New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-11-23

snanyp.cocc,ions OF Personal Friends By STUART D.
nv,n syo. PIP. 400. Harper u bro'her'
NJ Reid declares that his object IN writing 'n's
~vorx was not to rival but to supplement- the ex-
..,,e,, Memoir in which Sydney Smitas dausi-
Tor Lady Holland, long ago told the story ana
.,mmcmoratea the brilliant and winning QUANTITIES
q, her distinguished father The witty Canon OF 81
paurs was n man of many phases and Mr. kelu oe'
,;cves that the. letters and other documents ho'
used by Lady Holland furnish enough materia' '"i
Che description of n side of his character ho' poPu
larlv understood The attempt, IN snort Is 10 eN-
bhit sydney Smith principally as Jealous c'eIeN-
man and a serious and enlightened reiormer MI.
Reid quotes with strong approval the reh'IN Vi
Edward Everett that if Sydney Smith " had not
hcen known as the wittiest man OF his day ne
,xo,la have been accounted one Of the wiscst' Bat
,hjs Is moi trne. sydney Smith was not wise
man His instincts were generous his synipathlVs
wore warm: he was brave and sincere; he desplsc"
can't: he hated iniusticc-when he recognizes It,
By the very force of his temperament he was driven
70 Mace himself the right side III most hot Ill an
of the struggles against tyranny ana apnSe' rens-
ions proscrption class privileges. poticai nlHouS
Parliamentary boroughmongering, when ag''a'eu
Great Britain during the best years oil HIS No VA.
bis Indictment was neither profound nor acute anu
b;s nnbshel works are read to-day much more WI
account of his delightful way of putting Things
.,a, for the value of his opinions. There were
,ao,,s of sentiment into which he found 1t lmpossi-
h,a to enter His attacks upon the Methodlsts an"
his hostility TO missionary enterprises par'ooN "
th, character Of fanaticism and his treatment :"
Aha Iliyh Church movement 1.-THE Newmahia' ho
,alled ~ was hardly more just; ana ne never p''
,e,vej that both Wesley and PnseN hau hi"seu INV
,ha establishment n efvnr Of which II was sadly III
Ssed Fprvui, IN fe gions matters was ho' oh' WI
his ,i,t,ps lie vas neither a sltithal-mhuen
,,ae,,,n p,eaehef his seimans beihs short imhted
uiaia aud r,aptjea bnt he ALWAYS lacked the We
satienai iupuise which gives ~ pulpit plelurhee 's
biabest beautv aud its strongest eheaet, NV we"
sbews that IN each Vt the liNihas W. when Hs"h'S
smith was sUecessveiN presented hp lahuipa ea'h-
estiy for the welfare OF his paFlshiaheis' no es'a
lishei sohoos he helped tho roofi kheWihs
great deal about medicine aud surgery, he poVahp
truly for the eountry people what rustic iau Va'e"
h,m Doctor the Parson," he encouraged thr'it he
made himself respected aud beloved. hut although
he was the friend of his people, somehow wenever
think of him as their pastor AT Foston, where he
snent fifteen years he built beautiful parsonage
and held divine service in howell His intercourse
with his parishioners was like that of benevolent
saure with his tenants. His goodness would nave
warmed manor house. but We cannot help fancy
ing that it chilled the church.
II n mistake however to think of sydney Smith
ms An unclerical clergyman. Mr. Reid says that nc
has discovered little or nothing to JUSTIFY inc
Common belief that the witty Canon was an II
,everent lester. We are really to 90 mach farther
Than this for it seems to MS that sydney Smiths lle
and conversation were strongly marked by the
clerical tone. he belonged, however. to a type OF
c,ergvman more fashionable and more respected III
his dav than IN ours with whom the clerical pro-
fesson is not so mucn adlvlneVocaton as career !"
life and a distinct rank in society," 10 was not 'hc
Lord Almighty who called sydney Smith 10 preach
,h. Cos,el IN the deserted village of Foston; it was
Lord Erskine. If the rector discharged MS pro
fessional functions decorously nobody complained
that he wanted Heavenly junction. 1t was quite
cnourh that he was a loving husband and iathef
kind TO the poor regular i'll his habits, charming III
his manners welcome in the best houses, and Mt
ease in any society. How perfectly Sydney Smith
echoed the clerical society tone may be seen III MS
"Ietters TO ArchdeacOn Singleton on the Ecceslast-
cal Commission" The Ecclesiastical Commission
was appointed to correct some garIng abuses III the
Church especially to abolish various scandaonS
sinecureS to cut down certain preposterousB
swollen incomes, to beStow the surplus upon starV-
ing cnrates or IN founding new parishes and to re-
strict plnralism. But these were reforms with
which Sydney Smith did not wholly sympathze
lie attacked the wors of the Commission with " all
his remarkable powers OF reason wit and satire
bis line of argument being that it was bad policy to
i,uar the attractions of the Church as profession
by reducing the value of its great prizes. Inc
Church was the only avenue through winch the
lower classes could hope to reach wealth and soca
consideration and he drew a lively sketch OF the
triumphant rise and progress OF young Crumpcts
fortunes as he advances from his fathers bakehouss
stem by step until he is safely landed in an episcopal
palace" Moreover if the hope of wealth were eX-
fippuished young men of good family would no
LONGER he attracted to the Church, and divinity
students wond have to be gathered wholesale from
the meaner ranks. If. for their reduced einolu-
n,ents the Commissioners could obtain clergynen
.vor,, one of whom was learned man, defeating
himself intensely to the of his parish OF charm
ing manners AMI dignlfed department. six feet two
inches HIGH beautifully ~ nortoned. with mag
pifcent countcnancc exp. i've of all the cardinal
virtnes and the Ten Commandments, 1t would he
very well but what will it be, he asked, ii you
suhstitute for this ideal parsonage an average,
ordnarv uniutercsting minister, obese, dulnpy
neither ill-naurcd goodnatured neither learned
nor ignorant stridng the stiles to church with
n sceonl-r rate wife, dusty and dequescent, ami four
parochal children full of catechism and bread and
bntter"i That is what You will get said sydney
gmith IL YOU take away the snecurcs the fat liv-
,,g the nrincclv episcopal revenues the lucrative
cathedral appointments, aud the pluraitic$ lie
waa. in short, perfect representative of "thc
eentlemenly interest in the Church aud he spoke
for h,a class when lac argued that geutccl apostles
came high
One would rather think of him rs an Ediabwh
Eerlc,ecr Whigpamphletcor an earnest aud amiahlc
roiofmer soaaihle. brilliant. hlghminded man OF
society and of letters, than as u parish priest In
the company Of tho yentarons young mon, all dea
tined To fame who started The hdiaburgh HereW IN
1902 sydney Smith is BY far the most engaging
figure. lie was thirty ono when the novel enter
prise was undertaken, jeffrey was twen,y'nihe
Brongham was twcnty-four Francis llorner was
-. In. of This rena rkahie proup Jeffrey bV