The sun., 1883-12-30

The Late Lord Lytton.

these early years are fraught with Snecihl I'M
portancc. for thoy Witnessed his unfortunate
marriage tho consequent alienation from his
mother. which compelled him 20 look to litcra-
ture for n livelihood. and the publication of tho
four novels beginning with Pelham, 4" and
ending with Paul Clifford" which gnvo tho
author n very wids IN not precisely n high rcp-
utation From this early period more
ovor. began that relation Of nn,ngonism
between Bulwcr and tho arb,ors and
organs of critical opinion in England
from which he wns TO euIr.r 10 the end Of
his life and of which there arc trnces oven in
posthun,ou crit icsm Bat tho predisposition
to deal hnrshiy or supcrcilinusly with tho
author of pohan" IL likely 20 be c>tin-
ruish,d by the bnrrarhy before us IN tho
composition of ,hia narrative the present Lord
Lytton undertook a f,in duty which he has
admirably DISCHARGED. Wn law down tho book
with the nyicliop that wli,a his father WAS "A
man of many foii,les nnd wcnkncsscs which
sxplain tho dislike with which no WAS regarded
in certain ounrters bc nlso nossc,sed many
oualiti.s which ius,ifv tho honor IN
which his son holds his memory. Gu,-
wers conjugnl infelicities and the snpa-
ration in which they cu,nina,e,l do not
fall within tho period comprchendcd in this
volume md thu treatment of this tonic will
devolve on Tho bioprnphsr "A task of q cxtrcmo
inferred from tho ,iescriptjon of tho circum-
stances prcce,lipy III, marriage and Of the nrst
wars of Hulwer. m,rried lif. tbs task will be
performed with ~ much jmpsrtiality ms can
reasonably bs locked for. II il ia be sA yectcd
TIM, n son will side with oun or other of his
paron,s and IL ia already ,vident that the
present Lord Jvt.on bclirves his father TO hayo
bcen the lea. to bn,n, for in, unhnpuy out
como OF his marriar, j;ut il is also uiain that
the shortcomings of cither pnrspt will IL dis
closed Mt ali be touched with tn, utmost for
bcarance md tenderness
Tho fragment OF m nutobiogrnphy which
forms the llrst part of this book ends with tho
year 1895. when Edward Bulwer WAS % yoars
old TWAS ono OF the pusri!e yonities ly the
way which did Buiwcr ~ much harm TINT hc
triod ali his life to ,,ss for n Younger man than
he really was. With n Ilnl confidence that is
natural and parlonabe his son accepts the
novcsts indirect professions OF ignorance
OF tho exact date OF his birth and pronounces
II mot surprising that a child who was years
old at the t:mo OF his baptism should have re-
gardod tho date of his birth AS n mystery" TO
our mind such n phenomenon is very sur
prising indeed. since the child or man had
only to intcrrogntc his mother in order TO dispe
the mystery. There is something prcrosterous
In the pretenco of Ignorance regarding tho year
of his birth on tho part of n man who thinks it
worth while to chronicle tho precise month
day ofthe month. and hour in the dav. Tho
,ollowin, is Dulwer's own alusion to this curl
ous question in the autob:ography-it will 10
noticed that no docs not ratcgoricaly affirm
the ignorance with which his son credits him:
Il was born on u certain twenty-nfth OF May
about o'clock in the morning and in Baker
street Portman square. No. 81. II somc curl
GUS impertnents are anxious to know in what
year OF onr Lord that event took place. lot
them find out for themselves" Why. it may be
sske,l. should readers. who are given wholly
mperfiuous information touching tho hour of
the day. be stlgmatzed as imrertinent bo-
cause they would prefer moro relevant infor-
nation concerning tho year?
greut deal OF space is given in tho auto-
biography to an account OF tho Bulwer and
Lytton families None OF tho genealogical de-
tails however aro of much interest to tho gem
oral reader and their collective purport NAV
be- summed up in the remark that the novelist
was descended on the fathers side from a line
of Norfolkshire suuires. and on his motber's q
from somewhat IN orc distinguished and opu-
lent race of country gentlemen. whose princi-
pal estate lay in Hertfordshire. Neither tho
Lyttons nor the Bulwers. however had filed
so large place in English history AS their
descendant liked to imnyine and thev would
be- unheard OF now but for tho fact TINT
in the generation which has lust rnssod awav
tha second son OF Gen. Bulwer and Elizahetb
Lytton became Lord Dnllinp and the third son
Lord Lytton while the oldest son like his pro.
espitors. died a country squire. There ia nc
doubt that there was somcthinp inordinnto In
Bulwcr's family pride which was certain &c
prove either off,nsiyc or ridicnlous according
"a those who noticed il had fewar or prea,o,
advantages Of birth and station. What cnusef
men like Marinn and Thncksrnv To regar,
him with resentment was the nro
nensitv with which Lord Cbesteroold ha,
been renronched In the nrecedirp can
turv to comnort himeo,, as "a lord anon,
wits and wit among lords" It was bnr
,nouu, for man oY lot,ors who rasnoctaa tboi
vacation and themselves TO brook behavior a
this sort on the mart of Ch.sternsld and nvron
who ware neera and there wa. somethin,, In
,nrrorahIe in tha attitude ~ oordo.censiop =
itornturo wben assumed NV tbe vounpcst 40
ef a Norfolk snuire How tho literary guild 4
vsneral look ali on nnIwar,s nrotensions NAV
,udpod hv nm oxtr,ct from tba Io,,,,,, an
W.stni,s st., psnis,o for 1sl9. "sir nd
ward Jvt,o, 10 wa oro ;,rormad IN