, very
caustic, and clever; possessing under lock and key most wonderful literary
treasures and curiosities. He gave 3,000 £ for a manuscript bible, but that
we did not see.
_February 3rd_--Lady Smith died at Lowestoft, aged 103 and 9 months.
_March 13th_--Tennyson dined at The Club; Archbishop and Chancellor there.
_16th_--To Foxholes. April 14th, back to town.
It was about this time that Miss Agnes Clerke--who has since come into the
foremost rank as a popular exponent of science and as the biographer of
its votaries--was making her _début_ in literature, and contributed two
articles to the 'Edinburgh Review,' the one in April on 'Brigandage in
Sicily,' and the other, which appeared in July, on 'Copernicus in Italy,'
subjects which her residence in Italy had brought more immediately under
her notice. Just before the publication of the first of these Reeve wrote
to her, introducing M. de Circourt, who was then at Florence where Miss
Clerke was. A fortnight later he wrote again in answer to her reply.
Rutland Gate, April 19th.
My Dear Miss Clerke,--It gives me very sincere pleasure to have contributed
to introduce you to your first literary success. I hope it may be the
prelude to many more. I can hardly venture to recommend to you the course
in which you should steer your bark. On scientific subjects I am very
ignorant, but there has been an article in the 'Review' on Spectrum
Analysis, by Professor Roscoe, and another on the Transit of Venus last
year. You have the advantage of seeing before your eyes the intellectual
_renaissance_ of Italy, and it has already supplied you with two very good
subjects.
It is probable that before October something else may turn up. If not, I
will send you a book from England to review--for instance, Miss Wynne's
Letters and Journals, which are being printed, and will come out in
October. Miss Wynne was a delightful person, who lived in the society of
Paris, when it was most agreeable. M. de Circourt is the last survivor of
it--unless I may be reckoned a survivor too. I am glad you appreciate him.
He was private secretary to M. de Polignac in 1830, and married in 1832 an
incomparable Russian--Mlle. de Klustine. They used to say that she knew
seventeen languages and he eighteen. She died some years ago from a
burn, and Circourt now passes his life chiefly with Mme. d'Affry and her
daughter, the Duchess Colonna.
I have another cousin (besides Mrs. Ross) who passes her winters in
Florence, or near it--Mrs. James Whittle. She is a great invalid, and never
goes out. But she is now returning to a Schloss (Syrgenstein) they have in
Bavaria. ... You are right. I have left my hill, which overlooks the great
seaway between the Needles and Hengistbury Head, and come to London for the
next three months; but I had much rather stay in my hermitage. London is as
disagreeable as an east wind can make it. Believe me,
Yours faithfully,
H. REEVE.
The Journal here notes:--
_April 25th_--Lord Derby gave a great dinner at the F.O. I sat between
Stirling-Maxwell and Pender.
_May 9th_--Lord Derby presided at the Literary Fund dinner. I proposed the
health of the Chinese Ambassador. I retired this year from the council of
the Literary Fund.
_18th_--Went to Paris alone. 20th, long interview with the Duc Decazes.
Dined at the Embassy. Thiers in the evening.
_May 22nd_--Dinner at Laugel's. [Footnote: The Duc d'Aumale's secretary.]
Duc de Broglie, Duc Decazes, Chabaud-Latour and the Haussonvilles. The
'_coup d'état_ of the Marshal,' as it was called, when Macmahon turned out
Jules Simon and the Radicals, took place on May 16th, just before I reached
Paris. Hence the agitation was extreme; and at this dinner at Laugel's I
had to encounter the dukes, who wanted to know why we disapproved their
measure.
_23rd_.--Dined with Thiers, who was depressed. I had, however, several
important conversations with him during this visit, of which I took a note.
He expected to become president again. If that had happened, much would
have been altered, but he died on September 3rd.
_28th_.--Back to London. Related to Lord Derby what Thiers said.
_31st_.--Severe gale. To Foxholes for a day on June 2nd.
_June 12th_.--The Duc d'Aumale came over to dine with The Club.
_19th_.--Mrs. Oliphant's party to Maga at Runnymead [to celebrate her 25th
year of alliance with 'Blackwood's Magazine.' A lovely day, and an amusing
party of littérateurs, publishers, writers, &c.]
_July 19th_.--Came down to Foxholes.
_October 18th_.--London to Durham, with Hopie. Durham Cathedral. 19th,
to Matfen (Sir E. Blackett's); 24th, to Yester (Lord Tweeddale's) by
Edinburgh; 29th, to Ormiston; and 31st to Minto. Back to town on November
3rd. Some London dinners.
_To Mr. T. Longman_
_C. O., November 8th_.--There ought to be, in the January number, an
article on the Organisation of the Liberal Party. I have asked several
leading politicians of the party to undertake it, but in vain. The truth
is, that it is a very thankless and hopeless subject; and the recent
discussion of the county franchise by Lowe and Gladstone renders it still
more difficult. I put my own opinions wholly out of the question, and
should give _carte blanche_ to any competent and accredited writer to treat
the subject. I think I shall ask Lord Hartington what he wishes to be done.
My own opinion is that this county franchise move is suicidal to the
Liberal party, and I clearly perceive that the Tories are preparing--when
somewhat hard pressed--to take up and carry some such measure, accompanied
by a redistribution of seats that will swamp a great many Liberal boroughs.
