Columbia SUntoersitp 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
BRIEF MEMOIR, 
 
 &c. &c. 
 
BRIEF MEMOIR 
 
 LIFE AND WRITINGS 
 
 OF THE LATE 
 
 WILLIAM MARSDEN, 
 
 D.C.L., F.R.S., &c. &c. 
 WRITTEN BY HIMSELF: 
 
 NOTES FROM HIS CORRESPONDENCE. 
 
 . « » « , « He enjoyed to a very advanced age extraordinary vigour of mind and body, equally respected and 
 beloved for his learning and very varied acquirements, for his independent and disinterested character, and for his 
 many social and domestic virtues." 
 
 Address ofH.R.H. the Duke of Sussex. P.R.S '., 30M Nov. 1836. 
 
 LONDON 
 
 PRINTED BY J. L. COX AND SONS, 75, GREAT QUEEN STREET, 
 LINCOLN'S-INN FIELDS. 
 
 FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY. 
 1838. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The following Memoir was found amongst Mr. Marsden's 
 papers, unaccompanied by any specific instructions with respect to 
 its use or future publication. 
 
 It would seem that no portion of it was written before the year 
 1828; the time stated to have elapsed, since the occurrence of events 
 noticed in it, leads to this conclusion. It is likewise evident that, 
 at different periods afterwards, Mr. Marsden cancelled many parts 
 of it, altered several of the dates, introduced some new matter, and 
 added the concluding pages; and that subsequently he never read 
 it through as a whole. 
 
 The leisure afforded by the termination of his literary labours 
 probably led Mr. Marsden to commit to paper this retrospect of 
 his life. The perusal of family letters, to which he alludes, par- 
 ticularly his correspondence with his eldest brother, up to the 
 year 1786, brought the events and impressions of its early history 
 forcibly to his mind, and enabled him to give them much more in 
 detail than could be the case when this resource failed ; he had 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 then little to assist his " recollection of facts" beyond the brief 
 statement of them contained in his memorandum books. 
 
 Having in my possession a series of Mr. Marsden's letters, 
 addressed to his youngest brother, the late Mr. Alexander Mars- 
 den, commencing from the above date, I have been induced to 
 avail myself of this circumstance, by giving extracts from them 
 in the form of notes, agreeing chronologically with the text — thus 
 illustrating, in his own words, many parts of it, which his friends 
 might otherwise have found defective, were it only on account, as 
 is elsewhere observed, of his saying so little about his literary pur- 
 suits. These extracts I had commenced solely for my own grati- 
 fication, when looking over the letters; and it was not till I had 
 made some progress in this, to me, most interesting occupation, 
 that I conceived the idea of continuing to do so, with anv other 
 view. 
 
 It is to be understood, that only the notes which are without 
 brackets belong to the original manuscript, 1 alone, as Editor, 
 being responsible for all the rest. If I have afforded the friends, 
 to whom I am about presenting this volume, an opportunity of 
 becoming more intimately acquainted with the character of one 
 for whose memory they have, on various occasions, expressed so 
 high an esteem, I hope it will prove my justification, in their 
 opinion at least, for having given " even this degree of publicity" 
 
PREFACE. Vll 
 
 to the Memoir, at an earlier period perhaps than was anticipated 
 by the writer. 
 
 A collection of* letters, thus labelled by Mr. Marsden, in 1834, 
 " which if preserved may eventually become interesting, either on 
 account of the writer or the subject, many of them have reference 
 to my own biography," have likewise afforded me appropriate 
 matter for additional notes ; but as, within such narrow limits, I 
 found it impossible to do justice either to the writer or the subject 
 of the larger portion of them, I have confined myself to those 
 which specifically relate to Mr. Marsden's different publications — 
 with some exceptions, such as the letters from Admiral Sir William 
 Young, of which 1 have transcribed several, as pleasing testimo- 
 nies of the friendship that subsisted between them. 
 
 Feeling it would be unsuitable in me, from my very near con- 
 nexion with Mr. Marsden, to expatiate on his high acquirements 
 and estimable qualities, I shall content myself with a simple 
 expression of thankfulness, for the many years of happiness I 
 enjoyed in the society of so distinguished a person, and subscribe 
 myself 
 
 ELIZ T . H W. MARSDEN. 
 
 50, Queen Anne Street, June 1838. 
 
MEMOIR 
 
 THE LIFE 
 
 WILLIAM M A R S D E N. 
 
 Although the task of compiling personal memoirs should properly be 
 left to the sound discretion of those who come after us, we are sometimes 
 led by our own individual feelings to anticipate the claims of posterity, 
 and to make the act our own. Such is the case in the present instance, 
 but with the material distinction, that what I now commit to writing is 
 not intended to appear in judgment for or against me, until such a period 
 shall elapse as may remove any objection to what might be thought a 
 premature statement of cotemporary incidents. 
 
 The most plausible excuse for undertaking this autobiographical office, 
 is the opportunity it affords of preventing or correcting incidental mis- 
 takes to which any other mode is liable ; but, independently of this 
 prudential motive, I may urge the claim to being indulged, at an advanced 
 stage of life, in the gratifying recollection and recital of the circum- 
 stances attending my progress through it. 
 
 I am aware, indeed, that the expression of such feelings may expose 
 me to the imputation Of vanity, and that my natural disposition is to 
 place the detail of events (unimportant as they may happen to be) in as 
 
 B 
 
2 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 favourable a point of view as consists with the strictness of truth ; 1 
 must at the same time question the justice of applying that character to 
 the honest pride experienced in making it appear, that, from slender 
 beginnings, I have honourably advanced my fortunes to the ultimate 
 enjoyment of every thing that can render life comfortable or desirable. 
 Of such vanity, which, I trust, has never had any unworthy effect on 
 my actions or manners, I am far from being anxious to divest my 
 reputation with society. It is proper to observe further, that my recol- 
 lection of facts, still tolerably perfect, has been materially assisted by 
 the accurate record of correspondences maintained without intermission, 
 from an early period, with beloved relatives and estimable friends. 
 
 The knowledge I happen to possess respecting the branches of the 
 Marsden family, before the settling in Ireland of our more immediate 
 ancestor, about the latter end of the reign of Queen Anne, is very 
 imperfect. A vague tradition states us to be descended from a stock 
 that flourished on the borders of Yorkshire and Lancashire, where 
 there are towns of the name, and of which the county histories give 
 ample details; but my grandfather, Edmund Marsden, the son of 
 Edmund, was a native of Derbyshire, one of several brothers, who, for 
 some unascertained reason, removed to Ireland and resided in Dublin. 
 Of him, the only circumstance that has come directly to my know- 
 ledge is, that the freedom of the corporation of that city was granted to 
 him on the 19th October 1714. His only son, John, my venerated 
 father, was born there on the 10th February 1714-15, according to the 
 then double mode of dating the three first months of the current 
 year. Besides two children by his first wife (Alice Crampton), which 
 died infants, he had by his second (Eleanor Bagnall) my mother, no 
 fewer than sixteen; among whom I was the sixth son and tenth child. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 3 
 
 But numerous as was this progeny, only five of the one sex and four 
 of the other attained to maturity (the rest having- died, chiefly of the 
 small pox), and only three of the former, with one of the latter, sur- 
 vived the end of the last century. I was horn on the 16th of November 
 17-34, and have been the eldest of my family since the year 1780". 
 
 My father, during many years of his life, was engaged in extensive 
 mercantile and shipping concerns, but retired from business about 
 1764, and passed much of what might still be considered as the earlier 
 portion of his days at Clontarf, in the county of Dublin. In 1783 he 
 took an active part in the establishment of the National Bank of 
 Ireland, of which he was chosen a director. For the last sixteen 
 years, however, he resided chiefly in the county of Wicklow, where 
 he died in May 1801, in the eighty-seventh year of his patriarchal life. 
 
 When 1 had nearly gone through the usual course of classical educa- 
 tion at schools in Dublin (where I was the cotemporary of Viscount 
 Strangford, father of the present lord, and some years later, of the 
 Right Hon. George Ponsonby), I was preparing to enter Trinity Col- 
 lege, with a view to the church, when my destinies unexpectedly led 
 me to take a very different course. 
 
 About six years before the period here spoken of, my eldest brother, 
 John Marsden, of whom I shall have occasion to say much in the 
 sequel, had received the appointment of a Writer in the service of the 
 East-India Company, at their then presidency of Fort Marlborough 
 (Bencoolen), and made so favourable a report (perhaps too flattering) 
 of his situation, as to induce our parent to think a similar appointment 
 would be eligible as a provision for another son; and his application to 
 a friendly Director proving successful, I was accordingly nominated, and 
 ordered to be in readiness for the sailing of the first ship. At this, to 
 
 b 2 
 
4 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 me momentous period, I had not quite attained my sixteenth year, and 
 being still at school, was hastily removed from thence to make the 
 necessary preparations for a new scene; and my mind, soon becoming 
 reconciled to the idea of changing scholastic for more adventurous 
 pursuits, I took leave of an affectionate family, from which I was, eventu- 
 ally, to be long separated, and embarked from Dublin the 9th December 
 1770.* 
 
 In order to avoid the journey through North Wales, at that period 
 extremely troublesome, I was advised to sail for Parkgate, at the mouth 
 of the Chester river ; but scarcely had we dropped anchor within the 
 Hoyle-bank, when we were overtaken by a violent gale at night, in 
 
 * The following lines addressed to me by my excellent, but too partial, sister Anne, 1 
 have preserved as a memorial of her regard and a specimen of her talent : 
 
 " Indulge me, William, in my grief; 
 Complaint may bring a small relief. 
 Think what a sister's heart must feel, 
 More than expression can reveal, 
 When cruel fate away shall rend 
 Her kind instructor, brother, friend! 
 And must my graver hours no more 
 Be edified by wisdom's lore ? 
 No more my happy heart receive 
 The knowledge he was fond to give ? 
 Dropt be my pen — and thou my M use 
 Thy wonted aid may soon refuse, 
 Since all the joys thou canst bestow 
 But from communication flow : 
 And who will like my William hear 
 Each trifling line with partial ear ; 
 With kind indulgence praise the thought 
 Which, haply, his instruction taught ? 
 I fondly hop'd that bounteous heav'n 
 
 In thee a lasting boon had giv'n, 
 
 Ilop'd that the span of life it lent, 
 
 With thee conversant, might be spent ; 
 
 Assur'd each hour that thus was past 
 
 Would still be wiser than the last ; 
 
 But now remote from home and me 
 
 Is fixed thy future destiny ; 
 
 And Anna's dearest joys are flown, 
 
 They all are with her William gone — 
 
 But cease to touch the tender string 
 
 That strongly vibrates while I sing — 
 
 Come gentle Patience, and control 
 
 The sorrows that oppress my soul ; 
 
 Bring Reason with thee as a guide. 
 
 And Resignation by thy side; 
 
 May all conduce to calm my breast, 
 
 To sooth my troubled soul to rest; 
 
 And teach this thought, that heav'n's decree, 
 
 Is best for him and best for me." 
 
 The fact is, however, that so far from my being the instructor, I am sensible that whatever 
 taste I may have possessed for polite literature, I imbibed, at an early period of life, from her 
 example. She was my senior by nearly four years. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. g 
 
 the course of which several vessels were wrecked, and ours, after 
 parting- a cable, was run on shore. 
 
 Stopping a day at Chester, where our party needed repose, we pro- 
 ceeded on our journey towards town : but such was then the slow 
 rate of travelling, that we did not reach it till the 18th of the month. 
 So limited by that means was the period of my residence in the capital, 
 and that little being occupied, as well with attendance at the offices 
 of the East-India House, as with the trifling concerns of my equipment 
 for the voyage, few opportunities presented themselves or were sug- 
 gested by the friends under whose guidance I was placed, of seeing 
 what was most worthy of notice and recollection, the want of which 
 was a subject of regret to me whilst abroad. I should, for instance, 
 have been gratified by witnessing the dramatic performances of David 
 Garrick, then still nearly in his prime, having died in January 1779, 
 just a year before my return to England : the daily expectation of 
 the despatch of the India ship (delayed by accidental circumstances), 
 depriving me of a rational and interesting amusement. 
 
 In the evening of the 20th December I left London, and embarked 
 the next day from Gravesend, on the Seahorse, Capt. Dampier, whilst 
 she was getting under weigh. After being obliged to anchor for a 
 week off the North Foreland, during a heavy gale, we reached the 
 Downes on the 4th January 1771, and Spithead on the Gth, where our 
 crew (in consequence of a report of war), were induced to volunteer 
 for entering on board a King's ship. I landed with the Captain at 
 Portsmouth on the 10th to pay our compliments to the Port Admiral 
 (Buckle), and finally took our departure from England on the 15th. 
 the last land seen being the Isle of Portland. 
 
 The equinoctial line was crossed on the 17th February at noon ; when 
 
MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 the heat was so intense as to render it painful to stand on the quarter- 
 deck, whilst taking the meridian observation under a nearly perpen- 
 dicular sun. The highest southern latitude to which we attained, on 
 the 18th April, was 33^ degrees, being then in about the longitude of 
 the Cape of Good Hope. 
 
 During the course of the voyage I was led, by the example of some of 
 the officers, to pay attention to the method, then recently coming into 
 practice, of ascertaining the longitude of the ship's place by observation 
 of the apparent distance of the sun or moon, and certain stars ; which, 
 under the particular circumstances of our case, proved to be of much 
 importance ; for, in consequence of our not seeing any land since 
 leaving England, by which the dead-reckoning, as it is termed, might 
 be corrected, the progressive amount of error became very great. On 
 the 28th April, however, we had an opportunity of observing the com- 
 mencement of a lunar eclipse, by which the general accuracy of our 
 previous calculations was verified : at least to our own satisfaction. The 
 captain, indeed, was not a convert to this new process of determining 
 what ought to be supposed the true place of the ship, and in laying down 
 on his chart the daily run by the log, his tract led him into the con- 
 tinent of New Holland, and the aggregate amount of our error amounted 
 to no less than twenty- five degrees of longitude. 
 
 The first land that, after the extraordinary and almost unprecedented 
 interval of nineteen weeks, and a run by the log of 14,000 geographical 
 miles, blessed the sight and revived the drooping spirits of the crew, 
 then under allowance of water, and falling down fast with sea scurvy, 
 was the remarkable range of high mountains inland of Bencoolen. It 
 should be observed, that an apprehension entertained by Government 
 of an approaching rupture with France and Spain, on account of the 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 7 
 
 Faulkland Island proceedings, occasioned orders to be given for our 
 avoiding the eventual track of the enemy's ships. 
 
 When, by degrees, we could distinguish the luxuriant verdure and 
 picturesque scenery of the coast, the impression conveyed to our minds 
 was that of a terrestrial paradise. In the evening of the 29th May 1771, 
 we anchored in the road, and on the 30th landed at Fort Marlborough, 
 where I was welcomed by my affectionate and excellent brother, in 
 whose family I afterwards lived as long as the routine of the Company's 
 service allowed of his continuing to reside at the head settlement ; and 
 from //is society and example I derived inestimable advantage. The 
 friendship that thenceforth subsisted between us, during the fifteen 
 years his valuable life was spared, was to me the source of pure and 
 uninterrupted happiness. 
 
 Soon after my arrival, we received intelligence from Madras of the 
 death of my next elder brother, Thomas, which took place in March 1771 . 
 He had received his mathematical and professional education at the 
 Royal Portsmouth Academy, at which he executed a splendid memorial, 
 now in possession of the family. He afterwards spent some time in the 
 West-Indies and Bay of Honduras, under Sir Wm. Barnaby's flag, and 
 passed for Lieutenant. The ship on which he was subsequently rated 
 being sent to the East-India station, he was there induced and permitted 
 to quit the navy, in which, during peace, there was little chance of 
 promotion, and to accept the offer of a commission in the Engineers' 
 corps at Madras, to which his talents and acquirements were particularly 
 suited, and where he had begun to distinguish himself, when he fell a 
 victim to a bilious fever; but it was commonly reported, that being- 
 employed to construct a military work at the fort of Tripasore (afterwards 
 called Marsden's bastion), it was necessary to cut down a banyan tree, 
 
8 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 which so incensed the Brahmans of the place, that they found means to 
 poison him. He had not then attained his twenty-fourth year. 
 
 At this period, and for several years after, the state of society in Fort 
 Marlborough (better known as Bencoolen, a native town some miles 
 distant,) was respectable, both in point of numbers and the description 
 of persons composing it: but it was subsequently reduced from the rank 
 of a presidency, and at length (in 1814) given up, by treaty, to the Dutch. 
 Among other instances of its civilisation was a handsome theatre, built 
 under the superintendance of my eldest brother, and chiefly managed 
 by him, which for some time constituted our principal amusement, 
 until it met the usual fate of such structures — that of being accidentally 
 consumed by fire. 
 
 Previously to this event he had been appointed to an out-station. When 
 the day of his departure drew near, being desirous of taking a dramatic 
 leave of the settlement, I was encouraged to write the following epilogue 
 for him, which he spoke in character, after performing the part of Don 
 Felix, in the Wonder : 
 
 EPILOGUE 
 
 Spoken by Mr. John Marsden in July 1773. 
 
 The soldier who hath long endured the toil 
 Of rigid service on a foreign soil, 
 In fortune's smiles and frowns hath borne a part, 
 And shewn a ready hand and willing heart ; 
 Should he, obedient to some pressing cause, 
 His cares domestic or stern nature's laws, 
 From public life to calmer scenes remove, 
 Who could the vefrarfs conduct disapprove ? 
 
 I, in dramatic wars a volunteer, 
 Have long sought fame with emulation here ; 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 
 
 Anxious to please have borrowed any sliape, 
 From Pierre and Zanga down to Captain Cape : 
 And though my years have passed in this hard duty, 
 No Benefit acquire! — no Nabob's booty, 
 Yet with a mod 1 rate share of praise content, 
 I feel no cause to deem those years mis-spent. 
 
 And if my weak endeavours have supprest 
 One rising care in any tender breast, 
 Or served one hearty, joyous laugh to raise. 
 Adding a lengthen'd minute to your days ; 
 If they've inspired one sympathetic sigh, 
 Or bath\l in geifrous tears one sparkling eye, 
 When youthful innocence or rev Vend age, 
 
 Patient in misery have graced the stage 
 
 For all my well-meant services o'erpaid, 
 I bless the hour when first I lent my aid. 
 
 But must I bid these long-lov'd scenes adieu ? 
 Must I no more my pleasing task renew ? 
 These boards forsake, and what was once my pride 
 To my fond wish for ever be denied ? 
 Must I no more survey these brilliant rounds 
 Where so much taste, good-nature, wit abounds? 
 Alas, no more ! — To solitude I fly, 
 Where Fancy only can the loss supply. 
 These thoughts no stage illusion can dispel — 
 Imposing trifles, mimic pomp, farewell ! 
 
 ( Throws away his Spanish hat and feather.) 
 
 Once with delighted eyes I view'd these toys, 
 Now sad mementos of forbidden joys. 
 
 Still to this cherish \1 house your kindness show ; 
 Let youthful efforts double favour know ; 
 The opening bud of scenic merit guard — 
 Your care its full-blown lustre shall reward. 
 Europe may then her critic talents boast, 
 Whilst pleas'd approving smiles adorn our coast. 
 C 
 
10 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 May you with health and fortune hand in hand, 
 In happy hour behold your native land ; 
 There all you live for may you live to see — 
 I can no more — Farewell — remember me ! 
 
 (Exit hastily).* 
 
 The circumstance under which this address was delivered by my 
 brother, operated more essentially than any merit in the composition, 
 to produce a sympathetic effect on the audience, not a little flattering- to 
 a juvenile poet. 
 
 * In one of Dr. Johnson's conversations recorded by Boswell, he is made to say : " If a 
 soldier has fought a good many campaigns, is he to be blamed if he retires to ease and 
 tranquillity?" The coincidence of thought and expression is here very striking, without 
 being liable to any suspicion of plagiarism. Johnson employed the figure so early as the 
 year 1766 ; but his ' Life' was not published, I believe, till 1790; and when my epilogue 
 was composed, I was not even aware of the existence of his entertaining biographer. 
 
 Another instance of accidental similitude in some features presents itself, and which 1 
 cannot refrain from introducing, although feeling no small compunction at thus suffering my 
 lines to stand in unequal comparison with those of the immortal Scott. The interval of 
 time between their respective appearance was forty-four years, and perhaps it may be 
 thought not unworthy of remark that the Sumatran minstrel of 1773 was, in 1832, a 
 member of the same club in London, with the great Caledonian bard. 
 
 THE EDINBURGH THEATRE. 
 
 FAREWELL ADDRESS, SPOKEN BY MR. KEMBLE f 
 
 WRITTEN ET WALTER SCOTT, ESQ. 
 
 As the worn war-horse, at the trumpet's sound, Here, then, adieu ! while yet some well-graced parts 
 Erects his mane, and neighs, and paws the ground— May fix an ancient favourite in your hearts, 
 
 Disdains the ease his generous lord assigns. Not quite to be forgotten, even when 
 
 And longs to rush on the embattled lines, You look on better actors, younger men : 
 
 So I, your plaudits ringing in mine ear, And if your bosoms own this kindly debt 
 
 Can scarce sustain to think our parting near. Of old remembrance, how shall mine forget ? 
 
 To think my scenic hour for ever past. Oh, how forget !— how oft I hither came 
 
 And that those valued plaudits are the last. In anxious hope, how oft returned with fame ! 
 
 But years steal on, and higher duties crave How oft around your circle this weak hand 
 
 Some space between the theatre and grave ; Has waved immortal Shakspeare's magic wand, 
 
 That, like the Roman in the Capitol, Till the full burst of inspiration came, 
 
 I may adjust my mantle ere I fall : And I have felt and you have fanned the flame ! 
 
 My life's brief act in public service flown, By inem'ry treasured, while her reign endures, 
 
 The last, the closing scene, must be my own. These hours must live— and all their charms are yours. 
 
 t in 1817. O favour'd 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. H 
 
 The Muses, or perhaps only the lighter of the sisterhood, engaged a 
 large share of my attention during my residence abroad. Poetry both 
 afforded an agreeable relaxation from business, and acted as the hand- 
 maid to more substantial studies. It tended also, by elevating the taste, 
 to prevent the indulgence in idle habits into which young persons who 
 find themselves independent of moral control are too apt to fall. What 
 I had acquired of classical learning at school was not neglected, and 
 after my arrival in Sumatra, I made translations of the Greek odes of 
 Anacreon and Sappho, recommended by their brevity. The objects, 
 indeed, of my literary pursuits were by no means of a confined nature. 
 I had an ardent thirst for knowledge, both for its own sake and from the 
 flattering, however distant, hope, of its enabling me to distinguish myself, 
 in the event of my future return to England. Few of the paths that 
 conduct to the Temple of Fame were left entirely unexplored, although 
 there was wanting a sufficient perseverance in any one to effect an 
 entrance, insomuch that my brother used to apply to me the character 
 of Polvphilus in Johnson's Rambler.* 
 
 Having at a more advanced period of my life obtained a fair degree of 
 credit in the graver style of literary composition, I am aware that some 
 of my friends and connexions who feel interested in my posthumous 
 
 O favour'd land ; renowned for arts and arms, But my last part is play'd, my knell is rung, 
 
 For manly talent, and for female charms, When e'en your praise falls faltering from my tongue : 
 
 Could this full bosom prompt the sinking line, And all that you can hear, or I can tell, 
 
 What fervent benedictions now were thine ! Is — friends and patrons, hail, and fare you well ! 
 
 The above address was delivered by Mr. Kemble with great effect, under frequent inter- 
 ruptions from the feelings of the audience, and loud applause continued after the exit of this 
 long-admired actor. 
 
 * It may, indeed, with a feeling of self-indulgence, be remarked, that those to whose lot the 
 greatest share of actual business most commonly falls, are the persons who, by the improve- 
 ment of every interval of leisure, are enabled to make the most progress in literary or other 
 pursuits ; whilst the entirely disengaged cannot find time even for ordinary correspondence. 
 
 c 2 
 
12 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 fame, may be hurt at perceiving that I blend with the serious parts of 
 my biography, the specimens of poetry (light and unimportant as they 
 are) that make their appearance in these pages ; but my purpose in 
 giving this account of my life is to draw a faithful portrait, and to 
 exhibit myself such as I am, or more properly such as I have been ; and 
 if a fondness for poetry were a weakness, I am bound to submit to the 
 imputation of that weakness as a component part of my mixed cha- 
 racter. I may, indeed, avow a degree of parental fondness for the pieces 
 themselves, with all their imperfections on their heads. They were the 
 offspring of happy hours ; they were cherished by those for whose 
 amusement they were written, and even their occasional exposition at 
 late periods has been attended with gratifying associations. Still I am 
 fully sensible that the partiality may resolve itself into the weakness 
 inseparable from the natural infirmities of age ; and in such case I have 
 only to solicit indulgence from those in whom it shall be found to excite 
 feelings of disapprobation.* 
 
 In allotting to the several offices the young men who came out as 
 writers of the season, I was appointed by the Governor and Council to 
 that of the Secretary, in which department I continued to the latest 
 period. Our duties, excepting at the time of dispatching ships, were not 
 
 * The following passage from Le Diable Boiteux is so much in point, and so keen a satire 
 on the writer of this Memoir, that I have little doubt of being excused for its seeming 
 intrusion : " ' Seigneur Asmodee,' interrompit Leandro, ' apprends moi, de grace, si ce vieil- 
 lard que je vois occupe a lire dans un cabinet, ne seroit point par hazard un homme a 
 meriter d'etre ici* ? ' 11 le meriteroit sans doute,' repondit le Demon : ' ce personnage est un 
 vieux licencie qui lit une epreuve d'un livre qu'il a sous la presse.' ' C'est apparemment 
 quelqu' ouvrage de Morale ou de Theologie' ? dit Don Cleofas. ' Non,' repartit le Boiteux, ' ce 
 sont des Poesies gaillardes qu'il a composees dans sa jeunesse : au lieu de les bruler, ou du 
 moins de les laisser perir avec lui, il les fait imprimer de son vivant, de peur qu'apres sa 
 mort ses heritiers ne soient tentes de les mettre au jour, et que par respect pour son earactere, 
 ils n'en otent tout le sel et ragrement.'" 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 13 
 
 very urgent or laborious, and there was time sufficient for literary pur- 
 suits as well as for the amusements of society : but I was punctual in 
 my official attendance, and endeavoured to make myself useful ; the 
 consequences of which were such as might be expected. 
 
 My brother's separation from me in July 1773, mention of which has 
 already been made, constituted a new epoch in my juvenile history. 
 The pleasure of personal intercourse was exchanged for that of a corres- 
 pondence, which was unreservedly and unremittingly kept up during 
 the remainder of his too short life. 
 
 To understand the following little sportive ode addressed to him in 
 
 his first temporary absence, it should be explained, that among the 
 
 duties of the Company's servants who were stationed in the districts 
 
 where the cultivation of pepper prevailed, was that of an annual survey 
 
 of the plantations. These journies were for the most part performed on 
 
 foot, through a very wild country, and generally occupied several weeks. 
 
 Impatient as I was for the termination of the laborious task in which he 
 
 was engaged, and in which, from the swollen state of the waters, he 
 
 had run considerable risks, I endeavoured to amuse his mind by this jeu 
 
 d'esprit, which he would receive along with his letters, in the depth of 
 
 the woods, where trifles of the kind would prove acceptable. 
 
 Doubly happy be the day 
 That puts a period to your stay ; 
 Haste, dear brother, come away 
 
 from Pali.* 
 
 Pray think how lonely we are here, 
 Deprived of all we hold most dear ; 
 To try our heavy hearts to cheer 
 were folly. 
 
 * The name of the settlement or station to which he had recently been appointed, from 
 whence his journey commenced. It is commonly written and pronounced Polly. 
 
14 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Through what rude deserts you have been, 
 Thick woods and torrents too, I ween ; 
 How many monsters you have seen,* 
 so frightful ! 
 
 And then how strange, at night opprest 
 By toil, with songs you're lull'd to rest ; 
 Of rural goddesses-f- the guest 
 
 delightful ! 
 
 But now, I trust, your labour's o'er — 
 Revisit this forsaken shore ; 
 
 The Higher pow'rs require no more 
 
 your walking : 
 
 And I no longer fevers fear,| 
 But shall exchange my bark for beer 
 The very hour in which I hear 
 
 you talking. 
 
 In the month of November, 1773, I was appointed (over the heads of 
 others) to the post of sub-secretary, in the room of Mr. John Jesse, who 
 proceeded on the unfortunate expedition to Balambangan, in the return 
 from whence he died at Borneo. In the January following, upon the 
 removal of the secretary to the charge of one of the subordinate settle- 
 ments, I succeeded him as head of the office, and for about two years con- 
 tinued to execute the duties, although without the title. The reason for 
 this peculiar arrangement was, that my early age and inferiority of rank 
 
 * Such as wild elephants and tigers, with occasionally a tapir and rhinoceros. 
 
 t The place of nightly repose on the surveys, is the public hall of the village, a part of 
 which is divided off by a curtain for the purpose. On the outside of this the unmarried 
 daughters of the principal inhabitants (termed gades, or virgins, in the language of the 
 country, but by Europeans goddesses) take their places, and soothe, or disturb, the rest of the 
 wearied stranger with unceasing melodies till day-break. — (See Hist, of Sumatra, ed. 3. 
 p. 267.; 
 
 ^ At this time I was recovering from an intermitting fever. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. lo 
 
 might have rendered the latter appointment objectionable in the eyes of 
 the Directors ; whilst the circumstance of its being- provisionally filled 
 Avould pass unnoticed. In October 17 70, I was regularly appointed 
 secretary, and held the situation so long as I remained in the service. 
 
 This necessarily fixed my general residence at the seat of government, 
 but did not prevent me from paying occasional visits to the out-settle- 
 ments, and to those especially of which my brother had successive 
 charge. They were not unfrequent. My curiosity being ever awake to 
 the novelty of objects around me, I omitted no opportunities of making- 
 remarks on, and enquiries concerning, whatever was striking in the 
 productions of the country, or peculiar in the manners of the natives ; 
 but it was not until a later period that I seriously directed my attention 
 to collecting materials for giving an account of the island. At the Pre- 
 sidency, however, the intercourse of Europeans with the inhabitants of 
 the surrounding districts was by no means of a confined nature ; and 
 my official situation, whilst it required a competent knowledge of the 
 general language of communication, afforded me much practical ac- 
 quaintance with the criminal law ; as in all cases of a capital or serious 
 character, the examinations of suspected persons were taken before the 
 Council, conjointly with the native chiefs, and the questions and 
 answers, which passed in the Malayan tongue, committed to writing, in 
 English, by the secretary. It was, at the same time, by studying the 
 written character, and exercising myself in the perusal of epistolatory 
 correspondence, in the first instance, and afterwards of regular compo- 
 sitions (for the most part either religious and legal tracts or heroic 
 romances), that I laid the foundation of that degree of knowledge which 
 enabled me, after my return to England, to publish a Grammar and 
 Dictionary of the language. 
 
16 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 It was in the month of January 1774, that our theatre was destroyed 
 by tire ; which circumstance, and the dispersion of the principal per- 
 formers, brought that amusement to a close, and no subsequent efforts 
 were made to revive it. I ought to have mentioned, that the line of 
 characters in which I was myself called upon by the managers to exhibit, 
 were chiefly female,* and I had the honour of personating Belvidera, 
 Calista, the Mourning Bride, Mrs. Beverley, and several others, in a 
 style of acting to which that of Mrs. Barry (whom I remember as 
 Mrs. Dancer), Mrs. Siddons, and Miss O'Neil, would not bear compa- 
 rison. It is sufficient to say that our performances produced the effect 
 of theatrical illusion, and excited no small degree of interest. 
 
 The gratification derived from female society frequently contributed 
 to inspire my muse, although the productions were not always addressed 
 to any particular individual, being generally written for the amusement, 
 and confined, at the time, to the perusal, of a few intimate friends. Of 
 such compositions the following (written in 1775) is a specimen : 
 
 SONG. 
 
 My fair's external charms to paint 
 
 No emblem gay enough I find , 
 The brightest simile too faint — 
 
 How then express her peerless mind ? 
 
 Perhaps the lily and the rose 
 
 May with her cheek and bosom vie, 
 Or yonder star in part disclose 
 
 The radiant lustre of her eye : 
 
 But can the sweetest breath of morn, 
 
 The beauties of the orient day, 
 Can all that sky or earth adorn 
 
 One image of her soul convey ? 
 
 My age was about eighteen, and my complexion then fair. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 17 
 
 No, vainly would our sense pursue 
 
 The virtues which that form inspire — 
 
 The mental eye alone can view, 
 
 And wrapt in silent love, admire. 
 
 I had given away a few copies of* this song, after my return to Eng- 
 land; hut I was surprised and displeased to see it printed in a small 
 ' Collection of English Songs,' by Alexander Dalrymple, Esquire, in 
 1796, accompanied with a trifling epigram, which should not now be 
 reproduced (especially as it does not convey my real sentiments, being 
 only meant for a saucy joke), were it not to vindicate the ownership, 
 however unimportant. 
 
 Woman, doubtful theme, I sing ; 
 Dear, delightful, dangVous thing. 
 
 Magic source of all our joys ; 
 Tempting, trifling, tinsell'd toys; 
 
 Ev'ry faculty possessing 
 Constituting curse or blessing ; 
 
 Witty, empty, fond, capricious, 
 Pious sometimes, often vicious ; 
 
 As angels handsome, devils proud, 
 Modest, pert, submissive, loud : 
 
 The most ambiguous work of heav'n, 
 To cheer us and torment us given. 
 
 Without them, what, ye gods, is life ? 
 And with them, what but care and strife ? 
 
 The subject of the following pretended birth-day ode was not, as in 
 the case of some of these compositions, an imaginary person. The gaiele 
 de cceur did not accord with the genuine feelings of the writer, who 
 attempted to conceal his uneasiness at the approaching event of her 
 departure — to which " his poverty, and not his will, consented." 
 
 By zeal inspir'd or fancy smitten, 
 A birth-day ode I fain had written ; 
 
 D 
 
18 
 
 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Invok'd the Genius of our isle 
 
 Propitious on my work to smile ; 
 
 Coax'd ev'ry nymph that haunts our woods, 
 
 Each Naiad of Sumatran floods. 
 
 And ev'ry pow'er of earth, sea, air, 
 
 That make the dear West Coast their care : 
 
 Reminded them that 't was their duty 
 
 To pay a just respect to beauty, 
 
 Nor suffer this auspicious day 
 
 Unmark'd, unsung, to pass away 
 
 Like vulgar birth-days ! — " Oh, inspire," 
 
 I cried, " your poet with new fire, 
 
 To celebrate that happy morn 
 
 Which gave a to adorn — " 
 
 "A ! " instant they replied : 
 
 " Oh, she has long time been our pride ; 
 
 For ne'er did mortal beauty grace 
 
 Our isle with half so sweet a face. 
 
 So fair a form, so fair a mind, 
 
 Or taste or manners so refin'd. 
 
 In short, her tout-ensemble 's such, 
 
 Description cannot say too much. 
 
 Happy to guard so bright a fair, 
 
 We tended her with double care. 
 
 You can't conceive what pains and toil, 
 
 Lest Sol her blooming cheek should spoil, 
 
 We us'd, in gathering morning dews, 
 
 Around her toilet to diffuse ; 
 
 And when mid-day approaeh'd we spread 
 
 Our wings umbrageous o'er her head ; 
 
 Ry which attentions, as you know, 
 
 Her skin's still white as northern snow ; 
 
 Yet, after all — you'll scarce give credit — 
 
 Rut Mrs. — and said it : 
 
 She's fixt, per first direct conveyance, 
 To take her leave and go away hence ; 
 And means to mortify our pride, 
 Ry shining forth on t'other side.* 
 
 * Of India. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. j ;> 
 
 Think you, for her we'll lend yon rhymes? — 
 Not, though you beggM a thousand times !" 
 So saying, on their heels they tunfd, 
 And your obedient servant spurn'd. 
 No, Muse, you can expect no poet ; 
 These doggerel lines will serve to show it. 
 
 bo 
 
 The foregoing bears the date of December 1775. In a more serious 
 mood, the following, having the same person for its object, was com- 
 posed in 1777. 
 
 Ah ! whence this sentiment of joy 
 
 Which thus instinctive fires my breast ? 
 
 Why rush my spirits and destroy 
 The calm of philosophic rest ? 
 
 Philsophy! alas, how vain 
 
 Is all thy boasted stoic art, 
 When Nature would resume her reign, 
 
 And Friendship claim my votive heart. 
 
 O, Memory, thy tablets say, 
 In characters unfailing, clear, 
 
 That this is 's natal day, 
 
 Distinguished in the passing year. 
 
 There, too, are trac'd in glowing hue, 
 
 Those charms — to veil them let me strive — 
 Fancy would sicken at the view, 
 And all my stifled griefs revive. 
 
 Her natal day ! — All-gracious pow'r ! 
 
 Smile on this day — nor this alone ; 
 On her your gifts unceasing show'r, 
 
 And hundreds bless by blessing one !* 
 
 It had frequently been urged to me, that subjects adapted to tragedy 
 
 * It was at the house of this lady, who became the wife of Mr. Patrick, a connexion of 
 Mr. George Canning, that I first made the acquaintance of that eminent statesman, then a 
 young Etonian, about the year 1785. 
 
 D 2 
 
20 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 (whether genuine or fabulous was of little consequence) might be found 
 in the ancient history of Ireland, and as I felt inclined to attempt the 
 composition of a drama, I was led to examine the pages of Warner, 
 where, in the popular story of Maon and Moriat, I found what I 
 thought would suit my purpose. It became necessary, however, to 
 deviate from it in some particulars; to introduce additional incidents, 
 and to change some of the harsher names (harsh at least in English pro- 
 nunciation) of the principal personce. How far I may have been suc- 
 cessful in dramatising it, is not for me to judge. From the nature of 
 the plot I am aware of having many prejudices to contend with, and 
 which perhaps may not be entirely unfounded. To have contributed, in 
 any degree, to keep up the spirit of romantic adventure amongst my 
 active and warm-blooded countrymen, could not be considered as ren- 
 dering them a service, and I acknowledge that the writer would have 
 claim to a much higher degree of merit, who should endeavour to con- 
 vince them that the sober pursuits of industry will tend more to their 
 real happiness than any excitement produced by the imaginary exploits 
 of their turbulent and half-savage ancestors ; the recital of which leads 
 them only to the display of courage in senseless feuds and barbarous 
 outrages.* 
 
 * Within a few centuries from the commencement of the Christian era, Ireland became 
 an asylum to which the persecuted ecclesiastics from the eastern parts of Europe and -western 
 of Asia fled for security, as being the most remote situation that enjoyed a temperate climate, 
 and was the least liable to molestation from invaders. Here, in consequence, were formed 
 numerous monastic establishments, in which the best learning of the age was cultivated, 
 and from whence it was subsequently transplanted to countries where, from the trampling 
 of barbarians, it had ceased to flourish. This remarkable period of Irish civilization, under 
 the influence of foreign refugees, who preached a mild doctrine and exhibited models of 
 social order and subordination, is too often confounded with the rude state of the island in 
 times antecedent to the introduction of Christianity, when events, having little claim to 
 authenticity, are made to bear date from the creation of the world. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 21 
 
 It appears, by a memorandum, that the versification of this play was 
 begun in September 1776, and concluded in October 1777. With the 
 exception of occasional perusals by a few intimate friends, the piece lias, 
 consequently, in November 1827, slept for half a century. 
 
 Before I had been long- arrived in Sumatra, the unaccustomed and 
 striking objects that daily presented themselves suggested the idea, 
 although in a vague manner, of employing myself in furnishing some 
 kind of description of them ; with a view, principally, to the amusement 
 of those persons whom I had left behind me, and who, I was sensible, 
 were interested in every local circumstance connected with the residence 
 of the family abroad. But my first conceit, for such I must term it, was 
 to give my sketch the form of a poem, to be denominated the Malaiad. 
 This scheme, however, was soon abandoned, and it was not till after the 
 completion of the above drama, that I began to act seriously in the col- 
 lection of materials for a general account of the island, in a physical, 
 moral, and political view. 
 
 The manner in which the eight years of my residence in Sumatra 
 were passed, was gratifying as it regarded the social intercourse with 
 worthy and amiable friends, of both sexes, and satisfactory respecting 
 my official advancement, but afforded little variety of events that merit 
 recording. Of accidents of a serious kind, or reverses of fortune, 1 
 experienced none. We were accustomed, indeed, to repine not a little 
 at our state of seclusion from the busy world, and to envy the supposed 
 happiness of those whose lot it was to pass their lives in Europe ; but 
 the habit of looking forward to the time when we should be enabled, 
 under improved pecuniary circumstances, to participate in those enjoy- 
 ments, contributed, by the excitement it kept up, and the topics of con- 
 versation or of correspondence it furnished, to make the interval of 
 
•22 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 separation from our homes appear less tedious. The uncertainty of 
 health, or rather the strong probability of experiencing the loss of it, 
 Avas the real bane of our contentment. The climate, in respect to tem- 
 perature, although within three or four degrees of the line, was by no 
 means intolerable, the afternoon heat being generally about eighty-two 
 or eighty-five degrees ; hurricanes were unknown, and although earth- 
 quakes were frequent, they were not attended with danger, nor were they 
 the subject of alarm. The face of the country, covered with perpetual 
 verdure, diversified with hill and dale, and the view of distant moun- 
 tains, can scarcely be surpassed in beauty ; but with all these local 
 recommendations, there exists a pernicious influence of the air, baffling 
 all attempts to account for it, that renders intermittent fevers but too 
 prevalent, and, in some seasons, when the south-easterly winds have 
 been of unusually long continuance, generates those of an inflammatory 
 and more malignant kind, that often prove fatal. The ordinary chances 
 of life are therefore, on the coast of Sumatra, very different from what 
 they are known to be in most regions of the temperate zone. In the 
 disposition of mind naturally produced by these considerations, after a 
 sickly period, it was that I addressed to my brother the following parody 
 of Horace's ' Septimi Gades aditure mecum,'* which is expressive of 
 feelings that aptly accorded with our own. 
 
 TO MY BROTHER. 
 
 O, doom'd with me to pass the prime 
 Of life in this barbarian clime, 
 
 Surrounded by uncouth Malays 
 Scorch'd by the sun's unnerving rays ; 
 
 * L. II. Car. VI. 
 
WILLIAM MARS DEN. 23 
 
 May we yet find a calm retreat 
 At our much lov'd paternal seat ; 
 
 And may no cares our thoughts engage, 
 Whilst we descend the vale of age. 
 
 If heav'n this fav'rite wish refuse, 
 
 Still be it granted us to choose, 
 Through Europe's polish'd states, a home 
 
 In London, Paris, or at Rome. 
 
 But gracYl with more than common charms, 
 That spot my partial bosom warms, 
 
 Where claret and good ale abound, 
 And milk and honey flow around : * 
 
 Where longer springs divide the year, 
 Whose winters western breezes cheer, 
 
 And waving scenes of golden corn 
 The rich autumnal plains adorn. 
 
 Those happy plains, that grateful land 
 Thine and thy Witt's return demand — 
 There may'st thou live to shed a tear 
 Upon thy poet's, brother's bier ! 
 
 The concluding prayer was not heard. On the contrary, it has been 
 my fate to regret his loss during most part of the half century that has 
 elapsed since the above was written, in 1777. Of our affectionate inter- 
 course I have a melancholy pleasure in multiplying proofs, however 
 unimportant in themselves. One of his letters to me, of the same 
 period, he ended with these words : " Good night ! the old year is 
 within a few hours of its close, and it is time to recollect whether 1 
 have any vows yet unperformed. I would tell you of the many years of 
 health and happiness I wish you, were not such compliments at this 
 
 * Dives lactis ac mellis insula. Ven. Bed. Eccles. Hist., lib. i. cap. 1. 
 
