The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1855-11-15
Mr.. Thnckeray ON the Georges.

Library Association, at Rev DR.. Chapns Church, on
Monday evening There no especial excl cement
about this event. and the course has not attracted
much attention that Of Professor julius Cesar Hanni
bal whose discourses have attained the dignity Of print
an honor which Mr.. Pendennis cannot reach
The more we and hear Of Mr.. Thackeray, the
convinced do we feel that he Is exaggerated
OF that London Aiheno,m clique, whose maxim is,
"scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" and who by
praisng putting up each sthers wares, contrive to
keep all other literary of the field and retain all
'ihe good things in the family Such course may do
well enough in the London market, but when member
OF the firm out here he is redu ed to his natural
dimensions; and having such adventurous quackery
trust to- he finds himself brought down to his
proper level This precisely the with Mr. rhacke
ray He out here with high historic preensions
and has proved himself to be but sparrowhawk aute
ing around the base instead of eagle floating above
the heights of history
Mr.. Tackerays lectures George the Second and the
third worthy of that name afforded ample confirmation Of
this remark They relieved by two lofty and
glowing passages but these only transient and
mentary. The lecturer was wholly unable to ain
himself upon the wing. After slight burst Of eoquence
some such beet the French revelation he ra-
pdly descended from this historic flight and in few mi
nues found in his ural element grubbing in the
kitchen, or luxuriang in the delights Of shoulder KNOBS
tea scandal ami silver spoons In the ootmans hall Mr.
Thackeray constantly reminds us OF his own plush
breeches hero, "Jeames." He has such an inordaate
taste for the gossip the pantry that we are
he is the Great Sublime he drew.
With this idosyncrasy, IL need scarcely be remarked
that he wholly failed in deneang the of George the
second That period was one Of the greatest in Bri-
fish annals for the epoch was great, though the
monarch mean. Give during this perild redu ced
India to Bitans CONTROL Wolfe and subjugated
Canada Chatham Numbered at home Swift Gray, Pope,
md hnu. Of lad
literature abroa d But Of all these great and STIR
ring deeds Mr. Ihackeray seemed wholly unconscious.
at all Instead Of this he treated alb.
surh details about George H. whom he described "a
brave and funny little teow whereas It is matter of
man away, and with much preci pitaon that he
almost ran into the French ranks Instead of being
funny he Il savage that he revealed in
nothing superior to sourcrout and German beer He
peciay expressed his contempt for literature and above
all his hatred for sboets and bainters as he termed
those attached the arts We are surprised that
Mr. lhacke-sy should have been mute or ignorant
corning all this still less that he should have thought fit
to eueze the mutual love and tenderness which he sup
poses to have existed between this savage and his queen
while is matter Of n,toriey any who has read
unfai 'htu We beg to refer Mr.. Thackeray to the
Heart Of Mid lothi,n ana the character Of Lady Suffolk
tor inic nation IL point ii he deems 1t expedi
ent 10 consult any moie reconcile oriy than the
Court Circular.
With the reign of George Ill Mr.. Thackeray set out in
wcr,hier strain. He commenced with really lofty des
crption OF Europe at the time the French revolution
burst forth and, though it was anachronism in
point of date-that stupendous event actually not
occurring till twenty-nine years after George the
Thirds accession to the throne-we We're willing
not only to overlook but to admire it, AS re-
marked however it of short Duration less than
three minutes Mr. Thackey had descended from this al
tude to the royal still room and buffers pantry OF all
the gtries If " Nelson, Duncan Howe and Jarvis" he
said not word, was grossly inaccurate when he
represented the monarch to have hated them all Nelson
tori0usly fav0riAe of George the Third and
far the stupid king from hating the others that he
never was 50 happy as when going in pr to ST.
Paula to return thanks for Of their victories Mr.
Thacleroy equally out of place in his description Of
Georges character. and We srTmise, that with all his
patbos he Will not succeed in rendering him popular
parsonage here We yet retain too vivid impression Of
his Hessans, his tomahawkngs and other barbArties.
