The Press. — London, England, 1853-12-24 00:00:00

DECEMBER 24, 1853. li:ittraturt. eimsitleratious on the Ritsso-Torkioh Qmestiott. By Coningsby. London : noutledge and Co. THE author of this pamphlet has availed him self of a popular name in treating of a popular subject, but his considerations are nonsense. and they are communieated in a style wind' is illiterate. Meowing qi 7'hontax Motire. Edited by Lord .Tolm Russell. Vuls. V. awl VI. Loudon : Longman and Cu. THE grievous injury inflicted on the memory of the late Thomas Moore by the publication of his memoirs has been a " town talk " in all circles where literature is cultivated. From some particulars in our own possession, we never looked upon Moore through that halo of sentiment which enveloped his reputation before the eyes of the public. We confess. however, that we were scarcely prepared for the havoc of his personal character, which would one day result from his own portrait of himself. By a strange coalition in criticism, the Edinbury/t and Om rterl Eerie...ls, along with our coutemporary the Ti mos, have agreed upon the ruin inflicted upon the poet's repu tation. " Poor Moore," cries the last number of the Edinburgh, with the most contemptuous pity! Before examining the present contribution to the prolix biography of the Whig satirist, there are sonic curious facts in connection with the posthumous fame of " Liberal " ce lebrities OIL which we would desire to fix attention. Have our readers ever noted the manner in which the reputations of the mo dern celebrities of " Liberalism" crumble after their death? It is really a very curious topic, and meriting special notice. Sir Archi bald Alison has truly remarked that, though the fame of Pitt and Fox was nearly upon a level in their own age. every political reveht &thin since their death had contributed to raise the character of the former and depress that of the latter. The mistakes about Charles Fox have been removed by all the political memoirs recently published. Look, again, at the fancy picture of " Lord Holland and Hol land House," as described by Mr. Macaulay, and contemplate the reality, as seen in Lord Holland's Own " notes," and in the disagree. able aunt damaging babble of these memoirs Ho w before us. From Fox turn to Sheridan, and observe how Whig pens and tongues con spire (in 801110 respects unjustly) to blast utterly the character of one of the most bra hunt followers of the party. The exaggerated reputation of Mackintosh vanishes on a near survey of him in his son's memoirs. By at curious coincidence, our contemporary the Atheuurana,its number 4,f last week, has made sonic extraordinary " revelations" about Edmund Burke, and has printed, on its own responsibility, extracts front the "6renville Papers" hitherto unpublished. Whether or not these statements atiect the character of Burke will be a serious matter fur investigation at our leisure. And we may add that this long list of dantaFed " Liberal " celebrities may be closed with the name of Sir Philip Francis, on whom both Lord Campbell and M r. Macau lay labour to affix the brilliant infamy of the authorship of " Junius." The conclusion which can be inferred from all these cases is, that the anomalous thing called " political popularity " produces vast illusions amongst the ignonutt spectators. It makes pigmies look like men, and gives to men of moderate stature the appearance of Omits. To talk loudly about great things is ignorantly confounded with the capacity for performing them ; mediocrities are invested with the contemporaneous celebrity due only to mighty natures ; and persons of showy pretensions are counted on as substantial public benefactors. Like dimmed poets, the popular " and unpractical