At length the long-desired letter is arrived, and another in its
company. Why was it so long on the road?--'Quien sabbe?' as the South
Americans say. Probably the official reader was lazy, and let it lie by
him some time before he would take the trouble to re-seal it
dexterously.
But, dear Julia, how pretty and tender is your poem--a new talent, which
I never discovered in you before. Yes, may God grant that "all your
tears may turn to flowers, to adorn us and refresh us with their
fragrance!" and that this beautiful and loving prophecy may soon be
fulfilled! And yet the fairest flowers would be too dearly bought, for
me, at that price. _Your_ tears at least ought not to flow to produce
them.
What you say of H----, "qu'il se sent misérable parcequ'il n'est fier que
par orgueil et libéral que par bassesse" is striking, and will
unfortunately suit too many liberals.
I wrote to you on the occasion in question, that you should think only
of yourself; and you reply, that I am yourself. Best and kindest! yes,
one self we will remain wherever we may be; and had men guardian
spirits, ours must act in common: but here we have no other tutelary
genius than that moral strength which Heaven has given us.
And is it really so melancholy in M----? You tell me of storms and
torrents of rain that threaten destruction. But a fortnight has passed
since that was written--before this reaches you it will be a month. I
shall hope therefore that you are reading it in the midst of the green
spring, with every thing blooming around you, and with the zephyr
fanning you instead of the furious wind. I told my old B----dt that
there were terrible storms in M----. "Ja, ja," replied he, "those are
the Brighton ones." If you had known that, dearest Julia, you would have
thought them more agreeable, for they would have brought you the latest
news of your friend. I beg you to give my most sincere and heartfelt
thanks to our honoured Premier. Were all of his class like him, how much
more popular would government be! Were all Ministers as high-minded and
as upright, how would the universal discontent be diminished! and how
much more free and independent would they themselves be of those many
weights which drag them down, just when it is most necessary they should
soar!
All goes on here as usual. This evening, a splendid fête at Lord H----'s
closed the Easter festivities. Most fashionable people now make
another short stay in the country, and in a fortnight hence _the season
proper_ begins. I am going back to Brighton for a few days, but shall
wait for the Lord Mayor's dinner.
_April 16th._
This took place to-day in Guildhall; and now that I have recovered from
the fatigue, I am extremely glad I went.
It lasted full six hours, and six hundred people were present. The
tables were set parallel from the top to the bottom of the hall, with
the exception of one which was placed across it, at the top. At this the
Lord Mayor himself and his most distinguished guests were seated. The
'coup d'oeil' from hence was imposing;--the vast hall and its lofty
columns, the tables extending further than the eye could reach, and the
huge mirrors behind them, so that they seemed prolonged to infinity. The
brilliant illumination turned night into day; and two bands of music, in
a balcony at the end of the hall opposite to us, played during the
toasts, which were all of a national character. The Lord Mayor made
six-and-twenty speeches, long and short, well and truly counted. A
foreign diplomate also ventured upon one, but with very bad success, and
had it not been for the good-nature of the audience, who called out
'Hear, hear!' every time he was at fault, till he had collected himself
again, he must have stuck fast, and so remained.
At every toast which the Lord Mayor gave, a sort of master of the
ceremonies decorated with a silver chain, who stood behind his chair,
called aloud, 'My lords and gentlemen, fill your glasses!' The ladies
were frightfully dressed, and with a 'tournure' to match. I was seated
next to an American, the niece of a former President of the United
States, as she told me,--but I really forget which. It is to be presumed
that her red hair and Albino complexion are not common among her
countrywomen, or their beauty would not be so celebrated. Her
conversation, however, was very clever, and had something of the humour
of Washington Irving.
At twelve o'clock the ball began. It must have been curious enough, from
the motley character of the company: I was, however, so tired with
sitting six mortal hours at dinner, in full uniform, that I drove home
as fast as I could, and for once went to bed at midnight.
_Brighton, April 17th._
In this morning's paper we read the speech of the diplomate I mentioned
to you:--N. B. not what it was, but what it ought to have been,--which
is often the case.
Immediately after breakfast I drove out with Count D----, a very merry,
amusing Dane, and spent the evening at Lady ----'s, where I met many of
the persons I had seen here before: and Lady ----, whom you remember at
Paris as the object of the Duke of Wellington's adorations.
A propos of him,--do you read the newspapers? Here is a great crisis in
the political world. Canning's appointment as Premier has given such
offence to the other Ministers, that seven have resigned, and only three
remain in place. It is said that the party will find it difficult to go
on without some of them,--for instance, Lord Melville. The Duke of
Wellington also loses considerably by the change. He who was all in all,
is now declared, with the usual exaggeration of party spirit,
"politically dead." There is, however, something magnanimous in thus
sacrificing one's personal views to one's opinions. Caricatures rain
upon the defeated, and some of them are very witty. The old Lord
Chancellor Eldon, who is very unpopular, is particularly ill-treated.
So is Earl W----, a singular old man, who has the most preposterous
aristocratical haughtiness, looks like a mummy, and spite of his eighty
years, is daily to be seen crossing St. James's park on a fast-trotting
horse, with the velocity of a bird.
_Brighton, April 20th._
To-day I have had full experience how dangerous the fogs here may
become. I had not thought of this in London, where the scenes they
occasion are generally only ludicrous.