They say, If the thing is to be done, we had better do it....
It is generally supposed that Gladstone published his article, which points
to universal suffrage, in order to cut the ground from under Hartington's
feet at the Scotch meetings. Hitherto Whig principles and the whole Whig
party have been decidedly opposed to an unrestricted franchise.
_C.O., November 15th_--Lord Granville is so cautious and reserved a man
that it is impossible to extract any definite opinion or advice from him.
I have tried repeatedly, and I never got so much as a hint from him worth
anything How different from Lord Clarendon or Lord Aberdeen! The truth is
that Granville is always waiting upon fortune; ready to take any course
that may turn up, but utterly incapable of taking a strong resolution based
on principle and conviction....
I dare say May's book will have success. It is very well written; but it
is not what I expected. It is an historical survey of the political
institutions of all nations, 'from China to Peru,' executed with care and
great reading; but there are no traces of original thought, and it leaves
you exactly where you were before in relation to the democratic element in
society. Bagehot's books have ten times as much _thought_ in them.
A most excellent book, which I am reading with great delight, is Mr.
Gardiner's 'Reign of Charles I. before the Rebellion.' It is, to me, as
interesting as Macaulay, and singularly impartial.
And the Journal winds up the year with:--
_December 12th_--To Foxholes. Christmas at Farnborough. [Mrs. Reeve wrote
on December 24th: We start this morning for Farnborough Hill. It is now
eighteen years that we have spent Christmas with the Longmans.] Back to
Foxholes.
1878.--We spent the first week of the New Year at Foxholes, the weather
charming, and returned to London on January 11th.
_To Mr. T. Longman_
_Foxholes, January 7th._--I know the authoress of the Russian letters very
well. She is one of the boldest and keenest Russian agents in Europe, who
was sent here three or four years ago to endeavour to prepare English
society for the coming war, and she has returned here every winter. She has
made repeated attempts to capture me, though, as you may suppose, without
success. But on politicians of a sentimental cast her influence has been
considerable, especially on Gladstone, who is singularly amenable to female
flattery, and a perfect child in the hands of a clever _intrigante_ of this
kind.
But I am certainly sorry that Froude should have attached his name to her
letters. To suppose that this great and dreadful war has been undertaken
for the sole purpose of 'liberating' the Southern Slavs, and that the
Russians hate the Turks because the Tartars conquered Russia some centuries
back, are assumptions which can hardly impose on the most credulous of men.
This is a war of conquest, and the spirit of the Crusades has been evoked
to stimulate an ignorant and enthusiastic people.
One of the points of the Russian party in England is to denounce and
misrepresent the Crimean war. That war was carried on in defence of great
principles of European law--not for the sake of the Turks--by the statesmen
to whom we are particularly attached--Palmerston, Clarendon, Russell,
Lewis, Panmure, &c. Mr. Carlyle, Froude, Freeman, Goldwin Smith, Bright,
and at last Gladstone, were opposed to it. I adhere to the views of the
statesmen, which the 'Review' defended in 1854 and 1855. I am, therefore,
extremely glad, and think it highly proper and necessary that the Queen
should defend the course taken by her ministers and by the nation at that
time; and it would be the excess of inconsistency in the 'Review' not to
maintain, as a matter of history, the same principles for which we have
invariably contended.
_C. O., January 12th_.--One of the first persons I met on coming to London
yesterday was Lord Granville, and I had a long talk with him. He was less
reserved than usual. I don't know that there is any difference in our view
of the foreign question, except that he thinks the Government should have
said and done even less than they have done. But the disposition of many
of the moderate Whigs, such as Lord Morley, Duke of Bedford, Duke of
Cleveland, &c., is to support the foreign policy of the Government. The
Duke of Sutherland is to dine at Disraeli's dinner, out of hatred of
Gladstone. I believe Dizzy is to have the Garter!
Lord Granville said, 'I saw that the last article in the last number of the
"E. Review" was _not_ Reeve. It might have been written by a contributor to
the "Daily Telegraph."' To this I replied: 'It was written, in fact, by a
very intimate friend of your own, who was, I think, staying at Walmer last
summer; a man of great experience in political writing, not for the "D. T."
but for the "Times;" and, although I don't think it a good article, and
differ from many things in it, I thought myself pretty safe in the hands of
Sir George Dasent.' It was amusing to see G.'s look of astonishment.
Politically, the topic of 1878 was the settlement of the Russo-Turkish war.
The fall of Plevna in the previous December, and the subsequent collapse of
Turkey, led to the advance of the Russians to San Stefano and the treaty
of March 3rd, which seemed a direct step towards the seizure of
Constantinople, and the swallowing up of the Turkish Empire. In England
public feeling ran very high, but, unfortunately, in opposing currents.