•24 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 season too trite to be of any intrinsic value. Suffice it then to say, that 
 
 he it June or January, I shall be ever equally your friend, &c." This 
 
 idea I clothed in verse, and concluded my letter in return, of 1st January, 
 
 in the following manner : " Any more than yours, my good wishes are 
 
 not confined to a particular season- — 
 
 " My brother, friend, I equally remember 
 In May, June, July, August, or September. 
 New year or old — 'tis all alike to me — 
 In evVy season may you happy be J" 
 
 The following valedictory stanzas, although addressed to an imaginary 
 object of devotion, proceeded from a genuine feeling of regret at leaving 
 my young and amiable friends. They were written in the year 1779, 
 and are consequently here out of place ; but being the latest of my 
 Sumatran effusions, I insert them in order to close "the series. 
 
 THE ADIEU. 
 
 Conceal, dear maid, that tender air, 
 
 And bless me with a transient smile ; 
 Let me, though doom'd to future care, 
 
 A moment's misery beguile. 
 
 Fate calls me hence — these doating eyes 
 
 Their loveliest object must forego ; 
 There little needs my fair one's sighs, 
 
 To fill the measure of my woe. 
 
 Then must we part ? But wherefore part ? 
 
 What pow'rful cause my swain removes? 
 What treasure dearer than my heart ? 
 
 What joys more precious than our loves ? 
 
 Yes, we must part ; nor ever more 
 
 Our scenes of tender bliss renew — 
 All that can charm in life is o'er, 
 
 With this last fatal word— Adieu ! 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 25 
 
 From the early part of the year 1778, I never ceased to indulge the 
 hope that the time was not distant when I might make arrangements for 
 my return to Europe, without acting an imprudent part, either in my 
 own opinion or that of my friends. The plan commonly adopted, of 
 remaining in the Company's service until the annual savings from the 
 emoluments of office should accumulate to what is termed a fortune — that 
 is, such a sum as, when invested in English securities, would permit the 
 owner to enjoy the conveniences of life, without further exertions on 
 his part — I regarded as one which it would be unwise to persevere in, 
 when I took into account the gradual undermining of my health, and 
 consequently the doubt whether, in the event of my escaping any serious 
 malady, I might not find my constitution so weakened by reiterated fits 
 of illness, as to disqualify me for future opportunities of advancing 
 myself in the world. Other circumstances contributed to give strength 
 to these feelings. A material change had been produced in the society 
 of the place by the death of some friends and the removal of others to 
 distant stations, as well as by the effect of a set of orders transmitted by 
 the authorities at home (grounded on the interested misrepresentations 
 of a speculator in East-India politics), which threw the management of 
 the Company's affairs into confusion, divided the settlement into parties, 
 and rendered the duties of the secretary particularly troublesome and 
 annoying.* But I must freely avow, that whatever weight these consi- 
 derations might have had, the predominant influence on my mind was of 
 a prospective nature. I had heard and read much of the meetings, in 
 London, of scientific and learned persons, of the attention paid to tra- 
 
 * Whilst secretary to the Governor and Council, I was appointed secretary to a Select 
 Committee which superseded the authority of the Board, and also to a Secret Committee that 
 was paramount to both. 
 
 E 
 
26 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 vellers who visited distant countries and communicated their observa- 
 tions, and especially of the enthusiastic spirit of curiosity excited, not 
 in England only but throughout Europe, by the publication of the 
 Endeavour a voyage to the islands of the Pacific Ocean and round the 
 world, compiled chiefly from the journals of Mr. Banks and Dr. Solan - 
 der, the former of whom was soon elevated to the president's chair of 
 the Royal Society. The contemplation of these circumstances raised in 
 my breast a longing desire to be allowed the opportunity of associating 
 with such men, and to become a participator in their liberal pursuits.* 
 
 To form the resolution of separating my fortunes so widely from those 
 of my brother, occasioned many painful struggles in my mind, and J 
 earnestly wished that, if possible, we should embark together ; if he 
 could not be prevailed upon to accept the offer I pressed upon him, of 
 my remaining to superintend the liquidation of his more diffused con- 
 cerns, whilst he should proceed to England, and there promote our 
 common interests. The state of our mutual sentiments on this, to us, 
 important subject, will explicitly appear from the following passages in 
 a letter from him of 28th November 1778 : " I had already earnestly 
 wished to have some conversation with you, and the letter I have to-day 
 increases the desire. You touch an interesting string when you mention 
 our return to Europe, and it is scarcely possible to put on paper the 
 twentieth part of what I wish to say to you upon it. Why will you 
 throw temptation in my way ? The prospect you offer presents to me, 
 
 * This desire to change my sphere of action was much strengthened by the opinion (too 
 flattering indeed) of my excellent friend Mr. Crisp, who says in a letter, " I most heartily 
 approve your present design, having often thought you should push home. You are young, 
 and may make a very considerable figure in life. You have talents that cannot fail to carry 
 you through ; and a long residence on this coast might tend to contract your mind." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 27 
 
 on many accounts, a most pleasing one, and was I to consult self-gra- 
 tification only, I should hardly scruple to accept it. I most ardently 
 wish to revisit Europe, and your proposal would both enable me to 
 appear there without inconvenience, and make me easy on the score of 
 my affairs in India. Reflection, however, presents to me many reasons 
 why it ought not, why it cannot be. To detain you in India on my 
 account longer than it was absolutely necessary on your own, would be 
 a hardship that no advantage I might derive from it, would be sufficient 
 compensation even to me, much less to you. To go without you, so 
 much dependence have I on your assistance and advice, my counsellor, 
 cousin, and friend, would be to leave behind me my right hand. To 
 your plan it is of importance to enter as soon as possible on your career. 
 Mine is scarcely ripe for execution yet; for while below the rank of 
 council, I cannot, with any degree of plausibility, form high pretensions. 
 For these and a variety of other reasons, much as my inclination 
 prompts me to accept it, I must decline your more than brotherly offer, 
 and propose to you the result of my reflection on our future operations 
 — that you at all events proceed, as soon as it is possible for you to do 
 it with propriety, and I have favourable answers to my letters before the 
 Queens dispatch ; if I have a return of ill health, or am much dis- 
 gusted by our mock reformers, there is a probability of my accom- 
 panying you ; but if matters go on smoothly, and I continue without 
 answers, which appears the more likely case, I shall stay behind. At 
 the same time I know not how to let you go without me. I have wished 
 it possible for us to steer our course so as to remain united, or nearly so, 
 through life : yet, though we both desire it, we shall, I fear, find it 
 impracticable, unless one relinquishes what now appears to be his prin- 
 cipal pursuit. It will be in vain for me to expect you to return with me 
 
 e 2 
 
28 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 to India, nor will either my talents or fortune admit of my quitting the 
 track that I am in. Our approaching separation may therefore be but 
 the prelude to another of longer duration ; and yet I think prudence 
 requires that it should take place. In pursuing your own objects, you 
 may at the same time be able to render me material service previous to 
 my appearance ; and in the mean time I shall endeavour to compose 
 myself for the dull life I shall lead during the next two years." Our 
 ulterior views were, indeed, materially different. His were (in the first 
 instance at least) to establish an interest that should enable him to 
 return to India with advantage : mine, to consider England as the scene 
 where, from thenceforward, I was to act my part in life. 
 
 After this full consideration of our respective objects, and his declin- 
 ing to avail himself of my offer to place my small funds at his disposal, 
 I finally adopted the resolution (to me a serious one) of taking my 
 departure from the coast by the first opportunity and revisiting Europe. 
 Of the article most essential to a due accomplishment of my purpose, I 
 had secured but a very scanty provision ; so limited, indeed, that 
 economy itself could hardly be presumed to make it suffice, and I now 
 hesitate to acknowledge on how small an income I estimated it to be 
 practicable for a person to live in London, consistently with a respect- 
 able appearance in society — my determination being, on no account 
 whatever, to encroach upon my capital. But at all events the experi- 
 ment was the less hazardous, as I felt assured that the Company's ser- 
 vice would not be hastily closed against me. 
 
 In the month of April 1779, I communicated my intentions in a letter 
 to the Governor and Council, by whose directions a minute (drawn up 
 by a member of the Board) was entered on the records, expressing in 
 strong terms the sense entertained by the Government of my public ser- 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 29 
 
 vices, and recommending to the Court of Directors that, notwith- 
 standing my resignation (without which formal act, permission could 
 not, at that time, be granted for proceeding to Europe on any plea), I 
 might be allowed to return to the establishment, without prejudice to 
 my rank, whenever the state of my health or other circumstances should 
 allow me to solicit the indulgence. I also agreed for my passage by 
 the Queen Indiaman ; but as the ship was to fill up her cargo at dif- 
 ferent settlements along the coast, and to be despatched from the most 
 southern, my embarking was in consequence deferred until she should 
 reach the latter place. In the mean time I was indefatigably employed 
 in the arrangement of public and private business ; and the former 
 being particularly urgent, I continued to act in my official capacity to 
 the day of my departure from the Presidency. 
 
 On the 14th June I set out, accompanied by my brother, to travel 
 by land to the settlement of Manna, of which my highly-valued and 
 talented friend, Mr. Crisp, was then chief. We reached it on the 17th, 
 after passing a day with interesting friends at Saloomah. During our 
 residence there, which was extended by circumstances to a week, I did 
 not fail to seize every opportunity of making myself acquainted with the 
 local peculiarities of the district ; and on this account more especially I 
 was much gratified by an excursion of about twenty miles up the coun- 
 try, which our host planned for the amusement of his guests. Our 
 course lay in the direction of Manna river, and our mode of travelling 
 was on horseback ; but it is not possible to imagine any paths more 
 rude and difficult than those which we had to follow, and which even to 
 persons on foot, for whom only they were intended, must have been 
 extremely inconvenient and painful. Nor did the experience we had 
 previously acquired in frequently passing from one settlement to another 
 
30 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 along the line of the coast, and mostly on the sea-beach, avail ns in this 
 inland expedition. Some of our guides, indeed, who rode with too 
 much zeal and confidence, had dangerous falls, from the rocky and 
 otherwise bad quality of the footing. 
 
 The party, which, including attendants, was rather numerous, found 
 hospitable entertainment at one of the dusons, or villages, the chief of 
 which provided a kid and fowls, which were dressed in our presence, 
 and served upon plantain leaves, with plenty of the most delicate up- 
 land-rice ; for all which he had a suitable remuneration : and as it was 
 presumed by the chiefs that a journey attended with so much trouble 
 and risk could not (as the business of government was out of the ques- 
 tion) be undertaken for any less important object than that of chusing 
 for ourselves wives amongst the young women of the country, there was 
 a numerous assemblage of them seated in the public hall, who amused 
 the company by singing during the repast. Many of them might be 
 esteemed pretty, and their behaviour was unaffectedly modest. What 
 opinion they formed of our want of good taste and gallantry, I had not 
 an opportunity of learning. Our returning journey was performed by 
 water, on a raft of bamboos (such as is used for the conveyance of pep- 
 per from the country), managed by an oar or sail, resting on a fork, at 
 each extremity of the raft ; the rapidity of the stream, its winding 
 course, and the numerous overfalls, requiring every possible exertion to 
 keep it in the mid-channel and prevent its being dashed in pieces. To 
 this danger we were apparently exposed many times during the course 
 of our descent ; but the men were skilful in their business, and it was 
 rarely, we felt assured, that such accidents happened. 
 
 On the 24th June, I took leave of the last scene of friendly society 
 that I enjoyed on the coast, and getting into a species of flat- bottomed 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 31 
 
 boat adapted to the purpose of passing the surfs, which at this season 
 were high, and extended far from the shore, was conveyed to a vessel 
 belonging- to the Company that lay at anchor in the road, and had been 
 loading pepper to be transhipped to the Indiaman. Thus far my bro- 
 ther's kindness led him to accompany me, and here we bid an affec- 
 tionate adieu to each other. He returned in the boat to Manna, and 
 had again to cross the dangerous surf. I proceeded to the southward, 
 with the feelings of an insulated being. The distance we had to run 
 was inconsiderable ; but the wind being southerly, it was not till the 
 27th that we reached the anchorage between the little island of Pisang 
 and the main (not far from the settlement of Croee), where the Queen 
 Indiaman then lay. As she was not in readiness for sailing, I landed, 
 with other passengers, on the island, and at the resident's house was 
 furnished with such accommodation as circumstances admitted. This, 
 however, was of a very limited nature ; for the house being a place of 
 resort for the passengers generally (several of whom had embarked at 
 Fort Marlborough), as well as for the officers of the ships, was neces- 
 sarily crowded and inconvenient ; resembling a little caravansary rather 
 than a private dwelling. 
 
 I felt sensibly the material change that had taken place in my situa- 
 tion, as a member of the community to which I had hitherto belonged, 
 and of that into which it was now my lot to be cast. I had, in fact, 
 been too much cherished by friends who loved me, and raised to too 
 much consequence in the sphere (confined though it was) in which I 
 had moved, not to experience a feeling of humiliation, and it required 
 an effort to reconcile myself to the indifference, however civil, of those 
 around me. Set afloat in the world, it became necessary that I should 
 find my proper level ; and it was not on this occasion only I learned the 
 
32 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 lesson, that the degree of consideration yon may expect to meet with in 
 society, will depend, not upon what you have been, but what you are. 
 
 Our embarkation for the voyage to England did not take place until 
 the 6th of July. On the 7th the anchor was weighed ; but owing to 
 the narrowness of this beautiful and romantic strait, the endeavours to 
 work the ship out were long in vain. An hour of fresh and fair wind 
 would have effected the purpose ; but the land-breezes proved too 
 light,* and the sea-winds blowing right-in, accompanied with a heavy 
 swell, we lost instead of gaining ground in each attempt, and were fre- 
 quently obliged to come suddenly to an anchor within a short distance 
 of the rocky shore, particularly dangerous on the Sumatran side, where 
 a steep and lofty mountain, thickly clothed with venerable woods, 
 descends immediately to the sea. At length, however, on the 14th 
 July, we were enabled to clear the entrance, though still obliged to steer 
 a course in the direction of the coast, till, on the 16th, we had a distant 
 view of the high land called Keyser's Peak, in the straits of Sunda ; 
 from whence we took our final departure, and soon got into the regular 
 trade- wind. 
 
 At the time of going on board I' was suffering from a slight ague, 
 probably brought on by the frequent walks I was in the habit of taking 
 along the shore of the small island of Pisang in search of shells and 
 other subjects of natural history; but from which complaint I was re- 
 lieved before we proceeded to sea. To agues I had been no stranger ; 
 
 * The following memorandum occurs amongst those which I made when my attention 
 was directed to the subject of the winds, &c. prevailing between the tropics. " About the 
 southern part of the west coast of Sumatra (towards Croee), the land-winds are very little 
 perceived, and are not to be depended upon in navigation. This is supposed to be owing 
 to the range of mountains lying so near to the sea-coast." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 
 
 .3.3 
 
 but scarcely had this left me when I was attacked with a nervous affec- 
 tion, to which I had never been in any degree accustomed. So strong 
 were its symptoms that I could not walk the deck without the support of 
 two persons, nor, when at table, lift a glass to my head ; whilst, at the 
 same time, my general health was perfectly good. In this state I con- 
 tinued for several weeks, and recovered from it only by slow degrees. 
 The effect I attributed to my having slept with my head, thinly covered, 
 towards the window of my narrow cabin, which, on account of the heat 
 we experienced whilst anchoring in the strait, was always kept open, 
 although the night air was comparatively cool. By this exposure the 
 nervous system may have received injury in its most sensitive part. 
 
 From the 27th to the 31st August (the depth of winter in southern 
 latitudes) we experienced a very hard gale of wind, that obliged us to 
 lie-to under a balanced mizen; but whilst thus circumstanced, the well- 
 known current that sets along the eastern coast of Africa carried us six 
 degrees to the westward, and when the weather cleared up, we found, 
 to our great surprise and joy, that the Cape of Good Hope had been 
 doubled, and that we were consequently justified in shaping a course to 
 the northward. Our highest latitute had been 36° 50' S. At daybreak 
 in the morning of the 21st September, we had sight of the island of 
 St. Helena, and in the evening anchored in its road, being the tenth 
 week from leaving the coast of Sumatra. Here we found H.M. ship 
 Warwick, sent to convoy the India ships, two of which were also in the 
 road : others successively arrived ; some of them from China, having 
 effected their passage by an extraordinary route to the eastward of Java, 
 and through the straits of Bally. Some were from Bengal, Madras, 
 and Bombay, and full of passengers. Amongst these were a number of 
 French officers, who had belonged to the garrisons of Pondicherry and 
 
 F 
 
34 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Mahe, lately reduced by our arms, and who with their families were 
 now subjected to the rigorous laws of war. Many of them were men of 
 rank and fashion ; all were gentlemanlike in their manners, and their 
 ladies were generally pleasing and accomplished. The daughter of a 
 M. Du Plessis, Mile. Louison, was particularly admired. The Comte 
 Ducaire, chief engineer, was remarked for the elegance of his manners. 
 Their characteristic gaiety did not appear to be affected by their misfor- 
 tunes ; they were, on the contrary, the liveliest inhabitants of the place, 
 and being musical performers, as well as good dancers, their company 
 was acceptable at all parties. They had been readily indulged with leave 
 to come on shore, on the excuse of their suffering from ill health ; but 
 in this plea, the old colonel of the Pondicherry regiment (and Brigadier- 
 general) refused to join, as partaking of an untruth, and he did not land 
 until he received a special invitation from Governor Skottowe. 
 
 In consequence of these accessions, the neat little town, or St. James's 
 valley, as it is usually termed, was extremely full of company, and the 
 scene of much social amusement, which caused my detention at the island, 
 of nearly five weeks, to appear the reverse of tedious. From the gover- 
 nor's and other principal families I experienced the politest attention 
 and hospitality, and some of the most agreeable days I passed were at 
 their country houses. The site of these is an elevation of about 1,700 
 feet,* where the verdant scenery, resembling that of the temperate 
 zone, contrasted with the gloomy aspect of the bare volcanic rocks that 
 confine the valley and surround this extraordinary island, is parti- 
 cularly exhilarating. But it has been too minutely described, in conse- 
 
 * According to a memorandum furnished by my friend Major Rennell, the height of 
 Diana's Peak is 2,700 feet, of Halley's Mount 2,467, of the Alarm-house 1,960, and of 
 Longwood-house 1,762. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 35 
 
 quence of modern political circumstances, to render any further remarks 
 necessary. 
 
 We sailed from St. Helena the 24th October 1779, in a respectable 
 fleet of eight Indiamen, under convoy of a fifty-gun ship of war, and on 
 the 31st made the island of Ascension, at that time entirely uninhabited, 
 and of which the aspect is still more dreary, but not so horrific and 
 grand, as that of the former. Here we lay-to during thirty hours, for the 
 purpose of taking on board a stock of turtle for the fleet ; two long- 
 boats' crews having been previously sent thither to turn them, against 
 our arrival. On the 1st November we made sail again, and on the 7th, 
 at noon, precisely, crossed the line.* Our voyage was fortunately 
 marked with few circumstances deserving of particular notice. The 
 sailing in convoy was to me a matter of novelty. To each ship was 
 assigned her proper station with respect to that of the commodore, and 
 the efforts that were continually making, by setting or shortening sail, 
 in order to preserve the relative distances, were the subject of some inte- 
 rest and amusement to those who walked the deck and were disposed to 
 look about them ; whilst to the professional observer it gratified curio- 
 sity to ascertain how each was affected in its comparative velocity by 
 the lightness or strength of the breeze, when going large or upon-a-wind. 
 The scene partook in some measure of the order of battle, afforded topics 
 of conversation, and contributed to make time pass with less tedious 
 steps. It is attended, however, with this disadvantge to the performance 
 of the voyage, that the best sailers must necessarily accommodate them- 
 selves to the defective qualities of the worst. 
 
 * The tropic was crossed on the 28th November ; and on the 30th, being in lat. 26° and 
 long. 30° W., we began to see the great drifts of sea-weed brought from the coast of Florida, 
 by what is termed the Gulf-stream. 
 
 F 2 
 
36 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 The mode of passing the evenings on board was at cards ; but there 
 were some of the officers of the ship who, besides other qualifications of 
 a more estimable kind, were musical and had excellent voices. These 
 talents rendered singing a favourite amusement, and songs of a convivial 
 nature were not amongst those the least relished. 
 
 The following stanzas afford a specimen of our nautic conviviality. 
 
 SONG. 
 
 When surrounded by friendship and love, 
 And cheer'd with a flask of good wine, 
 Who from pleasures like these would remove, 
 
 And for power or riches repine ? 
 The proud and the titled may learn, 
 
 Too late to redeem the lost hours, 
 That a life of ambition can't earn 
 
 One scene of enjoyment like ours. 
 Here expanded and free is each heart, 
 
 To our friend and our mistress expos' d ; 
 EvVy thought that can pleasure impart 
 
 Is with ease and good-humour disclos'd. 
 Thus strangers to envy and guile, 
 
 We improve to the utmost our joys — 
 So whilst beauty continues to smile, 
 
 Let us toss off our bumpers, my boys ! 
 
 I am aware that the composition does not boast much novelty of idea ; 
 but the subject has been exhausted since the days of Horace and Hafiz. 
 About the time of the ship's departure from England, the celebrated 
 bacchanalian song of " Anacreon in heaven, where he sat in full glee," 
 was in high vogue. Having heard it well sung by some of the officers 
 during their stay at Fort Marlbro', I felt ambitious of rivaling it as a 
 piece of poetry, and on the passage made the following attempt. Of my 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 37 
 
 degree of success the reader, who may happen to be acquainted with the 
 original, now almost forgotten, will form a judgment. 
 
 THE ORIGIN OF THE ANACREONTIC SOCIETY. 
 
 By celestials caress'd, and companion of Jove, 
 
 For earth and its pleasures Anacreon sigh'd ; 
 Few choice spirits he found in the regions above, 
 
 Nor had spent a true sociable life since he died : 
 Their jests he found stale, 
 Their nectar meer ale — 
 Heav'ns charms and his patience beginning to fail, 
 Restore me, he cried, 0, restore me to earth, 
 The scene of festivity, music, and mirth ! 
 
 Jove coaxYl the old Grecian, and tried to appease him, 
 
 While Momus his wittiest stories told o'er ; 
 Venus stroking his cheek sought by fondling to please him, 
 And Phoebus play'd songs and sonatas some score ; 
 The loves and the Graces 
 Danc\l round their best paces, 
 And Vulcan rais'd laughter by grins and grimaces — 
 But still the bard cried, O, restore me to earth, 
 The scene of festivity, music, and mirth ! 
 
 Believe me, says Jove, it would go to my heart 
 To see heav^i robb'd of so glorious a prize ; 
 And sooner than with my Anacreon part, 
 
 I would bring up this favourite earth to the skies : 
 Not a worldling of merit, 
 Not a single choice spirit, 
 But a permanent seat 'mongst the gods should inherit, 
 Before thou shouldst cry, ' O, restore me to earth, 
 The scene of festivity, music, and mirth.' 1 
 
 'Tis resolved (adds the god), I'll establish below 
 A society cull'd from the rest of mankind ; 
 Thou shalt teach how their wit and their humour should How, 
 And their taste and their manner shall form to thy mind. 
 
38 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 When we've tried and approve them, 
 
 To heav'n we'll remove them — 
 Thanks, Jove ! cries the Greek, I will cherish and love them ; 
 Nor longer I'll cry, ' O, restore me to earth, 
 When heav'n boasts festivity, music, and mirth.' 
 
 'Tis we, my companions, celestials elect, 
 
 Who are cull'd to enrich and enliven the skies ; 
 And each lad of true genius, around, may expect 
 
 To sing songs, or bear chorus, in heav'n when he dies. 
 Thus distinguish'd by Jove, 
 Let's haste to improve 
 Those talents which lead to the regions above, 
 And render our meetings, whilst still upon earth, 
 A scene of festivity, music, and mirth. 
 
 We struck soundings on the 19th December 1779 ; in the night of the 
 20th the light on Scilly was visible, and on the 21st distant land was seen 
 in the Channel ; but a hard gale from the north-east coming on, which 
 split some of the sails, occasioned our losing ground. The next day, 
 however, Portland Island was plainly distinguished ; and it was time 
 that our voyage should be brought to a conclusion, for the ship's com- 
 pany had become sickly and weak, insomuch that the officer of the 
 watch found it necessary to request the assistance of the passengers in 
 setting sail, and I had blisters on my hands in consequence of my exer- 
 tions. On the 23d we were at the back of the Isle of Wight ; but the 
 wind being light and scant, we could not round it, nor open St. Helen's. 
 A pilot-boat coming alongside next day, the Company's packets were 
 put into her, and I took the opportunity of accompanying the purser 
 who had charge of them. After a tedious run of twelve hours, we 
 landed at Portsmouth about midnight of the 24th ; thus happily termi- 
 nating a passage of twenty-three weeks and two days, including thirty- 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 39 
 
 two days of detention at St. Helena. The Channel fleet, commanded by 
 Sir George Rodney, was at this time at anchor at Spithead, and I re- 
 gretted exceedingly the absence of daylight in passing through it, to 
 witness fully the grandeur of the spectacle ; but the moon shone with 
 brightness, and exhibited enough to afford me a high gratification. On 
 the following day twenty-two sail of the line got under weigh, with a con- 
 voy of three hundred sail of merchant vessels, chiefly for the West- Indies. 
 
 At this time it was that H.R.H. the Duke of Clarence commenced 
 his naval career, and was rated on board the Prince George, bearing the 
 flag of Admiral Digby ; a coincidence that H.R.H., afterwards Lord 
 High Admiral, condescended to notice to me, when dining, in the year 
 1816, at the house of Admiral Sir Charles Pole, at Aldenham. On the 
 8th January, the Spanish fleet, commanded by Don Juan de Langara, 
 was defeated on the coast of Spain. 
 
 We set off from Portsmouth for town about four o'clock in the morn- 
 ing of the 25th ; but still so indifferent were the roads at that time, and 
 tedious the rate of travelling, that it was late in the evening before we 
 reached London. The purser's duty taking him to Leadenhall-street, 
 we entered the city by London Bridge, and hotels not being then esta- 
 blished, I was glad to get reputably, and not uncomfortably, accommo- 
 dated at the Castle and Falcon in Aldersgate-street. No person could 
 be more a stranger in regard to all local circumstances than I was. In 
 the morning I traced out some of the very few connexions I had in 
 town, and, by their assistance, soon procured convenient lodgings. 
 Upon making inquiry at the residence of my proper agent, who then 
 ought to have had some balance of money in his hands, I was informed, 
 to my no small discomfiture, that the gentleman had been dead more 
 than twelve months ; but fortunately I had provided resources for the 
 
40 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 contingent disbursements of the passage, and the residue was easily con- 
 verted into current coin. 
 
 My first visits of ceremony were to Sir William James, chairman of 
 the East-India Company ; Mr. Devaynes, the deputy ; Mr. Lawrence 
 Sulivan, a shrewd and well-informed man, who became chairman in the 
 following year, and some other of the principal directors, with all of 
 whom I had much conversation on the subject of affairs on the coast of 
 Sumatra. Mr. Robert Gregory, to whom my family was well known, 
 happened not to be in town. From him I long experienced much per- 
 sonal kindness, and as he afterwards took a distinguished lead in East- 
 India affairs, would have rendered me the most effective service had it 
 been my object to return to the East. By the chairman's advice I 
 adopted the prudential measure of requesting leave of absence from my 
 establishment, and permission to resume my situation in it when there 
 should be a future opportunity ; which was readily complied with by the 
 Court. It was not, however, my intention to avail myself of this indul- 
 gence (which was afterwards extended to subsequent years), unless 
 under circumstances of urgent necessity. 
 
 When I was forming the plans that led to my relinquishing the Com- 
 pany's service, and so trying my fortunes in a climate less injurious 
 to European constitutions, the resources on which I had to depend for 
 enabling me to live in England became a serious object of considera- 
 tion, and amongst other modes that suggested themselves of increasing 
 the income arising from my little capital, the most plausible seemed to 
 be that of appropriating a sum to the purchase of a situation under 
 Government, from which (presuming my time and labour to be assidu- 
 ously devoted to its duties) I might expect to derive a handsome annual 
 return. I flattered myself, at the same time, that the exertion of such a 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 41 
 
 degree of talent or experience in business as I possessed, might render 
 me so useful to a Principal as to secure my future advancement. Im- 
 pressed with these ideas, I addressed a letter to a gentleman high in 
 office (whom I had had an opportunity of obliging by rendering service 
 to a connexion of his in India), in which I submitted my scheme to his 
 opinion and advice. This was Mr. Anthony Chamier, who had been at 
 the head of the War Office (where he fell under the lash of a celebrated 
 anonymous political writer), and was at this time one of the under 
 secretaries of state. His answer, dated in May 1779, did not reach 
 Fort Marlborough till after my departure from thence, and in the mean 
 time I had discussed the subject with him in person; yet as the senti- 
 ments expressed in it do credit not only to himself, but to the character 
 of public men generally, whilst they expose the fallacy of the expec- 
 tations into which I had been misled, I do not hesitate to transcribe 
 from it the following passages : 
 
 " If you have ever shown any kindness to — , you are fully 
 
 entitled to address me on any subject, and I shall have some satisfaction 
 if I remove a prejudice or supply you with any information. I know 
 how difficult a task it must be to erase from your mind prepossessions 
 which have seemingly had ground, and which public report has con- 
 funned ; but as I could easily have declined writing on the subject, you 
 may perhaps give credit to what I say to you in this letter. 
 
 " I have been many years in public office, and at the head of two, 
 under the principal ; and I have never known money procure any advan- 
 tage to any individual, when given in a private or clandestine way. 
 Commissions in the army are publicly sold. Some places in the law are 
 also publicly sold. But I know of no means by which money can be 
 secretly given to procure employments that are supposed to be gra- 
 
 G 
 
42 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 tuitously disposed of. This was many years ago the practice. Whether 
 the persons holding office have a nicer sense of honour ; whether the 
 licentiousness of the press may not, with much mischief, do this good, I 
 will not pretend to decide ; but I will boldly affirm to you, that if the 
 most intimate friend I had in the world would put three thousand gui- 
 neas into my hand to dispose of them to his advantage in procuring 
 employment, I should not be able to devise a means of being useful to 
 him. Casta est quam nemo rogavit : I have not had the merit of 
 refusing, for nobody ever tried me — and I have therefore no reason to 
 suppose that the practice is common." 
 
 To this honourable testimony I may now add, that having myself 
 had much experience in official matters, and opportunities of knowing 
 what kind of interest is made with those who possess patronage, I can 
 aver that no transaction tainted in the slightest degree with corruption 
 of this nature has ever come to my knowledge, or been even imputed. 
 In a personal interview I had with Mr. Chamier, in the month of Fe- 
 bruary 1780, he entered fully into the subject, stated what had been the 
 purport of his letter, and concluded by saying : " I do not pretend to 
 infer that the present age is more virtuous than the last, but the system 
 is altered ; and supposing a minister inclined to take the bribe, he would 
 fear to commit himself for any sum that an individual might find it 
 worth his while to offer." From the evident sincerity with which he 
 spoke, I was cpiite satisfied that the notion I had entertained of a mea- 
 sure of the kind being not merely practicable, but of common occur- 
 rence, was grounded in vulgar error ; and after his candid exposure of 
 the real circumstances, I ceased to be led away by the illusion.* This 
 
 ' This gentleman, whom I have reason to speak of with respect and esteem, died in the 
 month of October following. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 43 
 
 was the first, and I believe I may say the only disappointment I expe- 
 rienced in the speculation of my .returning from India ; and so little do 
 we short-sighted mortals know what is best for us, I have had, in fact, 
 the strongest reason to rejoice in its proving an escape from what might 
 have embarrassed and depressed me during the remainder of my life. 
 
 I was thus thrown back upon my slender, unimproved resources, and 
 it appeared to me that there remained no other prudent line to pursue 
 than that of accommodating my expenses, at all events, to the income I 
 might derive from the public funds, which, fortunately for me, however 
 injuriously to the finance of the country, were then at a very low price. 
 My first object was to purchase a qualification, as it is termed, in East- 
 India stock, in order to give me consequence with the Directors, whose 
 favour I might eventually find it necessary to cultivate. My father had 
 for some time been a proprietor. The rest of my money I invested in 
 the government funds, and calculating the interest that these would pro- 
 duce, I resolved to look fortune boldly in the face, and enjoy at least the 
 feeling of independence.* Confined as my means were, they yet enabled 
 me to partake in the pleasures, not only of very estimable society, with 
 which I gradually formed connexion, but of every species of public 
 amusement. The charges of housekeeping, indeed, sat lightly on me, 
 through the kind attention of my friends, and my other expenses were 
 regulated with so strict a regard to economy, that I never experienced 
 any degree of pecuniary difficulty. The theatres I visited frequently, 
 though much disappointed in all the serious performances ; and the 
 effect of the Italian opera fell equally short of my expectation. The 
 ballets, indeed, were admirably executed by the elder Vestris, le dieu de 
 
 * The scheme of sinking my capital in a life annuity had often occurred to me, but I could 
 not bring my mind to adopt it. 
 
 G 2 
 
44 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 la danse, and his cotemporaries. The original Pantheon, a building of 
 which the interior was unequalled in beauty, was then in all its splen- 
 dour of company. At the drawing-room I was gratified by the affable 
 manner of their Majesties in addressing appropriate inquiries to each 
 individual as they presented themselves ; moving, as was then the prac- 
 tice, in little vortices or spheres of attraction, to different parts of the 
 room, and not, as in latter years, preserving a fixed station. In the 
 evening my curiosity led me to witness the ceremony of a court-ball 
 (long since discontinued), where the ladies danced both minuets and 
 country-dances in widely extended hoops ; and champagne was handed 
 round to the bye-standers. 
 
 But amongst the public exhibitions (if I may venture to term them 
 such), by far the most interesting to me were the debates in the two 
 houses of Parliament ; at which I missed few opportunities of being 
 present, during the session that closed Lord North's administration. 
 Amongst others, I recollect particularly that in the Lords, of the 8th of 
 February 1780, upon Lord Shelburn's motion on the subject of the 
 public expenditure ; and Mr. Burke's speech in the Commons, of the 
 1 1th, on that of the civil list. I also frequented the courts of law, and 
 witnessed the declining days of Lord Mansfield. In the Court of King's 
 Bench I was present when certain members of the Council of Madras, 
 who had been prosecuted for the forcible deposition and imprisonment 
 of Governor Lord Pigot, were brought up for judgment and sentenced 
 to pay fines of a thousand pounds each — with which sum they all hap- 
 pened to be uniformly provided. 
 
 As it respected myself and my objects of pursuit, the most important 
 introduction, and which tended materially to influence the character of 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 4.5 
 
 my future life, was that to Mr. (afterwards, in March 1781, Sir Joseph) 
 Banks, the distinguished President of the Royal Society. His acquain- 
 tance had long been an object of my ambition, and it was decided by the 
 offer of Capt. Thomas Forrest, whom I had known abroad, to accom- 
 pany me to his house. This latter gentleman had lately published the 
 account of his curious voyage to New Guinea, in the Tartar galley, and 
 thence become known to the patron of scientific discovery. On the 1st 
 March I made my appearance at his breakfast-table, where I found an 
 assemblage of about a dozen persons eminent in science and different 
 branches of knowledge. Amongst these were Doctor Solander, Dr. 
 Maskelyne, Mr. Dalrymple, Major Rennell, Dr. (Sir Charles) Blagden, 
 Dr. (Sir William) Herschel, Mr. Planta, and others whose names have 
 escaped my memory. My reception was so kind and encouraging as to 
 remove at once all feeling of constraint or sense of my own inferiority, 
 and I was led to take an active part in a conversation to me of an inte- 
 resting nature. Much discussion took place on the subject of the vege- 
 table productions of the eastern islands. The fructification of the Suma- 
 tra or Borneo camphor-tree, as distinguished from the laurus camphora, 
 was stated to be a grand desideratum. The benzoin-tree, of the flowers 
 of which I brought home specimens, was said to have been but imperfectly 
 described.* The cassia, Dr. Solander assured me, did not differ in its 
 botanical character from the cinnamon-tree of Ceylon, and he esteemed 
 it probable that the bark of the latter owed its superiority to the quality 
 of the soil (the richest not being the most favourable), and to the mode 
 of culture and preparation. I spoke of the broad-leafed indigo, a climb- 
 
 * An examination of this plant was subsequently made by Mr. Dryander, whose account 
 was published in the Phil. Trans., vol. lxxvii. for the year 1787. 
 
46 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 ing plant, which was quite new to them, and at a subsequent interview 
 produced specimens ; and here I may be allowed to mention, that just 
 thirty years after (in 1810), the genus received the name of Marsdenia, 
 this species the appellation of tinctoria, and another that of suaveolens. 
 My design of furnishing some account of the island in which I had 
 resided was strongly encouraged ; Sumatra being, as they observed, of 
 all accessible places of the world, that which was the least known. 
 Upon taking leave, I received from the President a cordial invitation to 
 meet him and his friends at breakfast whenever it might suit my conve- 
 nience, and to make free use of his books, either in the library or at 
 home, of which indulgence I long continued to avail myself ; and until 
 the year 1 795, when I ceased to have the command of my own time, the 
 rooms in Soho Square were my habitual place of resort, where I met 
 a variety of persons, and acquired information of what was going for- 
 ward in the world of literature and science. I was invited to dine with 
 the club of the Royal Society, then held at the Mitre in Fleet Street, 
 and to attend a meeting of the Society at their apartments in Crane 
 Court ; it not being till the month of November following that they 
 occupied those in Somerset House, allotted to them by the Crown. 
 
 The foregoing details of my reception among the members of the 
 Royal Society (at whose meetings I afterwards so often presided during 
 the subsequent illness of Sir Joseph Banks) are nearly what I commu- 
 nicated by letter to my brother at Bencoolen, who was gratified in pro- 
 portion as I was minute ; and when I added that the attentions I expe- 
 rienced were in a high degree flattering and satisfactory to me, it must 
 be recollected that I spoke the language and the feelings of a young 
 man of five-and -twenty, totally unknown to the world, without patro- 
 nage, interest, or even acquaintance, excepting what had been formed 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 47 
 
 within the last two months. It is not, therefore, surprising that I should 
 have considered the day of this introduction to the fellowship of a class 
 of men to whom I had been accustomed to look up, as one of the proudest 
 of my life. 
 
 Among other topics of interest discussed at these morning meetings, 
 was that of the languages of the Eastern and South-sea Islands, to which 
 Mr. Banks, during his voyage in the Endeavour, had paid much atten- 
 tion ; and as I had formed a collection of a number of dialects for the 
 purpose of comparison, I addressed to him a short treatise (drawn up for 
 the occasion), which some time after appeared in the Archaeologia. At 
 the club of Thursday, 2d March, I extended my knowledge of literary 
 characters, and became acquainted with Dr. (Bishop) Horsley; when 
 the conversation turned much upon an aurora borealis, of extraordinary 
 brilliancy (such as I have not witnessed since), that made its appearance 
 the preceding night. We rose from table at six o'clock, in order to 
 attend the meetings of the Antiquarian and Royal Societies. 
 
 It will be seen, from what I have related, that the time elapsed since 
 my arrival in England had not been disadvantageously employed. I felt 
 compunction, however, at not having yet fulfilled the calls of duty in 
 visiting my parents and family in Ireland, who were naturally anxious 
 for my return to them and impatient at the delay. I left town, there- 
 fore, on the 8th March 1780 ; but being detained at Holyhead by con- 
 trary winds, did not reach Dublin till the 20th, where I had the gra- 
 tification of finding my father and mother (then aged sixty-six and 
 fifty-eight), my younger brother, Alexander, and my sisters, in perfect 
 health. Ireland at this time presented the imposing spectacle of an 
 armed nation, and the objects of general attention and interest were the 
 reviews of volunteer corps. Embodied in its commencement for the 
 
48 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 purpose of protecting the coasts against the desultory attacks of foreign 
 enemies, the accumulating force was soon converted into a great political 
 engine, which produced its effect : but never was a self-established mili- 
 tary body of such magnitude and power directed with more prudence 
 and temper, or preserved in stricter regularity of action ; so that the 
 objects were attained without one step being taken that approached to 
 lawless and unconstitutional violence. 
 
 During the residence of the family in Dublin, I enjoyed the usual 
 amusements of society, and in particular derived much entertainment 
 from one that was to me a novelty ; a select and well-attended masque- 
 rade, given at the Rotunda by the members of a fashionable club. So 
 strictly were precautions taken respecting the admission of company, 
 that the tickets were received at the doors by the Duke of Leinster and 
 other noblemen. I personated the character of a French quack doctor ; 
 and though my delineation of it might not be very correct, it was sup- 
 ported with animation, and produced mirth. My panacea, or universal 
 pill, was flattery, the surprising efficacy of which I set forth in doggrel 
 verse. The Lord Lieutenant's lady (countess of Buckingham), to whom 
 I was presented by her Excellency's desire, assured me that she never 
 allowed the smallest dose of that stuff to be prescribed for her. In the 
 summer we removed to the county of Wicklow, where my time was 
 passed very pleasantly, and, as might be supposed, very idly, in admiring 
 the picturesque scenery of that beautiful tract of country, and ascending 
 its highest mountains, for the sake of exercise and the enjoyment of 
 prospects. Psot a thought was bestowed on business, literature, or phi- 
 losophy. About the end of September I left Ireland, and returning by 
 the way of Chester, Liverpool, Manchester, Castleton, Sheffield, and 
 Chesterfield, where I called on the venerable antiquary, Dr. Pegge, 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 49 
 
 (grandfather of the late Sir Christopher Pegge, of Oxford), arrived in 
 London the 4th October. By my absence from the capital during the 
 summer, I escaped the pain of witnessing the horrible scenes by which 
 it was disgraced in the month of June, when, through the pusillanimity 
 of public functionaries, an organized mob was suffered to exercise its 
 ravages for three days in the systematic destruction of national and pri- 
 vate buildings and property, in all parts of the town, under pretence of 
 zeal for religion. Upon my return, the marks of devastation on the one 
 hand, and the military encampments by that time formed, suggested the 
 idea of a town recently taken by storm, after a severe bombardment. 
 In order to be near my philosophical friends in Soho Square, and at the 
 same time to the British Museum, which it was my object to frequent, 
 I engaged lodgings in Caroline Street, Bedford Square, and continued 
 to occupy them for more than four years. 
 
 My attention now became once more directed to literary pursuits, 
 which opened to me a more inviting prospect than any afforded by poli- 
 tical objects, and I gradually ceased to look forward to the obtaining an 
 official appointment. The pleasures of friendly society, which increased 
 fast, as well as public amusements, engaged no small portion of my time ; 
 but I occupied myself also in writing detached parts of my Sumatran 
 history from the materials I had collected, although without yet giving 
 it the form of a work. I was anxious indeed for the receipt of answers 
 to several queries I had left in the hands of persons on the spot, whose 
 energy, however, did not always equal their inclination to oblige me, in 
 committing their observations to writing ; and on this, as well as other 
 accounts, I was not in a hurry to publish. In the mean time the paper 
 I mentioned, on the subject of languages spoken in Sumatra, was read 
 at the Society of Antiquaries in February 1781 ; and in the May follow - 
 
 H 
 
50 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 ing, a paper describing the remarkable circumstance of large quantities 
 and great variety of fish, partly living and partly dead, being thrown 
 ashore, along the southern coast of that island, at the close of a long 
 season of dry weather, was read at a meeting of the Royal Society : both 
 of which were subsequently printed in their respective Transactions. 
 
 In the months of August and September of that year, I made a very 
 agreeable excursion, along with a family (whose kindness I experienced 
 for many years) to Oxford, Cheltenham, Gloucester, Ross, Monmouth, 
 Cardiff, Swansea, and home by Bristol and Bath. 
 