An acquaintance had lent me his hunter, as I had left mine in London,
and I determined to ride, in a direction as yet unknown to me, towards
what is called the Devil's Dyke. I had already ridden some miles over
the smooth turf, when suddenly the air was obscured, and in a few
minutes I could not see ten steps before me. Thus it remained; nor did
there appear the least hope of its clearing. I passed an hour in riding
to and fro in search of a tracked road;--my light clothing was soaked
through, the air ice-cold, and had night overtaken me, the prospect was
not the most agreeable. In this extremity, wholly unacquainted with the
country, it happily occurred to me to give my old horse, who had often
hunted over these downs, completely his own way. In a few paces after he
felt himself perfectly free he turned short about, and set off at a
pretty brisk gallop directly down the hill upon which I was. I took good
care not to disturb him, spite of the obscurity around me, even when he
broke through a field of high prickly broom and furze, over which he
leapt like a hare. A few inconsiderable hedges and ditches of course
retarded him still less; and after half an hour's pretty hard running,
the good beast brought me safely to the entrance of Brighton, though on
the opposite side to that from which I had set out. I was heartily glad
to get off so well, and seriously determined to be more prudent in this
land of fog for the future.
I generally spend my evenings at Lady K----'s or Mrs. F----'s, and
play écarté and whist with the men, or loo with the young ladies. These
small circles are much more agreeable than the great parties of the
metropolis. There, every art is understood but the art of society. Thus,
for instance, musicians, artists, poets, and men of talent generally,
are invited merely as fashionable decorations; to live with them, to
extract enjoyment from their conversation, or from their genius, is a
thing utterly unknown. All real cultivation has a political character
and tendency; party spirit, and the fashionable spirit of caste pervade
all society. Hence arises not only a universal 'décousu,' but a rigorous
division of the several elements; which, combined with the naturally
unsocial temper of Englishmen, must render a residence among them
unpleasant to every foreigner, unless he either has access to the most
intimate family circles, or can take a lively interest in political
affairs.
The happiest and the most respectable class in England is, without all
doubt, the middle class, whose political activity is confined to the
improvement of their own immediate province, and among whom tolerably
just views and principles generally prevail. People of this
unfashionable class are also the only truly hospitable, and are wholly
devoid of the arrogant airs so disgusting in their superiors. They do
not run after a foreigner; but if he comes in their way, they treat him
with kindness and sympathy. They love their country passionately, but
without any view to personal interest,--without hope of sinecures, or
intrigue for place. They are often ridiculous, but always deserving of
respect, and their national egotism is restricted within more reasonable
bounds than that of their superiors.
It may now be said with equal truth of England as it formerly was of
France, 'que les deux bouts du fruit sont gâtés,'--the aristocracy and
the mob. The former unquestionably holds a most noble station: but
without great moderation, _without great concessions made to reason and
to the spirit of the times_, they will perhaps not occupy this station
half a century longer. I once said as much to Prince E----; he laughed
in my face,--'mais nous verrons.'
I send you a few excerpts from the newspapers, to give you an idea of
the freedom of the press.
1st. "Every ship in the Navy ought to hoist her colours; for Lord
Melville was an incubus that weighed down the service. Meritorious
officers may now have a chance,--under Lord Melville they had none."
2nd. "We hear from good authority that the Great Captain takes
extraordinary pains to get into the Cabinet again, but in vain. This
_spoiled child of fortune_ ought not to have imagined that his
resignation could for a moment have embarrassed the government. We
believe, however, that he is not the only ex-Minister who already
bitterly repents his folly and arrogance."
3rd. "The Ministerial Septemvirate who wanted to extort power, are much
indebted to Mr. Hume's new Act. According to the old law, servants who
tried to extort higher wages from their masters were very properly sent
to the tread-mill."
4th. "We are assured that a great Septemvir has offered to re-enter the
service, on condition that he be made Directing Minister, Grand
Constable, and Archbishop of Canterbury."
Our Ministers would stare not a little if our blotting-paper journals
were to make as free with them.
To-morrow I return to _town_: for as the Romans formerly called Rome
"the city," so do the English call London "town."
_London, April 22nd._
I arrived just in time to be present at a dinner-party at the new
Premier's, to which I received an invitation in Brighton.
This distinguished man is as remarkable for the grace and charm with
which he does the honours of his house, as for the eloquence with which
he carries away his auditors. 'Bel esprit' and statesman by turns, he
wants nothing but better health: he seemed to me very unwell and
suffering. Mrs. Canning is also a very intelligent woman. I have been
assured that she holds the newspaper department, _i. e._ that she reads
them, and informs her husband of all the important matter they contain;
nay, even that she has occasionally written articles herself.
A concert of Countess ----'s was very fully attended. Galli and Pasta,
who are arrived, and will greatly raise the state of the Opera, sang.
The rooms were choke-ful, and several young men lay on the carpet at the
feet of their ladies, with their heads luxuriously reclined against the
cushions of the sofas on which their fair ones were seated. This Turkish
fashion is really very delightful; and I wondered extremely that C----
did not introduce it in Berlin, and deposit himself for once at the feet
of one of the ladies in waiting. The Berliners would have thought this
'charmant' (as they call it) in the English Ambassador.
_April 25th._
After a long interval I re-visited the theatre. I was in good luck, for
Liston acted 'à mourir derire,' in a little farce the scene of which is
laid in Paris in the time of Louis the Fifteenth. A rich English
merchant, tormented with the spleen, goes to that city for amusement.
