Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-09-26
Willis's Descriptions Of Tom Moore
and DiSraeli.

"'Mr. Moore cried the footman at
the bottom of the staircase; Mr..
Moore cried the footman at the top !;
and with his glass at his eye, stumbling
over an ottoman, between his near
sightedness and the darkness of the
room, enter the poet. Half q glance
tells you that he is at home on a carpet.
Sliding his little feet up to Lady Bles-
sington (of whom he was lover when
she was sixteen, and to whom some of
the sweetest OF his songs were written)
he made his compliments with gayety
and ease combined with kind of wor-
Shipping Difference that was worthy of
prime minister at the court of love.
With the gentlemen, all of whom he
knew, he had the frank, merry manner
of confident favorite, and he was
greeted like one. He went from one to
the other, straining back his head to
look up at them (for, singularly
enough, every gentleman in the room
was six feet high and upward), and to
every one he said something which
from any one else would have seemed
peculiarly felicitous, but which fell
from his lips as if his breath were not
more spontaneous"
This is Willis's description of Moore,
in his audacious Pencilings by the
Way forty years ago. They were the
first and most brilliant instances OF
modern society" retorting. gratifying
the love of gossip and national inter.
est in the personality of distinguished
people. Yet the sanctity of private life
is so great in England that these free
and easy crayons of authors and politi-
clans in the drawing-room were warmly
resented, and Thackeray has left the
\ resentment on record. Now, however,
that most of that fine society is gone
with its reporter, his sketches are very
life.like and amusing. There is an air
OF intense worldiness in the literary life
he describes, graceful insincerity, as
if all its figures lived only for sensation
and futtery and applause ; and it is
easy to fancy Carlyle breaking in upon
its dandyisms and tiippancies. like John
Knox upon the perfumed courtiers Of
Queen Mary, with his THUS saith the
Lord" There is great deal in the
journal about "Disraeli the younger
the Lord BeacOnstield of to .day-and
it is curious to compare the Prime Min
lister with the exquisite of Park Lane.
Disraeli had arrived before me, and
sat in the deep window looking out
upon Hyde Park, with the last rays of
daylight reflected from the gorgeous
gold flowers of a splepdidly embroid-
cred waistcoat. Patent-leather pumps,
q white stick with black cord and tas.
sci, and quantity of chains about his
neck and pockets, served to make him,
even in the dim light, rather a conspic
uous object" He was lividly pale, and
seemed to be victim to consumption,
except for his energy of action and
strength of lungs. His hair is described
as extraordinary as his taste in waist
coats. "a thick, heavy mass of jet
black ringlets falls over his left cheek
almost to his collarless stock, while on
the right temple it is parted and put
away with the smooth carefulness OF u
girls, and shines most unctuously
s"'With thy incompatible oil. Macassar.'"
To Carlyle, who had not yet made him
self known, and to whose grim humor
and melancholy sincerity even Walter
Scott was not earnest enough, such
literary being as this must have been
as unspeakable as the minister of
later years. Willis says that he might
as we'll try to gather up the foam of the
sea as to convey an idea of Disraeli's
extraordinary language in describing
Beckford. He adds that Disraeli "talks
like race.horse," and that it is great
pity he is not in Observation-Disclosures
EASY CHAIR, in Harpers Magazine.