It small cancellation to to his audience to be
obliged in addition to such twadle this to listen to
MIR Thackefny's painfully iledawn character of FASH
ionab!e irbole like selwyn, or an empty coxcomb like
not whit more original than those of an old Scottish
almsnae, and will require something than his
ipse dirt to convince us that the other was aurht but the
meancs, Of mankind The artificial charnc of tho
however and the disposition of the second
especially to have recommended them to the lecturers
sode devoted TO the memory Johnson and Reynolds the
former # whom Mr. Thackeray pronounced the greatest
Of the times-though few Of his ponderous writings
read while the other who little than
mere court portrait painter he upduly extoed at the
expense Of the American West whose picture Of the
Death Of Woieo say nothing Of many other of his pro-
duccnsis which poserity will not readily let die
ON every other topic of this Mr. rhackeray dwelt
with equal want Of discrimination. II Is fault of
historic writer's and lecturers to Darrate triHes
ana important events with equal minutcncss. Mr..
Ihhckeiay IS the only have who deliberately
prefers he former and attempts to invest them with all
the weight which really belongs to the other George
the Third and mis- Queen were but the accidents of the era
their wretch.d couer and court satellites equal
~ uniLere ing and forgotten Wewanted to know
thing OF the great and above all of the condition Of
the people during the period But OF all this-especiay
OF The ast-Mr. Thackeray is ignorant says not
word An artificial man himself he has only taste for
artificial subjects "He pities the plumage," Tom
Paine would ray, "but torgets the dying bird" We
would not give that sentence Of the unbenng democrats
for oil Mr. Thackerays lectures and poserity fit con.
Germ Itself with Mr. Thackeray mt ALL doubt not will
conf choice.
Considering the serocious and utterly uncalledfor Sc
verify with hich he attacked Caroline, of Brun swck in
his first lecture, we were wholly unprepared for the
which Mr. Tbackeray hurled at the head Of her
husband George the Fourth. Here again he wholly
out of place The man who could address every native
Of every civilized country in Europe in his language
ard moreover elegant Greek ana Latin scholar
must have been something than the mere
compound of star, stock, wig, coat, wal ,tcoat
ThaeT was'eGs aor; ana pG,hng more which Mr.
in fact, merely FILL into the common habit
cf his aduatipg the living soveregns and vn
rerang the dead George the Fourth reality the
only gentleman OF the Brunswick line. He was con-
essedly the ables Of the family the estimation
of his brother the Duke of Sussex, whom this credit
was usually allotted, and who invariably at war
with lin since the expulsion Of the stuarts, who we're
prove baly OF gentlemen, there had such
man The throne of England.
Setting out with this bias every act of the Prince was
of course msrepresented Mr.. rhackeray denounced him
for his birth, Tor his beauty child, his spirit
boy, his buoyancy youth, and his stateliness a.
He especially animadverted his brutality to his
wife, bis drunkenness his marriage-day though he
must be strangely ignorant Of English court history
be forgot to add the druggng of his wife, Every the
Prince whether regent King successfully called
up and denounced sotar as Mr. Thackerays superficial
searches feeble powers of abuse extended He de-
nounced him for distrusing the wings in 1905 he do
nounced him for regulating them In 1872 he denounced
him for refusing to daily with them in 1928 denounced
him for his visit to the friendly Irish and foolish
scotchespecaly directing his mpertnence against SIR
Walter Scott whom he had the superave folly to speak
Of con Edinburg Attorney Moore was at the same
time alluded to as small bird - twit'erer." The
force OF impndence and dun conceit could assuredy
farther go. We longer surprised that Byron Ia
now out Of fashion rs poet in the London coeries
and that such butterflies Tennyson there reign SUI
premc, when novelist Of the order Of Mr. Thackerv
thus denounces of the standing Of Walter Scott
There point, however, on which we fully con |
cured with Mr.. lhacheraythe penses these
princes have enailed upon England 'lG" he said some
what quantity George had been manufacturing town.
Iopnous rural district, army OF FIVE thousand
men he could not have had money wasted on him
Lie raInatk ~ and II IL eauav annlicaLn