Scarcely is he fairly settled in his hotel when the minister of police
is announced, and presently enters, admirably dressed in the costume of
the time. He discloses to the astonished citizen that the police is on
the track of a notorious gang of thieves, who, suspecting that he had a
great deal of money with him, had laid a plan to break into his house
that night, and to rob and murder him. The minister adds, that every
thing now depends on his own behaviour; that if he shows the slightest
consciousness, if he appears less cheerful than usual, or does any thing
unwonted betraying anxiety, he will probably hasten the proceedings of
the robbers, and in that case that the police could not be answerable
for his safety--indeed that his life would probably be in the greatest
danger, for that it was not sure that the people of the house were not
in the plot;--he must therefore go to bed at ten o'clock as usual, and
let matters take their course.
Mr. Jackson, more dead than alive at this intelligence, wants instantly
to leave the house. But the minister gravely replies that this can by no
means be suffered, and would be no security to him; for that the robbers
would discover his new residence, and then make more sure of their prey.
"Make yourself perfectly easy," concludes Monsieur de Sartines, "all
will be well if you do but put a good face upon the affair."
You may easily imagine what ludicrous scenes are produced by the
continual efforts of the old merchant to conceal the horrible fright he
is in. Meanwhile his servant, a true Englishman, always thirsty, finds
some wine in a closet and eagerly drinks it. It turns out to be
antimonial wine, and in a few minutes he is seized with violent
sickness; his master instantly concludes that the plan is to poison,
instead of shooting or stabbing him. At this moment the hostess comes in
with a cup of chocolate. In a transport of rage and terror, Liston
seizes her by the throat, and forces her to drink the chocolate; which,
after some surprise at the oddness of English manners, she very
willingly does. Liston's by-play during this, and the manner in which,
suddenly recollecting his promise, he bursts into a convulsive laugh,
and tries to turn it off as a jest, is unspeakably droll. At length ten
o'clock arrives; and after many burlesque incidents, Mr. Jackson goes to
bed in his velvet breeches, lays a sword and pistols by his side, and
draws the curtains quite close. It unfortunately happens, that the
daughter of the host has a love-affair, and had given her lover
'rendezvous' in this very room before the stranger had engaged the
lodging. To avoid discovery she glides softly in, puts out the light
cautiously, and goes to the window, at which her lover is already
climbing in. As soon as he springs into the middle of the room, and
begins to speak, groans of terror are heard from the bed: first one
pistol falls down with a clatter, then another; the curtain opens;
Liston makes a feeble thrust with the sword, which falls from his
trembling hand, throws himself out of bed, and in his curious costume
falls on his knees before the girl, who is as terrified as himself, and
pitiously implores mercy, while the lover slily conceals himself behind
the bed. The door is thrown open, and the minister of police enters with
torches, to inform the trembling Jackson that the band of robbers is
taken; and adds, with a smile, as he looks at the group, "I congratulate
you that you have found so agreeable a way of passing the time."
_April 26th._
A strange place I have visited to-day! A church called the Areopagus, in
which a clergyman, the Rev. Robert Taylor, preaches _against_
Christianity, and permits anyone publicly to oppose him. He has retained
only one thing of the Anglo-Christian church--to make you pay a shilling
for your seat. Mr. Taylor has some learning, and is no bad speaker, but
as passionate a fanatic for the destruction of Christianity as some
others are for its support. He says strong things--sometimes true, often
false; sometimes witty, and sometimes utterly indecorous. The place was
thronged with hearers of all classes.--In a nation which is at so very
low a point of religious education, it is easy to understand that a
negative apostle of this sort may attract a great concourse. In Germany,
where the people are far advanced in the rational path of gradual
reform, an undertaking of the kind would fill some with pious horror,
would attract nobody, and would justly disgust all,--even if the police
did not render such an exhibition impossible.
The first Almack's ball took place this evening: and from all I had
heard of this celebrated assembly, I was really curious to see it; but
never were my expectations so disappointed. It was not much better than
at Brighton. A large bare room, with a bad floor, and ropes around it,
like the space in an Arab camp parted off for the horses; two or three
small naked rooms at the side, in which were served the most wretched
refreshments; and a company into which, spite of the immense difficulty
of getting tickets, a great many 'Nobodies' had wriggled; in which the
dress was generally as tasteless as the 'tournure' was bad;--this was
all. In a word, a sort of inn-entertainment:--the music and the lighting
the only good things. And yet Almack's is the culminating point of the
English world of fashion.
This overstrained simplicity had, however, originally a motive. People
of real fashion wished to oppose something extremely cheap to the
monstrous 'faste' of the rich 'parvenus;' while the institution of
Lady-patronesses, without whose approbation no one could be admitted,
would render it inaccessible to them. Money and bad company (in the
aristocratic sense of the word) have however, forced their way: and the
only characteristic which has been retained is the unseemly place, which
is not unlike the 'local' of a shooting ball in our large towns, and
forms a most ludicrous contrast with the general splendour and luxury of
England.
_May 1st._
At E----'s this morning I found Prince S----, who is just come from the
coronation at Moscow by way of Brazil; (such is the ease and rapidity of
travelling in our times.) For natural beauty, he gave the preference to
the island of Madeira, over every country he had seen. He was but just
eight days in coming from thence to London, which has set me longing to
make the excursion as soon as the season is over.
From four o'clock in the afternoon till ten, I sat in the House of
Commons; crowded, in horrible heat, most uncomfortably seated; and yet
with such eager, excited attention, that the six hours passed like a
moment.
There is something truly great in such a representative assembly! This
simplicity of exterior; this dignity and experience; this vast power
without, and absence of all pomp within!