 In 1782, a proposal, that seemed flattering, was made to me by 
 Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, who in that year was appointed to command 
 the naval force in the East Indies. Meeting him at Mr. Dalrymple's, 
 and engaging with him in some discussion on the concerns of that part 
 of the world, our conversation ended with his pressing me to accept 
 the situation of Admiral's Secretary ; which, however lucrative it had 
 proved to many, who had held it under preceding commanders-in-chief, 
 I did not hesitate to decline — and fortunately, it may be considered ; 
 for the ill-fated ship, Cato, which bore the admiral's flag, was never 
 heard of from the time of her sailing. 
 
 Notwithstanding the political difficulties that might be supposed to 
 attend schemes of travelling during a period of war (the Franco- 
 American'), I felt a strong wish to visit Paris, as well as some of the 
 southern provinces of France at the season of the vendange, and having 
 formed a party with two young men of my acquaintance, we set out for 
 Dover on the 2d September 1782, where we embarked with fine weather, 
 but a scant wind, and being obliged, on approaching the French coast, 
 to make tacks in order to gain the imperfect harbour of Calais, we 
 grounded on a bank about a mile from the shore, not far from Blanc 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 51 
 
 JN'ez, where with some difficulty we were landed from the shoulders of 
 men and women. From thence we had to walk along the sand-downs 
 for some miles to the fortified city, which we entered in an unusual 
 manner, by the land -gate ; unnoticed amidst a crowd returning from a 
 review of the troops in garrison, but to the astonishment of old Monsieur 
 Dessin, when we presented ourselves and applied for accommodation at 
 his great hotel. Having a letter (from a scientific friend) for the Gover- 
 nor, Due de Croy (himself a man of science) we waited on him, told our 
 adventure, and were civilly received; but circumstances did not admit of 
 much intercourse. Having noticed in his hall a large coloured print of 
 ' lefameux vaisseau Anglois le Royal George,' we took the occasion of 
 communicating the intelligence of that ship's melancholy loss, which had 
 taken place at Spithead a few days before (29th August). The event had 
 not been previously known at Calais, and I must do our enemies (for such 
 they were at the time) the justice to observe, that they expressed what ap- 
 peared to be genuine feelings of horror at such a loss of English lives. 
 
 In proceeding from thence we chose the line of road by St. Omer, 
 Lisle, Douay, and Arras, to Amiens, and then by Chantilly (at that 
 period in all its splendour) to Paris, which we reached on the 10th 
 September, and where we remained no longer than was necessary, with 
 active exertion, to take a view of every thing most attractive to strangers; 
 including the palace (then regularly occupied by the Court) and gardens 
 of Versailles, Marli, St. Germains, and others in the more immediate 
 vicinity of the capital. It should not be unnoticed that we obtained 
 admission to a petit convert, where we had ample opportunity of seeing 
 and observing all the personages of the royal family of France, of whom 
 many became afterwards the victims of revolutionary madness and 
 barbarity. Those present, of the first rank, were Louis Seize and 
 
 h 2 
 
52 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Marie Antoinette (who had condescended to point us out amongst the 
 crowd at the Fete de St. Cloud, saying-, from her garden chaise, ' voila 
 trois Anglois'), the Comte de Provence (afterwards Louis Dix-huit, 
 who did justice to a haunch of venison), the Comte d'Artois (now 
 Charles Dix), and the amiable unoffending princess Elizabeth. On 
 another occasion, at le Petit Trianon, we had a species of introduction 
 to the first Dauphin, an infant in arms, who held out a flower to us, 
 which we were requested by the ladies in attendance not to accept ; as 
 being contrary to etiquette. He was when we saw him a very fine child, 
 of the mother's complexion, with blue eyes, but afterwards declined in 
 health, from an affection of the spine, and died, I believe, before the 
 birth of the second Dauphin, who perished in the Temple. The 
 Dauphiness (now Duchesse d'Angouleme) was under inoculation at 
 that period. 
 
 We did not fail to attend the theatres. Great preparations were 
 making at one of them for a magnificent representation of the surrender 
 of Gibraltar by the united French and Spanish forces, and one evening 
 when we were in the coulisses, a report was spread of the long expected 
 event having actually taken place. It caused an enthusiastic sensation, 
 particularly among mesdames les danseuses, who vociferated, clapping 
 their hands, ' la bonne nouvelle, Gibraltar est prise' — but unfortunately 
 news arrived a few days after, of the destruction of the famous floating 
 batteries, on the 13th September. 
 
 During our short stay we experienced much private hospitality from 
 persons to whom we had introductions, but were disgusted by the intem- 
 perate feeling that prevailed and the malignant virulence with which 
 the character of the queen was attacked. On leaving Paris we visited 
 Fontainebleau, and thence proceeded in a south-easterly direction, 
 
WILLIAM 3IARSDEN. 53 
 
 through Sens, Joigny, Auxerre, Dijon, and Dole, to Poligny, Avhere 
 the ascent of Mount Jura commences, and from the summit of which, 
 the day being clear, we enjoyed the sublime prospect of Mont Blanc 
 and the Alps of Savoye, covered with eternal snow. Beneath us lay 
 the Lake of Geneva, to the borders of which we descended at Nion. 
 After passing a few days, much to our satisfaction, at Geneva, visiting 
 its environs, making an excursion on the lake, and examining la Perte 
 di< Rhone, we followed the course of that river into France. From 
 Lyon we proceeded by the direct route through Roanne, Moulins, 
 Nevers (where the Loire is crossed), Montargis, and Melun to Paris. 
 Our stay there did not occupy many days, when we struck oft' by Senlis, 
 Peronne, Cambray, Valenciennes, and Mons (where the emperor 
 Joseph's army was employed in demolishing the fortifications, that were 
 afterwards to be rebuilt) to Bruxelles. From that city we visited 
 Antwerp (with its interesting collections of Flemish Paintings), Ghent, 
 and Bruges ; embarking at Ostend for Margate, and arriving in London 
 on the 22d October. I am aware of the dryness of this recital of the 
 names of places, although at the time less familiar than they have since 
 become, in the days of universal touring'. 
 
 During the remainder of this year (1782) I was chiefly employed in 
 preparing my intended work, on the subject of the island of Sumatra, 
 for the press. The publication took place in April 1783. A second 
 edition made its appearance in March of the following year, with little, 
 if any variation of the text.* 
 
 * A German translation of the History of Sumatra appeared at Leipsig in 1785, 8vo., 
 and a French one in 1788, 8vo., ii tomes. When visiting a French palace in the year 1790, 
 a person who accompanied me had the (improper) curiosity to turn up a book that lay open 
 on a table in the King's closet, which, to my no small gratification, proved to be a volume 
 of that translation. I had doubted whether I should record the anecdote, until I happened 
 
 to 
 
54 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 On the 23d January 1783, being then not long past my twenty-eighth 
 year, I had the honour of being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, 
 and on the 6th February was admitted, and signed my name in the 
 Society's book next after that of William Herschel.* On the former of 
 these days, the signing of the preliminaries of a general peace was 
 announced — which two important events were communicated to me by 
 Sir Joseph Banks in the same note. 
 
 After having indulged my curiosity in visiting the principal seats in 
 the home counties, I made an excursion, in the latter part of the summer 
 of this year, along with the friendly family I have already mentioned, to 
 the West of England. We passed a few weeks at Teignmouth, in 
 Devonshire, saw all that was beautiful and interesting at Plymouth, 
 and in its vicinity, and returned to town in October, by Taunton, 
 Glastonbury, Wells, and Bath. About this period my finances were 
 improved by the remittance from India of the amount of debts I had 
 considered as desperate, but which had been recovered by my brothers 
 exertions. 
 
 Amongst the inestimable advantages resulting from the cessation 
 of hostilities, none presented itself more strongly to me than the 
 security it held out to our settlements on the coast of Sumatra, which 
 were, since the rupture with the Dutch, exposed in a more than common 
 degree to the chances of war. To my brother I had frequently urged 
 
 to notice the following passage in Boswell's Life of Johnson : — " In his Lordship's (Scarsdale's) 
 dressing-room, lay Johnson's small dictionary : he shewed it to me with some eagerness, 
 saying, ' Look ye! Quae regio in terris nostri non plena laboris?'" My feeling of vanity on 
 the occasion is therefore justified by high authority. 
 
 * Mr. Marsden survived all the Fellows who were then his cotemporaries excepting two: 
 the venerable Dr. Latham and Sir Abraham Hume ; and he had been for several years 
 previous to his decease, the father of the Royal Society Club. — E. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 55 
 
 the expediency of settling his concerns in that part of the world and 
 returning to England, if not for a permanency, at least until the political 
 storm should have blown over ; and although the danger from this cause 
 was now at an end, it was with the utmost satisfaction I received letters 
 from him, dated in August 1783, announcing his preparations for 
 departure. In the mean time he had made a visit to the continent of 
 India, in order to indulge a rational curiosity, and to render himself 
 more completely master of the state of the Company's affairs, political, 
 military, and financial. He was for some time at the head-quarters of 
 Sir Eyre Coote's army in the vicinity of Madras, and passed a few 
 months in Bengal during the period of Mr. Hastings's government. It 
 was not, however, until the beginning of October, and after hearing of 
 the peace, that he embarked for Europe, accompanied by two friends, 
 on the Trial packet, which was put under his orders ; in full expecta- 
 tion of joining me in the early part of the following year. But fallacious 
 were our mutual hopes. He reached St. Helena in December, but in a 
 state of such debility, from severe illness, that he was under the neces- 
 sity of remaining in that salubrious island for the recovery of his health; 
 suffering the packet to proceed on her voyage without him. In a letter 
 of 12th January 1784, he writes from thence : — " I am very much better 
 since I last wrote you by the Nancy packet (which was wrecked on 
 Scilly, with the loss of all on board), and improving daily. The climate 
 of this island, its inland parts particularly, is a delightful one: but 
 I need not tell you what it is, though visiting it in health you could not 
 feel its value as I do." 
 
 He now looked forward to the opportunity of a passage either by a 
 Company's ship from China, or by one of our scpxadron returning from 
 India, which should happen to touch at the island in the month of 
 
50 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 March, thereby ensuring a fine season for engaging with the climate of 
 Europe, when an unexpected arrival presented a conveyance of the 
 most agreeable description. 
 
 " None of our ships appearing (he says in a letter of the 8th of March), 
 I embark to-morrow on Le Flamand, a French man-of-war, of fifty-four 
 guns, commanded by le Marquis de St. Felix, who has been in Suf- 
 frein's five actions, and distinguished himself. He is a very gentleman- 
 like, pleasant man, and of that character which French officers, who 
 have seen service and the world, are said generally to be. The offer 
 was his own, and, seconded by la Marquise, a pretty young woman, 
 (whom he married at Tlsle de France), was not to be refused. The 
 lieutenants, too, appear sensible, well-bred men, and all united in pres- 
 sing earnestly my acceptance of the proposal, giving me every assurance 
 of their endeavours to render the passage agreeable to me. The offer 
 being in many respects highly pleasing, I only hesitated at the shortness 
 of the warning, when it was agreed to delay the departure two days on 
 my account. The recovery of the fluency of my French is not the least 
 attractive circumstance. I am to teach the Marquise English, and she 
 to perfect me in my French.* Vous voyez qu'on trouvera bien en cela 
 de quoi s'amuser. Our destined port is Rochefort," &c. 
 
 So much have I been accustomed to consider every thing affecting 
 my brother as part of my own history, that I do not hesitate to tran- 
 
 * He was, however, more completely master of the language than any person who had 
 never resided in France. " Votre lettre," says the Abbe Raynal, " est ecrite avec clarte, avec 
 correction, avec elegance meme. Peu d'hommes s'expriment aussi bien dans une langue qui 
 n'est pas la leur." This talent it was, united with his extreme amenity of manners, that made 
 so forcible an impression on this amiable French officer and his family, with whom, to the 
 end of his life, he kept up the most friendly and even affectionate intercourse. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 57 
 
 scribe the following passages from the letters he wrote to me about this 
 period : 
 
 " Ship Flamand, Isle D'Aix, 13th May 1784. 
 
 " I resume, with pleasure, my dear William, my long- neglected pen, 
 and greet you from the welcome coast of France — welcome not on its 
 own account alone, but from its vicinity to the islands that contain my 
 friends — a brother, the partner of my heart, and a family, endeared to 
 me by more than common ties. I have so long nourished the idea of a 
 speedy meeting with them, that the ' hope deferred hath often made the 
 heart sick :' but at length the period is surely at hand, and the course of 
 a few days, if not yet the actual meeting, the intelligence of their wel- 
 fare, so interesting to me, and of which I have been so long deprived ; 
 my latest letter being of February 1783. Perhaps I may find at Roche- 
 fort what I earnestly look for, a line from you. May no ill tidings blast 
 the pleasure the very sight of the superscription will give me ! 
 
 " I have every reason to be satisfied with the preference I gave to this 
 conveyance. The behaviour of M. de St. F. has been uniformly atten- 
 tive and obliging, and the society very agreeable. Besides being of 
 distinguished merit in his profession, he is sensible, well-informed, and, 
 I scarcely need add, Avell-bred, speaks very well, not only with pro- 
 priety but elegance, and the vivacity of youth being tempered by the 
 lapse of forty-seven years, his manner is, to me, highly engaging. His 
 lady is a tolerably handsome Creole, good-natured and friendly, but want- 
 ing animation, and not yet formed to the manners of a French woman 
 .... I have been quite an idler during the voyage, malgre your good 
 advice. Talking over the war in India, and the customs, &c. of France, 
 with occasional chit-chat, in which, to be sure, agreeably to the loqua- 
 city of the French and the laudable taciturnity of nous autres Anglois, I 
 
 I 
 
58 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 was much oftener a listener than a speaker, has heen my principal occu- 
 pation. Nor can I accuse myself of having been usefully employed 
 during the passage, except in the hours devoted to the sorting and put- 
 ting up in order your letters to me; which, as I could not but read occa- 
 sionally as they passed through my hands, found me employment for 
 many successive mornings. I have 696 of Sumatran correspondence, 
 and twenty-two since we pai'ted. Here we begin afresh, and when fate 
 separates us — though, I trust, never again to such a distance as of late, 
 this intercourse shall, as it has often done already, make us amends for 
 
 absence The technical terms of the French marine I must rank 
 
 among the number of my acquisitions during this voyage. Not being 
 enough of a sailor to discern minute differences, I find their manoeuvres 
 very like ours ; but though the crew is good and healthy, and the 
 officers skilful in their profession, there does not appear to me the acti- 
 vity and vigour of our English seamen." 
 
 " Rochefort, 19th May. 
 
 " All is new to me in this European world. I find you have learned 
 to fly, since I last heard from it, and if the wind happens to be at N., or 
 thereabouts, I may expect you from London to Paris in a balloon." 
 
 " Paris, 31st May. 
 
 " After a journey of four days through a pleasant country, but much 
 incommoded by heat and dust, I reached Paris the 26th at night. The 
 next morning, at the Post-office, I found your most acceptable letter in 
 answer to mine from Ascension. Words, at least my words, are inade- 
 quate to express the satisfaction it afforded me. My beloved family is 
 well, and my first wish is answered." 
 
 Upon receiving the news of my brother's arrival, I set off for Paris, 
 and on the 1st June had the inexpressible pleasure of meeting him 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 59 
 
 there ; recovered indeed from the complaints under which he had 
 recently laboured, but still emaciated and weak. We did not remain 
 longer than the gratification of curiosity and civility to our friends 
 required, and on the 18th of that month we reached London. On the 
 11th July I accompanied him to Ireland, where I left him, early in 
 October, making a tour amongst the connections of the family, and 
 returned to attend my concerns in England.* 
 
 The death of Dr. Samuel Johnson, which took place in the month of 
 December of this year (1784), occasioned me to regret, as well at that 
 time as often since, that I had not availed myself of opportunities that 
 were presented to me by my literary friends, of being made known to that 
 extraordinary man : but a formal and premeditated introduction seemed 
 to imply a degree of pretension on my part, that did not entirely accord 
 with my feelings. Perhaps also I might have been apprehensive, that 
 if not found to answer the expectation he had been led to form, I should 
 bring on myself one of those sarcastic observations in which the Doctor 
 not unfrequently indulged, j - 
 
 Hitherto I had continued to retain my rank in the East-India Com- 
 pany's service, having from year to year received permission from the 
 Directors to remain in Europe ; but in October of the present year, 1 
 
 * In November 1784, Mr. Marsden was elected a Fellow of the Asiatic Society of Cal- 
 cutta. — E. 
 
 f Upon being accidentally introduced, soon after my arrival from the East, to a Doctor 
 Mounsey, of Chelsea Hospital, then at a very advanced period of life, I was courteously asked 
 by him (aping the manner of Swift and Johnson), ' how many nabobs I had had a hand in 
 putting to death ? ' This liberal imputation reminds me of what occurred to my amiable 
 friend, Mr. James Anderson, of Bengal, who being in the habit of wearing a handsome 
 diamond ring (at that time the fashion), was asked by an inquisitive person in company, 
 what sum the stone might have cost him ? To which he answered, with an air of indif- 
 ference, " Nothing more, Sir, than a black fellow's finger." 
 
 i 2 
 
60 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 received an intimation from their Secretary that my return to the Ben- 
 coolen establishment, by a ship of that season, was expected : in answer 
 to whicli I informed him, that circumstances rendering it necessary that 
 for the present I should remain in England, I would no longer trespass 
 on the indulgence I had so liberally experienced. I took occasion to 
 express my thanks for the Court's having ordered several copies of my 
 History of Sumatra to be supplied for its use. My connection with the 
 Company did not, however, then cease ; the character of a servant 
 being changed for that of a proprietor, and the qualification that at first 
 entitled me to a single vote, was in subsequent years gradually increased 
 to three, which I long held, although much annoyed, when my attention 
 became employed on other objects, by the frequent and pressing solici- 
 tations of rival candidates for the direction, until at length I was induced 
 to divest myself entirely of India stock. 
 
 Soon after the visit 1 paid to my relations in Ireland, I took into 
 serious consideration a plan suggested to me in conversations I had 
 whilst there with my father, that my brother John and I should bene- 
 ficially avail ourselves of the character we had established abroad, as 
 men of business and integrity, by offering our services as agents for 
 managing the concerns of persons in India, as well to our friends 
 remaining in Sumatra, as to others generally ; of which the house of Sir 
 Thomas Rumbold, Charlton, and Raikes, then recently established, had 
 given the example. On my brother's return from Sumatra, this design 
 was put into execution, and in December of the same year we took pos- 
 session of a house in Gower-street, as a joint concern, when our partner- 
 ship in East-India agency business was regularly established, and bore 
 date from the 1st January following, 1785. As it was likely to be con- 
 fined to the concerns of our personal friends, there was no necessity for 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 61 
 
 giving it publicity in this country. In the early part of this month we 
 made an excursion to Bath, at that period the fashionable resort of com- 
 pany until the Queen's birth-day (the 18th), when the reflux was sudden. 
 Here we renewed our acquaintance with Mr. and Mrs. K. Mackenzie, 
 whom we had before met in town. Mrs. M.'s beauty was the subject 
 of general admiration, and the unaffected sweetness of her manners 
 endeared her to all who had the pleasure of knowing her. For a long- 
 series of years my friendly intimacy in this family contributed materially 
 to the happiness of my life. 
 
 On the 3d February, a paper, entitled " Observations on the Lan- 
 guage of the People commonly called Gypsies, in a Letter to Sir Joseph 
 Banks," was read at the Society of Antiquaries, and printed in the 
 seventh volume of the Archaeologia. This was the first notice that had 
 appeared in England of the Indian origin of this extraordinary race, and 
 which had been suggested to me by accidentally meeting with a short 
 list of their words (vocabula Cingarorum), in ' Ludolh Commentario in 
 suam Historiam yEthiopicam,' which struck me as being Hindustani. 
 A German work on the same subject, as I afterwards found, had been 
 published at Leipzig, by Grellman, in the preceding year ; but this was 
 entirely unknown to me, as well I believe as to other English readers. 
 In 1787, a translation, by my friend Mr. M. Raper, was published in 
 London. I take this very late opportunity of remarking, as an erratum, 
 that the proof-sheet of my paper not having been sent to me for correc- 
 tion, an error in orthography occurs that affects the sense of the passage, 
 as depending on a comparison of sounds ; the name of Sangarians being 
 repeatedly printed Zangarians. 
 
 In June my brother left me for Ireland, and about the end of July 
 was joined there by our friend Mr. Henry Botham, who had been his 
 
62 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 fellow-passenger to St. Helena. Their plan was, after visiting the 
 .southern counties, and particularly the Lakes of Killarney, to embark at 
 Cork for Bordeaux, and proceeding from thence to Toulouse, in the 
 vicinity of which was the family seat of the Marquis de St. Felix, to 
 explore the south of France, and eventually take passage at Marseilles 
 for some part of Italy, with the intention of returning to England in the 
 spring. After a most pleasing tour through Ireland, in tl\e course of 
 which they experienced abundant hospitality, they sailed from Cove on 
 the 6th September ; but were scarcely out of sight of land, when they 
 were met by a severe southerly gale. " The coast of Ireland," he writes, 
 " being a lee-shore, we were under the necessity of carrying, at all risks, 
 a press of sail to clear it, which made us run gunnel under, the sea 
 repeatedly making a breach over us, and our cabin being as wet as the 
 upper deck. After a few hours' lull, the next night was nearly as bad. 
 Next day promising no better, our object was to gain any harbour, and 
 by nine at night Ave got into Crookhaven ; where, on weighing all cir- 
 cumstances, we came to the resolution of giving up the design of the 
 voyage, and adopting a plan that we could calculate upon Avith more 
 certainty. I suffered more than I ever did from any voyage, my bed 
 being afloat, and for tAVO nights there Avas no possibility of sleep. This 
 was buying pleasure too dear." 
 
 What he experienced on this unfortunate occasion laid the founda- 
 tion of illness, from which, in fact, he never recovered but for short 
 intervals. They returned, by a pilot-boat, to Cork, proceeded to Water- 
 ford, took passage to Milford, and travelled by Bristol, Southampton, 
 and Portsmouth, to Brighton, where I met them on the 27th of the 
 same montli. On the 30th they sailed for Dieppe, and I returned 
 to town the 1st October. On the 31st, I received a very interesting 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 63 
 
 letter of the 18th from Bordeaux, giving an account of their journey 
 from Rouen (from whence I had previously heard), through Normandy, 
 Maine, Touraine, Poitou, Aunis, and Sainteonge, to Guienne. A letter 
 from Toulouse, of the 8th of November, mentions his visit to the cha- 
 teau of the St. Felix family, near Mauremont, from which the Marquis 
 was unluckily absent. " I was received," he says, " by the Marquise 
 in the most friendly manner : a brother could not have met from her a 
 more cordial welcome. A sister of St. F. was there —brought up at 
 St. Cyr — well-informed, of liberal principles, and very agreeable in con- 
 versation. My young compagnon de voyage — though then incog. — is 
 now a stout fellow, with a sister about six weeks old, whom the Mar- 
 quise is unfashionable enough to nurse herself. .... At Mauremont 
 we had on Sunday afternoon a sociable dance with the jeunesse of the 
 village ; mistresses, servants, and all intermixing in their bourrees and 
 cotillons. It was a pleasing, rural scene. I did not omit the opportu- 
 nity of procuring for you a list of words in the patois Languetlocien. I 
 could not meet with a Gascon; but am told it differs little from this." 
 
 From thence they returned to Toulouse, and then proceeded to 
 Montpellier, Nismes, and Marseilles, where they met the Abb6 Raynal, 
 to whom my brother was introduced by Sir James Hall, the father 
 of Captain Basil Hall. After much conversation on the subject of 
 India, and an earnest desire expressed by the Abbe to have his opinions 
 in writing upon certain points, a promise was given to visit him at 
 Toulon, his proper residence. His next communication is of the 29th 
 November, from Nice ; in which he gives the following unpleasant 
 account of the state of his health : " Finding myself rather worse than 
 better for my journey, my body wasting daily instead of strengthening, 
 I have, after mature deliberation, resolved on profiting of my present 
 
64 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 favourable situation for passing the winter, in the hope of regaining 
 at least the ground that I have lately lost, and perhaps of laying the 
 foundation for better health in future. For breaking my engagement 
 with you I must submit myself to your candour. You will give me 
 credit for acting from necessity, not caprice." His letter of the 3d 
 January 1786 gives a more satisfactory account. " I am so much 
 recovered as to be at least as well as when I left you at Brighton, and 
 in a fair way, by this regular life and fine weather, to be progressive in 
 amendment." " From my valetudinary state, from my short excursions 
 on an animal that hardly deserves the name of a horse, from the confined 
 territory, surrounding rugged mountains, adjacent sea, and mild climate, 
 I am ready to fancy myself, not at Signor Raiberti's villa, but at 
 Wrangham's country-house at St. Helena." On the 11th February he 
 writes : " I am not at all disposed to the journey from hence by land, 
 but as the winter of the south of France is past" (he was unfortunately 
 mistaken in this), " it is my plan to go by water to Toulon, and leaving 
 this before the end of the month, I hope to reach Paris, by slow stages, 
 on the 20th March." Attentive to the subject of my favourite pursuit, 
 he adds : " I am assured that the patois here and in the neighbouring 
 mountains is the same as the Provencal, varying a little only in the 
 pronunciation — les uns chantent plus que les autres." And again: 
 " I have procured a list of words in the Nissard, that you may ascertain 
 whether they are the same : but this was formerly part of Provence, 
 and is still called Nice en Provence to distinguish it from Nice en 
 Montferrat. My landlord has engaged to provide me with lists of words 
 in the Corsican and Sardinian, Piedmontese, and Genoese." 
 
 His voyage to Toulon was prosperously performed in ten hours. 
 Here he passed some days with the Abbe Raynal, who was naturally 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. (jo 
 
 anxious to obtain from him as much information respecting India as 
 possible. " I was highly gratified," my brother says, " by his command 
 of language, variety of intelligence, and very polite attention to me." 
 From Toulon he proceeded to Marseilles, and thence by Aix and 
 Avignon to Lyons, where, on the day of his arrival, there was a heavy 
 fall of snow, which continued throughout the next day, and was suc- 
 ceeded by a severe frost for near a week. Thus was he from summer 
 transported to the midst, of winter. The effect of this sudden change 
 brought on a return of his complaint, and though he rallied a little, 
 before he reached Paris, where he had the satisfaction of meeting our 
 younger brother, Alexander, an inflammation of the bowels, soon after 
 his arrival in London, terminated his valuable life — valuable, as it would 
 have proved to the community, had time been spared for the exercise of 
 his admirable talents in public business, and endeared as he was to his 
 family, beyond what words can express, by the qualities of his heart. 
 After a lapse of time approaching nearly to half a century, my memory 
 never recalls him without the most tender emotion.* The event took 
 place on the 13th April 1786 ; and as he was born the 25th April 174t», 
 N.S., his age was a few days short of forty years. I at that time con- 
 sidered him as an elderly man — so much do our ideas on this subject 
 depend upon our own period of life. He was buried in a vault of the 
 church (then recently built) of Hanwell, Middlesex, with the rector of 
 which I was on terms of intimacy. His property, by no means large, 
 he divided by his will chiefly amongst his brothers and sisters, leaving 
 to myself (his executor and residuary legatee' a share somewhat larger 
 than the rest. 
 
 * [" I need not attempt to express to you the effect that the loss has upon me. I shall 
 feel it to the latest hour of my life."— Letter, 18th April 1786.] 
 
 K 
 
06 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Upon the founding, in May 1785, of the ' Royal Irish Academy of 
 Sciences, Polite Literature, and Antiquities,' under the auspices and 
 presidency of the Earl of Charlemont, I had the honour of being named 
 among the original members. On the 8th December of the same year 
 (1785), I was chosen a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London ; 
 and on the 28th June 1786, the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws in 
 the University of Oxford was conferred upon me.* 
 
 In October 1786,]' I made a short, rambling excursion in Pi card y and 
 French Flanders, proceeding through many of the places that were the 
 scenes of ancient English warfare, and from thence (by St. Omer) to 
 Dunkirk, returning by Gravelines to Calais. In the beginning of 1787 
 I paid my annual visit of a few weeks to Bath. Perceiving at this 
 time that the state of my finances would admit of it, improved as they 
 were by my late brother's bequest, as well as by the advantages derived 
 from our agency concern, which now began to take effect, I resolved 
 upon adding to my small establishment the essential convenience of a 
 carriage. And here my vanity leads me to observe, that from being, 
 
 * £Mr. Marsden thus relates the event in a letter to his brother Alexander : — " I got your 
 note at Oxford. I dined in Christchurch, where my connexions principally lie, and where 
 I experienced much civility. I am heartily glad you were not present at the ceremony 
 (though a very grand one to the eye), for you must have blushed at the strange nonsense 
 which formed my inauguration speech — a most curious history of my life and adventures — a 
 few unconnected facts, furnished by my friends, worked up into a sublime panegyric — God 
 forbid that any body should suppose I had a concern in the composition ; but it dies, I am 
 happy to think, in the moment of its birth — unless some unhappy biographer shall have 
 thought it worth his while to save so valuable and authentic an original." — 1 1//* July 1786.] 
 
 f [At this period Mr. Marsden was assiduously engaged in the compilation of his Malay 
 Dictionary, although no allusion is here made to it in the Memoir: — " I have at length got 
 through the skeleton of my dictionary, after seven months' hard writing, and have now 
 begun upon the more agreeable operation of filling it up with sinews, veins, and muscles. I 
 hope to make it speak for itself one of these days ; and propose it shall receive a tincture of 
 letters at the Clarendon Press in Oxford."— Letter, Sept. 1786.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. ( ;7 
 
 upon my arrival from Bencoolen, a person wholly unknown, and who 
 had to force his unassisted way in society, the circle of my acquaintance 
 was now enlarged to the utmost extent of my wishes. Amongst the 
 distinguished persons whose friendly attentions gratified me about this 
 period, and to the end of their respective lives, I may name the learned 
 and venerable Dr. Markham, Archbishop of York ; the Earl of Hunt- 
 ingdon, whose conversation and manners retained all the polite accom- 
 plishment of the old school, and at whose table I was accustomed to 
 meet Lord Rawdon, then just returned from the American campaign 
 with high military reputation ; and Constantino Lord Mulgrave, who 
 had acquired much nautical reputation from his voyage towards the 
 North Pole, and was devoted to the pursuit of practical science. 
 
 Although without pretensions to astronomical science, or affecting to 
 be an observer,* returning in the evening of Tuesday, 20th March 1787, 
 accompanied by two friends, from the house of Mr. Forbes, at Stan- 
 more, by Harrow to Hanwell, the appearance of the new moon attracted 
 my notice as we ascended the hill. The thread of light was remarkably 
 delicate, and the unilluminated part of the disk more than usually dis- 
 tinct. It was then about a quarter before seven o'clock, and as, on refer- 
 ring to an almanac, I found the moon had changed on 19th at 2 h . 48', it 
 was consequently not more than twenty-eight hours from the con- 
 junction when the phenomenon was noticed ; being as short a period, I 
 believe, as is any where recorded of the moon's becoming visible to the 
 
 * [Mr. Marsden was never inattentive to the celestial phenomena : — " I am glad you begin 
 to think of astronomy, and, like myself, have leisure to star-gaze. I almost paid adoration 
 to Syrius when I saw him rise between twelve and one o'clock. Do look for him if your 
 view is open in that direction. Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, are all visible together — the last is 
 in aline with and under Castor and Pollux, &c." — Letter, Nov. 1798.] 
 
 K 2 
 
(J8 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 naked eye. A memorandum on the subject was made at the time, 
 which obviates, or diminishes, at least, any chance of mistake. 
 
 On the 2d August 1787,* I became a member of the Royal Society 
 Club ; and in the following year I was requested to undertake the office 
 of Treasurer, which I continued to hold till the year 1803. 
 
 In the autumn of this year (1787), I made a journey to the south of 
 Ireland, by the route of Bristol and Milford, which road I travelled in a 
 mail-coach, then not fully established. Landing at Waterford, I pro- 
 ceeded to Clonmel, where I passed a fortnight with my sister, Anne 
 Gordon (a specimen of whose poetry appears in the first sheet of this 
 Memoir), and visiting the Lakes of Killarney,f I went, by the way of 
 
 * [" I am going to-inorrow to Greenwich on an annual visitation to the Observatory. I 
 accompany the two French Members of the Academie, who are over here inspecting the 
 hospitals, and are just returned from Plymouth; Banks, and many of the Fellows of the 
 Society, will be present — A dinner, of course." — Letter, July 1787.] 
 
 f [" After a very unsettled life for the last five or six weeks, I am at length arrived in this 
 capital (Dublin). I landed from the canal boat last night; and this morning, before I pay any 
 visits or announce my arrival to the world at large, I sit down to acknowledge the receipt of 
 your two favours of 24th August, and 5th inst. I ought to have written to you more fre- 
 quently, and matter enough arose to have furnished subject for many a letter ; but whilst 
 travelling in the company of agreeable friends, I find it next to impossible to put pen to paper. 
 Of our jaunt to the Lakes, I can now only give you a general outline. Tom and Sam P. and 
 I set out together in a chaise, engaged by the day, and reached Killarney on the second 
 night, by the way of Mallow. We staid there three days, during the finest weather that the 
 indulgent heavens could bestow upon us. On the first day we visited the upper lake, and 
 taking French horns and cannon with us, were enchanted and surprised by such echoes as I 
 had never guessed were in Nature. It would be ridiculous to attempt in words to do justice 
 to the effect of the musical sounds — Westminster Abbey was marrow-bones and cleavers in 
 the comparison. Till the afternoon the surface of the lake was as smooth as glass, and not a 
 breeze disturbed the floating reverberations. The clouds but rarely touched the summits 
 of the highest mountains. On the second day we visited the several beauties of the lower 
 lake, Mucrus, Innisfallen, &c. ; and on the third, we ascended Mangerton, peeped into the 
 Devil's Punch-bowl, and Coomna-cappol (which are probably craters of volcanos), and took 
 a survey of the Western Ocean, and the various creeks that run from it into the land. This 
 
 was 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. G9 
 
 Cork, to my father's house in the county of Wicklow. On the 30th 
 Octoher I returned to London. 
 
 In the month of November, Sir Lionel Darell, an old director of the 
 East-India Company, called upon me to say he was authorized by his 
 colleagues to inquire whether it would be agreeable to me to offer 
 myself as a candidate at the next annual election, assuring me, in that 
 case, of the effective support of the House. This, of course, was highly 
 flattering to me; and in a letter to my friend, of the 14th of that month, 
 
 was a glorious prospect — the lakes being immediately under us. We returned to Clomnell 
 by the way of Cork, where we saw two plays (Holman's), and were hospitably entertained 
 at a Mr. Chatterton's, an eminent counsel. We left Clonmel together on the 12th, and as 
 I had visited Cash el, we took the road to Kilkenny. Besides several old monasteries, I saw 
 the Castle. Mr. Butler, who is a very elegant young man, led us through the different 
 rooms. Could we have staid a day we should have dined with the descendants of the house 
 of Ormond. Our principal company on the canal were Sir John Parnell, Mr. French of 
 Ballynakill, and one of the young Beresfords. We were very pleasant together." — Letter. 
 15th Sept. 1787.] 
 
 [In a subsequent one, giving an account of the termination of this excursion, to his brother 
 Alexander, who happened at this period to be at Ramsgate, Mr. Marsden adds : — " But I 
 am unwilling to devote so much time to pleasure, having now got into a regular train of 
 reading and writing. Among other matters, I have written an answer to Dr. Priestly's 
 queries respecting the Hindoo religion and language, and have read a version of the Fables 
 attributed to Pilpay, from the original Sanskrit. I dine on Wednesday with the translator, 
 Mr. Wilkins, who, by the bye, has just met with my paper on the Gypsies, and fully con- 
 firms my ideas, though the editor of the 'Gentleman's Magazine' is astonished at my credu- 
 lity I am correcting the Sumatra whilst Crisp is on the spot to answer an occasional 
 
 question I believe I shall go to Cambridge on Monday, to spend one day with Coxe, 
 
 the traveller." — Letter, Nov. 1787.] 
 
 f" I designed to have written to you before this time ; but though what I am going to men- 
 tion neither is, ought to be, nor shall be an excuse ; yet the fact is, that my correspondence 
 engrosses a very serious portion of my time, and I feel strongly the necessity of curtailing it. 
 Letters of business are trifles — they are finished in five minutes — whereas a chit-chat epistle, 
 where there is no given subject, frequently takes me up as many half-hours — not from beine 
 at a loss what to say, but that the nature of them induces a sort of lounging disposition, which 
 leads me to indulge in reveries that cheat me imperceptibly of my time." — 11//; Dec. 1787.] 
 
70 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 I expressed myself fully sensible of the compliment paid me by this 
 respectable body, for whom, as my quondam masters, I have long 
 retained a feeling of kindness. But, under all the circumstances con- 
 nected with the proposal, I thought it most advisable to decline it. 
 
 My paper on the era of the Mahometans, called the Hejera, was read 
 at the Royal Society on the 12th June 1788, and was printed in the 
 Philosophical Transactions of the same year.* 
 
 In the month of August following, I set out for France, by the way of 
 Brighton and Dieppe. At the hotel of the latter place I made acquaint- 
 ance with a M. Chereau and his daughter, and we agreed to travel toge- 
 ther. We passed some days at Rouen ;| an d during the time of my 
 staying at Paris his attention to me was of the kindest nature. On a 
 subsequent visit in 1790, I continued to experience the same hospitality; 
 but the progress of the Revolution put an end to our intercourse. In 
 
 *[...." I lead an odd life. My whole heart and its affections are set upon pursuits 
 which I never allow myself time to follow. Amusement, pleasure I may say, in spite of my 
 inclination, engrosses me, and literature, like a forbidden fruit, I can only snatch at occasion- 
 ally, and, as it were, by stealth. After coming home at eleven, I have, these two mornings, 
 sat up till one o'clock, to complete a little matter I have had too long in hand respecting the 
 Hejera .... I yesterday stood gentleman usher to Crisp, at the Royal Society, to which lie had 
 been elected the Thursday before. I introduced D. G. there, and at the Antiquaries, and he 
 appeared highly delighted, which is not a common effect produced by such attendances." — 
 Letter, January 1788.] 
 
 ■f [" I rode on horseback to Rouen, and what is more, I rode from Rouen to St. Germains, 
 which is fourteen posts, in thirteen hours. This should be eighty-four, but is at the least 
 seventy miles, at five miles the post. I had a mind to try what I could do, and did not suffer 
 any sort of inconvenience from it. I took a dish of tea, a VAnglaise, went to bed, and woke 
 quite refreshed. What a delightful country you pass through ! I know nothing superior to 
 it — beautiful by nature, and highly cultivated. Those who travel by Picardy, have no idea 
 that France contains a province so rich and picturesque as Normandy. The resemblance to 
 England is, in many respects, very striking .... I dined with a relation of my new friends 
 at St. Germains, and set off for Paris in the afternoon — where, though they arrived but 
 
 about 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 71 
 
 Paris I met my friends Mr. and Mrs. Mackenzie, and on leaving it 
 accompanied them as far as Amiens, where we separated on the 11th 
 October. They were proceeding to the Low Countries, and business 
 requiring my presence in England previous to the dispatch of the India 
 ships, I returned to London. 
 
 In July 1 789,* I accompanied the last-mentioned friends to the lakes 
 
 about an hour before me, I found a lodging taken for me. They also carried my portman- 
 teau behind their chaise the whole journey. Surely this is a degree of civility a stranger 
 could not have any chance of meeting with in England. M. Chereau has introduced me to 
 Wailly, the celebrated grammarian, and I mean to take lessons of him whilst I stay here — 
 not more for the sake of improving my French, than general grammar, as I shall have occa- 
 sion one day to treat the subject myself. But it is time I should tell you, I found the 
 Darells and Mackenzies here, &c." — Letter, Paris, Sept. 1788.] 
 
 * Mr. Marsden having made no memoranda at the time, of his literary occupations, omits 
 any mention of them, which is not doing himself justice. Under this impression, the Editor 
 of this Memoir introduces, according to their dates, the extracts relating to them, which 
 appear in these notes, from letters written to his brother Alexander. 
 
 fj" Because I had not already sufficient jobs in hand, I have lately undertaken another, 
 which, though somewhat mechanical, will not be without its curiosity and use. I am 
 making a catalogue of all dictionaries, grammars, and vocabularies, that have ever been 
 published, with the exception of the modern cultivated European, and the Greek, Latin, and 
 Hebrew. These, you will perceive, were not to my purpose, beside that including them 
 would render the execution well nigh impracticable. I should have been glad to have taken 
 in the Hebrew ; but the number of little tracts on this language is beyond all reasonable 
 bounds, and it may be considered as a dead language. In spite of this circumscription, the 
 number of books is much beyond what you could conceive. The most troublesome, but 
 not the least necessary, part of the task is, that of hunting out vocabularies in books of 
 voyages and travels, where they are in a great degree buried, as there exists no reference to 
 them ; but few people could perform this with so little trouble as myself, as I have long 
 been in the habits of fishing for them. My first idea was oriental languages. But why 
 exclude Africa and America? and I have thrown in the Celtic and Sclavonic dialects of 
 
 Europe The Duke of Northumberland and Earl Spencer were at the Society on 
 
 Thursday." — 3lst January.] 
 
 [" I was invited last night to resume my studies in the Library of Buckingham-house. 
 My catalogue has made great progress, and I find it difficult now to meet with any thing 
 new to me, except the accidental vocabularies that are scattered in voyages, and in the Trans- 
 actions 
 
72 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 in the North of England, and thence, by Carlisle and Port Patrick, to 
 Ireland. Here, after visiting the Giant's Causeway, and other inte- 
 
 actions of foreign academies. I have an account of the works of no less than sixty-three 
 authors who have published on American languages." — 1789.] 
 
 ['*.... From ten in the morning till three I am usually out of doors, in the city, public 
 libraries, visits, &c; my hours for writing are from nine till twelve at night ; but you know 
 that I am hobby-horsical, that is, a little of an enthusiast in any literary matter I have at the 
 time in hand, and I find myself insensibly drawn to discuss a point of Hindoo chronology, 
 
 when my conscience tells me I ought to devote the evening to my correspondents I am 
 
 happy to hear that you are in a fair way of seeing your complaints effectually removed. I 
 am sure you do not want resolution to follow any rules of life that you are convinced to be 
 necessary for the continuance of your health. I suppose I am doomed to pay in the latter 
 part of my life for the uncommon share of good health I experience in the former. F. tells 
 me I am too regular, and by that mistake defraud myself of the resource proper to declining 
 years." — November 1789.] 
 
 [" My collection of dictionaries and grammars increases, and I possess several curious 
 and scarce little tracts. I never give a high price, but I look sharp after the catalogues, and 
 it frequently happens that the booksellers who purchase old libraries are ignorant of the 
 value of particular works, and in my line as much as any other. I bought an Arabic 
 grammar yesterday for three shillings, of which there is no copy in the Museum, or any 
 other library I have had access to, public or private. I am writing my general catalogue 
 out fair. It will form, when completed, a most convenient book of reference, in two parts ; 
 one, according to the alphabetical order of names and authors ; the other, a classification of 
 the languages, and chronologically under each head. The first work, of any consequence, I 
 should wish to publish, is the Malay Dictionary, with a Grammar (not yet begun) ; but I 
 find it inconvenient to work at this, except in summer, when I can rise early and get an 
 hour or two of business done, -while the sweeping, &c. goes on below stairs — for it requires a 
 room to itself, not liable to the disturbance of brooms and dusters. 
 