The Government was resolved, at all risks, to prevent the extreme result
foreshadowed by the Treaty of San Stefano, and to do so by acting on the
_si vis pacem, para bellum_ principle. In the East, the Mediterranean fleet
was ordered to pass the Dardanelles and to anchor in the Sea of Marmora;
whilst at home, a vote of credit to the amount of 6,000,000£. was rapidly
passed through Parliament, the navy was strengthened, the army reserves
were called out, and the initial preparations were made for the despatch of
an expeditionary force. And at this time what threatened to be a serious
blow to the Ministry, in reality strengthened it. Lord Derby, the foreign
secretary, resigned, possibly influenced, it was said, by personal intimacy
with Count Schouvaloff, and in any case disapproving of the measures of the
Government. He was succeeded by the Marquis of Salisbury, who, in June,
accompanied Lord Beaconsfield to Berlin to attend the Congress, from which
they returned on July 16th, bringing back, in Beaconsfield's now classical
words, 'Peace with honour.'
_From Mr. Richard Doyle_
7 Finborough Road, January 15th.
My Dear Reeve,--When at Foxholes, in August last, I began a sketch of the
view from your house. It was my intention to ask you to accept the drawing
when complete. In the presence, however, of the very attractive original,
I, on leaving, was so little satisfied with my copy that I had not the
heart to say anything about it. But, after an interval, and a little more
work upon it, I begin to think that, after all, when in town, it perhaps
may remind you imperfectly of the fresh skies and blue waters left out
of town. So I return to my original intention, and herewith send you the
little drawing for your acceptance. With best remembrance to Mrs. and Miss
Reeve, yours very sincerely,
Richard Doyle.
_From Mr. Theodore Martin_
31 Onslow Square, January 16th.
Dear Mr. Reeve,--I have been much gratified by reading the review of my
third volume in the 'Edinburgh Review,' which my publishers have just sent
me. It brings out with admirable effect the passages which bear on the
present crisis--passages which I inserted in the volume from a strong
feeling that there would be occasion to strengthen the sound view of the
Eastern Question by the emphatic language of the Prince Consort. God grant
they may not have come too late!
With reference, especially, to what you say at the top of page 151, I must
disabuse you of what seems to be the prevailing impression that things in
this book have been written by the direct inspiration of the Queen. Not one
word of it, from beginning to end, was prompted by Her Majesty, who has
left me, from the first, unfettered, to draw my own conclusions, to select
the documents to be made public, and to state my own convictions in my own
way.
What I have selected and what I have written has, when printed, been
submitted, of course, for Her Majesty's approval, which, I am happy to say,
I have always had. In regard to the third volume, it was written almost
entirely last summer and autumn, at my country house, where I had no
opportunity of even consulting Her Majesty. Your conjecture, therefore,
as to the note you cite on page 151 is a mistaken one. That note only
expresses a conviction which I have strongly felt for many years. You will,
on reflection, I think, see that I could not with propriety refer to the
circumstances alluded to in the note on the same page of the 'Review.' It
is one of hundreds of cases where reticence seemed to myself, as, in some
sense, representing Her Majesty, to be prescribed to me. When my book is
complete, an abridged 'Life' will be published. I am sure this article
must do good by being in the hands of the public before the meeting of
Parliament.
Believe me, very truly yours,
THEODORE MARTIN.
_January 19th_.--I have no doubt the Queen will be much pleased with the
'E. R.' article. Believe me, Her Majesty's mind is far too candid and
sincere to take any umbrage at what you say about the Prince's _Germanism_.
She may not think it went so far as you do; but she has always frankly
acknowledged its existence, seeing, with her usual good sense, both the
good and bad effects of any extreme views. If there be any one person more
than another to whom the artificial language commonly addressed to royal
personages is distasteful, it is the Queen herself. Such at least is my
experience. I am delighted to see that the opinions of the Queen and Prince
brought forward in this volume are causing some stir in the Parisian
journals. They are being used to stimulate an active interest in the
Eastern Question; and this, I venture to think, may produce results not
unimportant at the present crisis.
The Journal here notes:--
_January 25th_.--Huxley lectured on Harvey.
_February 7th_.--Dinner at Dicey's, to meet Mr. Welch, the U.S. minister.
John Bright, Hayward, Chandos Leigh, Mme. Van de Weyer there.
_8th_.--To Foxholes, for three days only.
_13th_.--The fleet went up the Sea of Marmora, the Russians having
approached Constantinople.
_28th_.--Marriage of Ellinor Locker to Lionel Tennyson in Westminster
Abbey. All the literary world there. Imposing aspect of Alfred Tennyson,
who looked round the Abbey as if he felt the Immortals were his compeers.
The Journal mentions:--
_March 28th_.--Lord Derby resigned the Foreign Office.
_From Lord Derby_
_March 29th_.--What has happened is disagreeable, as all political
separations are; but it did not seem to me that there was any choice. As to
discussion in Parliament, I suppose I cannot altogether help myself; but it
will be a business unwillingly gone into, and not at all unless there seems
some chance of being of use.
And the Journal:--
_April 3rd_.--Dinner at Longman's. Froude, Trevelyan, Walpoles, Quain. This
was the last of the pleasant literary dinners which Longman used to give.
_4th_.--Great sale of the Novar collection. Fetched over 70,000£. Kirkman
Hodgson gave 20,000£. for three Turners.
_April 13th_.--To Foxholes.
From Lord Lytton [Footnote: Governor-General of India.]
Government House, Simla, April 29th.
