The Portland gazette. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1818-1824, 1824-03-30
MISCELLANY.
ANECDOTES AND CHARAcTER o. IoRD
CHATHAM

AhAlMAMs
Lsrd Chatham was educated AZ Eaton.
and ~ 70 particular manner distinguished
himself at hat celebrated seminary. Virgil.
IN early life, was hs favsurite author. He
was by 20 means a good Greek scholar ana
though he occasionally copied tie arrange
meut and expression Of Demosthenes wita
great success 10 his speeches, he perhaps drew
them from the Collaua translation or that III
.mirlble orator, that book having been fre
quentiy seen in hs room, w 1 great lawyer.
some time deccased.) Tie sermons III thc
great Or. Barrow. and Of Aberneihv. were
favourite books with him; and the sermonsI
.oi the late Mr.. Nudge, Of Plymouih. he al
ways spoke very highly o. lie once declar-
Cd, IN the House 0f Commons, that ~ book
bad ever been pursued by him with eqnal I'LL
struCtIon, with the Lives Of Plltarch.
"LOrd Chatham was an extremely fine rea-
der Of tragedy; and Lady Of rank aud taste.
now ilvi0g declares with what satisfaction Size
has hearl han read some If Shakespears his-
icricai plays, particularly those "a Henry tI.a
tourh aud Fifth. She however WV f7-ri
observed, that when Ne came 10 the cor. !. \,
budoOD parts Of those plays, be alxays gave
the book 70 one of his relatisns; aud when
they we're gone through, he took the book
again.
"Dr johnson says, acutely, that no man
Is hyPocnte 10 his amusencnts. and those
of Lord Chatham seems always to have borne
the stamp Of greatness about them.
Lord Chatham wrote, occasionally very
good verses. His taste il laying out ground
was exquisite. One scene. in the gardens afl
South Lodge, on Enfield Chase, which was
designed by him, that Of the Temple u Pan.
and its Accomplishments, is mentioned by Mr..
Whately, in bis elegant Observations on Mo
dern Gardening, as one Of the happiest efforts
Of weil-directed aud appropriate decoration
" OF Lord Chathara's eloqusnCc who can
speak that has not heard oft and who that
had the happiness to hear il, can 40 Justice To
i by description II was not the rounded nor
the mOnotOnouS defamation, the aesIe so
phistry, OF the attic wit and satiriCal point,
that we have seen admired in our times. II
was very various il possessed great force of
light and shade; II occasionally sunk ID col
loquial familiarity, and occasionally rose %
Epic sublimiiy lfhe crept sometimes with
Iimeus, he has often Numbered and tighten
ed with Pericles. His irony, though strong.
was ever dignihed his power Of ridicge ir-
resistible; and his invectiye 50 terrible, that
the objects oft shrunk under il like shrubs
before the whitening and the blasting East.
WlceVer heard this great man speak, awaye
brought something that remained upon bis
memory and upon his imagination. A CERT
unu ardens, glowing word, a happy facility
.of expression, an appropriate metaphor. for
.clb!e image, or sublime figure never failed
to recompense the attention which tie bearer
. al bestowed upon him.
8 Soon after Sir Robert " alrole had takenl
away bis comets commission from this extra
ordinary man, he used 10 drive himself about
the country in one-horse chaise, without N
servant. AT each town TO which be came,
the people gathered round about lis carriage.
and received Kim with the loudest acclama-
tons.
{" Lord Chatham thought very highly ofthe
effects ofdress aud Of dignity Of manner upon
nankind.-He was never seen on business
without full dress coat and tye-wig, and lie
never permitted his under-secretaries 10 lit
down before him.
A General Officer was once asked bv
Lord Chatham, How Rany men he should
require for a certain expedition Z Ten thou
sand, was the answer. Yea shall have
twelve thousand, said tie Minister, and then
If you do not succeed, il is your fault.
" The original the character Of Praxi-
teIes, in Mr. Greyilles very entertaining
book OF hlaxims is said to have been Lord
Chatham"