 " How many hours of sleep does your Nature demand ? I find that seven is just what I 
 can exist comfortably upon. At present I am usually in bed by one, and rise at eight. The 
 hours about midnight are the most valuable to me, as I am sure then of being undisturbed, 
 and I have habituated myself to sitting down to my books at night, let me spend the evening- 
 how or where I may. I wrote for an hour after an early dance on Saturday evening last, 
 
 and yesterday after being at three parties When I have occasion to look over Pin- 
 
 kerton again, if any thing worth remarking should occur to me, I shall mention it, or if I 
 hear any opinion from others. On the subject of this work, I am more used to have my 
 sentiments asked, than to receive any from my literary acquaintance, who consider it as con- 
 nected with my department, though in fact it is but indirectly. My purpose is to lay down, 
 
 to 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 73 
 
 resting scenes in that part, we crossed the country to Limerick, and 
 proceeded thence by the course of the Shannon to Tralee and Killarney. 
 We then visited Cork and Dublin, passed some weeks with my fathers 
 family, amidst the romantic scenery of the county of Wicklow, and 
 arrived in London on the 20th October. 
 
 To the lady whose society enlivened these excursions, I addressed, in 
 1790, the last of my poetical efforts, under circumstances that gave to 
 the lines the merit of peculiar genuineness. A chief of one of the 
 Molucca islands having sent a deputation to the English at Sumatra, 
 bearing a present that consisted principally of Birds of Paradise, a 
 handsome specimen from among them was forwarded to me as a compli- 
 mentary tribute ; and it being then (as it is now) the fashion in London 
 to wear such birds as ornaments of female dress, I dispatched this to my 
 fair friend, with the following stanza : 
 
 A stranger, in celestial plumage gay, 
 Who boasts in Paradise his happy birth, 
 
 Forsaking kindred cherubs, wings his way, 
 To find with thee a Paradise on earth. 
 
 to the best of my information, what is, and to leave to historians to infer what was. I have 
 no reason to complain of backwardness in the world to allow me credit for a great deal more 
 than I know — and I am presumed to be acquainted not only with every language spoken by 
 the actual inhabitants of the earth, but to have a smattering, at least, of those which sprang 
 from the confusion at Babel." — 25th February.~\ (a) 
 
 [_" I passed this afternoon at the British Museum, along with Wilkins, looking over a copy 
 of the Sacred Book of the Hindoos, called the Feds, which was presented to them last year. I 
 presume you are not unacquainted with Wilkins's name, " to whom," Sir W. Jones says, 
 " the world is indebted for more advantages in Indian literature than Europe or India can ever 
 sufficiently acknowledge." It is he who printed books, at Calcutta, of his own translating 
 from the Sanscrit, with types of his own founding and casting, and presses of his own con- 
 struction. It is a singular example of individual effort. The English, as well as the Persian 
 and Bengal characters, were his own." 1790.] 
 
 (a) A letter from the late Sir George Staunton to Mr. Marsden concludes thus : " The languages spoken at 
 Babel will be nothing to your collection." — July 15, 1791. 
 
 L 
 
7 4 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 My paper on the Chronology of the Hindoos was read at the Royal 
 Society the 24th June 1790, and printed in the Philosophical Trans- 
 actions.* 
 
 On the 31st August, I left town for Harwich ; landed at Helvoet the 
 2d September, left Rotterdam on the 4th, and the same afternoon reached 
 the Hague, where I delivered a letter of introduction to Lord Auckland, 
 the English ambassador, and experienced much polite attention from his 
 Excellency.! Through my friend, Sir Francis Baring, who happened 
 
 * [" My paper on the Hindoo Chronology was ordered to be printed, at to-day's Council. 
 I have had many compliments from our astronomers here, like those which a foreigner 
 pays you when you make an attempt, however awkward, to talk his language. Your 
 letter was dated the 23d (June)— the day before, Tuesday, was the hottest known in Eng- 
 land for many years. My thermometers, in shady exposures, were at 89" ; at Bencoolen it 
 
 is rarely so high as 86° This country, as you observe, has been for a month past in 
 
 a general state of fermentation, which I believe includes the ideas of heat, motion, and 
 change ; but the frothy particles are now almost raised to the top, and the dregs begin to 
 subside. The great bubble at Covent Garden is to burst to-morrow. Tooke's opposition has 
 been a curious business ; but it turns out a mistaken speculation. He thought the resent- 
 ment excited by Fox and Hood's compromise would have brought him or anybody in for 
 Westminster. He is a man of extraordinary parts; but more cunning than wise. His inge- 
 nuity in argument (I often meet him in company) surpasses that of any person I have 
 known ; but it is generally employed in supporting paradoxes. Between the breaking up 
 of the Council and the meeting of the club at dinner, Sir Joseph and I went to-day to amuse 
 ourselves at the hustings. This was our anniversary meeting, when I report the state of our 
 accounts, &c. One of our vacancies was occasioned by the death of General Roy, last night, 
 who had been employed lately in carrying a chain of triangles through England (from a 
 base on Hounslow Heath), to meet a similar operation in France. Whilst speaking of my 
 official duties, I should mention that I was on the Grand Jury this term. I might have 
 excused myself, but I had some curiosity to know the nature of the business, and therefore 
 sacrificed part of three days. The trouble is not great; and the expense, two dinners 
 included, seven and twenty shillings. 
 
 .... Our greatest literary curiosity at present is a translation, by Sir William Jones, of an 
 ancient Hindoo drama. I have amused myself in writing notes, in an interleaved copy,(«) 
 to elucidate it."— 1** July 1790] 
 
 f " The feeling of vanity that leads me to annex a copy of this letter will, I hope, be 
 
 regarded 
 (a) Now in the Marsden Library, King's College. — E. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 75 
 
 to be on the spot, I received and accepted an invitation to take my 
 passage, with a gentleman, named Melvill, and family, in his yacht to 
 Amsterdam, by the interior navigation, and enjoyed, from the 9th to 
 the 18th, the hospitality of my kind friends in that city. At Utrecht, on 
 the 19th, I joined company with M. De Boive, of Nenfchatel, whom I 
 had met at Mr. H. Hope's table. We passed through Nimeguen and 
 Cleves, saw the fine gallery of paintings at Dusseldorf, and visited 
 Cologne and Coblentz. From the latter we proceeded by Ehrenbreit- 
 stein and Seltzer to Frankfort. Here, on the 27th September, we found 
 the gates closed during the time of electing Leopold king of the Romans ; 
 and it should be observed that, at Bonn, we had previously fallen in with 
 a small detachment carrying the imperial crown and some earth from Aix 
 la Chapelle (as I understood) to be used in the ceremony of coronation. 
 Admittance being refused till the lapse of an uncertain number of hours, 
 I quitted the carriage and walked to Mayence (the passage-boat at Kochst 
 being detained), about twenty miles ; from whence I returned to Frank- 
 fort the next day, and had an opportunity of witnessing the magnificence 
 displayed by the electors, or their representatives, assembled on this 
 
 regarded as venial ; the testimony being, in many respects, too creditable to me to be sup- 
 pressed : — "Aug. 30, 1790. My Lord : In the absence of Sir Joseph Banks, who is now in 
 Lincolnshire, I take the liberty of introducing to your Excellency Mr. Marsden, who is just 
 setting out on a tour through Holland. He is a particular friend of Sir Joseph, member of 
 several academies, one of the Council of the Royal Society, and highly distinguished in the 
 literary world for his history of Sumatra, various papers in the Philosophical Transactions, 
 and other learned works. These recommendations would, undoubtedly, ensure to him 
 your Excellency's good offices ; but I hope to be excused for adding further, that indepen- 
 dently of Mr. M.'s talents, his gentleman-like conduct and amiable virtues have procured him 
 the esteem and regard of all his acquaintances. I am happy in this opportunity of recall- 
 ing myself to your Lordship's remembrance, and have the honour to be with the greatest 
 respect, &c. — C. Blagden, Secretary of the Royal Society." 
 
 L 2 
 
76 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 important occasion. Visited Hanau, and was present at a review of the 
 troops of the Prince of Hesse, on the neighbouring heights. From 
 thence my route lay by Darmstadt and Heidelberg to Stutgard, where I 
 was introduced to the learned Professor Schnurrer, who died lately at 
 a very advanced age. From Tubingen on the Necker, I crossed the 
 Danube, a shallow stream, at Dutlingen, and reached Constance on the 
 5th October. After visiting the Fall of the Rhine at Schaffhausen, I 
 proceeded by Bruck and Arau to Soleure, and from thence to Bienne, 
 where I arrived on the 9th in the midst of the festivities of the vendange. 
 The romantic Isle de St. Pierre, on the lake, was the resort of company 
 from a great distance round, and the assemblage was enlivened by 
 groupes of dancers of all ranks, with whom the English country-dances 
 appeared to be the most in fashion. The chamber of a house that had 
 been occupied by J.J. Rousseau, during his exile, the walls of which 
 were covered with the names and wit of visitors, was, of course, not 
 neglected. The scene altogether was novel and highly amusing to a 
 traveller. 
 
 Intending now to return homewards, the season being too far advanced 
 for penetrating further into Switzerland, it was strongly recommended 
 to me by my respectable companion, that instead of taking the carriage- 
 road to Soleure, I should proceed on foot through the grand and beauti- 
 ful defiles of Mount Jura ; which I executed to my great satisfaction. 
 Passing through the Pierre pertuis and along the stupendous Miinster- 
 thal, I slept the first night at Delmont, pretty well fatigued by a walk 
 of thirty miles. The next day took me to Basle, about twenty-five 
 miles, including a small deviation to see the Jardin Anglois d'Arlesheim. 
 From Basle my route (not pedestrian) lay, by the right bank of the 
 river, through Freyburg to Strasburg, and thence by Metz, Verdun, 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 77 
 
 and Chalons, to Paris, where I arrived the 20th October. In the course 
 of this little tour it will be observed that every place I visited became 
 more or less the scene of military operations during the progress of the 
 war of the Revolution, which soon after ensued, and the local knowledge 
 I acquired rendered the events more deeply interesting. At Paris, even 
 so early as this year, 1790, I witnessed extraordinary changes ; the fer- 
 ment of political leaven from America had begun to work, the cocarde 
 nationale was universally worn, and I walked over the ruins of the 
 Bastille. The English, fortunately for travellers, were in high favour 
 with the populace, and as a practical proof of it, a troop of gaily-dressed 
 poissardes, who were assembled to present a nosegay or a remonstrance 
 to the King, perceiving me amongst the crowd, insisted upon giving me 
 their unacceptable salutes. On the 30th of the same month I returned 
 to London.* 
 
 * [_" My Christmas has not been hitherto a very merry one, and as I have declined some 
 invitations from friends in the country, because they are attended with a waste of time in 
 going and coming, &c. I scarcely expect or deserve that it should change its complexion. 
 I avail myself of the temporary suspension of business and visiting, to indulge freely in the 
 pleasure of my literary pursuits, and for these two days (excepting the hours devoted to 
 church and meals), I have rioted in the luxuries afforded to my palate, by rare dialects and 
 savage vocabularies — ' Chacun a son gout.' I remember being told by a young surgeon, 
 that his highest state of enjoyment was when he could lock himself up with a store of ana- 
 tomical subjects, and remain with them as long as they would suffer him. My subjects 
 being perfectly dry, have the merit at least of not being offensive, even to those who unex- 
 pectedly pop in their noses. My collection of books increases considerably, and bids fair to 
 be the first and most curious of its kind ; but the expense ruins me. I should be afraid to 
 tell how many guineas I have paid this last year for grammars and dictionaries. When you 
 see a book in a catalogue that a peculiar chance alone could have brought to sale, and of 
 which, if you miss buying it, another copy may not present itself for an age, how can flesh 
 and blood resist the temptation it holds out ? As I confine myself to books of a certain 
 description, the bulk of my library can never be great, and opportunities of laying out money 
 must gradually become rare. I receive many as presents from my friends : Sir Joseph con- 
 siders me as the depository of every thing respecting language that comes to his hands ; and 
 
 when 
 
78 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 In July 1791, I bought the lease of a newly-built house, in Upper 
 Gower-street. In August of that year, I set off for Ireland, and embarked 
 at Holyhead on the 30th. It happened, singularly, that in consequence 
 of the wind and tide not admitting of our entering the Bay of Dublin, 
 I was landed, with other passengers, on the coast of Wicklow, within a 
 few miles of my father's house. On the 1st October, I sailed for Holy- 
 head, and taking a horse from Ireland with me, rode from thence to 
 Cardigan, where, on the 7th, I met, by appointment (without the deten- 
 tion of an hour), my friends, Mr. and Mrs. Mackenzie, from London,* 
 
 when a ship arrives from a discovery voyage, the vocabularies are delivered as regularly 
 to me, as the Journals to the Admiralty. By Lieutenant King, who is just come from 
 Botany Bay, we have the first specimens that have been procured of the language of the 
 natives. I am invited to dine at Banks' to-morrow, to meet him, and talk over all their late 
 transactions. My friends Dalrymple and Rennel are, of course, to be of the party." — 16//( 
 December 1790.] 
 
 * £" I arrived here yesterday about half past two o'clock, and in an hour after my worthy 
 and amiable friends drove to the door. This, I think, was an extraordinary instance of 
 punctuality, and shows what experienced travellers some of us are .... But now to give you 
 some account of my journey. I wrote you from Holyhead, to assure you of my safe arrival. 
 On Monday morning I set off for Bangor, in a drizzling rain, which I did not quite relish. 
 At Bangor I took my dinner, and then made the best of my way to Caernarvon, where I 
 arrived wet to the skin. The evening was agreeably spent in drying my clothes, and con- 
 versing with my landlord on the subject of my road through the mountains. It was noon 
 on Tuesday before I could venture to mount, and then travelled one of the most extraor- 
 dinary journies I ever experienced — relatively, I mean, to my own feelings. I should men- 
 tion that I bargained with a man for twelve shillings to carry my portmanteau on his back 
 to Dolgelly, no person in Caernarvon being disposed to let his horse for such a distance (forty 
 miles), and through such a country, and my landlord assuring me a guide was not necessary. 
 I was therefore alone in the wildest and most romantic scene which this romantic princi- 
 pality affords, where for hours together I did not see the face of a human being, and torrents 
 of rain incessantly falling on me, that could only be equalled by those which rolled in the 
 beds of the rivers, and down the sides of the mountains. The tops of these were all obscured 
 by the clouds hanging low upon them, which added, if not to the beauty, to the sublimity of 
 the picture, and the numerous waterfalls, created on the occasion, seemed to proceed from 
 the regions of the air ; but I find I am growing poetical, and must return to matter-of-fact if 
 
 I wish 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 79 
 
 and accompanied them to Hereford, whence we exploited all parts of 
 North Wales, not already visited, and on the 23d ascended Snowdon, 
 
 I wish to be credited. I slept at Tanybulch, and set off next morning by roads, whose 
 beauty no description can do justice to, along the banks of the river that empties itself at 
 Barmouth. I dined at Dolgelly on Wednesday, and had a morning ride by the foot of Cader 
 Idris to Machynllith, where I slept. On Thursday I dined at Aberystwith, a pretty water- 
 ing-place, and on Friday at this place (Cardigan). I fortunately enjoyed the most perfect 
 health, and never had any degree of cold, though more exposed to inclement weather than 
 at any former period of my life. But it is partial and confined, not open air, that seems to 
 occasion rheums. 
 
 " Nous voici a Caermarthen — where, after due consultation and calculation, we have 
 resolved to give up the intended plan to the northward, and adopted one much more 
 romantic, that is, of exploring the remaining part of Wales; and as the beautiful scenes I 
 have contemplated will be new to my friends, I have insisted on that road being included in 
 their route. My hospitable landlords (and, in truth, I experienced all possible attention and 
 civility) will be a little astonished to see my face so soon again. Independent of the pleasure 
 I shall have in the gratification of the Macs, I really shall have no small satisfaction in seeing 
 again the views I have described." — 8th October 1791.] 
 
 £'< Your letter to Chester was duly forwarded to London by the Postmaster. I find that 
 you had not got one I wrote you from the foot of Snowden, by a young gentleman we fell 
 in with, returning to Dublin. He left us, on a bitter morning, to go to Caernarvon, and 
 probably laughed at our idea of visiting Snowden in such weather. In fact, reconnoi- 
 tring the approaches, we had given up all hopes of ascending, and returned to sleep twelve 
 miles off. The next morning, however, was so clear and inviting, that we resolved nem. con. 
 to retrace our steps. We breakfasted once more at Berthgellert, and proceeded boldly to 
 the attack. We were very successful ; and, as I mentioned in my letter to my father, had a 
 fine view of the Wicklow mountains — our female companion did wonders, and we were but 
 two hours from the place of taking our guides to the summit. I cannot afford you a descrip- 
 tion of what we saw, and how can I attempt giving you any thing like a sketch of our tour ? 
 Our course you may trace on the map, from the following list of uncouth names. From 
 Caermarthen we proceeded through the beautiful vale on the banks of the Towy to 
 Llandilo, thence to Llandovery — Trecastle, where you fall in with the Usk, and accompany 
 it through another charming vale — Brecon, Abergavenny, Monmouth, Hereford. Here 
 we made preparations for our equestrian expedition, and hired two riding horses in addition 
 to two we had with us ; on the 15th we set off by Presteign to Rhyadergowy, or the 
 falls of the Wye — a very curious place. Between that and Aberystwith we visited an extra- 
 dinary bridge, over a deep chasm, called the Devil's Bridge, beneath which a torrent forces 
 
 its 
 
80 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 from which we had a distinct view of the mountains of Wicklow as 
 well as of the Isle of Man. We regained the carriage at Shrews- 
 
 its way but no descriptions. Here I got into my old track. On the third day we rode thirty- 
 two miles, and towards the conclusion of our tour were all dissatisfied when we could not 
 manage to ride ten or twelve before breakfast. Next to Machynlleth, and by Cader Idris to 
 Dolgelly, where we were detained a second day by a severe storm of wind, rain, thunder, 
 and lightning. As soon as it cleared up a little, we clothed ourselves with skins, and issued 
 forth, most truly original and primitive figures, defying all the elements; but it proved 
 a fine day, and we had a charming ride to Barmouth. From thence we crossed the moun- 
 tains, to Tanybulch, where I had before slept. In the approach to this place we descended 
 the steepest hill I ever rode down ; and, to improve the adventure, it was so dark, that 
 the track was scarcely discernible. At that place we slept two nights, and a third at 
 Bethgelert, eight miles farther, after our expedition to the clouds. I say nothing of all 
 the waterfalls, lakes, &c. we visited, or met on our road, except that the two most curious 
 of the former, are one near Tanybulch, and another called Pistill-rhyader, in our sub- 
 sequent track. Our next sleeping place was Bala, where the lake put me strongly in 
 mind of that of Bienne in Switzerland. We reached this place on the evening of a fair, 
 and a more curious scene of confusion could scarcely be witnessed. Our servant was 
 obliged to fight for every thing that was procured for us in the house, and our supper- 
 room, which we kept locked, stood a continual siege — admittance to every booth being 
 considered as matter of public right on such occasions. From Bala we crossed a high 
 chain of mountains, on the top of which we rode for a couple of hours in a heavy rain, 
 that wet us to the skin, in spite of our defensive armour, and descended at a place called 
 Llangynog, where we wrung and dried our clothes, and laughed at the funny figures we 
 made. We slept at Llanrhyader, and saw next morning the famous waterfall, at four miles' 
 distance. It is one of those falls where Nature seems to have designed the thing as an orna- 
 ment to her works, and not merely a stream of water accidentally running down the side of 
 a hill. Powerscourt is also of that kind ; but in Pistill-rhyader, the chief perpendicular 
 chute is from a much more considerable height. In the Welch scene, the rocks which form 
 the amphitheatre are bolder, but the Irish has the inestimable advantage of fine woods. Our 
 course then lay to Llanvilling, and then to Welch Pool, in the most magnificent Vale of 
 Montgomery. Powis Castle, near the town, is a beautiful object ; but the view as you ascend 
 the mountain-road (and being on horseback, we always preferred the mountain-roads) towards 
 Shrewsbury, is grand beyond description. At this town we regained our carriage, and, leav- 
 ing our horses behind us, we proceeded post through Birmingham, Warwick, and Bucking- 
 ham (a new track to me), to London, where we arrived in excellent health, and in good- 
 humour, on 30th Oct. How smooth every thing passes with those who have a disposition to 
 
 be 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 81 
 
 bury, and returning by Warwick, reached town on the 30th Octo- 
 ber.* 
 
 Circumstances not conveniently admitting, at this period, of conti- 
 nental travelling-, my inducement was the stronger to become acquainted 
 with every part of England, and I lost no opportunity that presented 
 itself of making excursions with that object. Accordingly in August 
 1792, I set out on horseback, to explore the line of coast in Sussex and 
 Kent, from Bognor by Little Hampton, Worthing, Brighton, Rye, Hythe, 
 Dover, Deal, &c. to Margate, places historically interesting, and in that 
 mode more effectually visited (next to walking) than any other, as enabling 
 me to keep nearer the sea-coast. The local knowledge thus acquired 
 proving to me in the sequel, of the utmost official utility. On the 
 17th September following, I commenced a journey to the north of Eng- 
 land, in company with my friends, Mr. and Mrs. Mackenzie, as far as 
 Alnwick, returning by Richmond, Harrowgate, and Manchester, to 
 Chester,! where our party adopted an equestrian plan, and crossing 
 
 be pleased, and how few difficulties are complained of by those who do not create them, 
 either real or imaginary." — 1791.] 
 
 * £" We gave a gold medal, in the Royal Society, to my friend Major Rennell for a paper 
 of his on the mode of estimating distance in the Deserts by the rate at which camels travel. 
 It is a very ingenious application of the data, and his general merits as a geographer made 
 every body happy to pay him that tribute. My friend Mr. Harman has procured for me and 
 just sent me, from Hamburgh, a dictionary, &c, &c, in Plat deutsch, or Nether Saxon, 
 which, being the parent dialect of our language, I esteem a great treasure." — Nob. 1791.] 
 
 \_" I work away in literary matters (at least from ten till one o'clock in the morning) 
 and amuse myself, but make no great progress. I shall be in possession of vast knowledge 
 in my own line, but know not when the world is to be the better for it. I am attentively 
 reading the Dutch Malayan translation of the Old and New Testaments, verse by verse, and 
 noting down every word that is not in common use (as they strike me) in the language ; but 
 this being the work of Europeans, I do not venture to adopt any term, or any unusual sense 
 of a term, unless I find it corroborated by the authority of native manuscripts, &c. 1792."] 
 
 f Q" I know I ought to have written you from Chester or from Wales, but I have often 
 
 M told 
 
82 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 North Wales in a new direction, we proceeded to visit most part of 
 South Wales. At Hafod, the rooms, I cannot say accommodation, of 
 the small inn being pre-occupied, we experienced the most genuine hos- 
 pitality from Mr. Johnes, at his romantic and beautiful seat. The end 
 of October again found me in London ; my revisiting town so frequently 
 
 told yon of the immense trouble that attends letter-writing on a journey. Scarcely could my 
 efforts produce a few memorandums of the day's occurrences, the intervals of exercise were 
 so completely filled up with eating and sleeping. We have made a very curious, and when 
 the season is considered, most extraordinary excursion. In the carriage we travelled one 
 thousand miles, and on horseback four hundred and fifty, in exactly six weeks ; during which 
 period, we never had eight-and-forty, and rarely four-and-twenty hours of fair weather. But 
 the intermissions of rain were generally clear in an uncommon degree, and we often exclaimed 
 that the views which this purifying of the atmosphere enabled us to enjoy, were cheaply pur- 
 chased with the inconvenience attending the showers, or torrents rather, to which we were 
 exposed. To these we were even, in a great degree, reconciled by habit. With all the mecha- 
 nical regularity of a troop of cavalry (but with better effect than has been the fate of the Prus- 
 sians), we cloaked at the approach of a threatening cloud. Mrs. M. had a complete covering of 
 oil-skin ; Mr. M. and I, hat-covers and aprons, which we generally found sufficient to pro- 
 tect us ; and when we did happen to get a little drenched, the situation afforded subject for 
 mirth. All our baggage, as usual, was compressed into one portmanteau, and thus provided, 
 we traversed all the most mountainous and least frequented tracks in Wales, intersecting the 
 line of our former route in all manner of angles. Our question used not to be, ' Is the road 
 good ?' but, ' Is it passable ?' ' Can we get from this town to that, in such a given number of 
 hours ?' Not being absolute knights-errant, we found it necessary to be very particular in regard 
 to our baits and halts. These, I may say, were all determined before we set off, and with so 
 much discretion and justness of calculation, that we scarcely ever had occasion to deviate from 
 them. In the whole route we were scarcely ever more than one day earlier or later than that 
 which we had marked, and yet omitted no one object that it was our intention to visit. Though 
 it be but a dry sort of communication, I must give you something like a list of the principal 
 places we visited, which you may, perhaps, be at the pains of tracing on the map : Hunting- 
 don, Peterborough, Newark, Lincoln, Gainsborough, Worksop, Wakefield, Pontefract, York 
 (observe, we visited the seats most worthy of attention, and ascended the towers of the cathe- 
 drals and most eminent churches for the sake of the prospect), Scarborough, Whitby, Stockton, 
 Durham, Newcastle, Alnwick, Hexham, and along the Roman Wall, which I traced for many 
 miles, again to Newcastle and Durham, Barnard Castle, Richmond, Askrig, Ripon, Har- 
 rowgate, Leeds, Halifax, Manchester, Chester, Holywell, St. Asaph. Must I, instead of 
 answering your letters, bore you with the remainder of our trip ? Denbigh, Ruthyn, Llan- 
 gollen, 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 83 
 
 at this period of the year being chiefly influenced by the meetings of the 
 Royal Society, from which I rarely absented myself. 
 
 In June 1793, I went to Oxford,* and attended in my place of Hono- 
 rary Doctor of Laws, at the installation of the Duke of Portland, as 
 Chancellor of the University. I had a very hot journey back early in 
 
 gollen, Corwen, Bala, Dolgelly, Barmouth, Dinasmouthy, Welsh Pool, Montgomery, New- 
 town, Llanydloes, Llangerick, across a ridge of mountains to Pentree Brunant and Mr. Johnes's 
 fine seat, where we were hospitably entertained ; and, by-the-bye, this was, I think, the only 
 instance of pure and genuine hospitality I ever experienced in my life. We were perfect 
 strangers to each other; but finding that the miserable inn could not accommodate us, I 
 wrote a line to him, which produced a patriarchal invitation to turn in unto him, and dry 
 our garments, and be comforted. He has a noble estate, about a dozen miles from Aberyst- 
 with, and is member for Radnorshire. Thence we crossed the country by Tregarron and 
 Lampeter to Llandilo. — 1 can scarcely write the names and refrain from expatiating on the 
 beauty of the scenes, across the mountains to Neath, and thence to Brecon, Hay, Builth, 
 Rhayadergowye, Llanydloes, Newtown, Llanvair, Llanvilling, Chirk, Llangollen, Wrex- 
 ham, and Chester. When two ways presented themselves, we always chose that which led 
 over the mountains, if practicable. You must recollect Dinas Bran ; we ascended it merely to 
 gratify vulgar opinion, having before looked down upon it from the mountains on each side. 
 We returned to town through Litchfield, Derby, Nottingham, Leicester, Northampton, Woo- 
 burn, and St. Albans — and are now snug in Gower-street, at your service. This reminds me 
 that 'tis time to go to bed. Adieu." — 30//; October 1792. ] 
 
 * [" On my return from Oxford I found your's of the 27th, and being at the time some- 
 what fatigued, with a ride of forty miles in extremely hot weather, I was the more fully 
 sensible of the merit of your exertion in walking twenty-two. But, in fact, it is the state of 
 the weather on which the degree of lassitude depends. I was roasted and stewed. Since my 
 return to town, however, it has been still hotter, the thermometer in the shade, on Sunday, 
 being at 89|°. 
 
 " I shall not attempt a description of what passed at Oxford, as you will find it in the 
 newspapers. Their ceremonies are very splendid, and, on this occasion, there was an extra- 
 ordinary assemblage of persons of rank, and fine women. My degree gave me an advan- 
 tageous and comfortable seat in the theatre, and procured me invitations to the public 
 dinners given by the Vice Chancellor, &c. My friends in the University have made me 
 promise that I will pay them another visit, at a period of less bustle, when I can enjoy their 
 society and rummage their libraries. In my way to town I made a little circuit, to avoid a 
 beaten track, and saw some of the intermediate parts of the country that were new to me. 
 
 M 2 To 
 
84 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 July, by Thame, Wendover, and Stanmore, the thermometer being at 89 £° 
 in the shade. In August I visited the Isle of Wight with some friends, 
 from whence we extended our excursion- to the West of England, as far 
 as the Land's End. A short visit in the autumn to Ireland concluded 
 my rambles for this year. 
 
 In the summer of 1794, I bent my steps to Cambridge, and after- 
 wards travelled to the north coast of Devon, as far as Hartland Point, 
 and then by Torrington across the country to Exeter, returning by Bris- 
 tol — the last excursion I was to make for some years. 
 
 My life, it will thus be seen, had passed in an even tenour, without 
 being diversified by any remarkable incidents during the space of four- 
 teen years that had elapsed since my return from Sumatra. I was in 
 the enjoyment of all the reasonable conveniences or comforts of life ; and 
 by strictly regulating my expenses within the limits of my income, now 
 amounting to a competence, was always at my ease with regard to pecu- 
 niary concerns : happy also in the society of my friends, both lettered 
 and unlettered, I had long ceased to indulge ambitious views, or even to 
 consider the attainment of any official situation as worth the trouble of 
 uncertain pursuit, or the restraint it would necessarily impose. In this 
 tranquil state of mind I found myself, when on the 19th February 1795, 
 at a late hour of the evening, I was surprised by a visit from my esti- 
 
 To trace the direction of hills and the courses of rivers, affords me great pleasure, and in 
 pursuit of this object I mean to take a ride before long, from about Sevenoaks in Kent to 
 Farnham in Surrey, following the line of a remarkable range of chalk hills, from which I 
 shall have some extensive and interesting prospects. But, for the present, it is my intention 
 to write very hard, that I may be in readiness for the press next winter. The University of 
 Oxfoid have offered me their matrices to cast a new fount of Arabic and Malay types ; but I 
 am in hopes of prevailing on my friend Wilkins to plan a new letter, which I have reason to 
 expect will be much more handsome and complete, and render the University's offer unne- 
 cessary."— 9th July 1793.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 85 
 
 mable friend, Major Rennell, who came to me by desire of Earl Spencer 
 (then lately induced from a sense of duty to his country at a momen- 
 tous crisis, to strengthen the hands of the existing government) with a 
 proposal for my acceptance of the situation of Second Secretary of the 
 Admiralty.* 
 
 For the favourable opinion his Lordship must have been led to enter- 
 tain of me (our previous acquaintance having been very slight) I was 
 indebted to the kind representations of my zealous friend ; but however 
 flattered by the compliment, I felt little disposition to undertake the 
 official duties, and thus make a sacrifice of my quiet independence. 
 Accordingly, on the morning of the 20th, I wrote my excuses in the 
 civilest terms ; assuring my friend, that if any consideration could have 
 induced me to change a plan of life that habit had connected with my 
 happiness, it would be that of acting under the auspices of a nobleman 
 whose estimable qualities I had been used to contemplate with the 
 highest respect. 
 
 Upon conversing, however, on the subject, with a few of my intimate 
 friends, I found them strenuous in their expressions of regret that I had 
 not accepted Lord Spencer's offer, which had naturally an influence on 
 my own sentiments, and occasioned some misgivings as to the propriety 
 
 * Upon this occasion the old King, who had an extensive and accurate knowledge of the 
 individual concerns of his subjects, observed that " Sir Joseph Banks would now miss his 
 friend Marsden at his philosophical breakfasts." With respect to these meetings, I may here 
 repeat that they long proved to me the most interesting and satisfactory of any scientific assem- 
 blages I have ever attended, and were kept up with great efficiency so long as Sir Joseph's 
 health lasted; but with that they unavoidably declined, until at length the table, which 
 to the end of his days was amply furnished with materials for breakfast of the best quality, 
 became entirely deserted. The Sunday evening conversaziones of Soho Square had much 
 celebrity, at a later period. 
 
86 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 of the course I had adopted. Having reason also to believe that no 
 further steps had in the mean time been taken at Spencer House, 
 for filling the office, I was induced to state to Major Rennell, that in 
 case it should be thought my humble services would be still acceptable, 
 I could not justify myself to myself in refusing any longer making the 
 tender of them. 
 
 I was informed next day that my accpiiescence had given much satis- 
 faction. An arrangement was accordingly made for breakfasting with 
 his Lordship on the 1st March. My appointment bore date on the 3d 
 of that month, and on the 6th I officiated in the Board Room. 
 
 Whatever fruits my acceptance of this situation may have produced to 
 me in other respects, and it would be disingenuous not to speak of them 
 as being highly advantageous, I shall never cease to value as one of the 
 most important acquisitions of my life the friendship of Lord Spencer, 
 a nobleman, distinguished no less for his honourable, disinterested 
 public principles, the talents shewn in exercising the functions of his 
 high department, and unremitted attention to its duties, than for his 
 amiable disposition, unaffected manners, singleness of heart, as well as 
 every virtue that adorns domestic character. For Lady Spencer's early 
 and long kindness I must ever feel gratitude and pride. My situation, 
 also, led me to the acquaintance and friendship of many most excellent 
 persons who successively constituted the Board of Admiralty and others 
 connected with it, as well as distinguished officers of the navy and state 
 departments, with whom public business brought me in contact. All of 
 this was attended with much social intercourse, and contributed to soften 
 the rigours of official confinement. But the events of such a life cannot 
 be supposed to furnish subject for much variety of recital, beyond the 
 detail of naval operations ; and if it should be expected that in imitation 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 37 
 
 of my celebrated precursor (Mr. Secretary Pepys) I should be in the 
 habit of making notes of every transaction, political or professional, with 
 which I happened to be more or less directly connected, in order to 
 gratify the inquisitiveness of subsequent times, the reader of these 
 memoirs (if any such there be) will find themselves entirely disappointed. 
 I should have regarded the practice as an unworthy breach of confi- 
 dence. 
 
 Not being in Parliament, my situation at the Admiralty required only 
 a close attention to the duties of my own department ; and acting upon 
 this principle, without finding it necessary to interfere in questions of 
 party-politics, I carried on the business to the satisfaction and with the 
 entire confidence of successive administrations ; at the same time that 
 my strong personal attachment to my friend Lord Spencer was perfectly 
 understood. 
 
 Soon after my appointment to office, I sold my house in Upper Gower 
 Street, Bedford Square (to which neighbourhood my intimacy with Sir 
 Joseph Banks and other fellows of the Royal Society had hitherto 
 restricted me) and now to be conveniently near to the business of the 
 Admiralty, I purchased the lease of a house in New Street, Spring Gar- 
 dens, to which I removed in 1796,* and which I continued to occupy 
 until I became First Secretary. 
 
 The first official intelligence of an important warlike nature, after my 
 connexion with the Admiralty, was that of Admiral Cornwallis's mas- 
 terly retreat, with five sail of the line and frigates, off the Pen, on the 
 16th June 1795. Lord Howe's victory of the 1st June 1794, had pre- 
 
 * In this year a paper that I had drawn up and forwarded to the Asiatic Society of Cal- 
 cutta, " On the Traces of the Hindoo Language and Literature extant amongst the Malays," 
 was printed in the fourth volume of its Researches. 
 
88 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 ceded Lord Spencer's administration, which bore date from the 20th 
 Dec. of that year. On the 23d June 1796, Lord Bridport cut off and 
 captured three sail of the French line, close in with the land of Port 
 1'Orient, having, however, a superior force of fourteen to twelve ships.* 
 On the 14th February 1797, Sir John Jervis (afterwards Earl of St. 
 Vincent) with a fleet of fifteen sail, captured four sail of the Spanish line 
 (two of them of 112 guns) from a fleet of twenty-five sail, off Cape St. 
 Vincent, in which action Commodore Nelson particularly distinguished 
 himself. 
 
 On the 17th April 1797, in consequence of the breaking out of a mutiny 
 in the Channel fleet, I set off for Portsmouth, at three o'clock in the 
 afternoon, in the company of Earl Spencer and a Board of Admiralty, 
 and remained there till the evening of the 21st, when, travelling all 
 night, we reached town before nine the next morning. The First Lord 
 of the Admiralty being on the spot, there was no official report of the 
 proceedings of the Board, or state of the mutiny, transmitted to the 
 Admiralty. I wrote, however, a private letter to my colleague, Mr. 
 Nepean, which, in default of a better document, was forwarded to the 
 King, for his information on a subject so interesting. 
 
 I feel myself justified in remarking on what passed on this occasion, 
 knowing, as I had opportunities of doing, the general sentiments of the 
 navy, that the grievances complained of would have been redressed, upon 
 proper and respectful application to the Board of Admiralty, so far as 
 
 * [" These are busy times in our way ; but the points that occupy attention are not such 
 as it would be discreet to discuss in a letter. The facts you know pretty well as I do. You 
 are mistaken if you suppose that my printing business is entirely neglected ; on the contrary, 
 it has been going on regularly, though slowly, and my catalogue is within a sheet of being 
 completed. You ask me why I do not print more than sixty copies ? It is because I mean 
 only to give them away, and that number is sufficient." — August 1796.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. Q9 
 
 respected the abuses, and to the Legislature for an increase of pay : for 
 certain it is, that no disinclination to attend to the comforts either of 
 army or navy has been shewn in modern times ; nor can it be supposed 
 that the officers, who were the immediate object of the vindictive spirit 
 of the mutineers, could have any interest distinct from that of the men.* 
 There are few instances upon record of an insurrection so little admit- 
 ting of defence or palliation, or of one so well planned or so exten- 
 sive in its effects. The minds of men of all classes and descriptions 
 had been more or less affected by the principles and success of the 
 French revolution, where the paramount efficiency of physical force was 
 exemplified, and encouragement given, at the same time, to the adven- 
 turous exercise of talent ; and although there is no good reason to pre- 
 sume that there was any direct attempt on the part of the French Govern- 
 ment to excite mutiny in our fleets, yet the leaven of insubordination set 
 to work in that country had insensibly spread, the ideas of what are 
 termed natural rights were disseminated in numerous cheap or gratui- 
 tous publications, the discussion of bold opinions became fashionable in 
 public-houses, and our honest and open-hearted seamen were seized 
 with the contagion; whilst, on the other hand, it is obvious that, from 
 
 * [" I mentioned to you that Colpoy's life had been threatened. He told them repeatedly 
 they were welcome to take it, if it would satisfy them ; but begged them, for God's sake, to 
 spare their country. — 10//; May.~] 
 
 Q" Colpoys and his captain were landed yesterday morning ; his conduct has been very 
 manly, and I hope the letters written whilst he was under coercion may be published. "- 
 12th May 1797.] 
 
 fj" You find that our opposition phalanx does not gain ground — or numbers, at least. Pitt 
 is certainly an extraordinary fellow, to make such a stand as he does, under such complicated 
 difficulties ; he has braved prosperity and adversity .... I have had a severe cold for some 
 days, with a slight degree of fever ; not such as to confine me, but to make me very heavy 
 and languid. I believe it is what they term the influenza." — 17//t May 1797.] 
 
yO MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 their peculiar nature as a floating body, they are less open to coercion 
 when turned against the state, than any other species of force: for 
 whatever temporary havoc a disorganized army might effect, it must 
 ultimately be reduced to submission or destroyed by the energy of the 
 country at large ; but not so a mutinous fleet. The line of policy, how- 
 ever, adopted by our prudent naval administration, in this delicate crisis, 
 was not to drive to desperation by any direct act or show of hostility, 
 those who wielded such formidable engines of mischief; and the wisdom 
 of this was evinced by the order and discipline that were gradually, but 
 effectually restored within a moderate time. 
 
 Scarcely, however, had this amicable adjustment of differences taken 
 place, when our attention was called to a scene of the same nature, but 
 more serious aspect. The mutinous spirit having extended to the North 
 Sea fleet, I again accompanied Earl Spencer and the Board to the scene 
 of disturbance. We set out late in the evening of the 27th May, and 
 arrived next day at Sheerness, where we found the fleet in an utter state 
 of insubordination ; the boats' crews landing at pleasure — but we will 
 draw a veil over the disgraceful events of this period, and revert to a 
 more cheering subject of recollection in the splendid victory obtained 
 by Admiral (Lord) Duncan, on the 11th October following, off Camper- 
 down, when eight or nine ships were taken, including those of the 
 Admiral and Vice-admiral — the force on each side being nearly equal. 
 
 His Majesty having expressed his intention to proceed to the Nore, 
 attended by the First Lord and a Board of Admiralty, in order to review 
 the North Sea fleet, and to inspect the state of the ships that suffered in 
 the recent action, we were directed to assemble at the apartments of the 
 Governor of Greenwich Hospital (Lord Hood's), on the 30th October 
 1797, and after breakfast embarked in the royal yachts. The wind, 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 91 
 
 however, proving contrary and blowing fresh, we advanced the first night 
 no farther than Barking Reach, nor on the second than the Lower Hope, 
 when the easterly gale freshening, without any prospect of change, the 
 attempt was given up, the vessels returned, and we relanded at Green- 
 wich on the 1st November. 
 
 On the 7th of that month I was present at a dinner given by Lord 
 Spencer to the hero of Camperdown and his distinguished prisoners ;* 
 on which occasion Admiral de Winter conducted himself, under delicate 
 circumstances, with much politeness and good humour. The conver- 
 sation, in which Lady Spencer took an active share, was animated and 
 interesting, and as the relative situation of the parties required, the 
 bravery of the vanquished was the prevailing theme of applause. 
 
 This year concluded by His Majesty going to St. Paul's to return 
 thanks for the splendid naval victories by which it was signalized.t 
 
 * By this I was reminded, that in the year 1782 I had seen Lord Rodney's prisoner, 
 the Comte de Grasse, on the Royal Exchange of London. 
 
 f [" I am this moment returned from St. Paul's, and find your's of yesterday from Coles- 
 hill. I have the satisfaction to acquaint you that every thing has gone off in the most 
 perfect and satisfactory manner — the day as fine as ever shone from the heavens — the people 
 all perfectly loyal to the King, and civil to Mr. Pitt — indeed the latter was applauded from 
 all the windows as he came along, and very loudly as he walked up the church : the cere- 
 mony was very imposant ; and the naval part was executed in an officer-like manner. I 
 accompanied Lady Spencer and other ladies in the Admiralty Barge. We set out late, and 
 reached the church early — our seat was the best possible, very near the King and Queen, 
 and exactly opposite the row of Princesses. From this situation I took a walk to the body 
 of the church, under the dome, where the arrangement and consequently the sight was very 
 fine. At breaking up we stood on the top of the great flight of steps, and saw the Royal 
 Family, &c. &c. &c. take their departure — Ludgate Hill, as far as you could see, lined with 
 soldiers, the area filled with horse, and every window, as well as the top of every house, 
 crowded with people. I stood above half-an-hour in the air without my hat, and I did not 
 perceive it to be cold— it was like a fine spring day. I came out of the church with Lord 
 Duncan, and persuaded him to take a seat in our barge— by this means I was in a curious 
 situation in getting to the water-side, as the populace got scent of his Lordship, and cheered 
 
 N 2 us 
 
92 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Dispatches were received at the Admiralty in October 1798, giving an 
 account of the memorable battle and victory of the Nile, fought near the 
 mouths of that river on the 1st August, under the command of Sir 
 Horatio (Lord) Nelson, with a fleet of thirteen ships of seventy-four guns 
 and one of fifty ; in which nine French ships of the line were taken and 
 two burnt, including the Admiral's ship of one hundred and twenty 
 guns, only two of a fleet of thirteen sail having escaped in the first 
 instance, but which were subsequently captured in single actions. 
 