My dear Mr. Reeve,--I think you in nowise overestimate the value of Meadows
Taylor's life and work in India, and I cordially recognise the exceptional
claims of the two ladies, on whose behalf you have written to me, to the
grant which I regret to hear they require. Their case is rather a difficult
one to deal with, owing to the fact that nearly the whole work of Meadows
Taylor's life was performed, not in the service of the Government of India,
but in that of the Nizam's Government; and we are precluded, by rules as
inflexible as the laws of the Medes and Persians, from granting public
money to the distressed survivors of our own public servants on purely
compassionate grounds. In my own opinion, however, the claim of these
ladies may be fairly admitted on other grounds furnished by their father's
eminence, not only as a literary man, but also as an administrator, and the
fact that his work, though not performed in the service of the Government
of India, has been, and is, in various ways, unquestionably beneficial to
India. I am glad to say that I have obtained the concurrence of my council
in this view of the case, and we propose to grant 100£. a year to each of
these ladies from the Indian revenues. Our proposal, however, cannot be
acted on without the sanction of the Secretary of State, to whom it will
probably be submitted by this mail; and, as it is of a financial character,
I think Lord Staplehurst [Footnote: Viscount Cranbrook is meant. The patent
of his peerage was not dated till May 4th; but it had been previously
understood, and telegraphed to India, that he would take his title from
Staplehurst.] cannot deal with it except through his council. It is
therefore fortunate that you have secured their suffrages, for at present
it seems to be the invariable practice of the 'wise men of the East' at
the India Office to reject every proposal, however trivial or however
important, which emanates from the Government of India.
Yours, my dear Mr. Reeve, very faithfully,
LYTTON.
_Endorsed_--The pension was granted on June 30th.
_From the Comte de Paris_ Château d'Eu, May 11th.
... I am glad to see that the hope of peace is stronger. A war between
England and Russia would be the greatest catastrophe that could fall
upon the world at present; it would be the cause of incalculable ruin
everywhere. Since the wars of 1866 and 1870 the maintenance of the peace
of Europe depends solely upon the relations between England and Russia. To
France the preservation of peace is of the deepest interest, for the day it
is broken she may expect to see her own frontiers threatened by Germany,
either directly or by the moral subjection of Holland, Switzerland, and
Belgium. We wish no evil either to England or to Russia; but, above all
things, we wish that these two Powers should live in harmony.
Here the Journal has:--
_May 13th_.--Returned to town.
_May 28th_.--Gladstone dined at The Club. Six present; interesting.
_June 3rd_.--Excursion to Greenwich to see the telegraph works. Great
dinner at the Ship afterwards.
_8th_.--All to Norwich, to stay with Dean Goulburn at the Deanery. I had
scarcely been there for fifty years. Dr. Jessop, Canon Heaviside, and Canon
Robinson to dinner--very pleasant.
_9th_.--Communion in Norwich Cathedral. 10th, drove to Costessy (Lord
Stafford's); 11th, to Spixworth; 12th, to Ely, on a visit to Dean Merivale;
13th, to Peterborough; 14th, back to town.
_June_.--Very hot weather. 26th, dinner of the Antiquaries at Lord
Carnarvon's.
_July 5th_.--Lady Northcote's garden party. Helen Blackett there, looking
ill. I never saw her again. [Footnote: See _post_. p. 265.]
_July 13th_.--To Foxholes. Gout prevented me from going to Paris, where the
exhibition was going on, and to La Celle.
_To Mr. T. Longman_
_Foxholes, July 15th_.--I send just a line to say that _no part_ of the
article on 'The Constitution and the Crown' is written by me. I thought
it due to the writer to leave it untouched, and I don't think it is too
severe.
The article in the 'Quarterly' was certainly not written by Dr. Smith, and
I have reason to know that he is a good deal ashamed of it. Nobody seems to
know who wrote it. I do not expect they will reply upon us; but nothing is
more beneficial to the two Reviews than a little controversy, especially
when serious principles are concerned. This question is precisely the
_crux_ or test of Whig and Tory principles; it is the old fight of
parliamentary power against prerogative. There has not been in England, for
a hundred years, a minister so indifferent to Parliament and so subservient
to the Court as Lord Beaconsfield.
_Foxholes, July 16th_.--Dizzy's fireworks will soon burn out; and when
people come to reflect on these transactions, and their consequences,
they will be found to be some of the most questionable in modern English
history. He has the merit of presenting a bold front to Europe and of
avoiding war; but the cost will be great and the ulterior consequences
formidable. I suppose they are going to give him a Roman triumph this
afternoon from Charing Cross to Downing Street.
Sed quid
Turba Remi?...
...... Idem populus...
... hac ipsa Sejanum diceret hora
Augustum.
To my old eyes all this is a sham--a scene out of 'Tancred' and 'Lothair.'
Depend upon it, the article on the 'Constitution and the Crown' will be
read.
_Foxholes, August 10th_.--I never in my life read a better article than
this of Froude on Copyright. It is incomparably good in force of argument,
vigour of style, point, and truth, and, I think, will go far to settle the
assailants of copyright. I confess I enjoy the smashing of the sages of
the Board of Trade and old Trevelyan. They will see that if they attack
literature, literature is able to defend itself.
_From Mr. T. Longman_
_Farnborough Hill, August 14th_.--... I entirely agree with you in the
excellence of Froude's article [on Copyright]. ... I see that he thinks
that copyright may be in danger, and that the tendency of writing will
flow into periodical literature. That I know has long been XIXth Century
Knowles's opinion. He says he cares nothing for any copyright, and never
asks for it. Like the 'Times,' he does not, in fact, need it. His writers
are highly paid, and he and they are satisfied.
