The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-05-22


tls Juven-= at Esher. MauriUus Epi-
Gurus Cats and fish Wholly on ush-
Holy and Happy Cats Cookery book.
Us lisGl OF fheJbaidS. Alfred the tu-
ture Laureate. A satire Severe critic.
Wit in wig. Next. please
IT was through George Meredith
came i'm the first instance TO be ac-
quainted with .Pater' Evans Of the
firm of Bradbury Evans, proprietors
of Punch. but it was through Maurice
Purcell FitzGerald that 1 came TO
know George Meredith, whose init
mate friend ne was.
Now. Ia consequence of some allu-
si0us TO, and an aueCdOte or so about,
Maurice Purcell EiUZGerald Zone of my
old Trinity college chums. a man of
rare parts and retiring habits, which
appear I'm my recently published kem-
iuisCences). the Rev. Mr.. John de Soy
res, a relative of FitzGerald's, now en-
gagged, as he iu forms me, in compiling
some memoirs concerning my old com
paniOn. obtained from my friend,
George Meredith, an assurance that
The above named Maurice Fitz,' our
mutual friend in years gone by, was
not the original OF Adrian Harley, a
character in Georges early novel, The
ordeal of Richard FeVeTei-' j am,
therefore bound 10 accept this state
meut, and hereafter, and fOreVermOre,
am disillusioned in this respect Now,
as I have said I'm the Athenaeum for
Feb. IS, 1904, in a short article headed
"The Original of Adrian Harley
Nr. John de S0yTes in your last is
sue writes that it is stated by Sir Il.
g.. BuTndnd i'm his recently published
memoirs among other more OF less
accurate recOilectfOns of my late cousin
Maurice FITZGERALD. that he was the
original of Adrian Harley in Richard
FeveTel.'
81 have the authority of MIR. George
Meredith 20 declare this statement en-
tirely without foundation. 1t seems
hard that one who lived a retired life
should, a generation after his death,
be gratuit0usly identified by one of his
old friends with the typical character
of a selfish and unpriuCipled epicure.
Here, presumably, is the passage IN
my Records and "Reminiscences TO
which Mr.. de SOyres alludes; "Ot
Maurice I saw as much as did most
persons who had the privilege of his
friendship Then j described him as
"the ideal bachelor. the unimpassiOned
the calm, iudici0us, the experienced
beyond his-yGaTs young man, the wise
youth as George Meredith i'm 'Ricn-
ara Feverer describes one of his &C.
centric characters, whose traits were
TO be found in the original who was
our friend Maurice or The 4oung
Afauritius,' which was another name
bestowed on him by George Mere
dith" etc
From this passage. as I suppose, for
/ can find no other touching upon me
eubiect Mr.. de SOyres considers him
self justified I'm the deduction he makes
as though ne were actually quoting
verbatim from my book.
Tt is this unfair inference thai
George Meredith denies. So DO J.
Moreover. without reservation. fee
bound to accept the fact that this Ad-
rian was not endowed by the author of
his being with any Of the traits pecu-
liar 90 the individuality of Maurice
FITZGERALD.
1t was my good fortune 20 be the
companion of George and Maurice. liV-
ing with them I'm their temporary home
at Esher at a time of my life when
was most likely to be impressed los
the sayings and doings of a rising
genius like George Meredith. and los
the pecuIiarities of the clever, kind
accomplished, and eccentric Maurice
FITZGERALD Now 1 have not a shadow
of a Doubt see and hear the sCeue
rs though they were but an affair o.
vesterday-th George Meredith wa
wont to style Maurice "the YOuns
ATauritius." and thar he used to spcal
of him as "the Wise Youth This
viii testify ON oath. Now at tina
period. the summer of 1883, had no
read Richard Feverel,' which, as
gather from che title page OF the ofigi
nal edition in three volumes had theI
only recently been published. Subse
quently I found that Adrian in thi
novel was 1.-THE wise Youth" which
appelatiou George had also conferred
on Maurice Therefore he must have
found IN Maurice certain traits Of char
acter which had distinguished Adrian
the creature OF his uuassisted imagine
ton. Aaurice, before left Cambridgl
iu 1855 may have been acquainte'
With George Meredith; at all events
between March OF 1855 and Easter o
1853 / had entirely lost sight O
Maurice FitzGerald- and when 1 di'
meet him again, me and George wer
stauuch allies, living together a
Esher, as also was Frederick Chap
mau, the publisher, and Tom Orridg
fsOu-iu-laW of "PateT' Evans, o
Bradbury and Evaus), a barrister.
From that time forth ] became on
most intimate terms with Maurice, h.
staying with me lin town, / with hin
at various places iu the country. III
was most distinctly an epiCuTe, an
cpigFammatist, and q scholar, as hi
privately published booklets show.
was very fond of him. and entertaiue,
a sincere admiration for his talents.
certainly should not identify him wifi
purely selfish and uuprincipIed
character. should my Records ant
"Reminiscences proceed to a third edi
ton. I viii take such opportunity a
ar Nethuen may Omer me to intro
duce the statement of ar. John q
S0yFes containing my old friend. GeOrg
Merediths disclaimer
To this explanation I appended m
signature, and subsequently received
very friendly letter from Mr.. John d
Soyres. TO whom. Il may be- 7 shall b
able to render some assistance, in quit
small way. I'm his forthcoming mem
oiTs of the FitzGerald family.
IH the foregoing i have alluded &
Maurice as 'an epicure' and 20 hi
booklets"
The booklet Of Maurice's that 7 hav
before me Is entitled "Fish for Cats d.
Dog. There are on this cover tW
notices below the title one is with
dut are Dogs the other what cat
averse TO FishZ' AT the head Of tn
cover IS written iu his own hand. "F
g. Burnaud, 1868" Maurice was al
epicure. not in the least "a gourmauo
bat "a gourmet; and. in the prime O.
life wrote ou the subject of food au
feeding with knowledge and
deIicacy of appreciation that wouE
nowadays delight that master Of tn
culinary art. as Of other arts ST
Henry Thompson The Lucullus OF 0u
time.