The debate this evening was moreover of the highest interest. Most of
the former Ministers have, as you know, resigned; among them, some of
the most influential men in England, and (since Napoleon's and Blücher's
death) the greatest Commander in Europe. Canning, the champion of the
liberal party, has defeated this Ministry, and is, spite of all their
efforts, become head of the new one, the formation of which was left to
him, according to the usual custom here. But the whole power of the
exasperated ultra-aristocracy and their dependants presses upon him; and
even one of his most particular friends, a commoner like himself, is
among the resigning Ministers, and has joined the hostile party. This
gentleman (Mr. Peel) to-day opened the attack, in a long and clever
speech, though full of repetition. It would lead me too far, and greatly
exceed the bounds of a correspondence like ours, were I to go into the
details of the present political questions. My object is only to give
you an idea of the tactic with which on the one side, the leader of the
new Opposition headed the attack, and was followed by several more
obscure combatants, who planted a stroke here and there; while on the
other, the old Opposition, the Whigs, (who now support the liberal
ministry with all their might,) more skilfully commenced with their
musketry, and reserved the heavy fire of their great gun, Brougham. In a
magnificent speech which flowed on like a clear stream, he tried to
disarm his opponent; now tortured him with sarcasms; now taking a higher
flight, wrought upon the sensibility, or convinced the reason of his
hearers. I must attempt to give you a specimen of this extraordinary
piece of eloquence.[53]
The orator closed with the solemn declaration, that he was perfectly
impartial; that he _could_ be impartial; for that it was his fixed
determination never, and on no terms, to accept a place in an
Administration of these kingdoms.[54]
I had heard and admired Brougham before. No man ever spoke with greater
fluency,--hour after hour, in a clear unbroken stream of
eloquence,--with a fine and distinct organ,--riveting the
attention,--without once halting, or pausing,--without repeating,
recalling, or mistaking a word; defects which frequently deform Mr.
Peel's speeches. Brougham speaks as a good reader reads from a book.
Nevertheless, it seems to me that you perceive only extraordinary
talent, formidable pungent wit, and rare presence of mind:--the
heart-warming power of _genius_, such as flows from Canning's tongue, he
possesses, in my opinion, in a far lower degree.
Canning, the hero of the day, now rose.--If his predecessor might be
compared to a dexterous and elegant boxer, Canning presented the image
of a finished antique gladiator. All was noble, refined, simple;--then
suddenly, at one splendid point, his eloquence burst forth like
lightning--grand and all-subduing. A kind of languor and weakness,
apparently the consequence of his late illness and of the load of
business laid upon him, seemed somewhat to diminish his energy, but
perhaps increased his influence over the feelings.
His speech was, in every point of view, the most complete, as well as
the most irresistably persuasive;--the crown and glory of the debate.
Never shall I lose the impression which this, and that other celebrated
speech of his on the affairs of Portugal, made upon me. Deeply did I
feel on each of these occasions, that the highest power man can exercise
over his brother man,--the most dazzling splendour with which he can
surround himself, before which that of the most successful warrior pales
like the light of phosphorus in the sun,--lies in the divine gift of
eloquence. Only to the great master in this godlike art is it given to
affect the heart and mind of a whole nation with that sort of magnetic
somnambulism, in which nothing is possible to it but blind and absolute
surrender and following; while the magic rod of the magnetiser is
equally absolute over rage and gentleness, over war and peace, over
tears and smiles.
On the following day the House of Lords was opened under the same
remarkable circumstances as the House of Commons had been, though there
are no men of talents equal to Brougham, nor, above all, to Canning.
Lord Ellenborough rose first, and said that the late Ministers were
accused of having resigned in consequence of a combination, and of
having thus been guilty of the great offence of endeavouring to abridge
the constitutional prerogative of the King to change his ministers
entirely at his own free will. For the preservation of their honour he
must therefore claim for them to be heard fully in their own
justification.--Here I saw the great Wellington in a terrible strait. He
is no orator, and was compelled, 'bongré, malgré,' to enter upon his
defence, like an accused person. He was considerably agitated; and this
senate of his country, though composed of men whom individually,
perhaps, he did not care for, appeared more imposing to him 'en masse'
than Napoleon and his hundred thousands. There was, however, something
touching to me in seeing the hero of this century in so subdued a
situation. He stammered much, interrupted and involved himself; but at
length, with the help of his party, who at every stumbling-block gave
him time to collect himself by means of noise and cheers (exactly as it
was with the Ambassador's speech at the Lord Mayor's feast,) he brought
the matter tolerably to this conclusion,--that there was no
'conspiracy.' He occasionally said strong things,--probably stronger
than he meant, for he was evidently not master of his stuff. Among other
things, the following words pleased me extremely.--"I am a soldier and
no orator. I am utterly deficient in the talents requisite to play a
part in this great assembly. I must be more than mad if I ever
entertained the insane thought (of which I am accused) of becoming Prime
Minister."[55] All the Lords who had resigned made their apology in
turn, as well as they could. Old Lord Eldon tried the effect of tears,
which he has always at hand on great occasions: but I did not see that
they produced any corresponding emotion in the audience. He was answered
by the new Peer and Minister, Lord Goderich, formerly Mr. Robinson, for
himself and the Premier, who, being a commoner, cannot appear in the
House of Lords, though he governs England, and is become too
illustrious, as Mr. Canning, to exchange that name for a title.
The new peer's speech was a very good one, but the beginning excited an
universal laugh. True to long habit, he addressed the speaker of the
House as "Sir." He was so 'décontenancé' at his blunder, that he put his
hand to his forehead, and remained for a time speechless; but recovered
his self-possession with the help of the friendly "Hear, hear!"