_To Mr. T Longman_
_Foxholes, August 15th_.--... No doubt any restriction of copyright in
permanent works would have the effect of inducing literary men to write
more and more in periodicals, which are not permanent but well paid. This
argument is very important. I am not sure that Froude has laid sufficient
stress upon it. Good and solid literature already suffers considerably from
the fact that fugitive literature is far better paid, and that a literary
man can rarely afford to write a large and substantial book requiring years
of labour. Herbert Spencer's evidence is very interesting; but few men have
the courage to risk their all in labouring for the future.
I shall make Froude's article the first in the next number, as I think it
will attract great attention.
_August 24th_.--Froude's article will make nearly fifty pages of the
Review, which is more than I like; but I don't know what to leave out, it
is all so good and amusing to literary people, so I think we must swallow
it whole.
A note from the Journal:--
_August 23rd_.--Visit to Highclere (Lord Carnarvon's). A good deal of gout
in October. To Farnborough on the 30th. Back to town on November 4th.
_To Mr. T. Longman_
_Foxholes, October 10th_.--I see the 'Quarterly' announces an article on my
'Petrarch.' Unless Smith is the falsest of men, it will be a civil article,
for he was enthusiastic in his praises of the book to me personally. But I
shall not be surprised if it is another flourish of Hayward's stiletto.
_October 19th_.--The article in the 'Quarterly' on my 'Petrarch' is very
courteous, and certainly _not_ by Abraham.
_C. O., December 2nd_.--This day's post brings me the melancholy
intelligence that our friend Kirkman is so ill he is not expected to
survive, and that dear old Mrs. Grote is in much the same condition. To me,
by far the most painful part of advancing years is the loss of those who
made life delightful. It is the only thing I regret. These friendships of
forty or fifty years are quite irreparable.
The Journal notes:--
_December 5th_.--Parliament met. 9th, first dinner of the Club. 24th, to
Ottershaw Park for Christmas. 28th, to Farnborough--last time. 29th, Mrs.
Grote died. 31st, returned to town.
_To Mr. E. Cheney_
_December 13th_.--I brought up two volumes of the MS. Journals for you to
read when you come to town. But I perceive the further you proceed the less
can you publish. I dismiss all thoughts of that from my mind, and bequeath
the task to posterity.
The debate in the Commons has been very dull, [Footnote: On a motion to
condemn the policy of the Government in Afghanistan. It was defeated by a
majority of 101 in a House of 555.] but the Government will have a very
large majority. They tell me Dizzy is negotiating another little purchase
of Seleucia and Scanderoon. Jerusalem is in the next lot.
I gave the 'Secret du Roi' to an Irishman to review, and the wretch has
disappointed me. I am afraid it is now too late, or I would do it myself.
[Footnote: It was reviewed in the April number (1879), but neither by
Reeve nor the Irishman.] Read M. de Lomenie's book, 'Les Mirabeau'--a very
amiable family.
_Rutland Gate, January 4th_, 1879.--This Christmas has been marked beyond
all others by the most tragical events. To me, Mrs. Grote and Lord
Tweeddale are deplorable losses, and I could add a catalogue of names of
less note, besides those of public interest. What irony to call it the
season of mirth and gaiety!
Mrs. Grote has very kindly left Hayward l,000£. I am glad of it, for it
will make him more comfortable, and, I hope, less cross.
The Journal then has:--
_January 7th_.--Dined at Sir P. Shelley's; Spedding, Browning.
_To Mr. E. Cheney_
_January 18th_.--I fully intended to come to see you to-day, and to bring
you the MS. volumes of C. C. G.; but I am very lame with rheumatism in my
knee, and the weather is so infernal that I cannot use the carriage, and I
am afraid to make the expedition in a cab. I must therefore defer my call
till I can move better. On such a day as this one can only burrow like the
rabbits.
I think the Cenci article in the new 'Ed. Rev.' will interest you.
_January 22nd_.--I send you Vols. III. and IV. of the mystic record. Pray
keep it locked up.
In the 'True Tale of the Cenci,' by T. Adolphus Trollope, there was much
that Mr. Cheney dissented from, and he wrote a long letter on the subject,
which Reeve in due course forwarded to Trollope. This led to a reply, with
which, as far as Reeve's correspondence shows, the discussion dropped. If
it was continued further, it was without Reeve's assistance.
_To Mr. E. Cheney_
_January 23rd_.--I saw Lady Shelley to-day, and, as I told her you could
not call on her, she very obligingly said she would be happy to call on
you and bring you the enlarged photograph of the poet to look at. These
photographs are done on porcelain. There are only three copies of them,
which Lady S. has got. The negative is destroyed. ... She says the drawing
is the image of Shelley's sister, Helen Shelley.
_January 31st_.--Many thanks for your prompt return of the volumes. I am
glad they have amused you, and you can give evidence that they are not very
wicked. I am afraid I cannot supply any more until I have been down to
Foxholes, as I find I have locked up part of the MS. there; and I must now
have the whole of it bound.