 On the 26th February 1799,* I had the honour of being chosen (under 
 
 us all the way, making a circle round, as we advanced, of a few feet radius — " God bless 
 you, my Lord ! Long life to you ! That's your sort ; there 's he that knows how to do them 
 up" — and some offered to go to sea with him. It was a high scene, and very pleasant, for 
 even the better sort of people were enthusiastic in their congratulations." — 19//i December 
 1797.] 
 
 * r_" I have to tell you I had yesterday the honour of being elected a Member of the Literary 
 Club, to which Dr. Johnson, Goldsmith, Burke, &c. belonged. Lord S. tells me there were 
 thirteen members present, and, of course, no black ball, as one excludes — Canning filled up 
 the other vacancy. My election is a mark of respect to Lord Spencer, who proposed me. 
 We dine at the Thatched House, St. James's Street. We are to have our Oriental party at 
 Lord Spencer's to-day. — Rennell takes Wilkins in his hand, and I take Mr. Carlisle, a pro- 
 fessor of Arabic at Cambridge, and who published some very pretty specimens of Arabian 
 poetry."— February 27th 1799.] 
 
 The Editor has not scrupled to introduce in these notes extracts from Mr. Marsden's letters 
 relating to events of various interest, which occurred particularly about this period, though 
 unnoticed in the text. 
 
 [ " I must leave you to form your own judgment on last night's debates, which I have not 
 had time to read through. Our numbers were 140 to 15. Pitt's is certainly a very tem- 
 perate, conciliating speech ; its effects time must shew. We have a despatch to-day from 
 Lord St. Vincent, enclosing letters from Nelson so late as the 3d January, giving an account 
 of the evacuation of Naples, and the landing of the King and Queen in Sicily. Nelson has 
 added a page to his history which will do him credit, having shewn extraordinary good 
 management, and his usual personal courage through the whole of it. There were consider- 
 able tumults in the city ; and it was proposed to the mob, that they should prevent the royal 
 family from embarking, and seize the English officers as hostages. Nelson was the last man 
 in the palace, and carried them off in his own boat. He brought all the Neapolitan ships out 
 
 of 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 9;} 
 
 the recommendation of Earl Spencer, on the same day with Mr. fan- 
 ning) a member of the celebrated club that was instituted by Sir Joshua 
 Reynolds and Dr. Samuel Johnson. To this club the founders did not 
 esteem it necessary to give a specific name, terming it, amongst them- 
 selves, simply The Club; and as such it is uniformly spoken of in the 
 published correspondence of the latter ; but Boswell, in his Life, says : 
 " Soon after his (Johnsons) return to London, which was in February 
 (1764), was founded that club which existed long without a name, but 
 at Mr. Garrick's funeral (1779) became distinguished by the title of the 
 
 of the harbour into the road, took two with him, and left instructions for burning the remain- 
 der, which was executed." — 1st. Feb. 1799.] 
 
 ['< Lord Spencer came into the room half-an-hour ago, with his blue riband over his 
 shoulder, and received our congratulations. No honours have ever been conferred more 
 entirely with the approbation of the public, and it is fortunate they can reward great ser- 
 vices so cheaply. We had as pleasant a day at the London Tavern as a great crowd would 
 allow. Mr. Pitt and Mr. Dundas were of the party, About £500 was collected. 1 sat just 
 opposite to them at the cross table. We were late at the Admiralty, but our friends managed 
 to sit closer, and make room for us. We have glorious weather, and it is a sin to remain 
 within doors ; I can only take the evening air." — 1st March 1799.] 
 
 Q" We have made a discovery in geography- A boat from Port Jackson has ascertained 
 that in lat. 39° S. there is a wide strait, which divides the part called Van Diemen's Land 
 from the continent of New Holland. From a cape in that latitude, the officer steered sixty 
 miles in a WNW. course, with a great swell from the westward. He found there a fine bay ; 
 but his provisions running short, he returned." — September 1799.] 
 
 [_" Dear Father : I have the satisfaction to enclose you a Gazette, containing news of great 
 importance to this country, and which will enable us to act with more power and effect against 
 our natural enemy. A second Gazette Extraordinary will follow, this evening, with an 
 account of the surrender of Admiral Storey, and all the Dutch fleet, at the Texel. He said, in 
 a sullen way, that he was forced to the measure by the disaffection of his own people, and 
 desired he and his officers might be considered and treated as prisoners of war. Many of the 
 Batavian land troops have assumed the Orange cockade, and affairs in that quarter wear the 
 best possible aspect. I have not time to enter into further particulars, but they will find 
 their way into the newspapers. The inhabitants of the villages were all rejoiced to see our 
 people, and hailed them as deliverers. 
 
 " The weather till of late has been very unfavourable, but it is now remarkably fine ; and 
 
 I hope 
 
94 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 ' Literary Club.' " No resolution, however, to that effect appears on its 
 records, and it is remarkable that the epithet itself (the word ' literary') 
 is not to be found in the early editions of the great lexicographer's 
 work; yet it appears to have been subsequently applied, on the strength 
 of Boswell's authority, and to have continued until the title was assumed 
 by a modern association of literati (now, I believe, no longer subsisting), 
 when the custom obtained of designating ours, emphatically, as ' the 
 club.' Its meetings, composed as they were, and are, of men of all ranks 
 and all professions, selected (without application on their part) for their 
 talents and sociable qualities, where all topics of conversation con- 
 nected with party politics are excluded, and every other that can excite 
 unpleasant feelings discouraged, have ever proved to me a high source 
 
 I hope the harvest will be all saved. We are more backward than ever was known. I 
 have a letter to-day on the subject from Sir Joseph Banks, who is in Lincolnshire, and 
 says he has no recollection of such a season. Last winter's frost seems to have pervaded 
 all Nature. With best love and duty to my dear mother, and love to my sisters, I am, dear 
 father, your most affectionate and dutiful son, Wm. Marsden." — 3d September 1799.] 
 
 [" It is intensely cold ; and not only all channels of intelligence, but all our ideas are frozen 
 up, and I have nothing to communicate to you." — 20th September 1799.] 
 
 £" Our domestic news is, that it is not so cold to-day as it was yesterday — and that Lady 
 Spencer is safely delivered of a son. I am very glad it is so well over with her. We shall 
 miss her to-day at dinner." — 21s/ December 1799.] 
 
 [" Mem. Mr. Cavendish's thermometer, at Clapham, was down at 22° during the night of 
 the 3d of April 1799, and the water in Wimbledon Park nearly frozen over."] 
 
 £" As to my furlough, I thank you very sincerely, but I could as soon fly. (This puts me 
 in mind that Crisp has sent me a ' Treatise on Flying,' not, however, the flight of men but 
 of birds.) I would give you fifty reasons why it is impossible. Nepean could not do my 
 business in addition to his own, without undertaking more than it would be practicable for 
 him to go through — and if neglected (even the drudgery parts, such as the reclamations 
 about impressed men), it would cause great confusion and clamour. As the machine now 
 goes on, nothing that can be answered is left one day unanswered, and this regularity alone 
 renders it possible to go through with the business. Wait till Bonaparte solicits a peace, 
 and then I shall talk to you about travelling." — 27//; December 1799.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. £)5 
 
 of intellectual gratification, and I here express, with great sincerity, the 
 wish contained in our single toast, of ' esto perpetua ! ' 
 
 One salutary effect produced by this club, comprizing as it does 
 amongst its members the most eminent statesmen of the day, is its ten- 
 dency to smooth down the asperities of political contention. After 
 scenes of the most hostile character in the Houses of Parliament, they 
 were accustomed to lay their animosities aside, and to exhibit more gen- 
 tlemanly, if not kinder feelings when assembled in St. James's Street. 
 
 Opportunities for observing this used frequently to occur during tin 
 administration of Mr. Pitt, when Mr. Fox, Mr. Canning, and others 
 used to pair off, in order to dine and forget politics at the Club.* On 
 one occasion, during the Liverpool administration, we smiled at observ- 
 ing his Lordship, Lord Lansdowne, Lord Aberdeen, and Lord Holland 
 arrive from the House in the same carriage. Of this Minister it should 
 be noticed, that from the time of his election (at the same meeting 
 with Mr. Charles Butler, the eminent Catholic conveyancer), to the 
 period of his last illness, he was one of our most constant attendants 
 and not unfrequently withdrew from a long-winded parliamentary 
 debate, to pass a couple of hours of more social intercourse. Once, 
 indeed, it happened, that (as our numbers fluctuate considerably), the 
 Premier sat down to dinner solus. I am at the same time compelled to 
 remark, and I do it with regret, that during a late long sessions the 
 same liberality of feeling did not prevail between the contending par- 
 
 * [" I met yesterday, at the Literary Club, almost all the principal political characters, 
 excepting Mr. P., including Fox, Windham, G. Canning, Lord Spencer, T. Grenville, Lord 
 Macartney, Sir W. Scott, the Master of the Rolls, &c." — \6th January.^ 
 
 [" At dinner yesterday we had Fox, Windham, Lord Spencer, Dr. Lnwrence, Sir William 
 Grant, Sir William Scott, Canning, Frere, and some others. Our conversation was entirely 
 literary, and very pleasant." — 10//; April 1805.] 
 
96 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 ties ; and the statesmen on both sides, with some of their partizans, 
 seemed to avoid the rencontre. The meetings, notwithstanding (by 
 the respectable aid of two learned and sociable prelates), were of the 
 most satisfactory description. The losses by death, about this period, 
 of such men as Sir William Grant, Sir James Mackintosh, Sir Humphry 
 Davy, Dr. Wollaston, Mr. Butler, Sir Thomas Lawrence, and Dr. 
 Thomas Young, were severely felt. The name of Sir Walter Scott 
 might well claim a place in this list, but circumstances had not admitted 
 of the Club's enjoying much of his society.* 
 
 * On the death of Lord Stowell, in January 1836, Mr. Marsden became its senior member, 
 his friend, Lord Spencer, to whom he was indebted for his introduction to a society whicli 
 had afforded him so much rational enjoyment, having died in November 1834. — e. 
 
 Mr. Marsden was amongst the earliest proprietors of the Royal Institution, and assisted 
 materially in its formation: — 
 
 [" I passed an hour this morning at our Royal Institution, about which you know little 
 and care less ; but hereafter you will be astonished at our operations." — February.'^ 
 
 Q" All the town, and particularly the ladies of it, are enragecs at the Institution. It is, unfor- 
 tunately, become fashionable ; and, I imagine, in the course of next week there will be sub- 
 scribers enough to fill our Lecture Rooms twice over. Instead of operas and balls, you hear 
 nothing talked of but nitrous gases, and oxygen and muriatic acids." — March 1800.] 
 
 [_" A circumstance has taken place this morning that makes much noise — more perhaps 
 than it merits. At a review of the Guards in Hyde Park, a person was shot who stood at 
 no great distance from the King — a clerk in the Navy Off ce. The ball pierced his thigh, 
 then went through the coat of a Frenchman, and spent itself against the breast of a bov, 
 without doing him any harm. The public opinion, of course, is that it was intended for His 
 Majesty ; but those who were on the spot believe it to be an accident." — 15//; May.~] 
 
 [" I little thought, when I wrote you of the transaction in the Park, it was within an 
 hour of a second and more serious alarm. The particulars of the risk our good King ran 
 yesterday, you will have in all the newspapers. There has been a prodigious levee. His 
 Majesty was in excellent spirits, related many curious particulars observed by him, and made 
 many ingenious remarks on the circumstances. He expressed himself pleased in the highest 
 degree at the propriety, as well as the loyalty, of conduct displayed by the audience. Among 
 other incidents, the King remarked, that when they were told from the stage that the man 
 was secured, they were still clamorous for having him produced ; but as soon as it was 
 reported that he was in safe custody, not a word more was said ; this implying that the law 
 
 was 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 97 
 
 From the commencement of the year 1800, my official emoluments, 
 which had hitherto arisen chiefly from fees, were (to my great satisfac- 
 tion), by an Order of Council, commuted for a fixed salary of £2,000 
 per annum during the continuance of war, and £1,500 in time of peace ; 
 as those of the First Secretary, for £4,000 and £3,000.* 
 
 In February 1801, an entire change of the administration took place, 
 by which my feelings in regard to my official situation were materially 
 affected, as it deprived me of the satisfaction of acting under my noble 
 friend, Lord Spencer, as well as the members of the Board generally, 
 with whom I had long been on a footing of cordial intimacy. t It may, 
 
 was taking its regular course. The King's behaviour was incomparable. I was at the Royal 
 Society when the people came running in to tell us what had happened. We thought them 
 imposed upon by a foolish echo of the morning story; and it is certainly out of all calculation 
 that two such occurrences should happen in the course of the same day. The idea of inten- 
 tion in the former is, I believe, given up. The King very manfully stood five vollies after 
 the accident took place. When it was proposed to send the Princesses away, he said, ' I 
 will not have one of them stir for the world.' " — I6I/1 May 1800.] 
 
 [" All the world is at the drawing-room, as they were yesterday at the levee. I am told 
 it was a very fine and impressive sight, to see the King receiving the addresses on his throne, 
 with two of his sons standing on each side of him. The sentiment mixes not a little with the 
 imposing circumstances of the scene." — 22rf May 1800.] 
 
 * [" There is a plan going on for new regulating our office, in regard to salaries, fees, &c. 
 I make it a point not to trouble myself with the detail of it, till the whole shall be arranged. 
 I really should not be sorry for any turn of circumstances which would allow me, creditably 
 and honourably, to retire to a private station. I have, however, no one cause to put me out of 
 humour with the office or the worthy people about me ; but I am sure that my continuance 
 here will shorten my life, and the interval is not passed in a way so congenial to my feelings, 
 as my old habits."— 11 th March 1799.] 
 
 [" Nothing has occurred since I wrote to you, and you will think the times not very busy, 
 when I tell you that I have just been with Lord and Lady Spencer, Admiral Young, and 
 other distinguished personages, to hear Colonel O'Kelly's parrot talk and sing. I shall not 
 repeat to you all he said, but only mention that he sang two or three verses of half a dozen 
 songs, very much in the style of an old country clerk, with spectacles." — 20//; May 1800.] 
 
 \ [_" Lord Spencer returned to town yesterday morning, and dined with the Prince of 
 Wales. To-day we all dine with his Lordship ; our Board is like one family. Business may, 
 
 O '» 
 
98 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 perhaps, have been thought by some, that it was my political duty to 
 have retired along with my principal ; but not only was such a step 
 considered as uncalled-for by my colleague, the First Secretary, Mr. 
 Nepean, who had received his appointment from Mr. Pitt, now also an 
 ex-minister, but I was particularly influenced to remain at my post by 
 the opinion and advice of Lord Spencer, who, in a friendly conversation, 
 urged me not to think of making the gratuitous sacrifice of a good 
 appointment, in favour of persons with whom I was unacquainted, and 
 who would give me no thanks for the vacancy. " It was enough," he 
 added, " for Ministers to feel themselves bound to the expediency of 
 holding or resigning office, by certain political considerations,* with 
 which officers of the second class had really no concern. It was our 
 duty," he said, " to carry on the public business with as little injury or 
 interruption as possible from the change of principals ; and we should 
 let them who come into power be responsible for the removal or reten- 
 tion of efficient persons belonging to the establishment." I followed 
 liis Lordship's kind and prudential recommendation, and a few days 
 after was introduced to his successor, the Earl of St. Vincent, by whom 
 I was graciously received ; and who, during the course of his naval 
 administration, behaved to me with uniform attention and politeness. t 
 I may here take occasion to observe, that my turn of mind has never 
 
 in former times, have been conducted as well in the Admiralty department, but certainly 
 never so pleasantly or so smoothly." — 2d Ju?ie 1800.] 
 
 * The point on which the ministry of that day tendered a resignation (unexpectedly 
 accepted), was the admission of Catholics to hold commissions in the army and navy ; which 
 was afterwards allowed to pass, without any serious opposition. 
 
 f My colleague, Nepean, could not say the same, although he had been an old con- 
 nexion (follower, as the naval term is) of Sir John Jervis, and had taken a zealous part with 
 the Minister in negociating for him the rank of ' Earl.' instead of ' Viscount/ as was 
 intended, after his victory of the 14th February. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 99 
 
 been that of a party man.* I am wanting in that ardent zeal, generally 
 so recommendable in a political adherent, but which serves to blind the 
 intellect, and leads us implicitly to believe that every thing done or 
 proposed by one set of men is right, and that all the measures of their 
 opponents must be absurd, if not corrupt and profligate. My dispo- 
 
 * [" I believe I am as little interested in the success of either party as any one can be, and 
 yet I feel a lively interest in all that passes. I wish I could send you two Morning Chroni- 
 cles now lying beside me, containing Pitt's and Fox's speeches on the day of principal 
 debate. They are given in a masterly style; and it is said an edition of 100,000 of the 
 former was printed o(T to be distributed in the country. Woodfall being a party man, did 
 not give Fox's reply till five days after the other. As to my opinions in the matters which 
 you desire, they can add nothing to your information derived from the speeches of the 
 parties. I have not entered into one debate on the subject ; but have read, and listened, 
 and asked questions, with a view to assist my judgment "— 23rf Dec. 1788.] 
 
 [" We had a very good party yesterday at Mr. Hope's ; amongst others, Mirza Abu Talib, 
 the Persian (whom I am to meet at Lord S.'s on Saturday), Mr. Hastings, my friend 
 Wilkins, and other orientals. His collection of pictures is very fine." — 2Qth May 1800.] 
 
 f_" We have been settling the Union flag, and have ordered one to be made, which is to be 
 hoisted on Wednesday, on St. Margaret's (Westminster) Church, when the King gives his 
 assent to the bill. I will send you a drawing of it to-morrow. Few will distinguish it from 
 the old flag, which is so much the better." — 1*/ July 1800.] 
 
 f_" It is resolved that the title of King of France is to be dropped in the new imperial style. 
 What will the ghost of Harry the Fifth say to this ? We have lived to see things no ghost 
 ever dreamt of." — July 2d, 1800.] 
 
 f_" I concluded my letter to you yesterday in a great hurry, after having idled three or four 
 hours at a breakfast given by the Duchess of Devonshire at Chiswick. It was by much the 
 prettiest thing of this kind I have ever seen. I left Lady Georgiana Gordon, and many 
 other smart ladies, dancing on the sod, at about six o'clock, and just reached town in time to 
 save the post. Windham and I were the only two who sported cocked hats. Lord Spencer 
 said the admiration of the company was divided between these and the turban of Abu 
 Talib, the Persian. This latter is an extraordinary good kind of intelligent fellow, who 
 is perfectly at his ease everywhere, and has something to say to every body and upon every 
 occasion."— 6th July 1800.] 
 
 [" I sat in the board-room with Lord S., after his return from Wimbledon, till eleven 
 o'clock. Admiral Young dropped in, and I remarked that it was the only public board 
 whose members were so employed at that hour. Our armed associations, however, have the 
 merit of more active service. They have been up for some nights." — 17 tk September 1800.] 
 
 o2 
 
100 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 sition leads me, and I certainly endeavour, to form my opinions on 
 public transactions upon what appear to me their specific merits or 
 demerits, without reference to the individuals with whom they originate; 
 in which, however, with all the consideration I can bestow, I often find 
 that I am mistaken. This sort of impartiality, I am well aware, it would 
 be difficult or impossible to maintain in active political life ; but fortu- 
 nately the situation of a Secretary of the Admiralty did not require, as 
 I have before observed, my interfering in questions of party politics. 
 
 On the 9th May 1801, I lost my venerable father, in the eighty- 
 seventh year of his age. It has been a heartfelt satisfaction to me to 
 reflect that the prosperity attending the life of myself (long his eldest 
 son), as well as that of my brother Alexander, then Under Secretary for 
 the Civil Department in Ireland, was a source of comfort and pride of 
 his declining years. 
 
 This year, 1802, was marked by the signing, at Amiens, of a treaty of 
 peace with the ruler of France — hollow in its principle as well as short 
 in its duration : and I had occasion to witness, from the Admiralty 
 Office, with no small indignation, the disgraceful scene of the bearer of 
 the French dispatch being drawn in triumph, by an English rabble, 
 about the parade at the Horse Guards. 
 
 The short interval of peace, however, afforded me the opportunity, 
 long wished for, of visiting once more the remnant of my family in Ire- 
 land, and accordingly, with the sanction of the Board, I left town on the 
 •23d July,* and reached Dublin the 29th, where I had resided not many 
 
 * [" I am booted — or rather half-booted — and step into the carriage as soon as Nepean 
 returns from the late Col. Barre's, where his executorship calls him. To the last moment I 
 have entertained apprehensions of being stopped, and shall not be sure till I am actually off — 
 of which the receipt of this will be sufficient evidence to you — though they may catch me at 
 Shrewsbury or Holyhead."— 23d July 1802.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 101 
 
 days when it was intimated to me that my sen ices were wanted tu 
 accompany the Earl of St. Vincent and some of the Board of Admiralty 
 on a visitation of all the royal dock-yards. In consequence of which I 
 returned to London on the 17th August,* and on the -20th our official 
 journey commenced. 
 
 In the first instance we proceeded to Weymouth, in order to pay our 
 duty to the King, and at that place passed the following Sunday in con- 
 
 * [" Here I am, just arrived, and quite proud to have effected my journey by the new 
 road, in spite of a hundred assurances of its being impossible. At Bangor, where I break- 
 fasted, Mrs. Jackson told me she would furnish me with a chaise to Capel Cerig, if I desired 
 it, but I should then be left in the midst of the mountains. I resolved, however, to take my 
 chance. Approaching Capel Cerig, I was astonished to see the neatest inn, I believe, in Great 
 Britain, and found every thing in it extremely comfortable. The landlord readily furnished 
 me with a poney and a car for my trunk. You would have smiled to see me leading the 
 van, and my servant driving the baggage waggon in the rear. We got on very well, and I 
 do not find myself at all fatigued. I perfectly understand the line of country, and perceive 
 the great advantage this road will be to Irish travellers. At present, however, it is in a very 
 imperfect state, but they are working hard at it; my landlord said from 250 to 300 men. 
 Next year he intends to keep chaises, and in two years he expects the work will be completed. 
 The worst part, I think, is soon after passing the slate quarries, and by the side of Ogwen 
 Pool. Thereabout, the new road is to take a line different from the present. The good that 
 Lord Penryn is doing to the country is inestimable ; and, upon the whole, I am delighted 
 with my day's performance. When I came upon deck yesterday morning, I could see the 
 Wicklow mountains, those of the county of Down, the Isle of Man, Holyhead, and Snowdon, 
 with the rest of the Caernarvon mountains. Never was there finer weather ; and in all my 
 journies I never saw those mountains so clear as they have been these two days. Pray, make 
 my apologies to the Chancellor for omitting to take leave. Your health, with that of the 
 family." — Certiioge, Aug. 14.] 
 
 [" After leaving Shrewsbury, I proceeded by the Iron Bridge and slept at Bridgenorth. 
 The roads thither, and on to Kidderminster and Worcester, are such that you get on at the 
 rate of three miles and a half per hour. I tell you this for your guidance, as it is your route 
 to Cheltenham. I reached town yesterday (Tuesday). The visitation party intend setting out 
 on Friday evening, the 20th, and sleeping at Hartford Bridge. I have been marshalling the 
 procession and making the necessary arrangements, which leaves me but little time for looking 
 about me."— 18th August 1802.] 
 
102 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 stant attendance on his Majesty. After an early breakfast we met him, 
 by command, on the Esplanade, where I was introduced in a less formal 
 manner than at St. James's. We then attended him to church, and were 
 seated in the adjoining pew. Again we walked on the Parade till near 
 dinner-time. In the evening we attended the Parade once more, when 
 the troops were drawn out and military music performed. After which we 
 followed their Majesties to the public (Stacy's) rooms — thus concluding 
 a most courtly and rather fatiguing day. In the course of conversation 
 the King asked my opinion as to the cause of the foulness so generally 
 and justly complained of in respect to the copper sheathing of the ships 
 of war in later times, compared with what was experienced at an earlier 
 period. The subject having occupied a large share of my attention, I 
 did not hesitate to attribute the change to the greater degree of hardness 
 given to the copper sheets in the process of rolling, by the modern 
 improved machinery, the hammered plates being softer, and therefore 
 more liable to abrasion in the passage of the ship through the water, by 
 which the bottom, as in the case of fast-sailing cutters, might be kept 
 comparatively clean. His Majesty appeared to be satisfied with the 
 plausibility, at least, of my argument.* 
 
 From Weymouth we proceeded to the examination of the dock-yard 
 at Plymouth,! (now Devonport). Our next object was to Portsmouth, 
 
 * [" We arrived yesterday evening, and set out for Plymouth to-morrow morning. In 
 the course of this day much business has been done. Upon the Esplanade I was presented 
 to the King in due form. He asked me immediately how long I was returned from Ireland, 
 as if my journey had been a thing his Majesty was well acquainted with. At the Rooms, 
 this evening, the King told me he believed I was a great chymist, though I did not chuse to 
 confess it. We were talking about copper sheathing." — Weymouth, 22d August 1802.] 
 
 f Q" We have been working very hard here: on Thursday, from six, a.m. to eight, p.m. 
 To-day we go afloat, and, I believe, as far as Causand Bay. We shall not get away till Thurs- 
 day."— Plymouth Dock 28th Aug. 1802.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 103 
 
 from whence we took the road to Brighton (in order to leave our names 
 at the Pavilion), and thence by Lewes and Tunbridge to Chatham 
 dock-yard. During the subsequent examination of Sheerness, we went 
 every evening across the ferry to sleep at Sittingbourne. On the 23d 
 September we returned to town, but afterwards visited Woolwich and 
 Deptford yards, at the latter of which we experienced much abuse from 
 the enraged families of the workmen discharged or reduced in their 
 allowances, and with some difficulty escaped from worse treatment. 
 These reductions were probably unavoidable at the time, but the general 
 character of this naval administration was that of harshness, particu- 
 larly as it respected the officers of the subordinate departments, with 
 which some personal ill-will was mixed up : the object seeming to be 
 to find grounds for delinquencies presumed in the first instance.* 
 
 * [" Our Lords are all gone down to the House, though poor Nepean, with a blister to his 
 throat, is very unfit to attend his duty there. The Middlesex petition business must, how- 
 ever, be disposed of (I believe) before they proceed to Naval Estimates, &c. People ask, 
 ' Have not the Admiralty and the Courts of Law together power enough to punish delinquencies 
 in the dock-yards or other naval departments ?' But the object is to get rid of the Navy Board. 
 They are not faultless. Like most other Boards and Public Offices they have left many things 
 undone ; but the visitation did not bring home to them any act of corruption or malversation. 
 It was then tried to drive them out by the most abusive letters that ever were written from 
 one Board to another ; but they were too prudent to gratify our gentlemen in this way. And 
 now this extraordinary commission is resorted to in the hope of its operating some way (they 
 cannot very well say how) to the end desired. I know it was their first idea to arm their 
 friends, the new commissioners, with the power of punishing ; but now it is only intended 
 they should inquire and report. The Minister gives way, par complaisance, to Lord St. V., 
 against his own opinion of the propriety of the measure." — 13th Dec. 1802.] 
 
 [" Our Board Room is a scene of anxious bustle and agitation, which sometimes puts me in 
 a little passion, but more commonly makes me laugh ; for it is impossible for any person to 
 be more independent of the inquisitions and reforms that are going forward than I am. The 
 detail would amuse you if you were upon the spot ; but, as I said before, it is not worth 
 writing about .... Nepean is still confined, but much better than he was. If I resign, I am 
 afraid of its being said that I ran away from the new Commissioners. This is rather 
 a curious dilemma; and although it looks like a joke, it is serious enough. Well, I must 
 
 make 
 
10 4 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 In November 1802, I was elected Treasurer of the Royal Society, an 
 honourable office, that I continued to hold for many years ; and, as a 
 Vice President, frequently occupied the chair in the absence of Sir Joseph 
 Banks, whose vigorous constitution began to be undermined by severe 
 attacks of gout. Some days of the commencement of 1803 I passed on 
 a visit to Lord Spencer's family at Althorp.* 
 
 My colleague, Sir Evan Nepean, having long found his official situa- 
 tion irksome, in consequence of the footing on which he stood with some 
 of the members of the Board of Admiralty, obtained from Mr. Adding- 
 
 make the best of it. At this season confinement is less irksome than it would be in spring, 
 when, please God, I shall be my own master. In the mean time, an open quarrel between 
 them and N., which I daily look for, will bring it to a crisis, and oblige me to determine 
 between double or quits." — Dec. 1802.] 
 
 * f_" I have little more to say than that I mean to set off for Althorp to-morrow, as soon as 
 I have opened the post letters, and to return about the 10th, by which time I should be very 
 happy to find you had made your arrangements for coming to England. I do not wait, as 
 you perceive, for the final discussion of our Bill. It will pass, of course ; but it is very different 
 from what the proposers originally intended. The Commission will, in fact, be a sort of 
 protection to the inferior Boards, which have been in the situation of a toad under a harrow. 
 To crush them was the object of the Bill, and the frauds in the dock-yards (which we are 
 daily detecting and punishing) are only the pretext. I took my Christmas dinner with an 
 Admiralty party at Sir Philip's, and dine to-day with the Mackenzies." — 26th December 1802.] 
 [" Here I am at Althorp ; and the weather being remarkably fine, enjoy myself without 
 as well as within doors ; I had only calculated upon the latter. Three or four noble lords of 
 our party are gone out with the fox-hounds, and left us commoners (the more important 
 branch of the constitution) to take care of our necks and the ladies. The library here tempts 
 me to read and write more than I ought to do, during the vacation. Lord Camden inquires 
 very particularly about you, and understands you are expected in London. I wish you would 
 resolve on an excursion. By the 10th, at latest, I shall be in town." — Althorp, 30th Decem- 
 ber 1802.] 
 
 Mr. Marsden had also spent some days, the previous winter, with his estimable friends, 
 when Admiral Young accompanied him. A note from Lady Spencer to Mr. M., dated the 
 15th October 1802, says, " I myself migrate in the course of three or four days, to poor old 
 Althorp ; where, if you do not make us a visit, we shall conclude you did not like our ways 
 last Christmas. But I trust to your sincerity — and you said you found comfort amongst us." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. ]05 
 
 ton, then First Minister, the appointment of Chief Secretary in Ireland, 
 with the rank of baronet annexed to it, by which the secretaryship of 
 the Admiralty became vacant. Upon its being signified to me, on the 
 9th January 1804, that it was the intention of Government to give me 
 the option of filling it, I was myself so little satisfied with the intem- 
 perate and worrying mode in which this high department was conducted 
 (although very far from having any thing personal to complain of, but 
 the contrary) ; and feeling weary, perhaps, as well as apprehensive 
 of the consequences of confinement that would unavoidably become more 
 strict with the increased duties and responsibility, I made up my mind 
 to decline the offer, and to express my inclination to retire from office.* 
 
 * [[" I have just been writing you a letter upon indifferent subjects when I had one that 
 is more interesting to me on my mind ; but I was restrained by injunctions of secrecy from 
 speaking freely. A conversation I have this moment had with Lord St. Vincent releases me 
 from some part of my difficulty, and I may write about what concerns myself. In conse- 
 quence of an arrangement that takes Nepean away from this office, it was necessary that I 
 should make make up my mind with regard to my acceptance of his situation, which I was 
 given to understand was at my option. The resolution I formed was to decline it, and to 
 take the first opportunity of doing it as handsomely as I could. This occurred by his Lord- 
 ship asking to speak to me in his room, and I have accordingly opened my mind to him, and 
 done what most of my prudent friends will think a very indiscreet act. I stated, in the first 
 place, that I was on perfectly good terms with every individual belonging to the office, and 
 was not actuated by any degree of pique or resentment, but that I was convinced, from 
 experience of the tempers, ideas, and conduct of the professional members of the Board, that 
 I could not possibly carry on the public business with them, with the least chance of satis- 
 faction to my own feelings. This point we entered fully into, and I explained the defects of 
 the present constitution of our department ; expressing, at the same time, my conviction that 
 it was not in his Lordship's power to remedy it, as he could not change their natures, nor do 
 without them. Viewing the matter in this light, I told him I found myself obliged to 
 decline the favour that he and the members of Government were disposed to confer upon 
 me, and consequently to retire from the situation altogether, as I could not admit of my 
 being superseded in the office. He expressed himself, as he always does, very handsomely, 
 and entered upon the question of compensations, as the idea could not for a moment be enter- 
 tained that I should retire without a proper equivalent. I told him (and spoke from my 
 
 p genuine 
 
106 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Under these circumstances, I received on the 16th, a note from Mr. 
 Addington, desiring me to call on him in Downing Street, when he 
 entered fully and confidentially on the unpleasant state of the naval 
 department ; represented the necessity there was, for the sake of the 
 public service, that I should accept the appointment of First Secretary, 
 and execute its duties (as, in fact, I had done for some time), at least 
 until a permanent arrangement could be made, and that I should imme- 
 diately declare my intention to the Earl of St. Vincent.* 
 
 genuine feelings), that it was not my wish or design to stipulate for any thing, and that I 
 left it entirely to him and Mr. Addington to do as they might think proper. He hinted 
 something about an office that would probably be created under an act of Parliament for 
 managing or controlling the prize agency, which in that case would be at my option to accept, 
 or any thing else that I could point out ; and so, after mutual assurances of the highest 
 esteem, &c, we broke up the conference upon the most cordial terms. In truth, I am really 
 indifferent about making any sacrifice of my independence, by accepting either place or pen- 
 sion, but shall not be outrageously squeamish. I added, that I should certainly continue in 
 office so long as it might be found necessary to the public business. You will allow that I 
 stand at least upon a very gentleman-like footing, and my mind is quite at ease upon the 
 business. — Qth January 1804.] 
 
 f_" Yours of the 7th did not reach me till to-day. I am anxious for the letters you are 
 writing about this time. I have got Lord and Lady Spencer's abuse for what I have done, 
 and shall have similar congratulations from others, as the matter becomes known, (a) 
 Nepean's appointment is pretty generally talked of to-day. Though a certain person mav 
 repent, I do not think that I shall — at least I do not yet perceive the symptoms — though I do 
 not pretend to say that I go out of office with perfect indifference. It was a struggle of feel- 
 ings, and the stronger overpowered the weaker." — 12th January.'] 
 
 * [" I received yesterday your letter of the l4th, and to-day the two you wrote on the 12th; 
 they would have drawn from me long answers, but the time that would have been so 
 employed has been devoted to a long and confidential tete-a-tete with Mr. Addington, from 
 whom I am just returned, and the day has nearly elapsed, not to mention an accumulation of 
 
 business 
 
 (a) In the evening, Mr. M. was heartily congratulated by his Royal Society Friends, who probably consi- 
 dered ' the Author as buried in the Secretary;' a remark which Mr. M. was induced himself to make on a 
 captain of a ship from Amboyna, with whom he was negociating, in the year 1800, for some rope made of a 
 particular substance, growing in the Eastern islands, telling him, if he wished for further information on the 
 subject, he must consult " Marsden's History of Sumatra." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 107 
 
 The scruples that 1 had entertained being removed by this request on 
 the part of the Minister, I proceeded to apprize the First Lord of my 
 having undertaken the office, which is in the disposal of the Treasury, 
 as the other is of the Admiralty. His Lordship's congratulations were 
 expressed in the warmest and most flattering terms, but accompanied 
 with his hope that I should not make any objection (nor could I with 
 propriety) to his naming Mr. Benjamin Tucker to succeed to my 
 vacancy. This gentleman accordingly became second secretary, and I 
 had no reason to complain of any want of active co-operation during the 
 short period of his continuing to be my colleague. On the 18th June, 
 I accompanied his Lordship to the Queen's Drawing-room, and was 
 there congratulated by numerous friends. From the King a gracious 
 communication was made to me through Sir Harry Neale, conveying his 
 Majesty's satisfaction at my appointment, and expressing his favourable 
 opinion.* 
 
 business. To make short of the matter, I have been induced to promise, for the advantage 
 of the public service, &c, I will continue to act in the office, and to carry on the business of 
 first, or, perhaps, sole secretary, till an arrangement satisfactory to all parties can be made. This 
 it was impossible to refuse. I wish we were together to talk it over." — 16tk January."] 
 
 Q" Half of my friends and acquaintance, at Court, were condoling with, and the other half, 
 congratulating me. Mr. Yorke expressed himself very handsomely." — ISth January.'] 
 
 Q" It is, as you may suppose, all settled, and I am in trammels. It makes me, at times, very 
 serious ; but it is folly to look back. It is very like matrimony — with a lady of rank and 
 fortune, whose temper you are doubtful of." — 19//i January.] 
 
 * My Sumatran friends, in the warmth of their regard for me, used to predict, when I 
 was leaving them, that I should one day attain to some official situation of consequence. A 
 letter from my worthy friend, Mr. John Crisp, says: ' Before this can reach you, you will 
 probably have mixed with the great world, and have entered into scenes that will occasion 
 you to look back with contempt on the transactions of the west coast of Sumatra. Let not, 
 however, the sentiment extend to the persons, who against their inclinations are compelled to 
 play their part in such an obscure scene of action. Push on boldly: Chacun vaut ce qu'il 
 veut valoir, is a good maxim to have in one's head, although not strictly true. I hope soon 
 
 P 2 to 
 
108 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 On the 15th February 1804, 1 removed into the Secretary's apartments 
 in the Admiralty, * having previously sold the lease of my house in New- 
 Street, Spring Gardens, which I had occupied since my appointment in 
 1795. Having the privilege, by courtesy, of a seat under the gallery of 
 the House of Commons, on all questions relating to naval affairs, I 
 was present at the debate in which Mr. Pitt carried a vote against the 
 administration of Mr. Addington and Lord St. Vincent, whose manage- 
 ment of the naval force of the country was impugned, and I could not 
 avoid remarking that the splendid talents of that great statesman and 
 able parliamentary debater, had declined from what they were at the 
 period when I witnessed his contention for political superiority with 
 Mr. Fox.t 
 
 My evenings, from some time before this period, I perceive to have 
 been frequently passed at the house of my friend, Mr. Charles Wilkins, J 
 
 to hear of your becoming an Under Secretary of State' — an expectation that was afterwards 
 more than realized — an Act of 57th of George III. having fixed the official rank of First 
 Secretary of the Admiralty next before the Secretaries of the Treasury, and above the Undes> 
 Secretaries of State. 
 
 * £" Last night, or rather this morning, I finished the arrangement of my books, and I 
 shall now begin to feel myself at home." 1804.] 
 
 f [" I wish you had been in the House of Commons last night, where I prevailed upon 
 myself to go about ten o'clock, and staid till one. After much bad speaking, I was gratified 
 by one of Pitt's wonderful speeches, in which he laid upon us in a most unmerciful manner. 
 Nepean would have been quite shocked to hear the Admiralty so abused. What do you 
 think of 201 and 130? The parties will now begin to assume a more consistent shape. 
 Sheridan was very angry with Fox, who voted one way and spoke another — justifying him- 
 self by a sort of quibble. The French do not yet appear ; but Bonaparte was at Boulogne 
 on the 13th."— March \&th 1804.] 
 
 J [" I have yours of the 7th and 8th, but so much hurried that I cannot just now do more 
 than acknowledge them. The fact is, I am going out to Wimbledon, whither I carry my 
 friend Wilkins and his daughter, who will be not a little delighted. The invitation is one of 
 Lady Spencer's good-natured acts — studying how she can most gratify her friends." — \\th 
 August 1804.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 109 
 
 whose talent as an oriental scholar of the first eminence, as well as his 
 many other estimable qualities, rendered his society particularly interest- 
 ing to me.* 
 
 In May of the year (1804) a change of ministry took place, f and Henry 
 
 * On looking over letters preserved by Mr. Marsden, on account of their reference to 
 subjects of literature, the Editor found amongst the earliest, one from Sir Charles W. Malet, 
 dated Poona, February 1787, in which is the following paragraph : — " During my late visit 
 to Calcutta these characters (from the caves on Salsette) were submitted to the inspection of 
 my very ingenious friend, Mr. Charles Wilkins. As that gentleman left Calcutta for Eng- 
 land last year, I doubt not that liberal spirit of useful investigation by which you are so 
 laudably actuated will have led you to his acquaintance." 
 
 Previous to the receipt of this letter, Mr. Marsden had introduced himself to Mr. 
 Wilkins in this characteristic manner: — " Mr. M. presents his compliments to Mr. W., begs 
 he will excuse the liberty he takes in asking him a question, suggested by the perusal of the 
 Bhagvat-geeta, 'Whether,' &c. Mr. M. should esteem himself happy in Mr. W.'s favouring 
 him with a call whenever it may suit his convenience. — Gower Street, 8th April 1787." 
 
 Mr. Wilkins going at this time to Bath (when Mrs. W. gave birth to her who was destined 
 to become Mr. Marsden's wife), their meeting was delayed, and Mr. M. next writes: 
 
 " Dear Sir : I feel much obliged by your polite letter. You will never find me a man of 
 any degree of ceremony, and I persuade myself you are equally above it. I have earnestly 
 wished for your acquaintance since ever I was first acquainted with your pursuits, and 
 that desire has been much increased by my conversations with our friends Henchman and 
 Anderson and Mr. Hastings. The latter made use of an expression very flattering to me, 
 ' that I should find you a man after my own heart.' " 22d April 1787. 
 
 Thus commenced a friendship which continued for near half a century, till May 1836, 
 the period of Mr. (Sir Charles) Wilkins's death. Mr. Marsden survived him only five months. 
 
 j- [" My authority says, Lord Spencer is to go to Ireland. If he is not to be at the 
 Admiralty, I shall be very glad of it, for a better 3'ou cannot have, and you are by no means 
 a stranger to him. I shall be a little jealous, however, of your having my good master. You 
 must send me Lord Hardwicke in exchange." — 5th May 1804 J 
 
 ["I saw yesterday a most excellent note from the King, in answer to the first he had 
 received from Lord Melville, on the subject of the appointment to Newfoundland. He 
 introduced, that he believed his Lordship was no friend to innovations." — 22d May 1804.] 
 
 [" You will think me a very idle fellow, when I tell you I have just written four sides of 
 paper on the subject of Irish currency. Sir Joseph Banks (who, by the bye, is a very leading 
 man in the Privy Council) has taken the matter up, and been exercising his ideas upon 
 some memorandums I gave to him so long ago as the year 1788. I have now given him the 
 
 memoir 
 
110 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Viscount Melville became the First Lord of the Admiralty, with a new 
 Board. Of my continuance in office no doubt was raised, that ever 
 came to my knowledge ; and, indeed, it had been intimated to me from 
 a higher quarter, that " Marsden is to remain." My reception, upon 
 waiting on Lord Melville, was frank and cordial. The removal of the 
 second secretary was determined on, and I had the ungracious task of 
 notifying it to him. Upon this occasion his Lordship did me the 
 honour of consulting me in the choice of a successor. One of those 
 proposed to him, he said, was a Mr. Barrow, strongly recommended to 
 him by Lord Macartney ; the others it is unnecessary to name. At 
 that time Mr. Barrow was personally unknown to me ; but Lord Macart- 
 ney, a perfect judge of talent (on whom I called), had stated his quali- 
 fications to me also, and I did not hesitate to advise the First Lord to 
 give him the preference. He was accordingly appointed, and commenced 
 the performance of those duties which, with one short interruption, from 
 political circumstances, he has continued to the present time (1833)* to 
 fulfil, with so much credit to himself and advantage to the public service. 
 On the 25th August 1804, I lost my affectionate mother, whose life 
 exemplified every domestic and Christian virtue. She was in her eighty- 
 third year, had been married fifty-nine, and was the parent of sixteen 
 children, t 
 
 memoir I wrote for Abbot in 1801, and added some explanations to make the matter familiar 
 to him. We shall see whether they make any hand of it, and give you the trouble of stop- 
 ping the mouths of those who will exclaim that they are cheated of their thirteenth penny.'* 
 — June 1804.] 
 
