1832.] Styles of Hume, Gibbon, and Robertson-HUME. the throne of England ;”h “Broken armies, disordered finances, slow and irresolute counsels; by these resources alone were the dispersed provinces of Spain defended against the vigorous power of France;" i "Slow without prudence, ambitious without enterprise, false without deceiving anybody, and refined without any true judgment: such was the character of Philip;' Headstrong in his passions, and incapable equally of prudence and of dissimulation: sincere from violence rather than candour; expensive from profusion more than generosity; a warm friend, a furious enemy; but without any choice or discernment in either: with these qualities, he had easily and quickly mounted to the highest dignities;" “By what arguments he could engage the prince to offer such an insult to the Spanish nation, from whom he had met with such generous treatment; by what colours he could disguise the ingratitude and imprudence of such a measure; these are totally unknown to us;" m 'When we consider Charles, as presiding in his court, as associating with his family, it is difficult to imagine a character at once more respectable and more amiable: a kind husband, an indulgent father, a gentle master, a steadfast friend; to all these eulogies, his conduct in private life fully entitled him;" "The eager expectations of men with regard to a parliament, summoned at so critical a juncture, and during such general discontents; a parliament which, from the situation of public affairs, could not be abruptly dissolved, and which was to execute every thing left unfinished by former parliaments; these motives, so important and interesting, engaged the attendance of all the members." o The reader contemplates these sentences, and wonders why the author chose to give them so awkward and unpleasing a form. In his character of James I. he gives us a sentence without a verb; a liberty which no writer before or since, except Robertson, who once copied him, 21 "Of has ventured to allow himself. He is occasionally too little regardful of accuracy of expression, using a phrase without attaching any meaning to it, or at least without making it apparent to his reader that he attached any : "He bestowed pensions, to the amount of sixteen thousand crowns a year, on several of the King's favourites; on Lord Hastings two thousand crowns; on Lord Howard and others in proportion." What does he mean by in proportion? There is also a want of exactness in saying, "A prince whose character, containing that unusual mixture of dissimulation and ferocity, of quick resentment and unrelenting vengeance, executed the greatest mischiefs." We never say that a man's character executes either good or evil, but that the man himself executes it. The following sentence is of a kind that has too frequently disgraced the pages of elegant writers: It must be confessed that nothing could equal the abject servility of the Scottish nation during this period, but the arbitrary severity of the Administration." The abject servility of the Scottish nation might be equalled by other things. It must be acknowledged, however, that such absurd language occurs but seldom in Hume. A few other inelegancies in his style remain to be noticed, of which these may be thrown together without any remark: "The goods which he laid hold of;" " "u" Such weapons as country people are usually possessed of;" w "The liberty of private judgment is not in reality accepted of;" x "Events P Ch. xlix. vol. 6, p. 154. 