_February 3rd_.--I send you Trelawny's book on Shelley, and I also enclose
an interesting letter from Mr. Trollope in answer to your remarks on the
Cenci article. You will see he has taken pains with the subject. I did
not mention your name to him in connexion with the remarks, but only with
reference to the Philobiblon notes. He therefore does not know that you are
as well acquainted with the Italians as he is.
_To Mr. Dempster_
_C. O., February 26th_.--I hope this will not arrive too late to
congratulate you on having achieved in health and good spirits
three-quarters of the road to our centenary. Unluckily, the last quarter is
the most difficult. But _sursum corda_! When I look back and about me, I
am astonished to have got so far. The great pleasure of advancing years
is retrospection. One sees such groups and groups of pleasant people. The
prospective eyes of youth see nothing so real or charming. I fancy I am
sitting with you on a flowery bank of heather in the Highlands, about
August 15th, talking of these things. There are a dozen brace of dead
grouse in the bag. Donald is at the well. Don't remind me that it is
February, 1 in London, the wind in the northeast.
Here the Journal records:--
_February 27th_.--My sister-in-law, Helen Blackett, died at Matfen.
_March 4th_.--Charles Newton and Sir J. Hooker elected by The Club.
_April 28th_.--I was named Vice-President of the Society of Antiquaries for
four years.
_From Lord Kimberley_
_35 Lowndes Square, May 3rd_.--There is a savage article in the 'Quarterly'
(by Froude, I believe), many of the statements in which arise from mere
ignorance. Whatever chance of success Carnarvon's scheme of confederation
had--it was in any case small--was destroyed by Froude's blundering, which
was caused mainly by his knowing nothing whatever about the political
history and literature of the colony. But, for all that, his article is
worthy of attention. Like you, I am very apprehensive about the Zulu war;
but this is too long a story for a short note. I should very much like to
talk the matter over with you.
The Journal again:--
_May 15th_.--Presided at Antiquaries as V.-P.
_June 11th_.--Great party at Count Münster's for the golden wedding of
Emperor Wilhelm.
_From Mr. E. Cheney_
_Audley Square, July 1st_.--I have an impression of Shelley's portrait,
which Colnaghi has just engraved. Sir Percy wishes it not to be re-copied,
and he entertains no doubt of its authenticity. He says it is extremely
like a maiden aunt of his--the only survivor of the past generation of the
Shelleys. I beg your acceptance of an impression.
_To Mr. E. Cheney_
_July 1st_.--I am uncommonly obliged to you for the exquisite engraving of
the drawing of Shelley. I shall cherish it alike in memory of him, and of a
better man--yourself, and for the strange legend about it.
I am sorry to hear that ------ has taken offence at the mention of her
father in the 'Greville Memoirs.' I was wholly unconscious of the offence,
and indeed had forgotten that he was mentioned in them at all.... I should
like, with great simplicity, to say to these eminent persons that I value
the honour of being the Editor of Charles Greville's Journals infinitely
more than any distinction that Queens or Duchesses could bestow on me. But
I esteem the talents and good qualities of ------ and certainly I never
dreamed she was offended.
And then the Journal:--
_July 5th_.--Lady Waldegrave died. The news came while we were attending
Lord Lawrence's funeral in Westminster Abbey.
_26th_.--To Foxholes. _August 16th_.--Visit to Weymouth; 18th, drove to
Abbotsbury.
_August 30th_.--Tom Longman died at Farnborough--seventy-five.
_September 3rd_.--His funeral.
_5th_.--To St. Malo with Christine and Hopie; 6th, to Dinard and on to
Dinan; 8th, to Guingamp; 9th, to Lannion, seeing Chateau de Tonguebec on
the way; 10th, to Louannec--fine rocky coast; 11th, Morlaix--drove to
St. Pol de Léon; 12th, Brest, but it rained; 13th, to Auray; 14th,
expedition to Carnac; 15th, expedition to Locmaria-quer; 16th, Auray to St.
Malo; 18th, home again--a pleasant tour.
_24th_.--To Stratton, to see Lord Northbrook about article on Affghan War.
Read him the article.
_October 21st_.--Lord Northbrook at Foxholes.
_30th_.--Left Foxholes. Visit to Pember's [at Lymington], Beaulieu Abbey.
To town on November 1st.
Frequent mention has been made of M. de Circourt's letters, the writing of
which occupied a great part of his time. In a short memoir, or, rather, an
appreciation, which Reeve contributed to the 'Edinburgh Review' of October
1881, he wrote: 'It was his pleasure and his desire to live and die
comparatively unknown. With an insatiable curiosity and love of knowledge,
with an extraordinary facility in mastering languages, and a universal
love of literature; with a memory so precise and so inexhaustible that it
retained without effort all he had acquired, he found in the mere exercise
of these singular gifts a sufficient employment for a long and not inactive
life.... He possessed and enjoyed the friendship of an extraordinary number
of men of the highest distinction, not only in France, but in all lands.
The correspondence he carried on with his friends in Germany, Italy,
England, Switzerland, America, and Russia was inconceivably voluminous. To
each of them he wrote in their own respective language, equally vehement
and profuse in every tongue.'
The bulk of his letters to Reeve alone is truly formidable. But these, and
presumably most others, were to a very great extent political or literary
pamphlets, which, though not given to the press, were--there can be little
doubt--intended to be circulated among a select public such as he delighted
in addressing. Two of the latest of these, written very shortly before his
death, are here given:--
_From M. de Circourt_
La Celle, October 27th.