 \J' Poor Lord Duncan shook me by the hand the other day, and took a kind farewell 
 upon leaving town. He did not reach home, but died upon the road." — 1th August 1804.] 
 
 * Mr. Marsden had evidently not looked over this part of his Memoir so recently as it 
 appears he did other portions of it, or he might have added several years to this date. — e. 
 
 f ["I have your letter of the 27th, with the melancholy, but at the same time most satis- 
 factory, 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. ]]j 
 
 Another change in the administration of the country took place in the 
 beginning of 1805, under the auspices of Mr. Pitt, when Sir Charles 
 Middleton, formerly Comptroller of the Navy, and afterwards one of the 
 Commissioners of the Admiralty for a short period (in 1795,\ was nomi- 
 nated First Lord, with the title of Lord Barham.* More than common 
 
 factory, detail of our dear mother's last moments, and for which I sincerely thank you. 
 What a blessing, to part from life under such circumstances, and if any human being deserved 
 that blessing she did ; for, in my conscience, I believe a better woman never existed. I feel 
 the stroke very sensibly. But what could we wish for ? not surely that she should have 
 dragged on for a few years an imperfect existence." — 31*/ August 1804.] 
 
 [" Trigge's letter of the 18th does him great credit. It is full of hope and confidence, 
 and quite free from the dismay and melancholy his situation might well inspire. It is in 
 such situations, rather than in battles, that commanding officers are put to the test." — 10/A 
 November 1804.] 
 
 [_ ' What is your idea of the best plan for remedying the want of a safe and convenient 
 anchorage for our Western squadron ? — To improve Torbay by a pier ? — To improve Fal- 
 mouth ? To run out a pier at Cawsand, or a pier on the opposite shore by the Mewstone ? 
 The last would be very expensive ; but the recommendation is, that your ships would get to 
 sea with the wind that carries the enemy from Brest. Is the thing practicable from the 
 depth of water, &c. ? Something must be done." — 4ih December. 
 
 " Torbay will get into bad repute from the accident to the Blonde. That to the Venerable 
 could not be directly imputed to the want of shelter. We must lay out a million or two of 
 money in making artificial shelter somewhere." — 22d December 1804. Mr. M. to Admiral 
 Young.] 
 
 [" It blows a very hard gale at East, with cold, unpleasant weather. I wish we had 
 peace, and could lay our ships up in dock. They are worn down like post-horses during a 
 general election." — 24/A January 1805.] 
 
 {_" You seem to forget Pitt went circuit. He told the story, when I was at table with 
 him, of his having got sixteen guineas, and thinking himself a rich man." — 8//* March 
 1805.] 
 
 * [" Though they do not necessarily afFect me, these changes are very unpleasant — par- 
 ticularly of the professional members of the Board, and I shall be glad to get away, without 
 however seeing much prospect of it; for the more confusion there is among the members 
 of the Board, the more necessary it is that some one who is acquainted with the business 
 should stand fast. We shall see how things work, and be guided by circumstances. The 
 removal of my books makes me melancholy. I must say Lord Melville's behaviour to me 
 
 has 
 
112 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 efforts were necessary in the naval department ; for, notwithstanding 
 the severe losses the enemy had sustained, in the destructive battle of 
 the Nile and other subsequent actions, such gigantic exertions were 
 made, both by French and Spaniards, under the influence of Napoleon, 
 that their united force at this time exhibited a numerical superiority of 
 
 has been uniformly kind and confidential — he was always disposed to give weight to my 
 opinion and advice, and always appeared pleased with what I did. Possibly I may not be 
 able to say the same of his successor." — 9th April 1805.] 
 
 £" I have not any thing particular to write about to-day. You will see what has been 
 doing in the house, and that Pitt prudently goes with the stream. I most heartily wish to 
 see all plunderers of the public money brought to justice, and that others who only lavish it 
 should be taught that they are answerable to some controlling power. Some good will cer- 
 tainly be done by the late proceedings, and we must try to steer clear of the mischief that a 
 cry of Reform is liable to produce. In the course of the day (and since I began this note), 
 intelligence is received of very important successes in India over Holkar. One part of his 
 force was beaten by Generals Fraser and Monson, and the other by Lord Lake. This is 
 extremely important at the present crisis May it lead to peace in that quarter. — 27th 
 April 1805.] 
 
 ["I did not get home, from a ball at Lady Spencer's, till three o'clock this morning, 
 and, of course, am not at this moment very lively. I left about three hundred people hard at 
 supper. To me the most extraordinary part was the one thousand silver plates and dishes 
 that they required. We had all the great and fine people in town, and between gazing and 
 talking I found the hours pass away quickly." — 28//* May 1805.] 
 
 [" Our ideas seem to accord with respect to the particular point which, as a matter of 
 business, is to be worked for bringing the Catholics and their opponents together. It is not 
 by emancipation, or by granting this or that, with or without restrictions, that the recon- 
 ciliation is to be effected, but by removing the stumbling-block, or rendering it as little likely 
 to break men's shins as possible. I would coax the rational Protestants in the first instance, 
 to give up all the insulting and spiteful part of the oath, and then try to gain something from 
 the other side which would change spiritual jurisdiction into pious respect and deference. 
 You probably think it will be more difficult to provide against the fears of the Protestants 
 than to satisfy the scruples of the Catholics. It does not strike me, that in the course of the 
 debates the subject was considered (by those who wished to reconcile) exactly in this view. 
 .... Let the oath contain fair, practical good sense, without religious speculation, and guard 
 
 against such dangers as an indifferent party would allow to be real I had better, however, 
 
 mind my own business and let you attend to yours. My blister is still on my chest." — 
 1st June 1805.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. U3 
 
 ships ready for service. The impression made by this state of things 
 will best appear by the following note, written by the Minister : " Down- 
 ing Street, Tuesday, April 30th (1805), half-past two, a.m. On return- 
 ing from the House I have just found these papers ; they are of the 
 most pressing importance. I will go to bed for a few hours, but will 
 be ready to see you as soon as you please, as I think we must not 
 lose a moment in taking measures to set afloat every ship that by any 
 species of extraordinary exertion we can find means to man. At such 
 an emergency, I am inclined to think many measures may be taken to 
 obtain a supply of men for the time, which would not be applicable to 
 any case less immediately urgent."* 
 
 * It should be noticed, that the ships were manned without having recourse to the strong 
 measure of impressing from all protections, which, as the terms imply, is a direct breach of 
 faith, that only the most imminent danger can excuse, but cannot justify. With regard to 
 the general question of impressment, it is of a very different nature, and so far from involving 
 any breach of contract or violation of civil rights, is a contingency to which every man 
 betaking himself to the sea as a profession knows he is liable, and of which, however desirous 
 he may be to avoid it, he would never complain as a grievance, were it not suggested to him 
 by the speculations of visionary philanthropists. It is, in fact, well known, that the solicitude 
 of seamen to escape from impressment is not from any aversion to the King's service, where 
 they find more attention to their personal comforts than in any other, and where the contin- 
 gent danger is rather an incitement than an objection, but from the hope that, by holding 
 back, they may obtain the bounty that under many circumstances has been extravagant. 
 
 The right has been vested in and exercised by the Crown for the public welfare, from time 
 immemorial, and although not directly authorized by act of Parliament (because such a sanc- 
 tion has been thought superfluous), is abundantly recognized, inasmuch as the acts are nume- 
 rous by which the prerogative is partially restrained, and protection from the impress given 
 to various descriptions and classes of sea-faring people, by which the general right is implied. 
 It may further be proper to observe, that the measure of enforcing the impress is far from 
 being of the indiscriminate nature that is vulgarly supposed. It is confined, on the contrary, 
 as strictly as possible, within legal bounds ; and although instances frequently occur of the 
 seizure and detention, by over-zealous officers, of landsmen and other persons not liable, who 
 happen to be mixed with seamen in public-houses, it is forbidden by the naval instructions, 
 and redress (I speak from experience) is very readily obtained. Every impressed man who 
 
 q transmits 
 
1 14 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Under this pressure the Board of Admiralty adopted an expedient 
 that became the subject of much hostile animadversion, namely, that of 
 doubling (as it is termed) cross-bracing, and otherwise hastily strength- 
 ening several ships that had been considered as unworthy of the expense 
 attending a thorough repair, but which, by this summary process, were 
 rendered fully adequate to temporary service. How successful were the 
 efforts of the civil departments on this momentous occasion is evinced 
 by the proud state of the force with which the great Lord Nelson went 
 into battle in the October following.* 
 
 In the month of September 1805, 1 made the purchase, in London, of a 
 collection of Cufic and other oriental coins that, along with many Greek 
 and Roman, had been formed at Constantinople by Sir Robert Ainslie, 
 when he was English ambassador to the Porte. This formed the 
 nucleus of a more extensive oriental cabinet gradually accumulated, and 
 of which I published a description, in the years 1823, 25, under the 
 
 transmits to the Secretary of the Admiralty satisfactory proof of his title to exemption, is 
 liberated by order to the captain, or otherwise obtains a writ of habeas corpus; the sea-ports 
 and ships fitting out being well provided with professional letter-writers and attornies, prof- 
 fering their assistance. Upon the whole, I am clearly of opinion, that when the country shall 
 be suddenly forced into a state of hostility, and we are called upon to exert the national ener- 
 gies, the fleet cannot be manned without impressment, and that, notwithstanding any sums 
 which may be lavished upon plausible schemes of enrolment (that is, of securing the services 
 of men when wanted, by means of a retaining fee), no minister possessing the nerve that his 
 situation demands, will, under such urgent circumstances, shrink from the responsibility of 
 acting with a vigour beyond the experimental law, by adopting the only prompt and effective 
 mode of procuring seamen, instead of waiting for the tedious operation of calling together 
 unwilling pensioners, whilst the enemy, having the start in equipment, are actively employed 
 in destroying our commerce. 
 
 * On the 4th September 1805, I write : " Lord Nelson will shortly command a noble 
 fleet: he ought, if the rules of the service admitted, to have his flag at the main. How much 
 it is to be wished that the enemy may not have pushed out between the 22d and 26th ult. 
 when Calder must have joined him, if some fatality does not attend his movements." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 115 
 
 title of ' Numismata Orientalia Illustrata.' The examination of these 
 numerous specimens, the sorting them into their respective classes, and 
 the attempts to decipher many of their obscure legends, afforded inte- 
 resting and instructive evening amusement, for several years, at the house 
 of my learned friend (and subsequent relative), Mr., now Sir Charles 
 Wilkins; to which the accurate eye and ready hand of his eldest daugh- 
 ter contributed not a little.* 
 
 The circumstances of the splendid victory of 21st October 1805, off 
 Cape Trafalgar, when nineteen of the enemy's ships of the line were 
 captured or destroyed, many of the rest disabled, and the commander-in- 
 chief made prisoner, are too strongly imprinted on the public mind to 
 require repetition here. Suffice it to say, that so effectually was the 
 naval force of our opponents crushed by this defeat, that no attempt was 
 afterwards made to face an English squadron. Admiral Collingwood'sf 
 
 * [/' Not hearing any news, I may write about coins. It is surprising that your Ency- 
 clopaedia has not the word Cufic. It is applied to ancient Arabic writing, before the cha- 
 racter took its present form. It is so called from the city of Cufa (near the site of Babylon), 
 where it first prevailed. The coins afford me and Wilkins great amusement- — chiefly, at 
 present, in identifying particular coins (with figures) in the published collections. Mine, I 
 think, is richer than any of them, and I shall be known in the world as its possessor." — 
 October 1805.] 
 
 ["A friend has given me a series of Chinese coins., from an early period. This is a 
 curious addition to my cabinet ; but the Chinese coins are not handsome, nor intrinsically 
 valuable. I have made some additions, by purchase, to my cufics, and work at them every 
 evening. I gave £25 yesterday for zodiacal coins, if you know what those are; I get many 
 presents in this way, and not coming from navy people, I never refuse them." — January 
 1806.] 
 
 f As it appears from the published memoirs of Lord Collingwood (edited in a manner 
 worthy of its highly distinguished subject), that his Lordship felt hurt at an apparent want 
 of attention in the Admiralty to his public letters, which, he thinks, were not duly answered. 
 I think it necessary to state, that from the period of Earl Spencer's entering upon office 
 ^previously to which many hundred packets, carried into the house of the First Lord, were 
 found there unopened), no public letter was ever omitted (unless under very peculiar circum- 
 
 q 2 stances) 
 
116 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 important dispatches were delivered to me at the Admiralty, about one 
 o'clock, a.m., of the Gth November, when I was in the act of withdraw- 
 ing from the Board Room to my private apartments, after having opened 
 the common letters received in the course of the evening In accosting 
 me, the officer used these impressive words, " Sir, we have gained a great 
 victory; but we have lost Lord Nelson!" The effect this produced, 
 it is not to my purpose to describe ; nor had I time to indulge in reflec- 
 tions, who was at that moment the only person informed of one of the 
 greatest events recorded in our history, and which it was my duty to 
 make known with the utmost promptitude. The First Lord had retired 
 to rest, as had his domestics, and it was not till after some research that 
 I could discover the room in which he slept. Drawing aside his curtain, 
 with a candle in my hand, I awoke the old peer (Lord Barham) from a 
 sound slumber ; and to the credit of his nerves be it mentioned, that he 
 showed no symptom of alarm or surprise, but calmly asked : " What 
 news, Mr. M.?" We then discussed, in few words, what was imme- 
 
 stances) to be read at the Board, minuted, answered, and dispatched, if practicable, on the 
 day of its receipt. Of this punctuality in the case of the Admiral, the following extract from 
 a letter, written at the time to Sir William Young, will be admitted as some proof: 
 
 " I wonder how it happens (I say in a letter of the 21st March 1806) that Lord Colling- 
 wood should have occasion to complain of not hearing from the Admiralty, as all his letters 
 are regularly answered, and several must have been forwarded to him (from Portsmouth or 
 Plymouth) by every conveyance. He seems inclined to be a little peevish, and to see things 
 through a discoloured medium." For his other more serious subject of complaint, of being 
 kept afloat for an unreasonable period, I was not accountable ; but I may venture to say, it 
 was occasioned by the high sense entertained of his eminent and most useful talents, both as 
 a naval officer (the Mentor of Lord Nelson) and a diplomatist. For how many dreary 
 winters did Sir William Young, with a large fleet under his command, blockade the enemy's 
 ships in the Scheldt ; under circumstances very different from those of the Mediterranean 
 station, when, if his Lordship persevered in his resolution of being always afloat, the priva- 
 tions attending it were of his own choosing. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 117 
 
 diately to be done, and I sat up the remainder of the night, with such of 
 the clerks as I could collect, in order to make the necessary communi- 
 cations at an early hour to the King,* the Prince of Wales, the Duke of 
 York, the Minister, and other members of the Cabinet, and to the Lord 
 Mayor, who communicates the intelligence to the shipping interest at 
 Lloyd's Coffee-house. A notice for the royal salutes was also necessary, 
 
 * As the following letters, which I received on the occasion from the King's private 
 secretary, reflect the highest credit on all the parties concerned, I do not hesitate to transcribe 
 them ; not altering a word, but only omitting irrelevant matter : 
 
 " Windsor Castle, November 6th, 1805. 
 
 " My dear Sir : — The King has received the glorious intelligence of the defeat of the com- 
 bined fleets off Cadiz, and has particularly commanded me to return you his thanks for your 
 attention in sending thus early to him what you know would prove so satisfactory at this 
 moment. However his Majesty rejoices at the signal success of his gallant fleet, he has not 
 heard without expressions of very deep regret the death of its valuable and distinguished 
 commander ; although, he added, that a life so replete with glory, and marked by a rapid 
 succession of such meritorious services and exertions, could not have ended more gloriously. 
 I have not upon any occasion seen his Majesty more affected ; and he has expressed great 
 anxiety to be in full possession of every detail and particular which may have as yet, or may 
 hereafter, be received, respecting this great event. His Majesty is well assured, from your 
 constant attention, that he will be gratified in this respect. 
 
 " I congratulate you most warmly and cordially, and I sincerely trust that this signal 
 success will encourage our allies on the Continent to similar exertions. The example, at least, 
 has not been wanting. I sincerely lament the loss of poor Captain Cooke, who took us to the 
 Texel in the Amdhysl, and was a most deserving, amiable man. Believe me ever. C.H.T." 
 
 " Windsor, November 7th, 1805. 
 
 " My clear Sir:— I had the honour of communicating yesterday to his Majesty the very 
 interesting particulars conveyed in your obliging letter by the Dragoon, and he again expressed 
 his sense of your attention upon every occasion. The copies of dispatches received this morn- 
 ing his Majesty has kept ; and he has commanded me to express, in the strongest terms, his 
 feelings of approbation of every part of the conduct of his gallant fleet, whose glorious and 
 meritorious exertions are made yet more conspicuous, if possible, by the details of the oppo- 
 sition and difficulties which it had to encounter, both during and subsequent to the glorious 
 action, and by the intrepidity and skill with which they were overcome. Every tribute of 
 praise appears to his Majesty due to Lord Nelson, whose loss he never can sufficiently regret ; 
 but his Majesty considers it very fortunate that the command, under circumstances so critical, 
 should have devolved upon an officer of such consummate valour, judgment, and skill, as 
 
 Admiral 
 
118 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 to prevent delay, although the orders proceed from the office of the 
 Secretary of State ; and preparation was to be made for the publication 
 of an extraordinary gazette, that would be eagerly read with mixed feel- 
 ings of exultation and grief. Such were the most pressing duties of that 
 morning, exclusive of answers to numberless private inquiries. The 
 First Lord had then to considt with the Minister, and take the orders 
 of the King respecting the honours it would be proper to confer on the 
 surviving commander-in-chief and his brave companions, as well as 
 those which should attend the remains of the illustrious dead.* 
 
 Admiral Collingwood has proved himself to be, every part of whose conduct he considers 
 deserving of his entire approbation and admiration. The feeling manner in which he has 
 described the events of that great day and those subsequent to it, and the modesty with which 
 he speaks of himself, whilst he does justice in terms so elegant and so ample to the meritorious 
 exertions of the gallant officers and men under his command, have also proved extremely 
 gratifying to the King. His Majesty is very apprehensive that few, if any, of the captured 
 ships will reach our ports ; and he is not without uneasiness for those of our own fleet which 
 have most suffered in the severe conflict. Believe me, ever, &c. C. H. T.' " 
 
 " Windsor, November 8th, 1805. 
 
 " My dear Sir : — His Majesty was much pleased with the private minutes you have been 
 so good as to send me for his information, and which I shall return to-morrow, as the King 
 has kept them to show the Queen. Had I known that an extract of my letter of yesterday 
 would be sent to Admiral Collingwood, I should have worded it more carefully, and endea- 
 voured to do more justice to his Majesty's feelings, and the manner in which he expressed 
 them. But I am confident that you will have been so good as to correct the language before 
 it went. When I read your letter to the King, he said that I could not possibly have con- 
 veyed his approbation in terms too strong. Believe me ever, &c. C. H. T." 
 
 A letter of acknowledgment from Lord Castlereagh, on the same occasion, also presents 
 itself. " St. James's Square. 
 
 " My dear Sir : — Many thanks tor your kind recollection of me. This glorious termination 
 of the greatest naval campaign in the annals of the world makes a difference since July last 
 of forty -three sail of the line in the relative strength of the belligerents — thirty taken and 
 thirteen transferred. Your's, most sincerely. Castlereagh." 
 
 * £" I have yours of the 31st and 2d. To Mr. Long I have enclosed a bulletin of our 
 glorious victory, and I hope to be able to send you a Gazette, for which I did my part early 
 in the morning. The officer arrived a little after one, just as I was going to bed — and I 
 
 was 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. ] i;> 
 
 Upon this occasion of general excitement I felt, from a sort of conta- 
 gious influence, that amidst the applause so justly bestowed on naval 
 achievements, some share of merit was to be attributed to those by whose 
 prompt exertions (although of a less brilliant nature) the means of victory 
 were provided. This was unquestionably applicable, in the first degree, 
 to the professional members of the Admiralty Board ; but as the nature 
 of an office held in commission does not admit of any individual distinc- 
 tion, it appeared that the Secretary was the ostensible person on whom 
 a mark of royal favour, intended for the department, might with pro- 
 priety be conferred. Titles have not been at any other period of my life 
 an object of ambition, and the proof of it is, that in the negociation for my 
 retirement, I did not express a wish to be invested with that which was 
 enjoyed by my two predecessors in office ; but, under circumstances so 
 peculiar, I indulged an inclination to participate in the national rewards, 
 and was flattered with the idea of possessing a baronetcy, immediately 
 
 was at work in the office till four. You may imagine how much I am jaded by this time ; as 
 much from the effect of private worrying as public duty. The last person I had with me 
 was the Duchess of Devonshire. Having rung the changes a thousand times (to persons 
 of all ranks) upon the most providential victory, and lamented the death of the gallant hero 
 by whom it was achieved, you must not now expect any observations from me .... I am, of 
 course, the greatest man in town to-day, as you were on the morning of Lord Duncan's vic- 
 tory. A general officer has just been hugging me upon my telling him that the Neptune, 
 where his son is, had a full share of the glory, with very little of the risk." — 6th Nov. 1805.] 
 [" I must quote to you a passage from Lord Arden's note to me : ' Lady Arden is, I assure 
 you, well convinced of the soundness of your doctrine and advice, and practises it. In the 
 midst of her solicitude for her son, she is full of hope that the Orion has not had less than 
 her share in this glorious conflict.' This was worthy of a Roman matron in Rome's best days. 
 May I add an anecdote of the same character, but in humble life, for which I can vouch as 
 an ear-witness. Walking in St. James's Park, for the sake of a little fresh air, there were two 
 women before me, one of whom was recounting to her companion the circumstances of the 
 glorious victory. ' It is true,' she said, ' that I have had the misfortune to lose two sons 
 killed ; but then, you know, my dear, that it is a feather in my cap.' " — November 1805. 
 Mr. M. to Admiral Young.] 
 
120 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 connected with the glorious event to which I had been a zealous, how- 
 ever humble, contributor. To solicit it as a personal boon, in the usual 
 way, did not suit my purpose ; but being in intimate correspondence 
 with the King's private secretary, through whom I had been honoured 
 with many tokens of approbation, I took the opportunity (presump- 
 tuously, I allow) of suggesting that such a mark of distinction would be 
 highly gratifying to me. It will appear, however, that my good Master 
 acted on this occasion with his usual prudence and correctness, and did 
 not allow the good-will he professed, and I believe entertained, for me, 
 to lead to any thing that should interfere with Ministerial patronage, 
 which he regarded as the subject of an inviolable compact ; but the 
 following correspondence on the subject will show how kind an interest 
 he took in promoting, according to his own ideas of propriety, the suc- 
 cess of the object I had in view. It was certainly most secret and con- 
 fidential ; but as it places in the strongest light the honourable conduct 
 of the private secretary, in a situation of the utmost delicacy, there exists 
 no reason why it should not be perused by those persons who may feel 
 a concern in the events of my life, at a period when the writers them- 
 selves shall be no more. 
 
 " Admiralty Office, 9th November 1805. 
 " My dear Sir : At a moment when so many persons with whom I am 
 officially connected experience promotion, in consequence of the event 
 that has marked in such brilliant characters this period of the national 
 history, you will, I hope, not think it extraordinary that I should feel 
 an ambition to be a partaker in the celebrity, and to be thought to have 
 contributed, however humbly, to those measures which ultimately led 
 to our glorious success. If there is any thing improper in this mode of 
 hinting my wishes, I must claim your indulgence — and the matter will 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. !2l 
 
 l'est there. I have not the pleasure of enjoying that sort of intimacy 
 with His Majesty's first minister that might encourage me to ask his 
 friendly interference ; and you must be well aware that the naval minis" 
 ter (with whom I am on the best possible official terms) is not much in 
 the habit of taking those opportunities which might serve to convey to 
 His Majesty's knowledge the wishes of an individual like myself. My 
 object is the dignity of a baronetcy. Honourable it would be under any 
 circumstances, but beyond all appreciation more so, if it should appear 
 to be connected with those proud circumstances which make us all 
 ' stand on tip- toe ' — and (may I venture to add ?} that flowing directly 
 from the gracious fountain of honour, it would prove to me infinitely 
 more gratifying ! " 
 
 To this I received the following : 
 
 " My dear Sir : " Windsor, November 10th, 1805. 
 
 " Since I have had the happiness of being in this situation, I have 
 had so many opportunities of knowing that the proceeding most satis- 
 factory to His Majesty, on all occasions, is to go to the point at once 
 openly, that I did not hesitate, in reading to him your private letter of 
 yesterday's date, observing, at the same time, that I did not know how far 
 I was correct in so doing, but that I thought it my duty to convey its 
 contents to His Majesty's knowledge. The King seemed to receive it 
 very favourably, and said that he had a very favourable opinion of you, 
 and was glad to know your wishes. This was all that passed, and I did 
 not expect any more direct answer, nor do I imagine that the King will 
 touch upon the subject again with me, although you may depend upon 
 its not escaping his recollection, for nothing ever does, and it is probable 
 that he will take an early opportunity of speaking to his Ministers upon 
 it I need not, I trust, assure you of the very sincere satisfaction 
 
 R 
 
122 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 with which I shall learn that any of your wishes have been gratified, 
 and I am certain that every one who has the pleasure of knowing you 
 will feel that a mark of His Majesty's favour and approbation is most 
 justly due, for the very able and satisfactory discharge of duties so 
 important and so laborious, and so intimately connected with exertions 
 which have, particularly of late, been so conspicuous. Believe me, ever, 
 with the truest regard, &c. " C. H. T." 
 
 " P.S. The King is of opinion, that the battle should be styled that 
 of Trafalgar." 
 
 " Windsor, November 28th. 
 
 " His Majesty not having again said any thing to me on the subject 
 of your wishes, and as I felt a delicacy in asking him any question in 
 regard to them, I took an opportunity when Lord Hawkesbury was here, 
 of enquiring from his lordship, whether to his knowledge any thing had 
 passed on the subject, which I was confident I could venture to do 
 without committing you or myself, and he desired me to tell you that he 
 had not heard any thing about it, but that he was persuaded there could 
 not be any difficulty, and that he recommended your speaking either 
 directly to Mr. Pitt, or through Lord Barham, or, if you preferred it, to 
 Lord Hawkesbury, who will, with pleasure, undertake to mention your 
 wishes to Mr. Pitt. The latter, perhaps, would be the best mode, as 
 Lord H. will avoid noticing that any communication on the subject had 
 previously taken place, or giving His Majesty reason to believe that 
 your having spoken to him has arisen from such communication. I 
 trust you will not disapprove what I have ventured to do without pre- 
 viously consulting you, as I was anxious not to miss the opportunity. 
 Believe me, with sincere regard, &c. " C. H. T." 
 
 In reply to this, I thanked Colonel Taylor for his friendly zeal, but 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 123 
 
 made up my mind to take no farther steps. Had the request been made, 
 the boon would, unquestionably, have been granted, and I should have 
 been informed that my name would appear in the first list of baronets. 
 This, however, would not be what I aimed at, which was a participation 
 in the honours conferred on the occasion of the victory, and not the 
 title for its own sake. The enthusiasm had, in fact, subsided in a great 
 degree, and it became merely a question whether I should solicit a 
 favour from Mr. Pitt, who had never conducted himself towards me 
 otherwise than with cold civility, as a person not indebted to him for 
 my official appointments.* I am sensible that in this I may have 
 acted injudiciously, and under the influence of a mistaken pride ; but 1 
 have not at any subsequent period repented of my self-denial. \ 
 
 On the 11th November the account was received of Sir Richard 
 Strachan's brilliant action of the 4th off" Rochefort, in which four sail of 
 the French line were captured. \ The 9th January 1806, was appointed 
 for depositing in St. Paul's Church the body of the illustrious Lord 
 
 Q* " I cannot now discuss the main subject of your letters, and doubt whether I could do 
 any good by seeing Pitt. I have never gained any ground with him, and never call upon 
 him in the way of business, excepting at cabinets." — 1805.] 
 
 f [" I have wished to write you at some length upon a subject we talked about, and which 
 I thought might have come to a crisis whilst you were here. A day or two after your depar- 
 ture, it was intimated to me, that I might have the thing for asking for — but I had by that 
 time cooled upon it; and I really could not bring myself to ask any thing, even pro forma, of 
 Mr. Pitt ; so I made up my mind, not to refuse, but to put it off ; saying, that just then was 
 not a good season for troubling the Minister on such subjects. It was on the day we heard 
 of the Emperor's separate peace. I have considerable doubts of its being wise to encumber 
 myself with it, but to be a gratification it must come from the fountain-head." — 1805.] 
 
 \ I must take the liberty of here introducing a friendly letter (not, certainly, intended for 
 even this degree of publicity), from Earl Spencer, dated 12th November 1805. 
 
 " Dear Marsden : — I have enough of the smack of the whip left in me to make it impos- 
 sible for me to resist writing one line of congratulation to you on the very brilliant week of 
 news which you have just had. This last affair of Sir Richard Strachan's is the completest 
 
 R 2 and 
 
124 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Nelson, which had previously lain in state at the Admiralty.* The 23d 
 of that month was marked by the death of Mr. Pitt, the statesman whose 
 energies saved his country from the contagion and consequent horrors of 
 the French revolution, and who maintained an arduous and unremitting 
 struggle against the most formidable enemy that had ever been opposed 
 to England. t Upon the formation of a new Ministry,! Mr. Grey (after- 
 
 and the prettiest epilogue to a grand drama that could be devised ; and must be particularly 
 agreeable to your department, as it is a strong testimony of able disposition, as well as skilful 
 and brave execution. Pray communicate my sincere congratulations to Gambier on these 
 splendid events, as well as on his flag at the main. 
 
 " Very sincerely and faithfully your's, Spencer." 
 * [" This, as you may suppose, has been a day of bustle. The body has just been depo- 
 sited in the Admiralty, and without any effort on my part, or intention of going the least out 
 of my way, I have had a good view of the water procession from the top of the building, 
 and of its entrance into the court and house from my own window. The Mackenzies and 
 Wilkins', are to be here at ten o'clock to-night (through the garden door), to be introduced 
 to the tomb of the Capulets. All this is very unimportant to you at a distance ; but with us 
 it is a matter of the utmost importance, which people think more about than of the disasters 
 on the Continent, or the safety of our troops." — 8th January 1806.] 
 
 [" Duchess of Devonshire presents her compliments to Mr. Marsden, and she would 
 be most extremely obliged to him if he would obtain for her tickets of admission for the 
 lying-in-state at Greenwich, and also at the Admiralty. She would wish to have enough for 
 her whole party, which is eight persons." — Devonshire House, Friday.'] 
 
 [" I hope your birth-day went off as well as mine. I had four-and-twenty admirals 
 and captains to dine with me, and our ball was so full and so hot, that we could neither move 
 or breathe, which you know is just what a birth-day ball should be ; which for your comfort 
 and health I would advise you to avoid." — Plymouth, 19th January.~] 
 
 ■f [" Your note of yesterday prepared me for the death of Mr. Pitt, and yet I could not 
 help feeling shocked when I saw that he was certainly dead. Strong as his mind might be, 
 and certainly it was very strong, I have very little doubt of the disastrous conclusion of the 
 war on the Continent having hastened his death. To have exerted himself to move the spirit 
 of other powers, and to have formed coalition of forces which ought to have insured success, 
 had they been properly managed, and to see them produce an effect diametrically opposite 
 to that which was hoped from them ; to see them exercise the powers, and effectually esta- 
 blish the tyranny of the man they were meant to reduce, must have been a dreadful mortifi- 
 cation." — 25/A January 1806. Admiral Young to Mr. M.] 
 
 J £" This evening I shall know every thing, as you may infer from the enclosed note. 
 
 Luckily 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 12-j 
 
 wards Lord Howick and Earl Grey) became First Lord of the Admiralty, 
 and Mr. Tucker replaced Mr. Barrow as my colleague. During all 
 these changes I was quite passive, never showing any anxiety to hold 
 my place, or making interest for that purpose with the ruling powers of 
 the day, and I remained unmolested in my situation. The expediency 
 of my taking a seat in Parliament was hinted to me on different occasions, 
 and it might fairly have been expected, but I adhered to the resolution 
 I had formed of declining the honour ; not only because I felt that I did 
 not possess the talent necessary for distinguishing myself in a delibera- 
 tive and popular assembly where eloquence is the first and judgment the 
 second requisite, but because I was satisfied of its being inconsistent with 
 the effective discharge of my official duties in time of war, which required 
 all my time and attention, and did not admit of my being called away to 
 ' make a House,' at the most inconvenient hour, when the public letters, 
 written from minutes made in the course of the morning, were succes- 
 sively coming up for correction and signature. 
 
 Luckily I was disengaged, and meant to have passed the evening at home, out of the vortex 
 of politics. You will abuse me, I know, for this feeling ; but why should not I have my 
 private luxuries ? It is a curious, but not describable, scene that now surrounds me — all in 
 motion, and popping in and out like the figures in a magic lantern. The change is quite 
 uncomfortable." — February I SOG.] 
 
 [" At the Ancient Music last night, I met a curious assemblage of politicians, and 
 spoke to and shook hands with people of all parties. Lord Ellenborough placed himself 
 next to me, and then the Prince seated himself next to his lordship. Lord Sidmouth was 
 just before me ; and Lord Castlereagh, with whom I had a good deal of chat in going out of 
 the room, not far from me." — 28th February 1806.] 
 
 [" I have yours of the 1st of May; and in return acquaint you of the capture of the 
 Marengo and Belle Poule, by Sir John Warren's squadron. My friend, Sir Harry Neale, in 
 the London, brought them to action, and had a good deal of fighting before they struck to 
 him and the Amazon. This happened on the 13th. The Marengo had sixty-five killed, and 
 eighty wounded. Linois among the latter. It is a most gratifying event, and must be a 
 
 productive 
 
12 Q MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 In the month of March 1806,* Sir John Duckworth's dispatch, giving 
 an account of his action with a French squadron, in the West Indies, on 
 the 6th of February, was received and forwarded to the King at Wind- 
 sor, in return to which his Private Secretary writes : 
 
 " I cannot deny myself the pleasure of congratulating you upon the 
 excellent and glorious news which was received this morning, and which 
 at this moment particularly, is of the greatest importance. The action 
 does the highest credit to Sir J. D. and all those employed ; and it is 
 truly satisfactory to prove, that whether the enemy's attempts are made 
 upon the great scale or in detail, they are equally defeated by the activity 
 and vigilance of our cruizers, and the arrangements which have directed 
 their operations. I need not tell you that I was delighted to carry Mr. 
 Grey's box this morning to our good King, who received the intelligence 
 with the strongest marks of satisfaction ; and I wish that many more such 
 boxes could be sent, to outweigh the unpleasant contents of those from 
 the Continent. I was also very glad to read to his Majesty jour letter 
 
 productive one to the captors. I wish we could dispose of the remaining six ships." — ith 
 May 1806.] 
 
 [_" Dear Marsden, " St. James's Square. Sunday. 
 
 " Many thanks for your interesting note — the capture of Linois's marauding squadron is 
 very gratifying to all my feelings, Indian, late Admiralty , and Public. Yours, sincerely, 
 
 " Castlereagh. 
 
 " May we hope that Warren is gone to the southward in search of the Brest ships unac- 
 counted for."] 
 
 * [" I was in hopes I should have been able to send you a Gazette, but it is late, and 
 they do not appear. Mr. Wynn told me he had sent a bulletin to the Castle by express ; 
 so I did not write to you by the coach. I had a terrible day of it — Was knocked up at three 
 o'clock in the morning, when I had got about an hour-and-half 's sleep, called up Mr. Grey at 
 four, having by that time arranged and docketed my papers, and drawn out a bulletin. I 
 then worked till seven, and lay down in hopes of getting a little sleep, — but it would not do ; 
 so I returned to the office, and worked there till Mr. Grey's dinner was ready. It has put 
 every one (out and in), as you may suppose, in high spirits, and it is really a famous event." 
 —March Mi, 1806.] 
 
 [" Dismal 
 
WILLIAM MARS DEN. 127 
 
 of yesterday, wherein such handsome mention is made of the son of my 
 excellent friend, Colonel Handheld, who is well deserving of such a 
 son. * 
 
 On the death of Mr. Fox,| Lord Howick, with whom I had acted on 
 the most satisfactory terms, during his short naval administration, being 
 
 [" Dismal weather for our fetes ; it blows and rains most furiously. No bad emblem 
 of the stormy reign of him whose birth we celebrate." — Plymouth Dock, 4:th June 1806. — 
 Adm. Young to Mr. M.] 
 
 * I am induced to transcribe the following letter of the 19th June 1806, from Col. Taylor, 
 because it conveys a faithful and interesting account of the state of bodily infirmity under 
 which the King laboured at that time : " I trouble you with a few lines in consequence of 
 your letter of yesterday, to mention that I have reason to believe that the King wishes all 
 official boxes, whatever may be their contents, to be sent to him here (at Windsor), although 
 he should happen, on Wednesdays, to go to town for a few hours. The fact is, that his sight 
 is not such as to allow him, witli any positive degree of certainty, to ascertain what are the 
 papers to be taken out of the large Admiralty box, although from habit he hardly ever mis- 
 takes them or requires assistance, and the signing of papers is become a kind of mechanical 
 process ; in which sight is very immaterial. I do not think his sight is much worse than for 
 some months past. It certainly has not made any progress ; whilst the patience, resignation, 
 and unutterable good humour with which he submits to so great a calamity daily increase. 
 Our friend, Sir Harry Neale, will tell you, that it is impossible to be with our good King 
 without finding every hour fresh cause to love and admire him. I think it very pro- 
 bable he may make one more trip to London in the course of this or the next month, when I 
 shall not fail to trouble you with a visit, and thank you for your continued attention, of 
 which, I assure you, his Majesty always expresses himself very sensible." On the 12th 
 July, he (Colonel Taylor) writes : " I am extremely sorry to hear that your brother is about 
 to retire from his situation in Ireland, in which his services have been so essentially useful to 
 the state. I am persuaded that his loss will very soon be severely felt ; but amidst these 
 changes of men and measures, the removal of a most zealous and able individual from 
 employment is an event which must daily occur, and fortunately there is too much liberality 
 in the country to suffer important and faithful services to go unrewarded." 
 
 f [" Mr. Fox was still alive this afternoon, and when sensible (for several times they 
 thought him gone) has his entire recollection. A servant being in the room when Lord 
 Holland went there yesterday, F. addressed his lordship in French. He very lately repeated 
 some lines from Virgil. His evenness of mind must tend much to keep life in him. My 
 friend John Crisp was a strong instance of this." — 13/A September 1806.] 
 
128 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 appointed to succeed him as one of his Majesty's principal secretaries of 
 state, was replaced at the Board of Admiralty by my estimable friend 
 Mr. Thomas Grenville. It was his wish that no change whatever should 
 take place in the department, and Mr. Tucker continued to hold his 
 place of Second Secretary. The business under Mr. Grenville's admi- 
 nistration (likewise very brief, and from the first considered as pro tem- 
 pore) was conducted in a manner equally pleasant and efficient; but the 
 enemy, whose object it was to elude the pursuit of our squadrons, did 
 not afford opportunities for any brilliant achievement at sea. 
 
 At a farewell dinner given by Lord Howick (Earl Grey), I sat next to, 
 and had much friendly conversation with, Mr. Grenville, in which I 
 agreed to retain my office so long as it might suit his convenience ; * 
 
 * On the 1st of October, Colonel Taylor writes : — " I have not troubled you with any 
 letter for a long time past ; but I cannot refrain from expressing to you how much I rejoice, 
 for the sake of the public and the service, that you are to continue for the present in the 
 situation of which you discharge the duties so much to the satisfaction of every one. Our 
 good King appeared to receive with much pleasure the information of your continuance in it. 
 At the same time I am aware that, under the rapid and frequent changes in your department^ 
 retirement must present a greater degree of comfort ; but these are times when the public 
 cannot spare such men as you, and this idea will, I doubt not, reconcile you to the sacrifice 
 of personal ease and comfort." 
 
 £" I had scarcely finished the accompanying copy (a) for you, when we received a second 
 dispatch, announcing the capture of four frigates out of Rochefort, as you will read in a 
 bulletin I mean to send you." — 3d October 1806.] 
 
 (a) « My dear Sir : " Admiralty Office. 
 
 " I have the satisfaction to acquaint you, that le President, a fine French frigate, is arrived 
 at Plymouth, having been captured on the 27th ult. in lat. 47°, long. 70°, by the squadron 
 under Sir Thomas Louis, after a chase of seventeen hours. 
 
 " I cannot sufficiently thank you for your very kind letter. I am impelled by every 
 motive of gratitude and duty, to continue my humble exertions so long as they shall be 
 required, and the state of my health and faculties will admit. You must be sensible, how- 
 ever, that I suffer a confinement, which is, I believe, without example in H. M.'s service, 
 and nature requires relaxation."— 3d October 1806. — Mr. M. to Colonel T. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 129 
 
 besrsirnr him, at the same time, to understand, that to retire was the 
 
 Do O ' ' 
 
 wish of my heart.* 
 
 In March 1807, a new administration was formed, and Lord (after- 
 wards the Earl of) Mulgrave was named First Lord of the Admiralty. 
 On this occasion Mr. Barrow returned to his former situation of Second 
 Secretary. My health continuing to suffer from the close confinement 
 of office, I mentioned to a member of the Board, who was nearly con- 
 nected in relationship with his Lordship, and would convey to him my 
 sentiments, the desire I felt of retiring from public life. This, however, 
 was for some time resisted, on grounds very flattering to me personally, 
 and I consented to make an effort to continue the exercise of my func- 
 tions, so long as the state of my health would possibly allow ; to which 
 resolution the following letter, dated 1st April, has reference : 
 
 " I was extremely happy to find from your obliging letter of yester- 
 day, that you have agreed to continue for the present in your laborious 
 
 p' Nothing particular has occurred to-day. The prize frigates are all safe in port, and 
 also the ships which took them. I am going to meet a party of Royal Society people, who 
 are rather better company than your politicians." — ith October 1806.] 
 
 * A letter of the 19th November 1806, from Admiral Sir Charles M. Pole, who had 
 been a member of the Board of Admiralty when Lord St. Vincent was at the head of the 
 commission, marks the commencement of that intimacy and friendship between us, which 
 afterwards received strength from the circumstance of our becoming near neighbours in 
 Hertfordshire, and continued to the lamented hour of his death : 
 
 " My dear Marsden ; — If I could persuade myself that you ever had a leisure moment, I 
 certainly should call, if it were only to assure you, that the satisfaction I derived from the 
 pleasure of making your acquaintance added most materially to my comfort whilst at the 
 Admiralty, and induces me to subscribe myself, most faithfully and affectionately yours, 
 C. M. Pole." 
 
 f_" Canning dined with us yesterday at the Club, and was entertaining. Sir William 
 Scott had said to him in his sententious way, " I, too, have received a Precept" (from the 
 Reforming Committee). * Yes,' says Canning, ' and they will probably make you an Exam- 
 ple.' This, you will allow, is genuine wit." — it/i March 1807.] 
 
 S Scott 
 
130 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 and important situation. It is doubtless a great sacrifice of your private 
 comfort ; but the consciousness of promoting the good of your King and 
 country in these critical times, will ever prove a consolation. The King 
 expressed great satisfaction at your retaining your office, and at the 
 return of a colleague whom he knows to be so agreeable to you. I shall 
 be equally surprised and mortified if your brother is not employed. His 
 services are much too important to be lost." 
 
