The Sun.
London, England, 1806-01-23 00:00:00

Mr. FITT.

Tins virtuous' and distinguished trrititent of. hu-
man nature 'closed his earthly career this morning,

at half past four o'clock, an event that, in the pre-

sent state of things, cannot but be considered ias a
loss to the world at large, as well as to this Country.

He expired without a struggle, and although his
frame ‘A as completely exhausted by the severity of

his disorder, he retained the powers of his mind to
the last and awful moment which terminated his
existence in this world. His Faiend, and the Pre-

ceptor of hi 3 youth,t he Bishop of LIN coLN,remained

with him till the last.

It is as difficult for us to express our grief on the
loss of this great man, as to do justice to his cha-
ra&er. After a long and painful illness, borne with
that fdrtitude which uniformly marked his condu& in
public life, he has at length closed a career of pre-

eminent glory as a Statesman, an Orator, and a Pa-

triot. He might be said to have been born a States-
man, At the very commencement of his public

career, he manifested a comprehensive mind, that

excited 'the wonder of those who were old in politi-

cal life ; and though his. enemies accused him of

over-weening confidence in his own talents, his re-
liance on himself was the unavoidable result of a

mina conscious of great powers, fairly estimating

those powers in compaiison with the most exalted
of his competito'rs. This conviuion of the extent of
his capacity induced Mm, almost at his .entrance
Into political life, to decline a subordinate situation;
and the firmness and ability with which he main-
tained his ministerial post, though assailed by,a- suc-
cession of some of the greatest men which this

Country ever produced, _affords abundant proof that

he was not mistaken in bis estimate of his own ta-
lents,

It is needless to enter into a detail of Ms• Political
History. All the events of that history have hap-
pened within the memory of us .all, for he may be
Said' to have ended_ his days almost at the meridian of
life. His most violent opponents, however they
might affe& to censure what they held forth as his
„pride and presumption, never could deny that his
abilities were•of the highest class, and .never could
they attempt to impeach the purity of his principles.
But his pride as the pride of virtue, and his pre-
sumption was .only apparent in his .aspiring, at
that elevation to which his powers were fully
competent, and which he was resolved to ens-

ploy for the interest and honour of his Coon- •
try. But it was not only for the glory and security of
Great Britain that this pre-eminent Statesman exer- '
cised his vast powers : When that dreadful volcano, '
the French Revolution ,burst upon mankind,and when
many apparently sound minds were dazzled with
its glare, Mr. PreT saw its horrors in full force, and
by-his determined firmness, wisdom, and persevering
taivity,effeftually saved this Country from being in-
volved in the direfulconsequences of that tremendous
convulsion of thecivili zed world. By his unabating zeal
and provident counsels we have been guarded from
the,baneful contagion of 'revolutionary do&rines,and
though ruin and misery have-fallen on many. States, and
seems to impend over others, this Country is free,
formidable, and, we trust, secure. It must, indeed,
be acknowledged, that in him wp have lost the great
prop of our security,. but the effe& of his counsels
and the force of his example, will, we hope, with
the blessing of Providence, be 'still our prateEtion.
As a Politician, therefore, in preserving the pre-
sent and guarding against the future, Mr. PITT bad
a full, opportunity of proving the comprehensiveness
of his .mind at a period of the most imminent peril.
The Patriot in this respca is intimately blended
with the Statesman. As an Orator, no description
Will reach his merits. He must have been heard,
•or no accurate conception could be formed of his
powers. In supporting the cause of truth he had
the thunder of theGreciaa, and on occasions that
less appealed to the energies of his mind, he
had also the polish of the great Roman Ora:
tor. In refuting the arts of sophistry, nothing
could be more clear, cogent, and conclusive than
his reasoning ; and in exposing the designs of
FaCtion, nothing Could be more severe than the
point of his sarcasms. All who were not realty ani-
Mated in what they said by. real patriotism, and a
wish to promote public good, shrunk appalled before
him. He, however, shrunk from no man, because
the solid basis of his own charafter was public spirit.
We have given here a faint sketch of this great
and illustrious charaaer ; but hiStory will do him
justice. She 'will bury in oblivion all opprobrium
cast on him by the envy, the low passions, and the
sordid interests of his political adversaries, and hold
him forth to posterity as one of the purest and most
exalted characters the world ever saw, as- a StateSL
man, an Orator, and a genuine Patriot.
We cannot close tins faint outline of this great
man more properly, than by applying to him what
.was said of his illustrious father-1( aECOUDED
3101* RS shall gatlier round HIS_MONUMENT, and thicken
aver him. It is a SOLID FAISEtICK, and will support
the laurels that actin it."—
Pr 7.7 was in the 47th year .of his age, -He