My dear Reeve,--I don't know whether the article 'Germany since the
Peace of Frankfort' has done in Great Britain so much noise as the
'Affghanistan,' which has been, over here, an event in the literary-politic
world. But the first one is quite equal to the second, and gives career to
endless (alas! useless, too!) reflections. It is a sombre picture, quite in
the style of Rembrandt, with a _chiaroscuro_ much akin to darkness. It can
be objected that the lights are sacrificed to the shades. But, excepting
the strong constitution of the Imperial army, and the perfection to which,
according to competent judges, the preparations for an offensive and
defensive war have been pushed, I cannot see anything, in the condition of
finances, industry, husbandry, and, above all, public morals, which is not
threatening, if not absolutely disheartening. No traveller comes back from
Germany without a tale of woe. _Savior armis Luxuria incubuit, victamque
ulciscitur Galliam_. And while the rancour and the thirst for vengeance are
still, in France, what they were in 1871, the whole of power, riches,
and fashion in Germany crowding to Paris, give it a sort of transient
popularity, and suffers itself to be led by what is among us most
frivolous, most immoral, and even less French, in the old and legitimate
sense of that word. It is very curious to observe how the strangers flock
to Paris in order to enjoy the spectacle of themselves, reckoning the
French for nothing save the ministers of their pleasures, _et improbi turba
impia vici_. If, in the midst of these brilliant saturnalia, the _pares_
were to rise, and another Commune spring from the kennel to the day, how
many of the lords of the Philistines would be buried under the ruins of the
temple of Dagon? But to revert to Germany, or, rather, to her ruler.
Prince Bismarck, I apprehend, has lived too long. He begins to feel the
fickleness of fortune. He has never had any friends; he begins to be
burdensome to his associates. I don't know whether he could have managed a
Parliament elected after the actual method on the Continent; I am certain
that he did not, and never was able to, uphold a consistent and honourable
system whatever. He is no financier, no economist; and as he does always
act upon the interests of the present hour, without regard to past
engagements, he can have with him but those who superstitiously deem him
a prophet, or those who choose to _servir à tout prix_. He is rude,
suspicious, and vindictive. The only great minister with whom he can be
compared, Richelieu, was at least frank and open towards friend and foe.
Bismarck has never negotiated with any man, nor charged any man with an
important measure, without becoming their ruin, or changed them into
implacable enemies--Savigny, Usedom, Arnim, Gortschakoff. The good genius
of his country has protected Moltke against his insidious praises and
bitter censures. It is easy to prove that, during the late war, all the
good advice given to the King came from Moltke; all hurried, or lame, or
improvident, or perfidiously cruel measures came from the Chancellor. Why
did he leave half of the forts round Paris in the power, not of our
army, but of the armed rabble, to which he left the possession of 1,500
field-pieces and 300,000 guns, while he disarmed the regulars to the last
man? To his calculations we owe the Commune; posterity will hold him
responsible for that incalculable calamity, which it was at every hour in
his power to avert, or to crush instantly. Presently his tenure of office
is very precarious. The Emperor is eighty-two, and has never liked
Bismarck; he has given recently some signs that he feels galled by the
chain. The Crown Prince may make use of him, and sacrify his personal
feelings to the advantage not to upset suddenly the system of government;
but, under Friedrich Wilhelm V., it is more than probable that Bismarck
shall have to choose between retire or obey. Even in the present
occurrence, considering that France is wholly taken up with her internal
dissensions, which are not likely to become soon better, and that Russia
has need of time for recruiting her exhausted resources, it was certainly
not sound policy to blow the trumpet of a coalition which was, presently,
dreamed of by nobody, and shall, in the future, result from the necessity
of things.
The article upon the Code of Criminal Law is an excellent treatise of
_Criminalison_; we, too, want a _refonte_ of our criminal law. What is
called civilisation has gorged our society with an infinity of malpractices
unknown to our ruder but better fathers; and we suffer from the bane of
modern civilisation, that idiot charity towards the refuse of mankind,
coupled to a perfect indifference for the honest people they assail or
bring to ruin. To that endemic disease of the mind no penal statute can
afford a remedy. MacMahon was as weak as a school-girl on such occasions;
Grévy is scarce better; at least he does not call weakness Christian
charity.
'The Impressions of Theophrastus Such' are little intelligible to me,
merely because I have read so few books of the authoress. Doudan [Footnote:
Ximenes Doudan (1800-72) was in early life a tutor in the family of the
Due de Broglie, and remained attached to him. His critical judgement and
sparkling conversation made him a special feature of the Duchess's _salon_.
He was well known in literary society, and was compared by Reeve (_Ed.
Rev._, July 1878) with John Allen of Holland House. Like Allen, his
reputation was based almost entirely on his conversation and encyclopaedic
knowledge. After his death, his few essays and numerous letters were
collected and edited by the Comte d'Haussonville, under the title of
_Mélanges et Lettres_(4 tomn. 8vo. 1876).] wrote that he could never be
quite unhappy while he had _des romans anglais à lire_; I confess that,
when they are not first-rate, they seem to me to belong rather to the
department of industry than to that of literature. The article upon the
civil engineers of Britain is an admirable compilation of much that's
useful to know and easy to understand; the magnificence of the _tableau_
strikes the fancy and weighs upon the mind. But, after all, is humanity
become grander, or better, or happier by so many performances of the
inquisitive and constructive genius? _That's the question_. With trembling
hope I'll answer Yes! Life is less dark, a little longer, and better
provided against the material plagues of nature: but farther?
