The St. Louis Republic., 1904-06-25
A LATER PEPYs.

A LATER PEPHS.
The Correspondence OF Sir William
Weller Pepys. Bart" is issued by John
Lane. publisher. faculty for recording
the things which It would occur to no one
else to set down and which would delight
posterity In knowing. seems to have run
in the family Of the Pepys. A distant klns-
man OF the great diarist,Sir William Weller
Pepys, at any rate, has left behind him in
his letters monument which Wraxall de-
clared wound keep Sir Williams name
alive so long as letters and the charm of
conversation claim remembrance Sir
William, however, differs somewhat from
the great diarist in this, that he possessed
mind which could always afford to think
aloud. The correspondence published by
Lane runs over the period OF 175S-1S25
Sir William was the moving spirit In
what Lord Macaulay said was intell-
lectually the best society in the Kingdom.
and Doctor johnson described him as
Prime Minister to the Queen OF the
Blues" (Mrs MontagU. Sir William was
also the head of the "Littletonians' in
the war of the wits against Doctor John
son for his cruel attack on Littleton In
Lives of the Poets" Fanny Burney de-
scribes a scene between the dictatorial
doctor and the stanch friend Of his victim
at Mrs. Thrale's home in Streatham.
The volume contains letters, hitherto
unpublished. in the possession Of Sir Wal
ter Pepys. from Sir James Macdonald. the
my sterious "Marcellus of Scotland" dead
at "a, rated high by Hume, Adam Smith
and Boswell, and leaving behind. ap-
parently, no personal record other than
this correspondence; from Mrs. Chapone,
to whose advice Bnglishmen are indebted
for the successful upbringfng OF their
grandmothers; from Sir Nathaniel Wrax-
ALL the society gossip and traveller. who
attempted TO NEEDLE in the affairs OF the
unhappy Queen of Denmark and recorded
the doings Of Kings. Prime Ministers and
favorites. Sir Nathaniel Hawthorne him
self said his letters to Sir William Pepys
from foreign courts and describing his
prosecution for libel by Count Woronyow
would be worth preserving.
Then, there Is also In this book the cor
respondence of Major Kennel the re-
nowned geosrapher. Hannah More speaks
of once finding herself Hetween these two
travellers. Kennel pouring the Ganges into
one ear and Wraxall the Danube into the
other Letters, are here. coo. from Mrs.
Hartley, daughter of David Hartley, F.
R. s.. after whom Hartley Coleridge was
named, and whose brother David Hartley,
together with Benjamin Franklin. drew
up and signed the peace between Great
Britain and the United States.
Lady conrtenay has contributed TO the
volume some letters written by Sir Lucas
Pepys, Bart, to his brother. Sir William,
and Miss Franks, those of Sir William
Pepys to his cousin, William Franks. The
book concludes with a series Of letters
written by William Pepys to Hannah
More. with few answers from her. They
were the last two survivors Of the "Bas
Bleu,'' and the correspondence describes
their experience of the French Revolu-
ton, the Napoleonic wars. and all the po-
litical and literary events Of the period.
Criticisms by these two are included Of
Sir Walter Scott, Lord Byron. Miss Edge
worth and of numerous ''literati." The
book Is edited, with preface and notes, by
Alice C. C. Gaussen, and contains num-
Der OF illustrations. comprising portraits
and miniatures in photogrsvure, repro
ductions from rare prints. facsimiles Of in
teresting documents. including page of
the MSS of the diary of Samuel Pepys@
and reproduction of an estimate Of the
same made before publication.