Lord Holland distinguished himself as usual by sharp and striking
exposition; Lord King by a great deal of wit, not always in the best
taste; Lord Lansdowne by calm, appropriate statement, more remarkable
for good sense than for brilliancy. Lord Grey far excelled the rest in
dignity of manner, a thing which English orators, almost without
exception, either neglect or cannot acquire. The want of decorum,
remarkable in the lower house, which is like a dirty coffee-house, and
where many of the representatives of the people lie sprawling on the
benches with their hats on, and talking of all sorts of trifles while
their colleagues are speaking, seldom appears here. The place and the
deportment are, on the contrary, suited to the senate of a great nation.
When I question myself as to the total impression of this day I must
confess that it was at once elevating and melancholy;--the former when I
fancied myself an Englishman, the latter when I felt that I was a
German.
This twofold senate of the People of England, spite of all the defects
and blemishes common to human nature which are blended in its
composition, is yet something in the highest degree grand; and in
contemplating its power and operation thus near at hand, one begins to
understand why it is that the English nation is, as yet, the first on
the face of the earth.
_May 3d._
To-day, for a change, you shall follow me from the serious business of
Parliament to the theatre.
The piece was a mere spectacle:--dramatic exhibitions of that sort are
more beautifully and skilfully executed here than in any other country.
I shall confine myself to describing the 'scenery.'
In a wild mountain district of Spain, a Moorish castle rises amid rocks
in the distance. It is night, but the moon shines brightly in the blue
heavens, and mingles her pale light with the brilliant illumination of
the windows of the castle and the chapel. A road winding among the
mountains is visible at many points; and at length, supported on arches
of masonry, leads to the foreground.
A band of robbers now glide stealthily forth from the thicket, and
conceal themselves by the road-side.--You discover from their
conversation that they are lying in wait for a rich prize.
Their handsome young leader is distinguished by his commanding air and
his splendid dress, in the style of the Italian banditti. After a short
interval you see the castle-gates in the distance unclose, a drawbridge
is let down, and a state-carriage drawn by six mules rolls along the
road. Sometimes you lose it behind the mountains;--it approaches,
growing larger and larger (an effect admirably produced by figures of
various dimensions,) and at length comes on the stage at a brisk trot. A
few shots are immediately fired by the robbers, the coachman is killed,
and the plunder of the carriage goes forward amid noise and confusion.
In the midst of the tumult the curtain falls.
At the beginning of the second act you see the same scene, but it
excites quite different emotions. The lights in the castle are
extinguished,--the moon is veiled behind a cloud. In the dim light you
imperfectly distinguish the carriage, with the doors rent from the
hinges. On the box lies the murdered driver; the pallid head of one of
the fallen robbers is seen above a stone trench; and the handsome
captain leans dying against the trunk of a tree, while his boy Gilblas
is vainly trying to check the flight of the departing spirit. This
half-dead, half-living picture, is extremely powerful and touching.
My morning calls were useful, for they procured me three tickets for the
next Almack's; and I prevailed upon one of the most rigorous and dreaded
of Patronesses to give me a ticket for a little obscure 'Miss of my
acquaintance,'--an immense 'faveur!' I was, however, obliged to
manoeuvre and entreat a long time to obtain it. The young lady and her
party nearly kissed my hands, and behaved as if they had gained the
great prize in the lottery.
After Almack's, there is no way of approaching an English lady so good
as politics. There has been nothing to be heard lately, whether at
dinner or at the Opera, nay even at balls, but Canning and Wellington
from every pretty mouth; nay, Lord E---- complained that his wife
disturbed him with politics at night. She frightened him by suddenly
calling out in her sleep, "Will the Premier stand or fall?"
If I improve myself in nothing else here, I shall in politics and
cabriolet-driving; the latter one learns to perfection. You wind along
at full speed, among carts and carriages, where you would have thought
you must have stopped for minutes. A residence in such a metropolis of
the world certainly tends to correct all one's small views of things:
one regards them in a broader manner, and more 'en bloc.'
_May 10th._
The eternal uniformity of the season goes on for ever. A soirée at Lady
Cowper's, one of the gentlest of Lady-patronesses; another at Lady
Jersey's, one of the handsomest and most distinguished women in
England,--both preceded by an Indian mélodrame,--filled my evening very
agreeably. The scene of the mélodrame lay in an island whose inhabitants
were endowed with the delightful gift of flying. The prettiest girls
came floating in in masses, like flights of cranes, and when very
pressingly courted just let their wings sink; but if you were emboldened
by this,--a nod--and the graceful, many-coloured folds expanded, and
away they went; nor could one so much as see the slender cords by which
they were drawn up.
At a dinner and soirée at Prince Polignac's there were several
interesting persons; among them the Governor of Odessa, one of the most
agreeable Russians I have seen, and Sir Thomas Lawrence, the celebrated
painter. I was told that he regularly loses at billiards (of which he
makes the great mistake of fancying himself a master) the enormous sums
he gains by his art. He is a man of interesting appearance, with
something 'du moyen age' in his features, strongly reminding one of the
pictures of the Venetian school.
Still more was I attracted by the Portuguese eyes of the Marchioness
----: Portuguese and Spanish eyes eclipse all others.
