New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-10-23

rapny inat one day, IL eating salad small stone
wounded his tooth. The next day, being at the
theatre, a lady presented him with an orange.
When the juice touched the wounded tooth it cut
him to the heart A swelling commenced in the
gums. An abscess formed IN the throat and
fever ensued. A surgeon was called in, then ply.
stefan. Then he broke ont into bOils This was in
1779, and it is rather remarkable that Hutton docs
not give he days of the week and the days of the
month signazed by these unprovidencous cir
cumstancts He does tell us that or Sunday even
ing December 81, 1888, he was seized with an in
| hammation Of the bowels and nearly died, but
after tremendously heroic treatment which he
duly describes his physician said to him, on Sunday
evening, December -, 1883: You are as safe rs
bug in rug" In 1874 he tells us proudly: My
property is about f120OO.' When his wife was
! dying she was as lie informs us. good enough 70
point out a lady who would suit him for her success
sor" Hutton rephed that he would wait until tie
found her equal. He never did. We are informed
! that in 1889 he purchased horse, with the pru-
| dent remark that dealing in horses is almost as
precarious dealing in marriage" 1t was also III
this eventful year that Hutton took a regular
servant in livery TO attend when airing was
wanted He also bought carnage and horses
which cost $50 guineas, and buiit a coach house
which cost 4l11" This is Mr.. Pepys over again TO
| perfection
Mr. Hutton has left lehind most interesting ac-
count Of the Birmingham Riots of 1874. HIS
monograph upon the event is really valuable. The
! peculiarity of this mob was that il all for
| Church and King for Law and Order. 1t was eX-
cited to excess by the oyccsscs of the French Reyo
| luton, by the proposal to repeal the Test Act by
the theological and political opinions of DR. Joseph
| PrIeStly, then residing in birmingham, and by a
| public dinner held TO commemorate the anniversary
| of The Revolution aforesaid. This dinner occurred
| and the riots began on tho 18th of July. Eighty
persons dining together at a hotel. when the
| mob began to break The windows The chapel of
| DR.. Priestly broken open, the pews cushions,
books and pulpit destroyed, and the buding Itself
fired and consumed Another Westinghouse shared
the same fate The dwelling house OF DR.. PrieSty
was next attacked and destroyed. with his very
! large and valuable library his philosophical appa-
| ratus and manuscript. Hutton says that a clergy
! man attended this outrage and was charged with
! examining and even pOcketmg the manuscripts.
| Next day Hutton was told that his own house was
| condemned TO fall lie was advised to remove his
goods. bat that was impossible. Fifty wagons could
not have carried of his stock in trade and where
was he to deposit itl In the afternoon the mob
| anne down upon him. They first demanded
| money. and he gave them all he had or could boz
| row. and shook a hundred hard and black hands,
Then they called for drink and carried HIM of to
4
and in halt an hour he found m ale-score against
him of 800 gallons For all this. his house in the
town was nearly destroyed with all its contents, |
| and the next day his house in the suburbs His
books and prints he valued at upward of ElooO. |
Nor was he without many companions in mi,for- |
tune. The residences OF many gentlemen were
destroyed. The rantinC roaring drinking and
burning went for tour days and nights The
baleu fire Of passion and prejudice 10 have
boon
auenchcd by the force of law. 1t is $ gnfcant
fact that Of the thousands of rioters only fifteen
were arrested The trials following were " a mere
farce and joke upon Justice" The iures were !
packed with true blue Church and Kings men !
Only three Of the rioters were executed Pucstly |
wrote to Hutton often speak of your ease as the
hardest of any OF the sufferers There was an |
ostensible and plausible reason for attacking me,
but you had done nothing ami,s. Every trial, how
ever, in which we behave n believe. rs We |
ought. will be of use to ourselves and others By |
the help of my friends, | have once more furnished
my laboratory, and am beginning TO work again.
If it be a second time demolished, shall not make
third attempt" Robert Bage also wrote: " In |
this country it is better to be a Churchmln with |
just much common sense Is Heaven has been !
pleased to give AVERAGE to EsquImauX, than
Dssenter with the understanding OF a Pricstiy |
or a Locke | hope, dear WILL experience will |
teach thee this great truth and convey thee to
peace and orthodoxy pudding and stupidity"
In l79S Hutton was over seventy-Gyc years old,
and he begins the year with the following philo-
sOphiCal reflections: Suppose an animal, a ackass
for instance, should eat, move and sleep during
whole day, aud every day the samc-what author
burst write his life His shaking, brayng and
browsing would scarcely produce an anecdole ,uhi
cient for history. The writer would he set fast.
This is exactly my case This is candid, and it is
also true. The autobiography thencciOrth is not
particularly interesting. lie spraincd the tendon
Achilles. lie lost the pen with which he had
written the whole volume though il was aftcrward
fouhd and kept rs a relic His brother Samuel
died. He read, talked and studied. lie continued
to be great pedestrian, and IN 1901 he walked GOI
miles in thrty.:ye days SO long and singular
journey on FOOT he says, was perhaps, never
wantonly undertaken by man of seventy -csht.
1t excited the wonder Of the town" His longest
days walk was twenty-five miles; his shortest was
six miles. Upon four days be did not walk at all
lie spent good deal of time in the harmless aiuusc
menr of writing verses which arc mild and
mediocre. When ne was fourScorc he coud better
remember the transactions of seventy years than
of yesterday" He notes that rs his age increases
his sleep decreases so That he requires only iour or
five hours daily. Twice in the winter, 10 reading
by candc-light he set tire to the book By holding it
too near the blaze. his sight failing. He remarks
that ne was only twice in London on his own
concerns. On the first occasion, he purchased
materials for trade to the amount of hrcc Pounds.
Fiityscycn year, after he went % London TO ratiy
the purchase Of an estate which cost Ct $50. He
was operated upon for cancer, at cighty-lour, and
recovered easily. Ills death was announced in he
Monthly Rericc and he begged the Editor 10 buns him
to life in the next number At the Ct cighty-s.x
years he admits that he no longer considers himself
a young man. In 1912 he made the following last
entry: This day, October II, is my birthday. !
enter upon my nncticth year and have walked ten
miles" lie had still walked into Birmingham almost