politician appeals to posterity : and, when his name is exhumed by history, his pretensions either vanish, or titintly dwindle down into dwarfish tilladoWS. • There is much upon this point which will sug- THE PRESS. gest itself to Any one closely conversant with the history of the hist half century. But we llttist leave the topic for the examination of the digjecia sucosibra of -pour Moore." The continuation of his biography is to tl►e same ptu•pose, and made in the same suicidal style, as the previous portions. Again we have the revolting philtre Of at greedy gossip noting down the table talk of people of dis tinetion, for the purpose of giving pecuniary value to his diary. llow little did all these persons suspta•t that while they were enter touting the vivacious poet, with his apparently frank and genial manner, he was tilling it l►mg diary with petty reuuu•ks upon their inti mate friends! I.tu•d Brougham observed of a clever biography that it was Boswell minus Bozzy," but Motr•e's Diary is D os w e ll ph o , Bozzy." Nothing eau surpass it for the mi nuteness and the triviality of its gossip. When Lady Jersey in ls's invited him to a party at Middleton, the brilliant hostess little thought that she was introducing a reporter to her guest, , . Amongst them was the Countess Cowper, now Viscountess I ► ulmerston ; and nt the close of the fifth volume before us Moore reports Lady Cow per's conversation, details what her ladyship iearned front Lord Cowper. and so forth. The impudent tunic, too. iu which the diary is written, and its vulgar• as sumption of easy familiarity with high person ages, are very elua•acteristic:— TM. Vi l las went off dux morning. Had at if is Lord Villiera, a ith tag% young cony M, !MEd% fiat and tirimmon, enure over from t fxfortl for the et citing. tsmakton, a I I. • and natural maunurcd g fellow, with a good singing voice, which he let as hear at the pianoforte in the fluning : %hell my mougs, tuff, afle pat in re l aisiti.se as asstd. wislicet to t. Stark d for town to. rtrw ; but not only the .llfrhe3S IhEMSCIVCS but I. 111• Noll wished the e 0111 1 .1,111111 : , 11 )lehled. " 'fete Jerseys," tssulstons," and so through out. If such vulgarity had been written by $ presuming Yankee. what an outcry would-be raised ! But the flimsiness of the memoirs —the endless repetition of old jokes—the perpetual !wattle and prolonged superfici ality—its elaborate record of the chrysalis existence of "the bard of Erin," alternately a butterfly of fashion and the grub of party (ready to sting the defenceless and assail the dea d )—make a move merciless tend blighting exposure of Moore's hollow heart and want of deep-toned (+ante - ie.r than we could ever have expected to have seen. The best passage in the fifth volume is the description of a visit to Castle Dffititigtott, where our readers will reeollect Aloure was first introduced to " high life " Walked over thy house, and felt deeply inteiested by it ; everything l.a.kcd so familiar. so reiloient of old times. The breaktlist-room. the old clock, and the letter-boxes on each side of it, all remaining the Marne AM they were twill thirty years ago, alien I felt :ay silt* till grand at IX:1W; Ow inmate of such a great house. It seemed as if it was lig yesterday I hail lett it, AlBl 1 almost exiieeted at every thin meeting me with the same ranks. to see the same people Hut, alas ! what surpriseil lie was to find that I hail all the pietareN so thorotiOily by heart, for I certainly did vent much care about 'minting when I was cor o na, and knew still less of it than Ido now. Yet thew was Hilt *figure in any of the landscapes that did iiiit seem to me a- Gnu ilium Kb m y own fare. Th.' 11011 Illit o r liable... Pith hia head leaning so