Prince Polignac's niece told me that her uncle's hair, which is
perfectly white, while the rest of his appearance is youthful and
agreeable, had turned gray at the age of five-and-twenty, in the course
of a few weeks, from the anxiety and horror of a revolutionary
dungeon.[56] He may well find the present contrast agreeable; but, alas!
the Restoration cannot restore the colour of his hair. I was interested
by this circumstance; for you know, my good Julia, mine has also
patriotically begun to assume our national colours, white and black.
A curious foreigner who wishes to see all the gradations of social life,
can hardly hold out a London season. More than forty invitations are now
lying on my table,--five or six for each day. All these fête-givers must
be called upon in a morning; and, to be courteous, one must go in
person. 'C'est la mer à boire;' and yet on my way to parties I
continually pass ten or a dozen houses which I don't know, where the
same mass of carriages is standing before the door.
A ball at which I was lately present was peculiarly brilliant, and was
attended by some of the Royal Princes. When this is the case, the vanity
of the host has introduced the fashion of mentioning it on the card: "To
meet his Royal Highness," &c. &c. is the laughable phrase. The whole
garden belonging to the house was built over, and divided into large
rooms, which were hung with draperies of rose-coloured and white muslin,
ornamented with enormous mirrors and numerous chandeliers, and perfumed
with the flowers of every zone.
The Duchess of Clarence honoured the entertainment with her presence;
and all pressed forward to see her, for she is one of the few Princesses
whose personal character inspires far more respect than their rank, and
whose infinite goodness of heart and amiable disposition have gained her
a popularity in England of which we Germans may be proud; the more so as
she is probably destined to be Queen of these realms.
The person who gave this ball was, however, far from being fashionable;
a quality which is susceptible of the strangest 'nuances.' But every
one, fashionable or not, refines upon his neighbour's entertainment as
he can.
The next day Countess L---- gave a ball, at which I was obliged to
alight at least a thousand steps from the house, as it was utterly
impossible to get through the crowd of carriages. Several equipages that
had tried to force their way were fast locked together, and the coachmen
were swearing the most terrible oaths. At this ball the hot-houses were
tapestried with moss of various hues, and the ground thickly strewed
with new-mown grass, out of which flowers seemed to grow freely here and
there; the stalks were illuminated, which doubled the splendour of their
colours. The walks were marked by coloured lamps, glittering like jewels
in the grass. Gay arabesques were described among the moss on the walls
in the same manner. In the background was a beautiful transparent
landscape with moonlight and water.
_May 15th._
Riding out to-day with several ladies, the question arose which way we
should take, the best to enjoy the beautiful spring evening. Just then
we saw an air-balloon floating in the sky, and the question was
answered. For more than ten miles did the untired ladies follow their
aerial guide, as if on a 'steeple chase,' but it vanished at length from
our sight. The evening was devoted to a grand diplomatic dinner, at
which several of the new Ministers were present; and to a ball in a
German house, whose solid and tasteful magnificence equals the best
English ones, and excels most in the agreeable qualities of its
possessors; I mean Prince Esterhazy's.
My journal will soon be like Bernouilly's Travels, which mainly treat of
invitations, dinners, and evening parties. But you must take the thing
as it comes. Liken this journal to a stuff upon which are very different
embroideries, some rich, some poor. The strong lasting stuff is my
unalterable love for you, and the wish to make you live with me, as far
as it is possible, my distant life; the embroideries are only copies of
what I see or experience, and must therefore take the same character, be
the colours sometimes glowing, sometimes faint. And it were not to be
wondered at if they faded altogether in the choking city, which never
can afford such lovely hues as beautiful nature.
_May 21st._
I give you notice beforehand that I must remain true to the same theme,
and record a breakfast at the Duke of Devonshire's at Chiswick.
This is the prettiest sort of fête given here; they are given in the
country, and the company are dispersed through the house and the
beautiful gardens. Though called breakfasts, they begin at three and do
not leave off before midnight. Prince B----, brother-in-law of Napoleon,
was there,--another of those whom I formerly saw in that splendour which
they borrowed only from the Sun of the world,--a splendour which so
quickly vanished with its source.
But the great ornament of the fête was the beautiful Lady Ellenborough.
She came in a small carriage drawn by poneys not larger than
Kamtschatkadale dogs, which she drove herself. From henceforward the
doves may be unyoked from the chariot of Venus, and poneys harnessed to
it instead.
All sorts of equipages fare worse here than any where. At last night's
Almack's there was such a 'bagarre' among them, that several ladies
were obliged to wait for hours before the chaos was reduced to any
order. The coachmen on these occasions behave like madmen, trying to
force their way, and the English police does not trouble itself about
such matters. As soon as these heroic chariot-drivers espy the least
opening, they whip their horses in, as if horses and carriage were an
iron wedge; the preservation of either seems totally disregarded. In
this manner, one of Lady Sligo's horses had its two hind-legs entangled
in such a manner in the fore-wheel of a carriage, that it was impossible
to release them, and one turn of the wheel would infallibly have broken
both. Notwithstanding this, the other coachman could hardly be prevailed
on to stand still. When the crowd dispersed a little, they were forced
to take out both horses, and even then it was with some difficulty they
extricated the entangled one. All this time the poor animal roared like
the lion in Exeter 'Change. At the same time a cabriolet was crushed to
pieces, and 'en révanche' drove both its shafts through the window of a
coach, from which the screams of several female voices proved that it
was already full: many other carriages were damaged.
After this description, you, dearest, with your 'poltronnerie,' will
scarcely trust yourself here in a carriage. It were certainly safer to
adopt the fashion of the time of Queen Bess, when all, even the most
delicate court-maidens, went a-visiting on horseback.