I am pent up with a severe cold, and losing the last day of a capricious
autumn. Mme. d'Affry has promised me a visit.
What of the parliamentary strife between Disraeli and his rivals? At least,
it is _Diomedes cum Glauco_, statesman pitched against statesman. But in
our camp: _non melius compositus cum Bitho Bacchius_. Yours truly,
A. C.
The letter that follows is endorsed by Reeve 'M. de Circourt's last letter
to me. He was struck with apoplexy on the 15th, and died on the 17th of
November. The last token of fifty years' friendship':--
_From the Comte de Circourt_
La Celle, November 12th.
My dear Sir,--Many thanks for your kind letter of the 6th. I am still an
invalid, _conjuguant_ in all its tenses the verb _grippe_, with its
near relation bronchitis. However, I am recovering by-and-by, and the
weather--not fine, still very mild--helps me towards recovering my liberty
of locomotion. I am the more sorry for my _réclusion_ that I had begun some
plantations in my garden. Fancy what it is to plant trees by half-dozens
and to buy land by wheelbarrows!
We are in a state of partial fermentation and general disgust. The
President _videt meliora probatque, deteriora sequitur_; he is absolutely
sunken in the opinions, but tolerated, because he lets every party at
freedom to plot and to hope. Waddington does not fare better, but Jules
Simon has presently no chance of replacing him. The sympathy which Ferry
has proclaimed for the Reformed Church [Footnote: See _Times_, November
8th.]--very natural in itself--may be mischievous for them; our nation has
never any sympathy for minorities. The leaders of the Clerical party have
lowered their teaching and their practices to the level of the most obtuse
intellects and the most childish enthusiasms; they make conquests by
myriads; and as, in our present state of society, numbers are accounted for
everything, the Government and ruling party have already encountered, and
shall encounter more and more, a formidable opposition, which, if it
does not drag the country into civil war, cannot fail to accelerate and
precipitate the fate of the Republican Government. As the Duc d'Aumale
seems resolved never to put himself forward, the conjectures hover between
Galliffet [Footnote: General de Galliffet was more especially known for the
stern justice he had meted out to the Communards of 1871.] and several
others, all men of action, although none of them has the prestige which
made, in 1799, the task of Bonaparte so wonderfully easy. The 'Great
Unknown' will be revealed to us by some sudden stroke; our people is
perfectly disposed to acknowledge a master, and prays only that 'nous ayons
un bon tyran,' since we must have one.
Lord Beaconsfield's speech [Footnote: At the Mansion House on the 10th. See
_Times_, November 11th.] shall not put an end to the embarrassments of
our Exchange, shaken to its foundations by the curiously tragical episode
[Footnote: 'Gigantic swindle' would more correctly designate it. See
_Times_, November 7th. Philippart, having made away with some 100,000,000
francs, had judiciously vanished.] of Philippart. _Imperium et Libertas_,
i.e. 'Domination abroad and Freedom at home,' is a proud legacy of 'the
most high and palmy days of Rome'; but it will be difficult to force the
submission to that maxim upon all the powers of the world. If the Turks had
studied the history of classical times, they would believe that the days of
_Civis Romanus sum_ and the _Reges clientes Populi Romani_ are come again
for the East; and what immense space does this name design, since the
exclusive and dominating influence claimed by the Premier begins at the
Adriatic and ends--nowhere; for the whole of Affghanistan being brought
under British control, and Turkish Asia on the other side being claimed as
a protected and indirectly governed country, it will become necessary
that the intermediate region, Persia, be assimilated to the rest of the
dependencies of an Empire which, at the farthest end, shall soon be
contiguous to China.
The task of the Russian people is very different. The stern decrees of
Providence have made of it the antagonist and hereditary foe of the Asiatic
barbarics, which it has faced under the walls of Kief and Moscow, and
pressed, by dint of repeated battles and immense sacrifices, to the foot
of the Himalaya range and the course of the Upper Oxus. Sooner or later, a
tremendous shock must happen between the two gigantic Empires which meet
upon that debateable ground. I hope I may never witness it; but I do
regret much the disparition of the ample neutral ground, which till lately
stretched from the Indus to the Yaxartes....
Many wishes for your health and occupations.
Yours very truly,
A. CIRCOURT.
The Journal gives the chronicle of the last weeks of the year:--
_November 22nd_.--Visit to Chatsworth. Delane died. _23rd_.--Chatsworth.
Long talk with Lord Hartington.
_29th_.--Delane's funeral at Easthampstead. Went down with Barlow and
Stebbing; then across by Woking to Lithe Hill (Haslemere); very cold.
At Christmas severe illness came on--gout and violent bleeding of the nose.
I was totally laid up for two months.
The year had been a sad one, and had marked its progress by the death of
many of Reeve's dearest and oldest friends--Lady Blackett (to whom he had
always been tenderly attached), Longman, Circourt, and Delane.