 I found myself constrained, however, by the injury my constitution 
 was sustaining, to write the following letter to Lord Mulgrave, on the 
 12th June 1807. — " My Lord : It has been my anxious wish that I 
 might have it in my power to continue the performance of my duties as 
 Secretary of the Admiralty so long as your Lordship and the Board 
 should find it convenient to require them; but the consequences of 
 long and close application to business, which for a few years past have 
 affected my respiration, and incapacited me from reading aloud, have 
 latterly become more serious. Under these circumstances, a reasonable 
 attention to the preservation or eventual recovery of my health demands 
 that I should, without delay, enjoy the benefit of air and exercise : 
 which being incompatible with the confinement and unremitting labours 
 of the department, I feel myself reduced to the necessity of requesting 
 that your Lordship and the Board will have the goodness to allow me to 
 retire so soon as a successor can be appointed to relieve me in office. 
 In making this application, I gladly seize the opportunity of expressing 
 my grateful sense of the kind indulgence I have uniformly experienced 
 from your Lordship and your estimable colleagues. I have the honour 
 to be, &c. " W. M." 
 
 " The R. H. Lord Mulgrave." 
 The consequence of this representation was the prompt arrangement 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 
 
 131 
 
 of my official business, which, I was informed by the same member of 
 the Board, would have been brought forward at an earlier period, on the 
 obvious ground of my declining health, but for the unaccountable cir- 
 cumstance of its being understood, that in the time of Lord Howick's 
 administration I had objected to retire, unless on a pension of £2,000 per 
 annum. This, however, had not the slightest foundation, nor did any 
 thing pass on the subject of my resignation with that Board, nor with 
 any other in the way of stipulation. In an interview with Lord Mul- 
 grave, it was settled in the most satisfactory manner, that I should relin- 
 quish the office at Midsummer, and, under the existing Order in Coun- 
 cil, receive a pension equal to half of what my salary would be in time 
 of peace. Being then a period of war, it was jt'4,000 per annum. The 
 arrangement shortly after received the sanction of the Minister, with 
 whom (not the First Lord of the Admiralty) the appointment rests.* 
 
 * Upon this occasion, I was favoured with the following letter from His Majesty's Private 
 Secretary, under date of the 14th June 1807: " Although very much concerned, 1 was not 
 surprised, after what you said to me in town, to hear that you had been reduced to the neces- 
 sity, in consequence of the effects of too great confinement and application, to offer your 
 resignation. I have communicated to the King your note, and the copy of your letter to 
 Lord Mulgrave ; and His Majesty was pleased, in the most gracious manner, to authorize 
 me to assure you of His regret at being deprived of your valuable services, and particularly 
 that the state of your health should be the cause ; although he is convinced that no other 
 cause would have induced you to withdraw from your situation at this moment. I sincerely 
 hope that you may very soon feel the upmost benefit from air and exercise, and that every 
 arrangement will be made according to your wishes. I trust also, that your being out of 
 office will not deprive me of the pleasm-e of meeting you occasionally, and of preserving that 
 intercourse in which I have experienced such frequent instances of kindness and attention, 
 which, believe me, I shall never forget. With every wish for your health, and future com- 
 fort and happiness, I remain, &c. C. H. T" — My reply to this, of the 15th, was in the fol- 
 lowing terms : " I cannot find words to express the sentiments of gratitude I have felt on the 
 perusal of your very kind letter. To have merited the good opinion of my Sovereign is the 
 highest object of my ambition, and will ever cause me to look back with pride and pleasure 
 to those humble labours which he has graciously condescended to term 'valuable services." 
 
 S 2 It 
 
132 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 I had the satisfaction of thinking that I retired with a general senti- 
 ment of good-will on the. part of those with whom I had been accus- 
 tomed to act,* as well as of those gentlemen who acted under me. 
 From the 24th June, I ceased to officiate at the Board, and on the 30th 
 gave up my apartments to my successor, the Hon. Win. Wellesley 
 Pole (afterwards Lord Maryborough), when I removed to my newly- 
 purchased house in Wimpole Street. Thus terminated the period of my 
 political life : a period of which I had every reason to be proud, as it 
 embraced the greatest naval victories that have adorned the British 
 annals. I had carried on my share of the public business to the entire 
 satisfaction, and with the confidence of all the noble persons at the 
 
 It has not been without extreme regret, that I have been forced by imperious considerations 
 to relinquish the duties of an office of so honourable a nature as that which I have held, 
 and where every person and every circumstance is most satisfactory to me. No motive 
 but the recovery of health (without which I should soon prove but an useless servant of the 
 public) could have induced me to solicit retirement at such a period. I trust that the busi- 
 ness of the department will pass into abler hands than mine ; but in respect to zeal, fidelity, 
 and honourable discharge of my duties, I shall not suffer from any comparison. I beg you 
 will lay me at the feet of the best of kings, with my humble duty, and to believe me, with the 
 sincerest esteem and affection, your most faithful and obliged friend and servant, W. M." 
 To Colonel Taylor, &c. &c. &c] 
 
 * Of this the following letter from the Military Secretary of H.R. H. the Duke of York 
 (afterwards Quarter- Master-General), with whom I had the satisfaction of much friendly and 
 confidential intercourse, will afford no feeble evidence. 
 
 " My dear Sir : " Horse Guards, June 14th 1807. 
 
 " I have just received your note, announcing your retirement from office: I had heard 
 some rumours of that tendency, but was unwilling to credit them, and am very sorry to find 
 them confirmed. The public will feel your loss, although your intended successor has, I 
 understand, habits of public business. I shall individually feel it very sensibly, and I beg 
 you to accept my best thanks for all your kind attentions to me. You must be very happy 
 in the prospect of leisure, and, I trust, we shall soon see the fruits of it. I shall endeavour 
 to profit by every opportunity of meeting you, and of cultivating that friendship which, both 
 in my public and private life, I have ever held in the highest estimation. Believe me, 
 always with great regard, yours faithfully, " J. W. Gordon." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 133 
 
 head of the department (seven in number), under whom it was my lot 
 to act ; and, above all, was honoured with marks of approbation, and 
 expressions of the kindest interest, from my truly gracious Sovereign. 
 It afforded me the opportunity of conferring obligations on a great 
 number of persons (by several of whom they have been since recol- 
 lected), of assisting the applications, and putting forward the pretensions 
 of meritorious officers, and of forming friendships that have subsisted 
 during their lives, with many distinguished and estimable characters. 
 In a pecuniary view, it has proved the means of adding essentially to 
 my comforts. 
 
 With the alteration in my habits of life, my health rapidly improved, 
 and I felt most powerfully the enjoyment of that liberty of action to 
 which I had been so long a stranger.* Under these circumstances, it is 
 not surprising that the thought should suggest itself of deciding more 
 permanently my happiness, by making an amiable woman the partaker 
 of it ; yet, in fact, the design of marrying was not with me a matter of 
 premeditation. I had passed through life so agreeably with respect to 
 female friendships, that the advantages of a more tender connexion had 
 not often or forcibly presented themselves to my imagination, and cer- 
 tainly I had never sought for a match, or exposed myself to the hazard 
 
 * £" I have just said to Young (whose note of congratulation I enclose (a) ), " Certainly, 
 I never was in love with the business of the office, but, like an honest man who marries an 
 unamiable wife, I have always made the best of it, and endeavoured to do my duty." — 
 2ith June 1807.] 
 
 (a) " Dear Marsden : — Although I have nothing particular to say, I must write by this post, as it is the last 
 that will carry a letter to you at the Board ; at the side of which, if, I were sitting, I should very much regret 
 your quitting the end of it j as it is, though I feel for those you leave, I congratulate you on being released 
 from an occupation which, I think, must always have been irksome to you, and on your being left at liberty to 
 follow those which are more agreeable. I most sincerely wish your new life may bring with it all possible 
 comfort and pleasure, and that you may very long have good health to enjoy it to the utmost. Believe me, 
 dear Marsden, most faithfully yours, W. Young." — Plymouth Dock, i2d June 1807. 
 
j :J 4 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 of a refusal ; but at length, about this period, I was led by impercep- 
 tible degrees to an attachment that concentrated all my scattered affec- 
 tions, and has now for above twenty-one (six) (eight)*years constituted 
 the solace of my existence. 
 
 It has been occasionally mentioned, that for some years previous to 
 my quitting office, the hours I could spare in the evening from public 
 business were chiefly passed in the society of Mr. Wilkins and his 
 family, and that I had been materially assisted in the discrimination and 
 arrangement of my collection of oriental coins, which had come to my 
 possession in confused parcels, by the accurate eye, expert hands, and 
 quick apprehension of his eldest daughter. These talents, so peculiarly 
 interesting to me, combined with many others, and with qualities of a 
 still more valuable kind progressively developing themselves, produced 
 on a susceptible mind their natural effect. What attractive merits, on 
 the other hand, she might discover in a person between whom and her- 
 self there was such a disparity of years, it is not for me to investigate ; 
 but so it was, that we insensibly contracted a mutual esteem that grew 
 into affection, and began to think, although without any avowal of sen- 
 timents, that the future happiness of each would depend upon our inti- 
 macy being rendered perfect and indissoluble. On the 9th of August I 
 made proposals of marriage to Miss Wilkins, when, with her free con- 
 sent, I proceeded to obtain the approbation of her father to our union, 
 in which I succeeded, though he was not the first to perceive the growing 
 attachment. | The necessary business of a proper settlement being satis- 
 
 * Dates added by Mr. M. on looking over the manuscript. 
 
 f The warm congratulations I received from those friends to whom I deemed it necessary 
 to write propitiatory letters on this to me important occasion, well deserve to be recorded. 
 Amongst the first, is a letter from Colonel (Sir Herbert) Taylor, dated Windsor, 15th August, 
 of which the following is a transcript : 
 
 " I am not only very much flattered by your kind recollection of me, but also truly grati- 
 fied 
 
WILLIAM MA RSDEN. 135 
 
 factorily arranged, as there was no time to be lost, on my side at least, 
 the 22d of the same month was fixed on for our nuptials, which accord- 
 ingly took place in the old parish church of Mary-le-bone. 
 
 fied at the proof which your obliging letter conveys, that you do justice to the feeling of 
 warm and sincere interest which I shall ever take in every event which concerns you per- 
 sonally. I am not surprised, that after retiring from official confinement and labour, you 
 should have been led to consult your future comfort and happiness, which, from the choice 
 you have made, cannot fail to answer those essential objects, and most heartily do I congratu- 
 late you upon the approaching event, and pray that every blessing may be yours for many 
 many years to come. I have not failed to communicate to the King the contents of your letter, 
 and his Majesty was pleased to express himself on this occasion with the same degree of 
 interest which he has always shewn in regard to you. I need not add, that when I return 
 to London, I hope you will permit me to pay my respects to Mrs. Marsden, and to assure 
 you how much I am bound, by the truest regard and gratitude, to pray for your joint happi- 
 ness. Believe me, my dear Sir, most sincerely and faithfully, yours, C. H. T." 
 
 The next which presents itself is from Admiral (Sir William) Young, dated Plymouth 
 Dock (Devonport) the 15th August 1807. — " Dear Marsden: Can a man take fire in his 
 bosom and not be burnt ? The society of pretty and amiable damsels is dangerous enough 
 amidst all the bustle and distraction of London ; but with walks by moon-light, purling 
 rills and shady groves, they are irresistible ; with such allies all is over, and one has nothing 
 left but to surrender with the best grace one can. I did not exclaim, as you supposed I 
 should, " Poor fellow !" but I did exclaim, " Happy fellow !" for so you are, and so is every 
 man who finds in the woman he loves, and who returns his affection, a well- cultivated mind, 
 with an honest, virtuous disposition and pleasing manners. With such a wife a man must be 
 happy, or it must be his fault if he be not so; and it will not be your fault. Indeed, my 
 good friend, I do not see how you could have done otherwise than you have done. Great 
 disparity in age should generally be avoided, and great caution should be used where it is 
 not ; but this, like all general rules, has its exceptions, and among my friends I have seen 
 marriages, with disparity greater than yours, as happy as any I have seen where none existed. 
 I wish to say much more ; but the messenger is going to the post, and I am unwilling to lose 
 one day in offering you my congratulations and warmest wishes for your happiness, which I 
 beg you will offer also to Miss Wilkins — from you they will certainly be acceptable. Believe 
 me, &c. W. Y." 
 
 Lady Spencer, in her usual kind and frank manner, writes from Althorp : " I have been 
 so perpetually interrupted by country neighbours, my dear Mr. M., that I could not answer 
 your letter yesterday when I received it, and now I have but a moment to thank you for it, 
 as the natives are still pouring in upon me. However, very cordial congratulations do not 
 require many words, and though I have but an instant to give you, yet that instant is 
 
 sufficient 
 
136 
 
 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 After the ceremony and breakfast, we left town for Suffolk, and passed 
 two or three days at the house of a friend near Woodbridge; from whence 
 
 sufficient to convey to you ten thousand kind wishes and warm felicitations on your approach- 
 ing change of life. It is an awful one, my good friend ! and though you seem to have made 
 such a choice as will ensure you as much happiness as the state will admit of, yet be wise 
 enough to prepare yourself to swallow the amaro as well as the dolce of it ; for such is the 
 mixture you are now compounding, believe me, though probably you do not think so just 
 now. Well, God bless you — I must now have done ; but at this moment you care not how 
 concise your correspondent may be, although in six months' time you may perhaps complain 
 of my brevity. Lord Spencer is at present in Wales, or he would join me in all I have said, 
 and in desiring you to give our best compliments to Miss W. Ever yours, my dear Mr. M. 
 L. S." Were I now to remind her ladyship of the prudential advice contained in this letter ) 
 I could assure her, that after the experience of twenty-one years, I have found the dolce of the 
 draught very much to prevail over, and to neutralize, the amaro. It will readily be believed 
 that this qualified style of felicitation was not entirely to the taste of my Intended, who 
 afterwards became better acquainted with her ladyship's open-hearted manner and good- 
 humoured raillery. 
 
 The following characteristic letter of the 18th, from my worthy friend Sir Harry Neale, 
 must not be omitted : — " Dear Marsden, I am truly rejoiced to learn you are so soon to 
 become one of us. You will now begin to experience the real comforts of life, and to despise 
 Admiralty despatches as much as I do. In short, my good friend, a bachelor is a very bad 
 sort of animal : it is true he walks upon two legs, but he frequently walks until he is tired to 
 death, and when he returns home jaded, throws himself on a sofa, with a good hearty yawn 
 — and all because he is a bachelor. I sincerely wish you the happiness you have every 
 reason to expect. Lady Neale desires me to say, how happy she is to hear you are become a 
 reasonable creature. We hope to be introduced to Mrs. M. the first time we visit London, 
 and I need not add, if you ever shape your course to the southward, it will give us much 
 pleasure to see you at Walhampton. Believe me, &c. H. N." — 
 
 Lord Spencer writes on the 27th : — " Dear Marsden : Since my return from Wales, it is 
 not till this day that I have had time to offer my congratulations on your entrance into the 
 state of matrimony ; of which your intention was announced to Lady S. during my absence, 
 and which I see has actually taken place. As I have good reason to believe that there are 
 all the requisites on both sides to render your speculation a fortunate one, I need not add 
 that I derived much pleasure from the event, and I trust you will thereby have considerably 
 added to the comfort and satisfaction of the retirement which your long and assiduous labours 
 have so well merited. Pray make my respects to Mrs. M., and believe me, &c. Spencer." 
 " Dear Marsden : — My newspaper to-day informs me that you were married last Satur- 
 day ; so matrimony, it seems, is not one of the things an Irishman puts off to Monday: 
 
 and 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 
 
 137 
 
 we extended our excursion to Lowestoff and Norwich, to Lincoln, where 
 we were hospitably entertained for a week, by relations of Mrs. Marsden. 
 Our road then lay through Nottinghamshire and its fine parks to Buxton, 
 
 and in these uncertain and changeable times, a man were very unwise who loses two days 
 of happiness when he has them within his reach : that you, however, may enjoy so many 
 happy days that two might scarcely be missed, I do most heartily and most sincerely wish ; 
 and with my kindest respects to Mrs. Marsden, I beg you to assure her of my best wishes 
 for her long and perfect happiness also : indeed, the happiness of the one necessarily implies, 
 as it must now produce, the happiness of the other; for I will not believe it possible that it 
 should happen to either of you, though indeed we see it happen to many married folks, that 
 the one can be happy when the other is miserable. In two honest hearts, virtuous dispo- 
 sitions, with good sense, and good temper, attached to each other by warm affection, I can 
 conceive such delight, that were I to marry and to become indifferent, disappointment would 
 render indifference a misery. God forbid, my good friend, that indifference should ever 
 creep in to destroy your pleasure. 
 
 " Before this, you perhaps know what has passed at Copenhagen ; of which we may still 
 remain a day or two in doubt. You may suppose that I am not a little anxious to know 
 what is doing. I have the success of the country to hope for in common with all English- 
 men ; and that of the Admiral in common with all his friends ; but I have an anxiety pecu- 
 liar to myself to know the event of an enterprize which I might have commanded ; and a 
 curiosity to compare the operations which are carrying on, with those which I might have 
 directed. Something, I think, may have been already done, which, if not the consequence 
 of positive orders, I should not have suffered, as it will render success more difficult, though 
 it may not ultimately prevent it. We have orders to detain all Danish merchant ships ; and 
 my cruizers have already sent in several. This ruin of individuals is a very sad effect of the 
 quarrels of princes ; but it cannot be avoided. I am, dear Marsden, very sincerely yours, 
 W. Young. — Plymouth Dock, 21th August 1807." — To these I shall only add one, under very 
 peculiar circumstances, from my estimable friend, Admiral (now Lord) Gambier, dated off 
 Copenhagen, 5th September : — " My dear Marsden : Though much occupied, I cannot deny 
 myself the pleasure of congratulating you, and rejoicing at the happy event of your union, 
 which I trust will prove as lasting as it is happy. I have a sad scene before me at this 
 moment — the town of Copenhagen in flames in several places from our bombardment, and I 
 am sorry to see the great church is destroyed. This is the third day ; and if the governor 
 holds out much longer, and we do not get possession by assault, the whole town must be 
 destroyed; which the Dane will consider as equivalent to his honour. With my hearty 
 wishes for yours and Mrs. M.'s health and happiness, I remain, my dear M., your faithful 
 friend. J. G." 
 
138 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Chatsworth, Matlock, Keddleston-house, Derby, and Northampton. 
 We paid a visit of a few days, by invitation on the road, to our kind 
 friends Lord and Lady Spencer, at Althorp, and returned to town by the 
 middle of September, and made our domestic arrangements in Wimpole- 
 street. In the January following, at the Drawing-room on the Queen's 
 birth-day, Mrs. Marsden was presented by Lady Arden, on her mar- 
 riage. 
 
 Early in July of this year (1808), we paid a visit to my brother Alex- 
 ander's family at Worthing, from whence we returned on the 10th. The 
 heat of the weather about this time was extraordinary, being on the 12th, 
 89f °, 13th 94°, 14th 91°, 19th 83°,and not on any of the intermediate days 
 lower than 81° at 2 p.m. It is to be understood, that the thermometers 
 were placed in the situations least liable to be influenced by the sun's 
 rays. On the 29th of that month we left town on a visit to some worthy 
 friends at Moseley Hall, near Birmingham, where we passed ten days; 
 and then proceeded by Colebrook Dale, Hawkestone, Ellesmere, and 
 Llangollen, to Capel Kerrig, from whence we ascended Snowdon. This, 
 I should observe, is the least accessible side of the mountain, and the 
 walk was difficult and fatiguing. We afterwards travelled through most 
 parts of North Wales, and returned homewards by Ludlow, Worcester, 
 Cheltenham, and Oxford. Upon arriving in town on the 16th Septem- 
 ber, we found there my brother Frederick and his wife, lately returned 
 from Bengal. A part of the month of October we passed with friends 
 at Eversley, in Hampshire, as we had previously done, with others of 
 the same amiable family, at Hurst, in Berkshire. In the summer of 1809 
 our excursion was to Buckingham, Stowe, Moseley Hall, the Potteries 
 in Staffordshire, Liverpool, Chester (crossing and re-crossing the Mersey), 
 Lancaster, Hornby Castle (the seat of my namesake, Mr. John Marsden), 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 139 
 
 and Dent, near Sedburgh, where we remained a few days with friends 
 of Mrs. Marsden, from whence I ascended Wharnside and other moun- 
 tains. We then visited the Lakes of Westmoreland and Cumberland, 
 Carlisle, Newcastle, Durham, Ripon, Studley-Park, Newby-Hall, York, 
 and by Lincoln, Cambridge, Ely, and Newmarket, reached town on the 
 1 1th September. 
 
 My chief literary occupation about this time was in preparing a new 
 edition of the History of Sumatra,* which had been for many years out 
 of print. During the interval, T had taken every opportunity of collect- 
 ing additional information, as well as drawings of animals and plants, 
 views of the country, and other subjects, by means of which, and some 
 corrections, I was enabled to improve the work considerably. The first 
 sheet went to press in March 1810, and the printing was completed by 
 the end of July, although the publication did not take place until 
 January 181 1. On the 24th of February 1810, I lost my valuable friend, 
 Mr. Henry Cavendish, in his seventy-ninth year ; the most distinguished 
 man of science of the period in which he lived, being equally eminent in 
 physics, chemistry, astronomy, and the higher branches of mathematics. 
 In one of the lectures delivered by Sir Humphry Davy at the Royal Insti- 
 tution, and which were afterwards published, an eloquent and just tri- 
 bute was paid to his memory. His death was particularly felt by the 
 members of the Royal Society Club, the meetings of which he attended, 
 with rigid punctuality, during a long course of years. His father, Lord 
 Charles Cavendish, was the Father of the Society at the period of my 
 election. 
 
 * " His (Mr. Marsden's) account of Sumatra, which appeared soon after his return from 
 the East, may be considered as a model for all monographs of the history, languages, customs, 
 and statistics of a particular nation." — Extract from the Duke of Sussex's Address, as Presi- 
 dent of the Royal Society, on the Anniversary Meeting, 30th November 1836. 
 
 T 2 
 
140 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 The plan of making the country my chief place of residence, and of 
 coming to town only for a few months in the year, had long been one in 
 which I indulged my mind, as conducive not only to health, but also to 
 the more quiet enjoyment of my literary pursuits ; and Mrs. Marsden's 
 sentiments in this respect coinciding with my own, we kept that object 
 in view in the course of our various excursions. At first it was my idea 
 to effect a purchase at a distance from London, and for that purpose we 
 made a journey in the winter of last year, to examine a place on sale in 
 Worcestershire, but which did not answer expectation, and after the 
 lapse of some time, considerations, principally of a family nature, induced 
 us to prefer the possession, for a term of years, of a respectable house 
 and grounds, within the range of fifteen to twenty miles from the metro- 
 polis. Under these impressions, we were induced to look at a place in 
 Hertfordshire, in the parish of Aldenham, named Edge Grove, which 
 had been recently purchased by the managers of the Thellusson Trust, 
 under the Court of Chancery, from my friend Sir John Nicholl, whose 
 family had resided there fourteen years, and who gave me a most favour- 
 able representation (fully justified by my experience) of its local advan- 
 tages. We paid our first visit to it on the 2Gth March 1810, and on the 
 28th of that month I signed an agreement for a lease of the house and 
 ninety-two acres of grass land, handsomely wooded, on the terms at 
 which it had been previously valued by a surveyor appointed by the 
 Court. On the 9th April I took possession, and we paid it frequent 
 visits ; but, owing to a severe indisposition under which Mrs. M. 
 laboured, it was not till September that the family were removed from 
 town. I must add, that for the comfortable enjoyment of it since that 
 period, we have every reason to be thankful. Upon the anniversary 
 election of the officers of the Royal Society on the 30th November of 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. ]41 
 
 that year, I relinquished the post of treasurer, and at the same time 
 ceased to be a vice-president ; the duties being incompatible with my 
 intention of making the country my principal place of residence.* 
 
 In the latter part of January 181 l,j" we moved the family to town from 
 
 * [" I purpose being in town the 1st and 2d, 8th and 9th November, and through the 
 whole of the month I must be frequently at Somerset House. I have settled every thing 
 for giving up my treasurership on the 30th — our anniversary. I do care about the news 
 from Portugal as a patriot (which I am in the best sense of the word), but very little as a 
 politician or newsmonger."— 25/ /< October 1810.] 
 
 [" I came to town on Tuesday, and passed three hours in settling my accounts at 
 Somerset House. To-day the audit was held, and they are finally passed. Our anniversary 
 meeting will be on Friday, and I shall return to the country on Saturday. Before leaving it, I 
 
 received yours of the 20th Certainly I have lived very long in the world, and have seen 
 
 much of the vicissitudes of human affairs, both in the lives of individuals and revolutions of 
 states. It is time that I should now look for a snug place wherein to repose myself." — Wim- 
 pole Street, 28th November 1810. 
 
 The friend to whom this was addressed writes in answer : " I perceive, by the papers, 
 that the new arrangements are completed at the R. S. I only know your successor by 
 name. I again say, I am glad you have done with the office of treasurer ; though I am far 
 from wishing you to discontinue your intercourse with the Society .... You have a right to be 
 vain of the extent and importance of your experience, in your progress in the world. You 
 have seen every thing except adversity, which you have a very good chance of escaping. 
 It is not to luck alone you are indebted for this, but to an early and continued prudence, 
 which, I think, is properly estimated as being equivalent to a whole Pantheon. I cannot 
 allow you, however, at so early a stage of maturity, to talk so gravely of the fifth act."] 
 
 t The following letter is the last with which I was honoured by the command of his 
 late most truly gracious Majesty, and closed my correspondence with my estimable friend 
 his private secretary : 
 
 " My dear Sir : " Windsor, May 25, 1811, 
 
 " I have been honoured with the King's commands to transmit, for your information, the 
 accompanying extract of a letter which I addressed this morning, by his Majesty's order, to 
 Mr. Croker, the King being desirous that you should know that he does not forget the atten- 
 tion which has been shewn to him by a zealous, meritorious, and attached servant, of whom 
 his Majesty often speaks in terms of great regard. I avail myself with great pleasure of this 
 opportunity to recall myself to your recollection, and to assure you I am led by the truest 
 sentiments of gratitude, and of interest in whatever can give you satisfaction, to rejoice in 
 being made the channel of this communication. I remain, with sincere regard, &c. — H.T." 
 
 Extract of a letter to Mr. Croker, May 25, 1811 : " His Majesty honoured me with his 
 
 commands 
 
14 2 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Edge Grove, and resettled there the 10th May. During the interval, in 
 order to enjoy the progress of the spring, we paid it many visits for a 
 longer or a shorter time, accompanied by friends, to whom we were 
 
 commands last night, to assure you how much he is pleased with your attention, in the early 
 communication of intelligence both interesting and pleasing, and to observe that your dili- 
 gence in this respect reminds him of that which had been shown by one of your predecessors, 
 Mr. Marsden, whose conduct was at all times so satisfactory to his Majesty." 
 
 To this flattering communication of the King's sentiments my answer was as follows : — 
 " My dear Sir: " London, 30th May 1811. 
 
 " Being absent from town, it was not till this day that I have been honoured and deeply 
 impressed by the receipt of your favour of the 25th instant, inclosing, by the King's com- 
 mand, an extract of a letter he had been graciously pleased to order you to write to the 
 Secretary of the Admiralty, wherein my humble but zealous endeavours, whilst in office, to 
 render my services acceptable to our revered master, are spoken of in terms that must ever 
 impress my mind with the strongest feelings of gratitude. To have merited his appro- 
 bation, and to be honoured with his recollection, constitute the highest pride of my life. 
 Allow me to take this unlooked-for opportunity of expressing the sincere joy I have felt, on 
 the occasion of his Majesty's happy recovery, and my fervent wishes for a long continuance 
 of his most valuable health. Of your personal kindness to me, I never think without the most 
 lively sentiments of esteem and regard, and the remembrance of all the circumstances con- 
 nected with our correspondence form, in my present retirement, one of the purest sources of 
 the happiness which, under the blessing of God, I enjoy. Believe me, with perfect sin- 
 cerity, &c. W. M." 
 
 Q" Dear Marsden, Impregnable, off the Scheldt, May 27th, 1812. 
 
 " As such things may be common in your country, you will not, perhaps, be surprised 
 when I tell you that we have been all the morning staring at objects which are very far 
 beyond our sight. We have a detachment close off the entrance of the Scheldt, with ships 
 between it and the fleet ; the detachment itself is so far from us, that we do not usually see 
 it from our mast-head ; bvit such has been the peculiar state of the atmosphere this morning, 
 that, from my cabin windows, we have distinctly seen the intermediate ships, and the 
 advanced ships, quite to their water lines, and with a common two-feet spying-glass I can 
 see a windmill, and other buildings on Walcheren, which are seven or eight miles beyond 
 the furthest ships. What can give the atmosphere this strong refracting power ? We had 
 last night a halo round the moon of such an immense extent, that I never before saw any 
 thing that came near it. The circle was complete, and clearly defined ; but the line was 
 narrow and faint. At present there is such an appearance of haziness, that, looking toward 
 the horizon, one would not expect to see any objects which were only at a moderate distance 
 off. Something of this kind is said to have occurred here once before ; but I never saw any 
 
 thing 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 143 
 
 proud to shew its beauties, and happy to communicate its comforts. 1 
 had, indeed, conceived the plan of parting with my house in Wimpole 
 Street, when I could find a purchaser, and become essentially a country 
 gentleman. 
 
 On the 26th February 1812, I attended the Prince Regent's first levee, 
 at Carlton Palace, where the crowd, and consequent inconvenience of 
 reception, were excessive. The King had at this period entirely lost his 
 sight, but not his intellect. 
 
 The first proof sheet of my Dictionary of the Malayan Language* was 
 
 thing like it any where .... The farm and garden go on well, I hope, and more than all, I hope 
 that the purchaser of Wallhall (Admiral Sir Charles Pole), is one with whom you are likely 
 to associate with pleasure, and to live on such terms of comfortable ease and familiarity 
 country neighbours ought to live on. 
 
 " With my best remembrances and wishes to Mrs. Marsden, I am, dear Marsden, most 
 faithfully yours, W. Young."] 
 
 [" Dear Marsden, " Impregnable, Downs, October 26, 1812. 
 
 " You are very good to think of me and my fleet in our distress .... The sea here is so 
 trifling when compared with that which we are accustomed to off the Scheldt, that if we had 
 not heard the howling of the wind, we should not have suspected that we were riding in a 
 storm. I should have been delighted to be of your party at Aldenham, of which there was 
 not one person whom I should not have been glad to see. The account you give of yourself 
 is the best that can be given. To be well and happy is all this world can afford, and more 
 than it does afford to many of us. I hope it may be sparing of neither to you and your 
 good lady for many years to come. The Dalrymples must be a very pleasant addition to 
 your society ; he is a sensible, well-informed man ; and she is a very amiable woman. 
 
 " The enemy's ships having gone some distance up the Scheldt, in their way, I have no 
 doubt, to Antwerp, there will be nothing to call me again to sea during the winter; but how 
 soon I may be able to leave the fleet and go to town, I cannot guess. At present I do not 
 even venture to go on shore, but keep every thing ready to start in a moment, if the French 
 should come down the river again. 
 
 " My best remembrances to Mrs. Marsden. Yours, ever sincerely, " W. Young."] 
 
 * [" You have asked me whether the Malay spoken on the Peninsula differs from ordi- 
 nary Malay. Little or nothing. The best Malay is that embodied and explained in your 
 Dictionary, and all differences are little else than local and provincial." — Extract of a letter 
 from Mr. J. Crawfurd, Singapore. — 12th December 1824.] 
 
144 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 received from the printer on the 21st March, and the last on 1 1th October 
 1811. On the 24th of that month I corrected the first sheet of the Gram- 
 mar, and both works were published in the early part of the following 
 year. The impression was large, and, unfortunately for my labours, the 
 extensive possessions conquered from the Dutch, where the Malayan is 
 spoken, were gratuitously restored to them, and my sale contracted. 
 Within these few years the Government of the Netherlands has done me 
 the honour of causing translations to be made into the Dutch and French 
 languages of my Grammar and Dictionary, which has been ably exe- 
 cuted by M. Elout fils, and to the politeness of M. Elout, minister for 
 the colonies, 1 am indebted for copies of them. 
 
 However small in importance the events of my life may hitherto have 
 appeared, they become from the period of what I may term my retire- 
 ment to the country, still less interesting, and, excepting the publication 
 of some works, I have little to relate besides the common amusements 
 of a man, not idle, indeed, but who has no specific occupation. It is, at 
 the same time, but justice to my worthy neighbours to observe, that 
 
 Q" M. Rosen (a) vous aura deja dit, il y a quelque temps, que je m'occupe d'un ouvrage 
 sur les langues Malaies. Je ne saurais vous exprimer combien, dans ces differentes etudes je 
 dois aux travaux de vos compatriotes, mais surtout aux votres, Monsieur. Yotre dictionnaire, 
 votre precieuse grammaire, votre Histoire de Sumatra, vos memoires inseres dans les recher- 
 ches Asiatiques, seront pour toujours des guides inappreciables pour ceux qui s'occuperont de 
 1'origine et de l'amnite de ces peuplades insulaires et de leur differens idiomes. II serait 
 impossible d'exposer les resultats de recherches plus savantes, plus profondes, et plus solides, 
 avec plus de clarte, d' elegance, et de methode. Je n'ai pu m'empecher, Monsieur, de vous 
 prier, avant que d'entrer en matiere, d'agreer ce juste tribut de ma sincere reconnaissance 
 et de ma vive admiration." — A Tegel pres de Berlin, ce 2 Avril 1831. — Baron (Win.) de 
 Humboldt to Mr. M.] 
 
 (a) This amiable young man, who was a native of Hanover, and who had so highly dis- 
 tinguished himself in oriental literature, died at the premature age of thirty-two. His death 
 took place in London on the 12th September 1837, after a few days' illness. — e. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 145 
 
 they have effectively contributed, by social qualities and the interchange 
 of unostentatious hospitality, to render our residence agreeable to us, 
 through the long succession of years that Providence has added on to 
 the active portion of my life. 
 
 About the end of the year 1812, I removed my collection of books 
 from my house in Wimpole Street to the country. In May following, I 
 sold the lease of it to Mr. Phipps, and delivered possession in June. In 
 March 1813, I was chosen a member of the Literary and Philosophical 
 Society of Batavia, in Java, of which Sir T. S. Raffles was then presi- 
 dent, and received my diploma. The close of this year and commence- 
 ment of 1814 were marked by a winter of uncommon severity and dura- 
 tion, although without great intensity of frost.* The snow was so deep 
 
 * My barometer fell to 27,89 inches, as low as I had ever seen it. I did not observe the 
 thermometer under 11° ; but a neighbour, who was in the habit of rising when others were 
 in their first sleep, saw it at 4°, and again at 9°. At this period I did not possess a self- 
 registering instrument. 
 
 [" Do not think of coming to town till there is a thorough break-up of the frost, as the 
 streets are in the most deplorable state. But then you will lose the opportunity of prome- 
 nading on the Thames, and seeing all the fun of a regular fair thereon daily exhibiting. At 
 the top of almost every street, leading from Cheapside to the river, there stands a man with 
 a board, giving notice, that there is a good foot-path across the ice at such and such a wharf. 
 
 " I am rejoiced to find Marsden is about his coins, and I most heartily, nay, most feelingly, 
 lament that we do not live near enough to puzzle one another much oftener than we do. At 
 present, I am reading in Sanskrit, the Prabodka Chandra dai/a, or Rise of the Moon of 
 Intellect, an allegorical and controversial drama ; which having been translated with conside- 
 rable accuracy, I recommend as worthy of being read by your worthy husband, and of a 
 place in his library. I wish I could find in all my reading a term which would convey to 
 you how much I love you ! Your most affectionate father, Charles Wilkins. — Thornton 
 Heath, February 5th, 1814."— To Mrs. M.] 
 
 ["Events succeed each other more rapidly than my reading can keep pace with them; and as 
 to recording them it is quite out of the question. I should now and then have given you the 
 news picked up in my walks, but that the papers going in the same packet render it super- 
 fluous, and I only write to express my wonder at the astonishing revolutions we have 
 
 U lived 
 
[46 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 as to render the roads for a long time impassable, and to produce much 
 domestic inconvenience. 
 
 lived to witness. The intercourse being now, apparently, unobstructed, we shall have daily 
 arrivals from Paris. This morning there are deputies in town to invite Louis XVIII. to 
 ascend the throne of his ancestors, called to it by the voice of his people, which has pro- 
 claimed the decheance of Napoleon and his family. There is every reason to believe that the 
 spirit which animates the capital, will spread to every part of the kingdom, and in the 
 course of a few days, without any treaty or negociation, we shall no longer be at war with 
 
 France What a ferment there must be amongst the poor emigres, who will all be 
 
 looking forward to honour and employments under the new court." — 9th April 1814.] 
 
 [" Upon my return from town to-day, about half past two, I found yours of the 27th July. 
 My head is nearly addled with the many ideas that have been jumbled together in it during 
 the last four-and twenty hours. I fell in with an uncommon number of persons whom I 
 knew, among whom two, at least, made inquiries about you : Lord Carysfort, who is much 
 fallen away ; and Lord Castlereagh, who is grown fat. I was coming out of St. James's 
 Park, where I went to contemplate what remained of the fete, when I met him on horseback. 
 I very sincerely congratulated him, and we had a hearty shake by the hand. I dined at the 
 Literary Club, where we had a good party for the time of year, and elected Chief Justice Sir 
 Vicary Gibbs. I slept at Sir William Young's, and we went together this morning to look 
 at two pictures, in different parts of the town — both Holy Families, one of them by Venusti 
 — not previously known to the connoisseurs, and supposed to have belonged to some con- 
 vent in Rome, for which seven thousand guineas are asked ; the other by Murillo, and 
 lately brought from Spain, for which four thousand five hundred guineas are asked. They 
 were both high treats to me. The public opinion, I hear, is much divided : but I should 
 rather possess the Italian picture. There is a long critique upon my Dictionary and Gram- 
 mar in the last Number of the Edinburgh Review. Raffles told me that some of my opinions 
 would meet with opposition. All that is fair. I have only glanced my eye over it." — Aldcn- 
 hatu, 3d August 1814.J 
 
 [" I gdve you a line yesterday, but want to say something about Marco Polo. I had sup- 
 posed it likely that Pinkerton might have given a translation, and, as he is a sharp fellow, 
 with notes ; but that, in a General Collection of Voyages, he could not go much into detail. 
 Kerr's translation is quite new to me, and I am much obliged to you for the knowledge of its 
 existence. Before any thing goes from me to the press, I shall certainly examine these gen- 
 tlemen's writings with attention, and make them as serviceable to me as I can ; at the same 
 time that I am in doubt whether it will not be better for me to work away at present, as I 
 have begun upon my own stock of ideas and geographical resources, and only trust to them 
 for enabling me to correct what I shall have done — at least till I go to town for the winter. 
 This, however, shall not hinder me from getting the Numbers of the two works that include 
 
 M. P.'s 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 147 
 
 In February 1815, we drove, for the first time, in the newly laid-out 
 Regent's Park, since become so beautiful and splendid an ornament to 
 the capital. The 6th, 7th and 8th March were disgraced by mischievous 
 
 M. P.'s Travels. As they are writing for money, and I write for the pleasure it affords me 
 and the hope of reputation, I think I ought to do something more than they can."] 
 
 " [My dear Sir : I am exceedingly obliged to you, for your very kind letter, and no less 
 for your kind invitations once more to Aldenham. You may be assured that the former visit 
 left very pleasing traces on my memory ; and I will certainly avail myself of your offer, at 
 a future time, to add fresh traces ; but, at present, I am occupied in a different way. 
 
 " I envy you the pleasing task of Marco Polo. As you say, the hunting is very tedious, 
 but not unpleasant, when rewarded with a fact or solution. I know of no traveller who has 
 pursued the line from the quarter of Gombroon to Korasan. All the travellers have gone 
 in east and west lines ; that is, from Persia towards India. Khubeis I know well. There 
 is something yet untold concerning the old man of the mountain. I trust that you will bring 
 it out. I have the date of the removal of Hormuz somewhere. If you mention Siraf, per- 
 haps a reference to my notes (in Nearchus) may save trouble." — 26th September 181-1. — 
 Major Rennell to Mr. M.] 
 
 f_" What you mention of the old edition of Marco Polo in the library of Trin. Coll. 
 is very interesting to me, and it becomes an object to ascertain more about it ; but before I 
 give you further trouble, it will be proper that I should see what they have in the British 
 Museum, as being more accessible to me. In the catalogue of their collection, amongst 
 several editions, I observe one thus described : — " M. P. de Regionibus Orientalibus, 4to." 
 (No date.) This may, perhaps, be the same as that you speak of, and I shall satisfy myself 
 about it, if possible, when I next go to town. In my own General Oriental Catalogue I have 
 the following title : " Marcus Paulus, de Veneciis, de consuetudinibus et condicionibus Orien- 
 talium regionum," 4to. (No place nor date.) This also we may suppose to be the same ; the 
 titles being merely factitious or descriptive. But there is likewise an Italian edition, without 
 date, entitled " Marco Polo, Veniziano, delle maraviglie del Mondo da lui vedute ;" and 
 another with the same title (in my catalogue), Venezia 1496, 8vo., which I should be very 
 glad to lay my hand upon. The Treviso edition, of 1627-8, seems, however, to be a republi- 
 cation of this, and it is in the British Museum, where, no doubt, Pinkerton saw it. My 
 own Latin edition, of 1552, is in ' The Novus Orbis,' of which that of 1671, by Miiller, is a 
 copy, so far as respects the text. The former does not contain Pipino's Preface ; but I have 
 it in Ramusio and elsewhere. From your description of the character and illuminated 
 capitals, I shall readily judge whether that in the British Museum is from the same press. 
 
 " Pray make my respects to the Vice-Provost, and thank him for the trouble he has 
 so obligingly taken. I possess his very learned and curious treatise on the origin of the 
 appellations of the signs of the zodiac. It is creditable to those with whom the appoint- 
 
 U 2 ment 
 
14 8 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 riots in London, when several houses in our immediate vicinity were 
 destroyed ; for which an opposition to the Corn-bill was made a pre- 
 tence. On the 22d June, Mr. Barrow and family passed the day with us 
 at Edge Grove, and brought us the news of the great victory of the 18th 
 at Waterloo. On the 9th February 1816, the day we moved to town for 
 the season, the thermometer, at four o'clock in the morning, was at 6°, 
 and about ten, when I sat off on horseback, was no higher than 12°. 
 My translation of the ' Travels of Marco Polo,' with notes, or what is 
 
 ment rests, that the honours of the College are conferred on gentlemen of his merits as a 
 scholar. 
 
 " What do you think of the new establishment of a Legion of Honour! I have been laugh- 
 ing it over with some of the members. Young becomes a Grand Cross." — Edge Grove, 6th 
 January 1815.] 
 
 [" My dear Marsden : " January 11th 1815.. 
 
 " I don't know whether the enclosed coins may be worth your acceptance, I can only say 
 were they ever so valuable you should have had them. Young was so good as to ask me to 
 meet you and Mrs. Marsden on Friday, and I very much regret I cannot be of the party. 
 Every good wish of the season attend you and Mrs. M., from most truly yours, J. W. Col- 
 poys."] 
 
 \J' I am not idle in the literary way, although not getting straight-forward. Having 
 concluded the notes of the Second Book, I am correcting some of those you marked, and 
 making some alterations that appear useful, whilst the subject of China is fresh in my mind. 
 I wish I could ascertain more to my own satisfaction at what place (near Peking) the last 
 part of the Chinese journey commences — after the jump he (Marco Polo) makes, (or his 
 publishers have made for him), from the southern borders. — Edge Grove, 10//; May 1816.] 
 