_May 27th._
I had the honour of dining with the Duke of Clarence to-day. The
Princess Augusta, the Duchess of Kent, her daughter, and the Duchess of
Gloucester were present. The Duke is a very kind, friendly host, and
always does me the favour to remind me of the various times and places
at which we have met before. He has much of the true Englishman, in the
best sense of the word, and the English love of domestic life. This
dinner was given in celebration of the birthday of Princess
Carolath.[57] He gave her health; at which the gentle Emily, spite of
her intimacy with the amiable Duchess, her relation and friend, blushed
over and over.
Among the guests I must mention Sir George Cockburn, who took Napoleon
to St. Helena. He told me many circumstances which proved Napoleon's
extraordinary power of winning those whom he had any desire to win. The
Admiral likewise admired the sincerity with which Napoleon spoke of
himself, as of an indifferent historical personage; and among other
things, openly declared that the Russians had so completely outwitted
him in Moscow, that up to the very last day he was continually in hope
of peace, till at length it was too late. 'C'était sans doute une grande
faute,' added he coolly.
The Duke's daughters are 'd'un beau sang,' all remarkably pretty, though
all in a totally different style. Among the sons, the most distinguished
is Colonel Fitzclarence, whose travels overland from India, through
Egypt, you read with so much interest. He has also written on the German
Landwehr, of which he is no partisan. Seldom does one find a young
officer of such varied accomplishments. I have known him a long time,
and have frequently had occasion to be grateful for his obliging and
friendly manners.
His eldest sister is married to Sir Philip Sidney. I heard from her that
not only has the series of portraits been preserved unbroken in that
illustrious family from Lord Leicester's time downwards, but also a lock
of hair of every successive head of the family. Among other curious
documents they have also a list of the guests at the feast at
Kenilworth, and some very remarkable household accounts of that time. I
believe Sir Walter Scott has used these papers.
In the evening Pasta warbled at Countess St. A----'s, and two or three
balls closed the day.
_May 26th._
This morning in the Park I could not restrain a hearty laugh at a young
lord, who has not profited much by his residence at Paris, and whose
beautiful horse attracted more admiration than himself. "Quel beau
cheval que vous avez là!" said I. "Oui," replied he, with his English
accent; "je l'ai fait moi même, et pour celà je lui suis beaucoup
attaché." Is not this almost as good as the deaf Russian officer in
B----, to whom the King said, on the entrance of a surgeon, "Ce poisson
là est bien fréquent chez vous." "Oui, Sire," replied he, with a
profound bow, "je l'ai été pendant quinze ans."
'Rex Judæorum' gave a magnificent dinner, the dessert of which alone, as
he told me, cost a hundred pounds. I sat next to a very clever woman,
Mrs. A----, the friend of the Duke of W----, a very characteristic,
acute, un-English physiognomy,--you may think what an 'enragée'
politician. I must have annoyed her excessively; in the first place I am
a great Canningite; in the second, I hate politics at dinner. We had a
great exhibition of splendour. The table service was of vermillion and
silver; that of the dessert, I think, all gold. Under the portrait of
Prince Metternich (a present from the original) in an adjoining room,
was a large gold box, perhaps a copy of the Ark of the Covenant. A
concert succeeded the dinner, at which Mr. Moschelles played as
enchantingly as his wife looked. It was not till two o'clock that I got
away to a rout at the Duke of Northumberland's, a small party of about a
thousand persons. Music was performed in an immense picture-gallery, at
thirty degrees of Reaumur. The crowd and bustle was however so great
that we heard little of it. The atmosphere was like that of the
black-hole at Calcutta. Are these really the amusements of civilized
nations!
_May 31st._
The rich Lady L----, with whose 'black diamonds' her complexion forms
the most agreeable contrast, and whose 'air chiffonné' is quite
original, showed me her bazaar this morning. It is no common one, for it
contained jewels to the amount of three hundred thousand reichsthalers.
The whole boudoir full of perfumes, flowers, and rarities, the 'clair
obscur' of rose-coloured curtains, and the Marchioness herself in a
dress of yellow gauze, reclined on her chaise longue 'plongée dans une
douce langueur;'--it was a pretty picture of 'refinement.' Diamonds and
pearls, pens and ink, books, letters, toys and seals, and an unfinished
purse, lay before her. Among the seals, two were piquant, from their
contrast,--the one from Lord Byron:
"Love will find its way
Where wolves would fear to stray."
The other says, with true French 'philosophie,' 'Tout lasse, tout casse,
tout passe.' Nothing, however, was so common in the house as portraits
of the Emperor Alexander who had paid great attention to the Marchioness
at V----, and whose image had been thus multiplied by gratitude. Her
husband was ambassador there, and used his English prerogative to its
full extent. Once he boxed with a 'fiacre' driver: another time he
presented the Archduchess, and, if I mistake not, the Empress herself,
to his wife, instead of the reverse;--then he ran into the kitchen to
stab his cook for having offended the Marchioness: 'enfin, il faisant la
pluie et le beau tems à V----; ou plutôt l'orage et la grêle.'
Just conceive how 'disappointed' the poor lady must be, after so long
ruling on the Continent, 'malgré ses diamans, son rang, et sa jolie
mine,' not to be able to be really and truly fashionable. But this
aristocracy of fashion is more difficult to attain to than the highest
rank of freemasonry, and much more capricious than that venerable
institution, though both alike make something out of nothing.
