Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-12-11

aIOAU hAuut
and the Reverend Luke Grafton.
IFROM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT
New YORK, Dee. 9, 1871.
have just finished reading the advance sheets
O, the third volume Of "The Life and Times of
Henry Lord Brougham, written by Himself"
In some ways this is a notable work. Many
men, and some women, who have played part
in history have, in their later years, undertaken
to write their biographies, These, as far as
they 90, rank among our most charming books.
But they all stop far short of the last years of
their authors lives. Southey could get no fur
ther than his boyhood; jefferson left off at
about the same period; Gibbon went little
further; Catherine Sedgwick broke off at early
womanhood Benjamin Franklin brought his
autobiography down to his early manhood.
Brougham brings his narrative down to the
time when he had reached the fifty-eighth year
of his life. He lived indeed for a quarter of a
century longer; but, as he writes pathetcally
on the last page of his memoirs, 81 began this
attempt after ] was cighty-three years of age,
with enfeebed intellect failing memory, and
but slight materials by me to assist it. Above
all that, there was not left one single friend or
associate of my earlier days whose recollections
might have aided mine. All were dead. alone
survived of those who had acted in the scenes |
have here family endeayored TO retrace." So
we must look upon this book simply as what il
Is: the story told by manfar past fourscore, of
what he had seen and done during a long and
busy life Thus viewed, the book is a notable
one propose to touch upon only few of its
salient points.
We have all read about the Edinburgh Re-
view, of which Brougham, at the age of twenty
four, was one OF the founders. Sydney Smiths
story Of the origin of the Review has come to
be an accepted fact Brougham says it is
from first to last utter boSb. According to
Brougham, Smith never was editor OF the
Review, and of all the smart young
men who had something to do with it, Smith
was the least fitted to act as editor. Gle was"
SAYS Brougham, "a very moderate classic; he
had not the smallest knowledge of mathematics
or Of any science; he was an admirable joker,
aud had the art of placing ordinary things in an
infinitely luditrous point of view
Undoubtedly the most interesting part of
these volumes are those which relate to the
quarrels between George ". and his wife Caro-.
line This George, once styled "thc first zen
tlemau Of Europe" was clearly, whether as
prince of Wales, prince regent, Or king, about
the most utter scoundre OF whom history has
TO speak. Every man who has need to write of
him must put a few splasheS Of black upon
his picture. Brougham gives some finishing
touches. How Thackeray would have exuted
could he, when writing his -Four Georges"
have read what Brougham tells. Everybody
knew that Gentleman George" was an obscene,
drunken backguard; that he was a liar, swim
der, an adulterer; that he was false tohis wife,
false to his mistresses false 10 his friends, false
to his foes. His father hated and despised him;
his mother hated and despised him; his wives
and misrcsses hated and despised him; it was
left TO Brougham to show how his daughter
hated and despised him, There is some ques-
ton among tIeologians as to whether there is
any such thing as Total depravity" Those
who take the affirmative, it seems to me- cannot
find a stronger argument than may be drawn
from the character Of George the Fourth, king
of England.
Brougham at the age of forty-thrce was coun-
sci for Queen Caroline in the case brought
against her by her royal husband. The king,
through his ministers, had brought bill against
her in the house Of lords. If the peers passed
the bill it would go 10 the house Of commons
The bill had passed its first reading in the house
oflords, and upon its second reading Brougham
ouo g,,. L.
one paragraph of which has become famous.
lie said:
Gan advocate, by the sacred duty which he
owes his client, knows, in the discharge of that
office, but one person in the world, that client
and none other To save that client by all ex-
pedlent means, TO protect that client at all
hazards and costs 10 all others, ana among
others to himself is the highest and most un-
questioned ofhis duties, and he must not regard
the alarm, the suffering, the torment, the de,
structon, which he may bring upon any other.
Nay, separating even the duties of patriot
from those Of an advocate, and casting them, if
need be, to the wind, be must 20 on, reckless of
the consequences, il his fateit should unhappily
be- to involve his country in confusion for his
clients protection"
This dctum, if taken absolutely, is the most
diabOlical sentence eyer written by any man. On
itsllace il announces that any lawyer Is only
hired bravo, not only at liberty but bound to do
any act however wrong, for the benefit of his
client Warren, in his Duties of Attorneys"
most justly denouuces it. But considered in re-
lation to the circumstances in which it was
uttered, 1t bears very different aspect. II was
not statement Of the general duty of an advo-
cate; but fearful threat of what this advocate,
Henry Brougham, eoud and would do in a spe
cial case.
The threat, perfectly ineligible to the king
and his ministers, but nnintclgibe to most
others, was this; George, while prince of Wales
had been married to Mrs Fitzherbert. a Catholic
woman. BY the "Act of Settlement" under
which alone the king inherited the crown, such
marriage was "a forfeiture Of the cro,ga, as If
he Dere naturally dead." George knew that
however drunk he was at the time this marriage
had been legally solemnized; his ministers knew
it; and they feared that Brougham could prove
it. l}rougham's threat was in effect just this;
Withdraw this bill Or | can show that the king
has long ago forfeited his right to the CROWN and
nothing on earth shall prevent me from doing
this" The ministers understood the import of
the threat, and withdrew the bill. Had they
done otherwise, the succession to the British
crown would have been changed. Victoria
would not have come to be queen, and the pres
emit prince of Wales would not disgust people as
heir apparent
odd things now and then crop out in this
book Oh Lord Brongham. In the appendix is
highly laudatoiy notice of Lord Holland Most
OF us remember Maeaulay's famous mention of
Holland house, and its master and mistress
Holland House was, for a generation, kind of
political rendezvous. Statesmen and poets. pol
itleians and bishops, were meyer 50 happy as