The Sun.
London, England, 1818-01-26 00:00:00

MI 1. WYATT, OF LIME-GROVE.

The death of this Gentleman was recently an-
nounced in The North Wales Gazette,• and in the
same Paper of the 22d inst. is given the following
tribute to his" memory. The late JAMES WYATT,
Esq. his brother, • was so much distinguished 'by
genius and taste, and his works have so highly
contributed to the AECHITECTURAL IMPROVE-
MENT of this Country, by the diffusion of sound
principles of science, as well as by Edifices of or-
'tiamental beauty, that whatever relates to a fa-
mily which seems to possess no ordinary portion
of collateral and hereditary talents, cannot be un-
interesting, and therefore we are sure that so
well-written a memorial will be generally accept-
able to our Readers :

" Mr. WYATT, of Lime-Grove, was so gene-
rally, and so unfeignedly esteemed throughout
this quarter of the Principality, that we would
wish, as a fair tribute of respect to moral and in-
tellectual excellence, to bring to the knowledge
of some, and to the recollection of many of our
Readers, a few of those eminent and interesting
qualities which mat ked the life of that estimable
and intelligent man. -
" It is upwards of three and thirty years since
Mr. Wyatt first acceded to the chief management
of the Penrhyn estates in this county ; -a station,
of which he ever continued to sustain the varied
and important duties with unblemished integrity
and honour, with undivided zeal, and with•the
most-fertile abilities. Of these estates, the ex-
ternal qualities were then found to be such,' as
manifestly to demand long perseverance, poWer-
ful resources,. and above all, a comprehensive and
well-directed' judgment, to torn. them into a
flourishing or advantageous course.. 'lt is true,
the munificent spirit of the late Lord Pent-111n ivas
the great power which moved the machinery of
that fine anit masterly system of. rural imptove-
ment, co-operating with the advancement of great
public benefits,- the good effects of which
.noa,
show themselves so conspicuously in every, de-
partment of that valuable pi•operty. But munifi-
cence can avail but little, unaided by ingenuity to
contrive, discernment- to adopt , intelligence to il--
luminate, and good taste to qualify withal, those
complicated operations and measures, which are
-necessary to promote the accomplishment of great
and enlarged designs. Stich, however, were con-
fessedly the professional -endowments which Mr.
Wvatt displayed during his, long-and honourable
administration of the. charge which had been com-
mitted to his hands;. by a diligent anti jadiCioos
applieatiou of such onalit ies „quickened into action
by the liberality and spirit of his- noble employer,
that extensive tract, which had long lain in a
state of unmethodized.and unproductive rudeness,
and which had been devoted to the care and su-
perintendance of Mr. Wyatt, is now become a
source of pride and of wealth to the -possessor,
of embellishment to the country, of, admiration
to strangers, of-eminent advantage to the general
interests of the community. It was by so able an
exercise of his judgment and taste, that the do-
main of Penrhyn, at that •period a -very wilder-
ness, disregarded as a place of-residence, and the
house in a state of venerable dilapidation, was
heightened into its present circumstances of dig-
nified and" st ately elegance—that a wiid and un-
profitable' morass has since been made to assume,
in the admired. situation and arrangements of
Lime-Grove, . the features of comfort, of profit,
and of ornament—that the agricultural properties
of the estate were promoted into a condition of
progressive improvement ; the cottage of the.la-
bourer, and the habitation of the tenantry, into
dwellings of neatness and cot-sabre to themselves,
giving animation, variety, and interest to the
scenery which surrounded them—that such ex-
cellent faeilities, were effected for bringing into
light and action the hidden and long neglected
treasures of the slate rock on the banks of the
Ogwen ; which, through a happy union of sub-
S'equent commercial interests, and the spit:ited
manner in which those interests are conducted, are
now so richly swelled into a stream of affluence to
the proprietor, and of honest industry .and subsist.",
ence to many hundreds of the poor.
" Such are a few, but far from being 01 the
testimonies which this country now exhibits of
the judgfnent and abilities of the late Mr. Wyatt ;
nor ought we, indeed, to have omitted • in this
short catalogue, as remarkable monuments of his
well-cultivated taste, the noble niarine Baths a:
l'eurhyn, the fascinating and graceful villa at

" But the merits of Mr. Wyatt were not exclu.
sively confined to the advancement of those in-
terests, of which, by an especial appointment, he
bad the charge: Rural economy was not 30 years
ago, in a very ;forward state in this
and interesting country; but the intellig,,ence and
good sense displayed in all his measures exerted
upon the Penrhyn estate, shed their due influence
upon the liberal understandings and the candid
feelings of many gentlemen and other individuals
in various parts of the Principality. Thus,
matters relating to that branch of knowledge,
and in others not entirely unconnected with 'it,
judgment was, appealed to, his taste was con-
sulted, his suggestions, adopted, and the good
fruits of them have been long enjoyed, to the
acknowledged benefit of the country at large, by
-many, who whilst they respected the solidity of
his counsel, esteemed and revered him for the un-
affected modesty of his pretensions.; the candotir
and the integrity Of his dealings, the truth itnd
the benevolence of his heart.. Officially the guar-
diateof separate interests, the t»ediator between
landlord and tenant ; and called also occasion-
ally to the same delicate office between other
distinct parties,. he had. always the singular and
honourable felicity', by the amiable complacency
of his temper, the :lisinterestedness of his views,
and the justice of his decisions,. of uniting those
parties in mutual satisfaction, and of- actiniring
to himself the constant esteem and friendship of
both. That through his judgment, 'and virtu-
ous conduct, so much should have been (lone.
where so mach was wanting, and where so little
had been done
,before, may justify us'in consi-
dering the late Mr. Wyatt, of Lime trove, not
as the finisher but the father of that advanced
state of local melioration' to which this country
IS now arrived, and to which it seems to have
been approaching eve.r since the commencement
of his fruitful. labours, over what we would call
the undigested condition of the Penrhyn estate.
Tliat society should owe so much to the moral
and professional
,excellence of one man, is praise
which but few can claim—but we hesitate not to
believe, that the unanimous sentiments of this and
adjacent counties, as far as his good name ex-
tended, will confirm the distinguished testimony
which we have borne to his merits.

Mr. Wyatt was brother to his. Majesty's late
Architect and Surveyor-General of that name,
and died at the advanced age of 73. For the laic
six years of his life, he was bowed down
bodily infirmity, whiCh rendered him totally in
capable of his, former habits of activity and ha.-
shicss, and shut him out from his accustomed in-
teteourse with7that hospitable, honourable, and
intelligent .society of this country; of which, he
was accustomed to speak With vet just and lively
feelings ot•gratitude and pleasure, and which hail
for so many years been a source of relaxation
and enjoyment to his life : but infirmity contri-
buted only to enhance the fervour of that piety,
and resignation to God,
„which had long been
silently moving its his breast. 'Thus,, honoured
with a wide
bath
of genuine respect for h:s
memory, he descended to the grave, be-
kliteathing to posterity, to the rich and to the
poor, an. impressive and eminent eximple of in-
tegrity without self-in,crest, of talents without
vanity, of. humility 6(hetit obsequiousness; of
benevolence without ostentation, of piety with-
out display.",