thoughtfully on him hand, and at. •g to say. with a sort of 11111111111111 n." 411116011, rl 1000'11 ?nor,/ the pretty Nell tiW,lllll', the brawny Pious, prol'essing tole a Titian, &'c., ate. %talked niumul the pond, that Imp. lets I' in entligielitiling to till which Txpill Moira expended so much trouble mid money without success ; the water still escaping like him own wealth, through WWII` 111%esiiile 1118.1111118481111/18101e outl e ts, and leaving it dry. If anything alms wanting to show the uselessness of experience I.) man kind. it will be Grand in what I now witnessed. From lilt!' to INII I hod seen at irknien ineeasantly emplioyeil iu imitating and eitileaviouring to Piton+ this miliirtinuite IN mil. awl now, in 111417. I found about a dozen or fifteen pianist fi-llows tip to their 14110'8 in floe mull, at the M llu. - wise empli iyment. Oh 'WHO, heiminpuft I mn i m is t. ings ! I remenilier Ittvgers °nee saying lam l i e read the on the dial in the pull here ) i tarot layarer '• 11.' 111010 I N ills ...Mks, I sttipoNc." Here the " got-up" sent intent evaporates heart lessly in a joke. The scores of such passages read with the dreariest effect, and remind us of that "Dead Sea fruit" front which Moore extracted so many metaphors. He wrote a book up►n religion, "'!'ravels of an Irish Oen tleman, &e.," and he affected to pass for a Roman Catholic. Observe the utter indiffer elitism of the following passage relating to his father's death : Our N a n ersatinn d'•i•ply interesting; fianiit that nyitlet my mother nor Kate were %try anxious to prow 1111,011 him thy rryseuce via eivrgyman; but, on mentioning it to lam 80 , t n 4 4 •, 44 . 4 . ) ' 4 , stor t a,,a jots h e I ' self with ft., if. The islll..leti 1101;41.111 1% Rs. Illtleetl. Ile 4.10 1 40110. 11 ...111•. tilh.ll huh 116 Mutt' 1%115 11151 t.'‘.lle. list pri..l %/Is lilt.ceetllllg It. tray Ills Colifuto.l4isl, Mist 1.11% list' U11ee..1.1111 .411.,11‘111% for 11. 1 a pin s..r It. 111111. In. 11.41 my tnothet and Mll.l, " Ant, 'Oll e.lll tell this gellllelllllll 1111 Ile ev.ittleel. 1.. know .11111 e MN Well as I.- %el v line. as slit' kilt.% his 511•1.% action awl tin .tight . and is n tnost notching trent of hunt few nights Mhrn Eikn wits sloinnz something fo.e. hint, Ir munl to tics, int env a tuhuthlr hille girl. it s a int% ..nor g 1441 1110111 1104.4 notknow lour 11111... * Albin ins•nry who % 41. st inkling 1.y..11.1 Nllll it .mile. '• I gi.1 4 . 4 1 111,511 lesn. " Not an allot 'went On nigh. 1111 Meeetl 111, n kick looked as t Itc I.lonkno•ss, for whir' he % Ms alwu%sronnikal.lv, hail not 110 n then ilynyrtell hint. tan elsliselNtllitill 114111111111 V 111111141 upon wligiots, and 101 .aster Kate. %hit, tile last turn ,. I Sit% 1141 . , was Whore I haw half inelittell 1.. 41evInt... Inisorlt a l'intustant , 1.4.1 Me Al l y mitt ancr taken any nth ice and i. mantra .inte 11, It (* h i 1. 0 14 e. • • • 1 ..1* 111, self. Ins lists nig 111111 lls 0 n Protestant wife gout env not oho. y of do Nonni.: it toigina.si Icast for tnt chihhru, tool, it tnt 111111 . 11111:.V hod no athyr nlll4l u tage, I .1 0 0 4 11111 think 1!... pm.. omen:sent to l4.11144.•1111 for. The I'r nl. gentleman. Ali% Corry, was the person to suggest that aphilital hits hlllllllll lit, offered to the dying Maier! Then the hitter %lam inclined to be a I'l.oo:bunt. but Afoot° ad vised her to 1 . 