I dined at Lord Darnley's, where I met Lord Bloomfield, formerly a
conspicuous man, and great favourite of the King's 'du tems de ses
frédaines.' There was also the Archbishop of York, a majestic old man,
who began life as a private tutor, and has reached this elevated station
by the patronage of his pupils. Nothing can be at once more ugly and
more laughable than the demi-toilette of an English Archbishop. A short
schoolmaster's wig ill-powdered, a black French coat, and a little black
silk ladies' apron hung over the inexpressibles in front, just as our
miners hang theirs behind.
We were extremely well entertained with game and excellent fruits from
Cobham; and after dinner drove to a concert, which was very different
from any I had heard here. These concerts were set on foot by several
noblemen and distinguished persons, admirers of the music of Handel,
Mozart, and the old Italian masters, whose compositions are here
exclusively performed. It's long since I had such a treat! What is the
modern _Trilliliren_ compared with the sublimity of that old church
music? I felt transported back to the days of my childhood, a feeling
which always strengthens the soul for days, and gives it a fresher,
lighter flight. The singing was excellent throughout, and often of an
unearthly beauty in its simplicity; for it is inconceivable what a power
God has given to the human voice when rightly employed, and poured forth
in a simple and sustained flow. Handel's choruses in the Oratorio of
Israel in Egypt, make you think you _feel_ the night which overshadowed
Egypt, and hear the tumult of Pharaoh's host, and the roaring of the sea
that engulfs them in its waters.
I could not bring myself to listen to ball-fiddling after these sacred
tones, and therefore retired to my own room at twelve o'clock, willingly
leaving Almack's and another fashionable ball unvisited. I shall carry
the echo of this music of the spheres into my dreams, and, borne on its
wings, shall take a spiritualized flight with you, my Julia: 'Are you
ready? Now we fly.'
_June 1st._
My old B---- waked me very early, which he never does unless he has a
letter from you to give me. On all lesser occasions he lets me sleep
on, however particularly I may have desired him to call me. His apology
always is, "You were so sound asleep!"
It is really lucky that I have not that sort of vanity which is
intoxicated by praise, otherwise you would make a complete fool of me.
Alas! I know myself too well, and a hundred faults which your love but
half perceives. The little devil whom you attack certainly often
possesses me. But he is tolerably innocent, often a poor foolish, honest
little devil, of a sort that stands midway between angel and devil, as
to the morality of the business;--in a word, a genuine weak child of
man. But as he displeases you, poor little imp, I shall put him into a
bottle, like Hofmann, and cork him down with Solomon's seal. From this
time I shall produce only the Herrnhüter before you:--you know I passed
my youth among that sect, 'et si je m'en ressens, je ne m'en ressens
guères.'
I shall certainly be present at the fancy-ball you mean to give in
imitation of that at Brighton. Nobody will know me, for the good reason
that I shall be invisible: I shall only imprint a kiss on your forehead,
and then be off like a thought:--be on the watch therefore!
_June 3d._
I wandered yesterday from the regions of the gay world once more into
the city, and observed the toiling industry which is continually
producing some fresh article of luxury. Every day sees some new
invention. Among them may be reckoned the countless advertisements, and
the manner of putting them 'en evidence.' Formerly people were content
to paste them up; now they are ambulant. One man has a pasteboard hat,
three times as high as other hats, on which is written in great letters,
"Boots at twelve shillings a pair,--warranted." Another carries a sort
of banner, on which is represented a washerwoman, and the inscription,
"Only three-pence a shirt." Chests like Noah's ark, entirely pasted over
with bills, and of the dimensions of a small house, drawn by men or
horses, slowly parade the streets, and carry more lies upon them than
Münchausen ever invented.
I arrived at Mr. R----'s very tired, and accepted an invitation to dine
with him at his counting-house. During dinner we philosophized on the
subject of religion. 'R---- est vraiment un très bon enfant,' and more
obliging than most men of his class,--whenever he thinks he risks
nothing by it, which one cannot blame him for. In our religious
discussion he had somewhat the best of it, for he is of the ancient
nobility in matters of faith: they are the true aristocrats in this
subject, and will hear of no innovation or reform. I wound up by saying,
with Göthe, _Alle Ansichten sind zu loben_; and drove in a crazy
hackney-coach back to the 'West End of the Town,'--where there are
neither Jews nor Christians, but only Fashionables and Nobodies,--to
hear Pasta sing at Mrs. P----'s, and to play écarté, de moitié with
Lord H----'s friend.
I came home at four o'clock, fell asleep by rosy day light, and fancied
my bed was the moss of a forest. I was waked by a piteous cry: I looked
around, and saw a poor devil come plump down through the air from the
top of a high tree, and fall on the ground near me. Groaning, and pale
as ashes, he crawled up, and cried out that it was all over with him. I
was hastening to help him when a creature like an inkstand with a
stopper came up, and, with heavy curses, gave the half-dead man several
blows with his stopper. I watched my time, pulled out the stopper; and
as the ink streamed forth, he changed himself into a Moor in a splendid
silver jacket and elegant costume, who cried out laughing, that if I
would only let him alone, he would shew me such things as I never saw
before. Now began such conjurations as left all the Pinettis and
Philadelphias in the world far behind. A large closet changed its
contents every minute; and all the treasures of Golconda, with
unheard-of curiosities, were presented to my view.
My dream went on increasing in extravagance. Did you ever hear of such
mad visions as haunt me here? It's the melancholy fog, the suffocating
air of London, which clouds my senses. I send them to you therefore,
that you may let them out in our own sunshine, and on their heavy wings
I lay a thousand affectionate greetings of your faithful Friend,