22 Styles of Hume, Gibbon, and Robertson-HUME. which might, all of them, have been In the following sentences, the word what is ungracefully, if not ungrammatically used with a noun and verb in the plural. "But what threatened more immediate danger to Mary's authority, were the discontents which prevailed;" e "What rendered the King's aim more apparent, were the endeavours which he used to introduce into Scotland some of the ceremonies of the Church of England." A re mark nearly similar may be applied to the word whoever, in this passage: "It was required, that whoever had borne arms for the King, should forfeit the tenth of their estates." Such phraseology seems to convict a writer of a want of absolute command over his language. In two or three places he has used words for which he had no precedent, and which do but little credit to his taste: "The intolerating spirit of that assembly;" "The affrightened and The affrightened and astonished mind:" "Introit to the communion service." k h [Jan. piety;" "Universally to be the stan dard of belief to all mankind;"" "All men remained in silence and mute astonishment."" This last piece of tautology he seems to have admired, for he inserted it without variation in a subsequent passage." "Sheerness was soon taken, nor could it be saved by the valour of Sir Edward Sprague, who defended it." This reminds us of a remark of Hawkesworth in his Voyages, that "the sailors could not find anchorage, nor could anchorage any where be found." He often gives an unpleasing stiffness to his periods, by omitting, after the manner of Sallust, but, I think, with somewhat less art than the Roman author, the connective particles : "Overcome by the fond love of life, terrified by the prospect of those tortures which awaited him, he allowed the sentiments of nature to prevail over his resolution;" q The Lords Boyd and Ochiltree, Kirkaldy of Grange, Pittarow, were instigated by like motives." r He occasionally, though but seldom indeed, uses, after the French mode, the present tense for the past: "The Commons send Shirley to prison; the Lords assert their powers. Conferences are tried, but no accommodation ensues. Four lawyers are sent to the Tower by the Commons, for transgressing the orders of the House, and pleading in this cause before the Peers. The Peers denominate this arbitrary commitment a breach of the great charter, and order the Lieutenant of the Tower to release the prisoners: he declines obedience." In this manner he proceeds for some lines farther; a manner always ungrateful to English ears. 8 Such are the defects in the style of Hume; but what is to be blamed in it is very trivial, in comparison with what is to be praised. When all his faulty passages are considered, the general character of his periods will still be, that they are well constructed and modulated; and of his diction, that it is select; and, what is always 1 Ch. xi. vol. 2, p. 73. 1832.] List of the Boys at Eton in the years 1779-1780. to be commended in a Scotch author, free from scotticisms; and his few blemishes are no more to be regarded in the number of his excellencies, than the spots in the sun are noticed in the splendour of noon. (To be continued.) Mr. URBAN, LAMBDA. Dec. 30. I HAVE transcribed, from the original, a List of the Boys at Eton in the years 1779-1780, upwards of half a century ago. Your readers will recognise among them the names of many, highly distinguished in afterlife in their different characters of Statesmen, Judges, Generals, Ambassadors, and men of learning. It would be matter of curious inquiry to ascertain how many out of the number of these three or four hundred boys are yet alive. I have marked with an asterisk some of the names of those believed to be now living; of others, your readers be better informed. may Yours, &c. A. D. 1779-1780. Zo. Provost of Elon-Dr. Barnard. Upper Master-Dr. Davies. Assistants in the Upper School-Messrs. Assistants in the Lower School. Messrs. Norbury, Prior, Hawtrey, Savage. Private Tutors to Noblemen and others, not assisting in the School: Mr. Luxmoore, afterwards Bishop of St. Mr. Plumptre, afterwards Dean of Glouces- Sixth Form. Becher.-Brown's Medal in 1782, for the Lloyd.-Norrisian Prize in 1784; Vicar of 23 Prize, 1788, and 1789; Browne's Medal Myddelton. Of Chirk Castle. Roberts. Rector of Spawl, co. Norfolk. Dyson, ma.-Son of the Clerk of the House of Commons. Anguish.-Prebendary of Norwich. *Leycester, ma.- Chancellor's Medallist, M.P. for Shaftesbury. Bayley, ma.- Fellow of St. John's, Camb. Bayley. Fifth Form. Mr. Fitzroy, Henry.-Son of Lord Southampton. Bayley, mi.