141111i1l And this frolli the Milli olio entell4' find malignantly in Fudges •' assailed tile character of an or nament to the Church of Ireland, because that estimable person had left the Pohl of !tone' lint the religion of Nloove, like his Irish pa triotism, was little better than the veriest " fad e." I.:veli the Whigs Kt' t. tit s Imre folmil oat what 1% were Milli Of Welds hi' Wfts at but film 11111.11killSted 111, 11.41111.101111. Tiara 14 Inv slot-Wen Life ; t egarthal in tattered. he say s, its an at tnek Nam t I t o higs. I .atly lirry arge4 Lool rey to lento son reeiwd hi % own statement of the cirennist awes iii 0 4 11. Lord ivy himself takes it very quietly. Said that it was et Went I wits 114.1 11 Whig ; Ihr , though nay %jewy were strongly on the side of Wally, they were not modified by those const it titionalit ics said It galities with hieli a Whig tented round his principles. So.i.lacti to enahltive rov re' marks taut t4salitissa as an instance of this. !mid 110111111.1 it is 11111111 I am not disposed to agree a ith Mr. Fuca in any I Wm.!, and that it is not likely 1 aboold. If lie was not a. Whig, !wither was he a de mocrat, nor was he, in any tiolitical meaning. air Irish patriot." Ile wits a musician in words, it literary melodist, with an eXtillitiiio Car, 111141 physiCal of strung ',cumin' In opeasiliCS, HMI fancy,—but of 114 . 411 . 1 or genuine passion me vittintit MO It iii the prattling prolixity of these NH.. 'Turning to Isle if 114.3 icr Wiled ID llte %Aline, we will select home, beginning one of Lord Ilroliglinin's : I lined at Lind 4 . 101% : o fill o ilif y. IhN, n pl tiu . C I 41 t p,, illitim Lomb, A 1... A•e. 1:104q..) %sly dinning out NnHltntn I apt lie yells I,in, ) on 11is t o te si t Li t el . )4.44 : rrlwndiug him lot t h kir fotteici• bi..ll.4litutt, lie `.lllll, 1111 f. lorltf.ll 0111 1.1.1.1 1.M... %tom is Ift 1111t11 11/tV illg filing n ring into tin is o•ni rings. anti he with teal oonee. - Mentioned it,onulumn hit mg ex haul ell et ely fork in is stove' hes, ing Iwo I I'res tey 1 nothin g Io . HMI MB 4.l`Ci'VC\ • rirlail , ilStilltitig it it II 111111.14 SOW, " Oh, 111•111. 1 Shall 1.1•11$11% I. hellei Io 111..1 toe Aeet.riliti g liy, ott the tio.l row he took H o tieithir twins not to let% r oopie o•oontiveteil it lib t h e • illoicet ointnnelieol, lug li,iilt .irked it to the 14,11141141411 he nog. • i'ut I ..n" Id fen' lu,ttng •01 11.11 g $.1111.10'11 V /Mt IMO • and the more co no) 4 'cep% ey, to nololteinb io n li ne r me, hos ti Ikea ot u. w a n d slit n rthig tha t• tot to %omit, to ' I ell •1s a I v lllllla.' 1.1 . /lilV . r ' 111411Atali at I{o l rl sb. (1111 SUIIIII, I..nd t 1 1 N1111)1, lot temple , and IVitrl limb on. Smith, lot cuntictollty riot titoe.. kept tis nll in rent. of laughter. In t ing of tlin stories Mount ilratuedrin kers ettt tieing fire, pool sued the ith 111 ut ery possible shape. The lemon% enienco of a runts corn tog t near the canine when hr NH% Si.. ys MI I / 1 / 4 er4 idiots hum caught tire." Then iuu.giescd n pat • SIM hr. nkit.g into it the pulpit ; till roping n coiled to put loin not : 110 water to be had, the 1114114 nt Ihe M.sler. W. ork, being nit I • 'Ottani!" or nn Atheist . :snot et settle nor, • Ile lifts 1101 . 10 1111 l intill 10V1 . 1' his iniolerstioniling it is als s t ;et tug het nisi. his legs and tripping $lllll tip. 1.4 , 111.1'1m tells us of soffit' of 111•4 • II 11/11 • 6111 perfOrnlitileeS, 1% hill fire not to be in cluded amongst the jokers I * .l • ..itic famed at Siel'O'llol . ., NMI 1 , 111,111.1 1 1,. iii .1.1111 , x Ili p it f..taisol at home. TlOlll 1111' thrd, Mlllll. id I i 1.111.111. Ile' 1 on. 1•14,, .1 lainrodll it. ttambluting the " Iliad ' auto the r `.tall /.11. I U pulls Mile)! Lord ' , Ali subjoins 'I her.• i. nn iiincrtirtie, boll% 11 Ilat 1 alt, mptivl sm. to 1.01,,1at1. a sing! , Ism " im the. 04iff/ ‘i 111111 TH•Nit My II I WO4l OW thr Mitrillilt V mi. I lint 11 1111. MN 14, WV 01111 lls. Ihl% Nrv)" . 11 . . 4. 11114tis radn r the liars add e 104W1111{ 1.1 ut mum vb. and t the . ''her tlibmit,yof the, " " and " h:ut W.l .~d~ 1