-Baron of the Exchequer. *Smyth.-Professor of Modern History, Cambridge. Price.-Vicar of Evesham. *Hunt.- Barrister-at-Law; Assessor of Cambridge University. Moore. Barrister-at-Law; Senior Bachelor's prize-man in 1792; Browne's Medal for the Latin Ode, 1786, and Greek Ode, 1787. Lowndes.-Barrister-at-Law. *Fancourt.-Incumbent of a Church at Leicester. Mr. North, Francis.-Son of the Earl of Guilford. Grove.-Wasted a good estate, and was reduced to poverty. Eden.-Sir Frederick E. Bart. Mellish, ma.-Dean of Hereford. *Lord Downe. Sandys.-Sir Edwin S. Bart. Pott.-Son of the celebrated surgeon. *Evans.-Under-Master of Harrow School; 24 List of the Boys at Eton in the *Lockhart-M.P. for Oxford City. *Grover.-Fellow of Eton; senior Bache- *Lord Stopford.-Earl of Courtown. years 1779-1780. Fourth Form. Marsh. -West. [Jan. Scott.-Rector of Wootton Courtney. -Woodbridge. Lloyd.-Rector of St. Dunstan's. Marshall.-Rector of Kingston in Jamaica. Street. Son of a banker at Bath. Mr. Stopford.-Second son of the Earl of Harrison.- -Knott. Courtown. Astley.-Sir Jacob Astley, Bart. Skinner.- -Western.- -Leicester, mi. *Philpot.-Rector of Everdon, co. North- Brogden. Burgh.- -Deverel. Lord Clifton.-Earl of Darnley. *Pigot.—Gen. Sir George Pigot, Bart. Stichall. A clergyman in London. Michelson.-An Esquire near Reading. Fennel. Went upon the stage. Smith.-Late Paymaster of the Navy; a writer in the Microcosm, and author of some ingenious works. Plumptre. Douglas.-Canon of Salisbury. Mr. Evans.-Earl of Carbery. Herne Tilson, mi.-Beedell, ma. Sykes, mi.-Son of Sir Francis Sykes, Bart. *Moore.-Rector of Wrotham; Preb. of Third Remove, fourth Form. Lord Henry Spencer.-Son of the Duke of Tenants in Chief of Domesday Book. 1832.] Clark.—Lieut. in the Navy. Townsend.-Son of the first Lord Sydney. *Bartlam.-Precentor of Exeter. Darnley. Price.-Lord Ashbrook. Leigh.-Colonel Leigh. Mr. Bligh.-General B. son of the Earl of Kenrick, mi Waller, mi.-A descendant of the Poet. Manning. *Arden-Son of an ingenious Poet, the friend of Garrick. Champness. -Monk. Grey.-Sir George G. brother of Earl Grey. Bridges.-Eldest son of Sir Brooke B. Bart. Hart.-Vicar of Ringwood. *Luke.-Fellow of Sidney Sussex College. Palmer.-Sir Paliner, Bart. Cropley. ...... Hankey.-A banker in London. Walpole.--Adams.--Plummer.--Trigg. Baker. Sir George Baker, Bart. Lord Downe-Earl of Moray. Oliver. A clergyman at Leicester. *Mr. Wesley. The Duke of Wellington. *Mr. Wesley.-Prebendary of Durham. *Moore, mi.-Son of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Hazlewood. *Arsou.-Gen. Sir George Anson. Concannon.. - Lucy.- -Careless. Langley.- -North.- -Prior, ma. Prior, mi.. -Whitmore. 25 THESE remarks of your Reviewer (Nov. Magazine, p. 427) induce me to send you, earlier than I had intended, some particulars of a foreign family, members of which shine eminently as Tenants in Capite in the great Book of Domesday and afterwards appear, though at long intervals, in the pages of English history. : Previously, however, to my submitting the statement purposed, you must allow a few words of defence, on the neglect of Antiquaries here noticed. Imperfect as the execution of my wishes must have been, I have for some time past given occasional attention to the subject, and have wished to give to the antiquarian and historical world, memorials of the Domesday Tenants in Capite, and their descendants in the male line; but sadly few are the records of those who lived eight hundred years since; and small is the proportion, even of those few records, which is of a public nature; for I cannot call one to mind between the Domesday Survey in 1085, and the Pipe Rolls in 1129, a period of 60 years; during which time most, if not all of the Conqueror's soldiers, must have shaken off their mortal coil. The consequence of this is, that our only information must be obtained from some accidental and very rare recital in a subsequent record; or in the Chronicles and annals of religious houses; or in private charters (or the enrolment thereof, as the Carte Antiquæ |