 On the 18th November 1816, I write from Aldenham to my friend Sir William Young: 
 "We have dined lately with Lord Northwick at Harrow, and slept there, which gave us an 
 opportunity of seeing and admiring his lordship's very fine pictures, very fine coins, and fine 
 prospects. You may have heard that Sir Charles Pole, our worthy friend and my near 
 neighbour, has had an illustrious visitor in his house for a week past, with two of his daugh- 
 ters. He has been showing them the lions of the country — Cashiobury, Brocket Hall, Ash- 
 ridge, Hatfield, and Gorhambury. The Duke (of Clarence) has made himself very agree- 
 able to the people about here, and left an advantageous impression. To me he was particu- 
 larly civil and condescending ; telling me he had been long desirous of making my acquaint- 
 ance (we corresponded occasionally when I was Secretary of the Admiralty), but had not 
 found an opportunity till now. ' I have wished,' he was pleased to say, ' to profit by your 
 
 conver- 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 14!) 
 
 termed a perpetual commentary, which I had commenced in 1814, was 
 completed in the summer of this year (1816), but did not go to press till 
 the beginning of the following year.* 
 
 conversation, though, God knows, you will not by mine.' I met his Royal Highness at 
 dinner, along with my estimable (now much-lamented) friend General Sir Hew Dalrymple, 
 on Wednesday last, and to-day Mrs. Marsden and I dine there. She has some curiosity to 
 see the young ladies, who seem to be good-natured and unaffected. This serves to make some 
 variety, and in our retired village it creates not a little sensation and bustle. I shall advise 
 Pole to erect an obelisk in some high part of his ground, to commemorate the royal visit. 
 I wish his R. H.'s Vice- Admiral of England (Sir William himself) had been of the party." 
 
 * After the publication of this commentary, it was suggested to me by different friends, that 
 the same degree of labour might be advantageously employed in elucidating the Travels of 
 Sir John Mandevil and Peregrination of Fernando Mendez Pinto, — to which I expressed a 
 decided objection ; being convinced that the characteristic of both is the entire want of good 
 faith or intentional veracity. To every intelligent and unprejudiced person who peruses the 
 former work, it must be evident that the writer's actual journey never extended beyond the 
 bounds of Lower Egypt and the Holy Land. All that follows the words, ' Explicit prima 
 Pars hujus operis ' is extracted from the writings of Odoricus, and others of the same stamp, 
 by whom the relations of Marco Polo have been disfigured and mixed up with their own 
 fables. 
 
 The circumstances of Pinto's extraordinary narrative are of a very different, or rather, 
 opposite description. He appears to have been a bold and intelligent adventurer to India, 
 during the days of Portuguese glory, and either in a military or other capacity, to have 
 visited every place frequented by that enterprising people. Having passed twenty years in 
 this mode of life, he had opportunities of acquiring a knowledge, by no means superficial, of 
 the geographical situation of Eastern countries, as well as of the characters, manners, and 
 languages of the natives. With these advantages, he might have furnished to the world the 
 most curious and interesting biography of the period in which he lived. On the other hand, 
 it is equally obvious that he never committed to writing, on the spot, the information he 
 obtained ; but on his return to Lisbon, he appears to have been stimulated to publish a 
 romantic, though plausible, detail of his adventures, composed without any regard to correct- 
 ness or fidelity, from a vague and imperfect recollection of circumstances, dates, and places, 
 assisted by a fertile imagination, that led him into exaggerated and marvellous descriptions. 
 This species of writing he, or those who employed his talents, well knew to be the most 
 likely to give popularity to his work. Even at the present day it has its advocates amongst 
 well-informed persons, who, finding many passages in it consistent with their knowledge of 
 arts, infer that an equal degree of credit should be given to the relation of those circumstances 
 with which they happen to be unacquainted. With the opinion, however, that I entertain, it 
 
 could 
 
15 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 In January 1817, I agreed with the Thellusson Trust for a renewal of 
 my lease of premises at Aldenham, for an additional term of twenty-one 
 years from April, and in February began to build a library in addition 
 to the house.* In April 1818 the Travels of Marco Polo were published.! 
 
 Having given some brief notices of my several publications, I think it 
 necessary to advert to one subject of study that for a long period engaged 
 my chief attention, and was considered by the earliest literary friends 
 
 could not be expected that I should endeavour to establish as probable, what I did not believe 
 
 to be true. 
 
 * [" When your library is finished, may it be as comfortable as you could wish, and may 
 
 you have many years' enjoyment of it in happiness and peace, is my earnest desire." — 1817, 
 
 — Adm. Lord Gambier to Mr. M.] 
 
 •(- [" Mr. Marsden presents his compliments to the Baron Humboldt, and requests his 
 acceptance of a copy of his Translation of the Travels of Marco Polo, illustrated with notes. 
 He is persuaded that the merits of this eminent Venetian, who effected a journey through 
 Tartary to China, in the thirteenth century, cannot be more justly appreciated than by the 
 most distinguished traveller of the present age." — Aldenham, 25th September 1818.] 
 
 Q" Le Baron de Humboldt est, on ne peut pas plus, sensible aux marques de bienveil- 
 lance dont veut bien l'honorer, M. le Docteur Marsden. La nouvelle edition de Marco Polo 
 est une des plus grandes et des plus belles entreprises de nos temps. Ce n'est que par la 
 reunion precieuse d'une profonde connaissance des langues de l'Asie et de la geographie du 
 moyen age que M. Marsden a pu vaincre les immenses difficultes, qu'offre un commentaire 
 Bur Marco Polo. L'ouvrage tel qu'il est devant nous, est un monument precieux du courage 
 d'un voyageur et de l'erudition du savant a qui nous devions deja la connaissance de l'Ar- 
 chipel des Indes. M. de Humboldt aura l'honneur de se presenter chez M. le Dr. Marsden 
 pour lui reiterer l'expression de son estime profonde et de sa haute consideration." — Portland 
 Place, No. 17, ce Lundi (1818).] 
 
 [_" Eccellenza: — In questi giorni ho ricevuto il Viaggio di Marco Polo della magnifica 
 edizione del Sig. Marsden, dono preziosissimo di Vostra Eccellenza . . . . Di essa ne aveva 
 letta gia la relazione fattane dal Sig. Abel Remusat nel Journal des Savans di Septembre 
 1818, e ne aveva ben concepita la dovuta stima; ma la lettura dell' opera, le opportune e 
 saggie illustrazioni, le giudiziose osservazioni, le etimologie accutamente indagate, et la cri- 
 tica sagace, che da per tutto vi domina, mi fanno riputarla una delle piu eccellenti produ- 
 zioni litterarie di questi tempi. Mi compiacio pertanto di aver co-operato, benche in 
 minima parte, al bene di opera si distinta, &c." — Venczia, 29 Marzo 1819. — From Sig. Morelli 
 to the Rt. Hon. Thos. Grenville.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 151 
 
 with whom I associated, as my peculiar province, but which has never 
 advanced to the form of a work: I mean the comparison of languages, 
 including etymology. This pursuit was first suggested to me, whilst 
 residing abroad, by the perusal of the Endeavour's voyage round the 
 world, and was encouraged when I returned to England, by publishing 
 in the Archaeologia for the year 1782 my ' Remarks on the Sumatran 
 (and other cognate) languages, in a letter to Sir Joseph Banks.' By this 
 distinguished person, whose time and ample fortune were devoted to the 
 promotion of useful knowledge, I was materially assisted in making 
 the collections necessary for the intended comparison. With a view to 
 this object I had, in the first instance, selected forty or fifty words of 
 the most plain and obvious meaning, and which could the most easily 
 be rendered intelligible to people whose language was not previously 
 understood, and to these I procured the corresponding terms from the 
 natives of all those parts of the eastern world with whom I had the 
 means of communication.* This list of words I subsequently had printed 
 in the most convenient form for distribution and for filling up by intel- 
 ligent travellers, as well as from books of voyages and travels already 
 published. 
 
 Having methodised these specimens for comparison by disposing in 
 classes of language, and placing the derivatives after their respective 
 primitives, in the order of affinity, my intended plan was to annex to 
 each a brief analysis of its structure, and to point out its peculiarities of 
 idiom, as well as its analogy, more or less remote, to other tongues. 
 This arrangement of the matter I judged to possess advantages over the 
 
 ■ [" Sir : — I have the pleasure to enclose you Sanskrit and Cashmerian synonimes of 
 the list of words you sent me. They were given to me for you by Sir William Jones. — I 
 am, Sir, yours, obediently, J. H. Harington. — Calcutta, lOtk August 1790. — To Wm. 
 Marsden, Esq.] 
 
152 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 alphabetic system, in which repetitions or frequent references would be 
 unavoidable, whilst any convenience attending the latter might be 
 found in a circumstantial Index. 
 
 It may then be asked why, with the possession of such materials and 
 means for the execution of a work that might be expected to prove 
 acceptable to the world, it has not been long since accomplished, or, at 
 least, attempted ? In answer to this, a variety of reasons may be assigned. 
 I might, perhaps, have applied to myself the prudential advice of Horace: 
 ' Sumite materiem vestris sequam viribus,' and have felt that the under- 
 taking, if to be executed in the manner it deserves, was too vast and 
 laborious. But I was more directly influenced by other considerations. 
 The acquisition of matter for a general comparison, depending as it did, 
 in a great degree, upon the information obtained by travellers of all 
 nations, as well as upon the successive publication of vocabularies, gram- 
 mars, and dictionaries of languages, although not new, yet imperfectly 
 known, was necessarily slow in itself, and not to be accelerated by any 
 exertion on my part. Whilst I was yearly adding to my collections, 
 and looking forward to additional contributions, many works succes- 
 sively made their appearance that more or less partook of the nature of 
 my plan, and had the effect of anticipating my object. These were, prin- 
 cipally, the ' Vocabularia comparative Petripolitana ' of the Empress 
 Catherine, under the management of Professor Pallas, of which the first 
 part appeared in 1786, and was sent to me in the name of her Imperial 
 Majesty : the ' Vocabulario Poligloto,' and other philological tracts of 
 the Abbe Lorenzo Hervas, compiled from the papers of the Jesuit mis- 
 sionaries, and printed in 1787: the ' Pantographiae,' edited by Edmund 
 Fry (a type-founder) in 1799 ; a work that, in consequence of the inge- 
 nious author's name being concealed, was by some foreign journalists 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 153 
 
 erroneously attributed to myself : the ' Conspectus Bibliotheca glottic* 
 universalis, operis quinquaginta annorum' of C. T. de Murr, in 1804 : 
 and especially the elaborate and instructive ' Mithridates ' of J. C. Ade- 
 lung, continued by the learned J. S.Vater, of which the first part was 
 published in 1806, and the last in 1817. Thus the ground that I had 
 marked out for my operations was pre-occupied ; and although my plan 
 was not entirely superseded, and I might still have flattered myself with 
 the expectation of producing a more extensive comparison, as well as of 
 more practical utility, yet my zeal in the cause was necessarily weakened, 
 and I was induced to direct my thoughts to other studies. What con- 
 tributed also to this distaste or indifference, was the loss I experienced 
 from time to time of valuable literary friends, who had taken an interest 
 in my pursuit, and by whom I was encouraged and assisted. I perceived 
 likewise that in matters of philology, as well as in other departments of 
 literature, the object of the public taste is novelty ; the most successful 
 writers being those who indulge in fanciful theories and surprise by 
 ingenious paradoxes, rather than please by correct taste or inform by 
 nervous exposition of truth. 
 
 On the 30th May 1818, we went from Aldenham to Windsor, on a 
 visit to our hospitable friends (the late) Dr. and Mrs. George Heath ; 
 and on the 10th August following we set off for Lord Spencer's at Ryde, 
 from whence we rambled over the island, and enjoyed aquatic excursions 
 in company with his lordship. 
 
 On the 23d we crossed from South Yarmouth to Lymington, near 
 which we visited my Sumatran friend, Mr. Broff", and another West Coast 
 friend near Christ Church, whom we left on the 1st September, and pass- 
 ing through Salisbury, proceeded to visit Lady Malet at Wilbury. On 
 the 4th we returned through Andover, and afterwards across the country, 
 
 x 
 
154 
 
 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 by Windsor and Uxbridge, to Edge Grove. The weather, until this 
 period, was extraordinarily dry, and the whole face of the country burnt 
 up. The year 1819 was barren of incidents, as respects the course of my 
 own life ; but quiet amusements, the society of friends, and the enjoy- 
 ment of domestic comforts, made ample amends for the want of active 
 variety. In April 1820, I received the compliment of a diploma from 
 the American Philosophical Society of Philadelphia, constituting me a 
 member ; to which institution I subsequently presented a set of my 
 published works. In May I became a member of the Horticultural 
 Society of London. In September we paid a visit to Mr. Wilkins's 
 family at Hastings, went from thence to Brighton, and returned to Edge 
 Grove in October. On the 25th of October 1821, I experienced the 
 severe loss of my invaluable friend and correspondent, Admiral Sir 
 William Young, G. C.B., whose qualities of head and heart were of a 
 superior class; and on the 3d May 1822, of my old and worthy Sumatran 
 fellow-servant and friend, Mr. Robert Broff, of whom particular mention 
 
 ['' Poor Sir Joseph (Banks) breathed his last this morning at seven o'clock. On Friday 
 last Home found him insensible, but roused him a little by a dose of colchicum, and thought 
 he might so far recover as to drag on a few months longer ; as, however, they could only have 
 been months of suffering, it is, perhaps, better as it is. We are not to expect his equal. I 
 wish Lord Spencer would himself become a candidate. As there are likely to be several, I 
 hope you will meet us on Thursday, that we may talk the matter over." — Admiralty, I9tk 
 June 1820.— Mr. (Sir John) Barrow to Mr. M.] 
 
 [« My dear Sir : " Venice, August 31, 1820. 
 
 " I have not been at Florence ; and I have not been lucky enough to procure for you 
 here the information which you desired to obtain respecting the publication by Cavaliero 
 Bardelli; though I have had opportunities of catechising Mr. Gamba (who may probably 
 be known to you by reputation) on the subject. But I have succeeded in your other more 
 substantial commission ; and I hope to have the pleasure of presenting to you your missing 
 sheet of Zurla's publication, and with it (what you do not appear to have bargained for) 
 four maps belonging to it, on our first, or at farthest our second Club Day in October. 
 Believe me, my dear Sir, very sincerely yours, George Canning." — To Mr. Marsden.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 155 
 
 is made in the History of that island, as the person who introduced the 
 cultivation of the clove and nutmeg trees. 
 
 Jn the beginning of September of that year, we made an excursion to 
 the West of England. After passing a few days with my brother at 
 Sunning Hill, we proceeded to Salisbury, Wilton, Fonthill Abbey, 
 Stourhead, Frome, Longleat, Wells, Glastonbury, Taunton, Exeter, 
 Teignmouth, Torquay, Plymouth-Dock (Devonport), and Mount Edge- 
 cumbe, but failed in our endeavours to reach the Breakwater, from the 
 violence and long duration of an easterly gale, and after shipping seas 
 (in a dock-yard barge), were obliged to give up the attempt. Our 
 return homeward was by Bridport, where I saw my former colleague, 
 Sir Evan Nepean (lately returned from the government of Bombay), 
 about a week before his unexpected death. From thence we passed 
 through Dorchester, Weymouth, Wareham, Litchet (Sir Claude Scott's), 
 Poole, Ringwood, Romsey, Winchester, Farnham, Sunning-hill, Wind- 
 sor, Iver, (calling on my worthy friend Admiral Lord Gambier,) and 
 Uxbridge to Edge Grove, where we arrived about the end of the same 
 month. 
 
 In January 1823, we passed a week with Lord and Lady Spencer at 
 Althorp. On the 19th the thermometer was down to 5°, and on the 
 next day it stood at 7'. In this month I became a member or associe 
 de la Societe Asiatique de Paris, and about the same period joined in 
 establishing the Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland,* which 
 received a charter of incorporation in the following year, with the title of 
 
 [" From Mr. Wilkins I have heard of a meeting at Mr. Colebrooke's (this day), for the 
 purpose of discussing the plan of a society in London, similar to the Soc. Asiatique of Paris, 
 I endeavoured to effect it fifteen or twenty years ago, and renewed the attempt upon Mr. 
 Colebrooke's coming to England, but without encouragement to proceed. Living now so 
 
 X 2 much 
 
15 6 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Royal. In March I published the First Part of the ' Numismata Orien- 
 taiia Illustrata.'* 
 
 On the 8th July, I was thrown violently from my gig, near Mr. 
 Wilkins's door in Baker Street, and taken up insensible.! Upon exa- 
 
 much in the country as I do, and, moreover, growing old, I am not disposed to take any active 
 part, though I heartily wish success to the design. It comes, however, with a bad grace, 
 following the lead of the French, instead of setting the example. The fact is, that although 
 we possess great advantages from our Indian possessions, the French literary men are more 
 industrious, and make literature their business, whereas those amongst us who are best quali- 
 fied to give information will scarcely condescend to write. We are going into Northampton- 
 shire for a week ; after which I hope to be more in town, and at the Club, &c, than I have 
 lately been."— Edge Grove, 9th January 1823.— Mr. M. to Sir. G. T. S.] 
 
 * £" Monsieur : — J'ai recu avec reconnaissance le savant et bel ouvrage dont vous venea 
 d'enrichir la litterature orientale, et je m'empresse de vous presenter mes bien sinceres remer- 
 cimens. J'eprouverai un grand plaisir a le faire connaitre ici par la voie du Moniteur ou de 
 la Revue Encyclopedique, et de rappeler, par la meme occasion, les importans services que vous 
 avez rendus a la litterature orientale et a la geographie. D'apres le vif interet que vous 
 prenez a cette science, vous apprendrez sans doute avec plaisir, que notre societe de geogra- 
 phie, d'apres ma proposition, a ordonne l'impression de l'ancienne traduction dans un jargon 
 francais du 14 c siecle des voyages de Marco Polo. Je n'ai pas besoin d'ajouter que le Redac- 
 teur du Discours preliminaire eprouvera un grand plaisir a rendre pleine et entiere justice a 
 votre beau travail sur ce voyageur. 
 
 " Procurez-moi, je vous prie, l'occasion de vous rendre service, et comptez sur mon zele 
 toutes les fois que je pourrai vous donner quelque preuve de la haute et affectueuse conside- 
 ration avec laquelle j'ai l'honneur d'etre— L. Langles." — Paris, le 17 April 1823. ; a M. M. 
 Marsden.] 
 
 f [" My dear Mrs. Marsden : — We are here on our way to the Midlands, and I have just 
 heard from our friend, Mr. Hatchett, a piece of intelligence regarding you, which has given 
 me great pain and anxiety. I really was quite shocked to hear of poor Marsden's sad acci- 
 dent, and I shall be very uncomfortable about him, until I receive a line from you with 
 favourable accounts of him, which I trust you will send to me, directed to Althorp. You 
 perceive that I rely on good accounts, and truly 1 do so, since his uniform health and tem- 
 perance are such, as to give the fairest ground to hope, that to him an accident of this sort 
 will not be attended by such consequences as would follow one happening to a man of other 
 constitution and other habits. 
 
 " This disagreeable accident will, I fear, delay your kind intention of driving down to see 
 us at Althorp the beginning of next month ; but about the middle of it I do not despair of 
 
 seeing 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 157 
 
 mination, the elbow of my left arm was found to be severely injured, 
 and a cut across the nose has ever since deprived me of the sense of 
 smell, although in no degree of that of taste. I was not able to leave 
 the hospitable roof of my father-in-law till the 26th, when we returned 
 to Edge Grove. On the 15th of the following month, I was sufficiently 
 recovered to accept a most friendly invitation to Althorp, from whence 
 we proceeded to Leamington, then paid visits at Abbey Manor House, 
 (Mr. Rudge's,) near Evesham, and Stanford Court (Sir Thomas Win- 
 nington's), which we left on the 6th September, and returning by 
 Worcester, Oxford, High Wycombe, and Amersham, reached Edge Grove 
 on the 11th. 
 
 In April 1824, I joined in the establishment of the ' Athenaeum,' and 
 about the same time became, by diploma, an honorary associate of the 
 Royal Academy of Stockholm. In the beginning of September, we 
 visited Tunbridge Wells, from whence we made the usual excursions, 
 afterwards passed some days at Hastings, and returned home by the 
 
 seeing you and Marsden under our roof, for the change of air will then be his best resto- 
 rative. Adieu, my dear Mrs. Marsden. — Believe me, with truth, very much yours, Lavinia 
 Spencer. — Spencer House, July \bth. 
 
 " Lord S. joins most sincerely in all I have said of the genuine interest we feel in the 
 cause of your present anxiety ."3 
 
 {_" Dear Mrs. Marsden: — Pray thank Marsden for his little postscript, and tell him how 
 gratifying it was to us all here, to receive that souvenir of his going on well ; and from all I 
 hear, I trust there is not any reason for apprehension. He has my best wishes and prayers 
 that all may be soon re-established as it was, and that he will come back amongst his friends, 
 though he is at this moment in the best of quarters Essex." — Cassiohury, July 15tk 1823.] 
 
 [" My dear Mrs. Marsden : — Have the charity to let us know how our old and good 
 friend is going on. I know that I run the risk of desiring you to put yourself to some 
 trouble for our sake, for your time is better bestowed on your dear invalid ; but I cannot be 
 comfortable without a few details about him, and you must excuse me. Ever sincerely 
 yours, Lavinia Spencer." — Althorp, Monday.] 
 
158 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 way of Brighton. About this period, I was affected with symptoms of 
 gout ; but the swelling in my feet not being attended with pain, I for 
 some time doubted its being such. It has since returned every year, at 
 different seasons, but always slightly. In winter, I have never been 
 free from chilblains, and often of a severe inflammatory kind. Even 
 now (in 1834), on the verge of my eightieth year, I still suffer from this 
 juvenile complaint. I am satisfied that it does not proceed, as com- 
 monly supposed, from languid circulation (for the most, healthy and 
 active boys at school are fully as much subject to it as others); nor do I 
 think that it has any immediate connection with the state of the blood, 
 but rather with the lymph or other aqueous secretion. 
 
 Since the sale of my house in Wimpole Street (in the year 1813), I 
 had been in the practice of annually engaging one for a certain number 
 of months of the winter and spring seasons, but saw reason for changing 
 my plan ; and, in February 1825, I took a lease of No. 50, Queen Ann 
 Street, and occupied it in the following month. In June we left town 
 for Edge Grove, where, on the 18th and 19th July,* the thermometer 
 stood at 91* and 92°. 
 
 In October 1825, soon after publishing the second part of the f Numis- 
 
 * About the end of the same month, we were amused by observing the phenomenon in 
 Natural History of a pair of wagtails assiduously employed, for several days, in feeding a 
 voracious and importunate young cuckoo, on the lawn before the house. 
 
 f [The Baron de Sacy concludes his learned critique on the second part of the Numismata 
 thus: " Je prefererais donner quelques details surles singularites tres remarquables des me- 
 dailles de Tipou Sultan ; mais je ne pourrais qu'abreger cet article curieux, l'un des plus 
 interessans de l'ouvrage de M. Marsden, et que doivent lire en entier tous les amateurs de la 
 Numismatique orientale. Je termine done ici le compte que j'avais a rendre de cet impor- 
 tant travail, en repetant qu'on ne peut rien ajouter a la beaute et a la fidelite des gravures qui 
 font l'ornement de ce recueil." — Journal des Savans, Mai 1827.] 
 
 [" J'ai recu, Monsieur, avec le plus haut interet et une vive reconnaissance, les deux 
 volumes de votre grand et magnifique ouvrage sur la numismatique orientale. Bien des per- 
 
 sonnes 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 159 
 
 mata Orientalia Illustrate, I set out with Mrs.Marsden for Paris, where 
 I had not heen since the year 1790. We crossed from Dover to Calais 
 with almost summer weather, but had scarcely landed when it became 
 very cold and wet. From the effects of this sudden change of tempera- 
 ture, I suffered most severely on the journey, and for some time after my 
 arrival in the capital was confined to the hotel. As soon as I was able, 
 Ave visited the Bibliotheque du Roi, where I had the satisfaction of 
 meeting M. R&nusat, M. Bournouf fils, and other oriental scholars. 
 M. Langles had died a few years before. I had also the gratification of 
 becoming personally acquainted with the Baron de Sacy, with whom I 
 had long been in correspondence. From M. Klaproth* 1 experienced 
 much obliging attention. On the 5th November, we dined with the 
 Baron Cuvier, and on the 8th I attended a Seance of the Societe 
 
 sonnes parmi nous, savent apprecier le merite et l'utilite de vos savans travaux, mais il n'est 
 pas de gens de lettres qui ayent concu une estime plus vive et plus sincere que moi pour 
 l'homme respectable qui a rendu de si importans services a diverses branches de Fhistoire 
 et de la litterature orientale. Votre voyage a Paris, et la visite que vous nous avez faite a la 
 Bibliotheque, m'a cause une veritable joie, et j'ai seulement regrette que votre prompt depart 
 et l'etat de votre sante, m'ayent empeche de profiter de votre sejour comme je l'aurais desire. 
 Seriez vous assez bon pour faire agreer l'hommage de mes sentimens a Madame Marsden. 
 Elle a pu s'appercevoir ici dans quelle veneration etait le nom de Wilkins, et si ce n'est 
 qu'une justice qu'on lui rend, elle a vu du moins qu'on la lui rend pleine et entiere. — J. P. 
 Abel Remusat." — Bibliotheque du Roi, Paris, 10 Janvier 1826.] 
 
 \J' My dear Sir : — I am sure I shall not ask in vain for letters of introduction to some of 
 your savant friends at Paris, where I am going for a couple of months. Above all, I should 
 wish to become acquainted with the Baron de Sacy. I do not intend to throw all my time 
 away on the follies of the capital, but live in the libraries and book-shops. Believe me, very 
 sincerely, yours, G. Fitzclarence. — Bushy, 8th Sept. 1826. — Can I do aught for you?"] 
 
 * This celebrated oriental scholar, at the time of his death, in 1835, was engaged, amongst 
 his multifarious pursuits, in a work on Marco Polo. The May previous to his decease, when 
 shewing it, then about two-thirds printed, to Sir Graves C. Haughton, he mentioned that he 
 purposed dedicating it to Mr. Marsden. — e. 
 
100 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Asialique. On the 10th, fearing the approach of ruder weather, I ven- 
 tured to set out on our return to England. We reached London on the 
 18th, when I had the satisfaction of placing myself under the care of my 
 friend Mr. Brodie. 
 
 In April 1826, I became a member of the Zoological Society. In 
 June we paid a visit to Sir George Staunton, at Leigh Park, near 
 
 [" I was much gratified by the receipt of your letter from Florence of the 10th instant, 
 both as a voucher for your being in the enjoyment of health, notwithstanding your change of 
 climate, and a kind proof of your holding your friends in remembrance. Accept my thanks 
 for the curious extract from the Florentine MSS. of Marco Polo, which I should have been 
 happy to have known of when I was preparing my work, and enumerating the various 
 editions and copies that had come to my hands. For the publication of the Count Bandelli's 
 edition I shall wait with no little impatience, as it may be the means of clearing up many 
 difficult and doubtful points, not satisfactorily discussed in the Commentary of the Abate 
 (now Cardinal) Zurla, or my own. I recollect that the circumstance of his being engaged 
 in such a work was mentioned so long ago as the year 1819, in a letter from the venerable 
 Signor Morelli, who just lived to receive the book I sent him, through Mr. Thomas Gren- 
 ville, and to express an opinion of it that makes me truly proud. The map will be an inte- 
 resting document ; but the Travels of M. P. not being regularly or professedly a journal, 
 but an account of places visited by him on various occasions, it is impossible to lay down an 
 accurate route, though Mr. Arrowsmith attempted it in his Map of Asia. 
 
 " During your residence in Rome, you may, perhaps, have an opportunity of being in 
 company with the Cardinal ; in which case you will oblige me by presenting my respects to 
 him, in a suitable manner. With my name he is well acquainted, as appears by the introduc- 
 tion to the second part of his work, where he politely notices mine. 
 
 " At the Club, which met on the first day of the session, we had a very good and pleasant 
 party. Lord Liverpool, Lord Stowell, Mr. Canning, Sir Humphrey Davy, and a few others. 
 I was in the chair for Sir James Mackintosh. To-morrow I shall occupy the same seat on 
 my own account ; I go to town expressly for that dinner, but stay for the R. S. Anniver- 
 sary on the 30th, which I have rarely missed. I have the satisfaction to say that Mrs 
 Marsden and myself enjoy good health, which we attribute in no small degree to the pure 
 air of Hertfordshire. I am invited to dine on Monday at my neighbour's, Sir Charles Pole, 
 to meet the Duke of Clarence. I almost envy you the luxury of a visit to Rome and 
 Naples ; but a man in his seventy-third year must be content with short excursions. Your 
 meeting Prince Leopold must have obviated, in a pleasant manner, the stiffness of a royal 
 tete-a-tete."— Edge Grove, 21th November 1826 —Mr. M to Sir George T. Staunton.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 101 
 
 Havant, from whence we made excursions to neighbouring - towns and 
 seats. On our journey homewards the end of the month, we expe- 
 rienced some inconvenience from the excessive heat of the weather. In 
 July of this year, 1 had the misfortune to lose two valuable and interest- 
 ing friends. On the 5th, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles (well known to 
 the literary and scientific world), at the early age of forty-six ; and on 
 the 25th Mrs. K. Mackenzie, whose beauty had been, and whose amia- 
 ble qualities were, the admiration and delight of her private friends, in 
 her sixty-first year, after a long and wasting illness. 
 
 In February 1827, I assisted informing the Raleigh, a second travel- 
 lers' club. The printing of the Bibliotheca Marsdeniana Fhilolo2,ica et 
 Orien talis was completed in July of this year, and copies distributed 
 amongst my literary friends.* 
 
 * [" Je viens, Monsieur, de recevoir le beau livre que vous avez eu la bonte de m'en- 
 voyer. Je m'empresse de vous adresser mes remercimens. Le tableau des richesses que 
 vous avez accumulees est en meme terns un apperCAi lumineux des ressources que Ton peut 
 trouver pour chacune des branches de l'histoire et de la philologie orientales. Vous etes trop 
 bon de m'avoir accorde tant de places dans cette magnifique collection, mais comme l'ambi- 
 tion est insatiable, je regrette maintenant de ne pas en occuper davantage, &c. J. P. Abel 
 Remusat." — Bibliotheque clu Roi, Paris, le 14 Juillet 1827.] 
 
 Q" My dear Mr. Marsden: — I hope this letter will find you quite recovered, having 
 heard from Dr. Wilkins that you had been unwell. Your whole life having been passed in 
 actively bringing together the East and West, I think a prqjet we have for the like purpose 
 will meet your support and subscription. We are successfully forming a Society for the 
 Diffusion of Knowledge respecting Asia, by means of translation — implying the intention of 
 laying before Europe, in an English dress, the most celebrated works in the Eastern lan- 
 guages, now inaccessible in our Universities and the Museum Libraries, to the general 
 public. You know how rich a field remains unexplored ; and I think nothing yet promises 
 such great results. May I add your name to the many we have already of the first in the 
 country ? I beg you will present my respects to Mrs. Marsden. Ever yours, most truly 
 G. Fitzclarence.'" — Admiralty, 9th November 1827.] 
 
 In May 1828, I was honoured, through his Excellency Mr. Falck, ambassador from the 
 King of the Netherlands, with a most gracious acknowledgment from his Majesty of the 
 receipt of my several publications, which I had presented to the Royal Library at the Hague 
 
 Y with 
 
1(J2 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 In May 1830, I joined with Mr. Barrow, Captains Beaufort and Smyth, 
 R.N., Captain Horsburgh, E.I.C.S., and other men of practical science, 
 in the useful establishment of a Geographical Society, to which, by the 
 King's permission, the title of ' Royal' is prefixed. 
 
 It has been mentioned, that upon my retiring from the office of Secre- 
 tary of the Admiralty, in the year 1807, a pension £1,500 per annum 
 was granted to me for life, by the King's Order in Council — a rate of 
 remuneration that was afterwards settled by Act of Parliament. This I 
 continued to enjoy for many years, before any scruples on the subject 
 had arisen in my mind ; but the circumstances of the country, and the 
 state of public feeling, had undergone an entire change, since the 
 period when the lavish expenditure of the war, and the facility with 
 which the largest supplies were not only raised by, but forced upon the 
 Government, caused the national resources to be regarded as inexhaus- 
 tible. The cry of public distress had become general; the reduction of 
 taxes and abolishment of sinecures, were importunately called for, and 
 the vulgar phrase of the dead weight* furnished an unceasing theme of 
 popular obloquy. All this, it is true, had no direct application to my 
 pension, which was a legal vested right, and unassailable, unless by vio- 
 
 with a present of sundry works from the press of Batavia, transmitted to me by the kindness 
 of M. Elout, the Minister of the Marine and Colonies. 
 
 [" The not having any thing to say is as insufficient a reason for not writing, as it would 
 be in an editor to omit publishing a paper, because there was no news to communicate. In 
 both cases we must be content with the retail or detail of small matters of information. Of 
 these the most prominent at this moment is — that I have been just reading the first specimen 
 of the ' Globe.' It appears to be inoffensive. — Edge Grove, 28th October 1829.] 
 
 * The name of the head in the Paymaster-General's books, under which this account 
 stood, was the ' Dead Charge ;' meaning the charge liable to be affected by the deaths of the 
 parties whose names it contained. This, by an accidental blunder, or ill-placed attempt at 
 wit, of a member of the House of Commons, was called the " Dead Weight," which even- 
 tually became the established term for the national remuneration to the officers and men of the 
 army and navy who had bled in the service of their country. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 163 
 
 lence : but in cases like this there is an appeal from law to another 
 principle — the sense of propriety. It could not but occur to me, that I 
 had obtained it on the plea of declining health, which, although most 
 genuine at the time, could not (fortunately for me) be afterwards sup- 
 ported. Relaxation from severe official duties, exercise, and the regu- 
 larity of domestic life, gave a new spring to my constitution, and at the 
 expiration of a dozen or more years, I was in the enjoyment of perfect 
 health. The retention, under these circumstances, of an eleemosynary 
 income, that was not necessary to the possession of every good that 
 fortune can supply to moderate desires, was not reconcileable with my 
 ideas of what is right, and, influenced also as I have been through life, 
 by a strong feeling of independence, I formed the resolution (without 
 communicating it to any friend besides my wife, whose interest in the 
 measure Avas equal to my own), of making my pension a sacrifice to the 
 wants of the State. Accordingly, in January 1831, I addressed a letter 
 to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, stating, it was not my intention, 
 after the payment at Midsummer, to trespass further on the liberality of 
 the nation. In return, I received a friendly communication from Lord 
 Althorp, and, in a Committee of the House of Commons, of the 29th and 
 30th June 1831, the following notice was taken of the transaction : ' On 
 the vote for superannuation and retired allowances being read, Sir James 
 Graham rose and said, " He had to announce to the House an act of 
 splendid liberality on the part of an individual, Mr. Marsden, formerly 
 Secretary of the Admiralty. No words of his (Sir James Graham's) 
 could express the feelings which dictated this act of generosity so ade- 
 quately as the letter of the individual himself, addressed to his noble 
 friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which he should beg permis- 
 sion to read. 
 
 Y 2 
 
164 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 " Aldenham, Watford, 30th January 1831. 
 
 " My dear Lord : — Having been called into office under the auspices 
 of your noble and excellent father, it is with a peculiar satisfaction that 
 I now address his son, as Chancellor of his Majesty's Exchequer, on 
 the subject of the remuneration that my services were thought to merit, 
 upon my retiring from the post of First Secretary of the Admiralty. 
 During the chief period of a naval war, on the most extensive scale, the 
 most arduous, and attended with the most brilliant results of any coun- 
 try (virtually terminating with the destruction of the combined fleets of 
 France and Spain, in October 1805), I laboured with the utmost assi- 
 duity and zeal in the performance of the duties of Second and First 
 Secretary, under seven different naval administrations, when feeling my 
 constitution to be materially injured, by the close and unremitting con- 
 finement which these demanded, I was under the necessity (at Mid- 
 summer 1807) of applying for leave to retire, on which occasion a pen- 
 sion of £1,500 per annum was granted to me under the King's Order 
 in Council. This pension, together with the blessing of restored health, 
 1 have enjoyed for many years ; and now finding that the means I pos- 
 sess are adequate to the furnishing me with all the comforts that belong 
 to my period of life, I am sensible of the propriety of ceasing to trespass 
 on the national liberality, and therefore trouble your lordship with the 
 intimation, that after the payment at Midsummer next, it is not my 
 intention to apply in the customary manner at the Navy Office for its 
 continuance. With the strongest impression of gratitude for the bounty 
 I have hitherto experienced from the public, I have the honour to 
 remain, my clear Lord, your Lordship's most faithful and obedient ser~ 
 vant, " W. Marsden." 
 
 The Viscount Althorp, Downing Street. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 1(J5 
 
 Loud cries of ' Hear!'') — Any words of his would fall short of the 
 expression of this letter, which he felt it his duty to bring to the 
 knowledge of the House." Such was the honourable testimony I re- 
 ceived of public feeling on the occasion. It is not, however, to be 
 presumed that the relinquishment of a considerable portion of my 
 income would meet with the approbation of all my private friends, and 
 by many others, the act would be ascribed to ostentatious vanity, or 
 other weakness of character ; but from several persons, whose opinions 
 were deserving of respect, I received letters expressing their unqua- 
 lified approbation of what I had done.* For my own part, I can say, 
 with truth, that during an experience of three (or more) years, 1 have 
 never once regretted my having taken the step, and there the subject 
 rests, f 
 
 On the 8th June 18.31, I lost an invaluable friend, and society one of 
 its brightest ornaments — Lavinia, Countess Spencer. 
 
 * A neighbouring friendly Peer writes — " My dear Marsden : I cannot resist giving you 
 one line, to say how much gratified and proud I am that our county (Herts) contains men of 
 such high honour and spirit, ' who dare be honest in the worst of times.' Nothing, I hear, 
 ever equalled the effect that your letter had on the H. of C.;" and a Sumatran contemporary 
 previously to the year 1775, writes, — " I was quite delighted with your (public) letter, nor 
 can I abstain from telling you so — it was a most magnanimous and meritorious resolve. 
 The sacrifice was very great, and could only proceed from conscientious principles, from 
 which you will not cease to derive satisfaction." 
 
 •j- [" This, I believe, is as much information as you required from me ; and I have only to 
 request, that by furnishing it, I may not be placed in invidious comparison with other public 
 officers whose private means may not have been the same as mine, and who may have more 
 
 urgent demands upon those means than happens to be my case." — I3tk February 1834 
 
 Extract of a letter from Mr. M. to a Member of the House of Commons.] 
 
 [" The debates have been interesting, and particularly Peel's statement of what passed 
 at the time of his advocating the Catholic question. He possesses great weight in the 
 House, and is more of a statesman than any of them. As we must all have our ideas about 
 reform, it appears to me that (supposing the ancient system done away) the confining the 
 
 repre- 
 
Iqq MEMIOR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Having long promised to meet my relative, the Rev. John Howard 
 Marsden,* at Cambridge, and having also a pressing invitation from our 
 friend Mr. George Craufurd Heath, of that university, we went there on 
 the 21st of June 1832, and passed a few days very satisfactorily, in 
 reviewing, under the guidance of well-informed and pleasant friends, 
 the many subjects of rational curiosity that this venerable establishment 
 
 representation to this place or the other, because they have a certain number of inhabitants, 
 and denying them to others, is not justifiable upon any sound principle. The question should 
 be what are the rights of the individual to give his voice, and not whether he lives in a little 
 town or a big one — upon a hill or in a valley. Then the whole would turn upon the quali- 
 fication in point of property, &c. This I should be inclined to rate pretty high, so as to keep 
 the number of electors within reasonable bounds. My scheme, you see, would not fill a 
 pamphlet." — Aldenham, 2\st. December 1831.] 
 
 * The following letter had introduced this gentleman to my notice three years before. 
 Our subsequent personal acquaintance has served to confirm and increase the very favourable 
 opinion I formed from his correspondence; and I have now (in 1833), after an intercourse 
 of five years, great satisfaction in regarding him as a friend and relative. " Sir: In the early 
 part of the last century there was a family of Marsden residing in the immediate neighbour- 
 hood of Chatsworth, in Derbyshire. One of the brothers emigrated to Ireland ; another set- 
 tled near his native place, and had a son, who married into a family of Buxtons, which had 
 been resident on a small estate near Buxton for many centuries. He had a son who went 
 into holy orders, and who now holds preferment in Lancashire. The son of that gentleman, 
 himself also a clergyman, and a Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge, has now ventured 
 upon the delicate and somewhat presumptuous task of introducing himself, in order to ascer- 
 tain whether you, Sir, are a member of that branch of the Derbyshire Marsdens which set- 
 tled in Ireland. Should this prove to be the case, I shall be extremely proud to claim a 
 relationship, in however slight a degree, with one so distinguished in the republic of letters ; 
 and if it should be a groundless conjecture, all that I have to say is, that you will burn this 
 letter, and pardon the natural ambition of one who, by education, has been enabled to 
 appreciate the honour of being related to the historian of Sumatra. I have the honour to 
 subscribe myself, &c. John Howard Marsden." 
 
 In my answer to this letter, I said, after the customary acknowledgment : " The circum- 
 stance you mention of a member of the Marsden family residing near Chatsworth (at 
 Baslow, I believe), having migrated to Ireland in the beginning of the last century, accords 
 with what I have heard from my father. That person, whose christian name was Edmund, 
 was my grandfather, who settled in Dublin. His father, also named Edmund, was our 
 
 common 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 167 
 
 contains, and viewing the magnificent improvements that have taken 
 place since former visits. To the hospitality of Mr. G. C. Heath we 
 were much indebted, and through him, to the polite attentions of Dr. 
 Thackaray, Provost of King's, and especially of Mr. Lodge, Principal 
 Librarian of the University. We returned from thence on the 24th, 
 through Baldock, Stevenage, Welwyn, Hatfield, and Aldenham, to 
 town. The weather, during our stay at Cambridge, was as wet and 
 cold as our reception there was warm and hospitable. 
 
 In the beginning of the following month (July), Mrs. Marsden was 
 taken seriously ill, and continued alarmingly so for some weeks.* When 
 she was sufficiently recovered to admit of our so doing, we removed to 
 the country, where our stay unfortunately was doomed to be very brief, 
 as on the fifth day we were under the necessity of returning to town on 
 account of my requiring surgical aid. f 
 
 common ancestor, from whom you are the fourth, as I am the third in descent. Of your 
 relationship, though distant, there can be no doubt. Your crest, I observe, is the same as 
 mine, or with some slight distinctions that were granted at the time my brother and myself 
 were in office. Should you happen to be in London at any time between the end of February 
 and beginning of June (the usual periods of our change of residence), I hope you will favour 
 me with a call in Queen Ann Street. I am, dear Sir, &c." 
 
 * [" So long as my reports must have been any thing but satisfactory, I did not feel 
 inclined to trouble you, or our other kind friends, with accounts of the state of Mrs. Mars- 
 den's health ; but I have now the comfort to say that she is materially better — though still 
 extremely weak. For several days she has been allowed to take the air in an open carriage, 
 to which she is carried down stairs ; of course we are looking forward with some confidence 
 to the time when we shall be able to revisit Edge Grove — to catch a glimpse of the depart- 
 ing summer."— 24/A August 1832.— Mr. M. to Sir G. T. S.] 
 
 ■j- [" You may possibly have heard, that since I had the pleasure of communicating with 
 you, I have been seriously ill. As soon as Mrs. M.'s recovery admitted, we went to the 
 country, but had not been there a week when I was attacked by the same complaint from 
 which I suffered so much in Paris, and once or twice since. Upon arriving in town, I was 
 mortified to learn, that our friend Brodie had left it that morning. I have found, however, 
 
 an 
 
168 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Numerous as my publications had been, since the year 1783, I found, 
 upon examining my papers, in 1832, with a view to their final arrange- 
 ment or eventual destruction, some unfinished sketches for essays on 
 different subjects, which I had wanted resolution to prepare for the 
 press. As old age, with its accompanying infirmities, was advancing 
 apace, 1 reflected, that leaving them behind me in that state would 
 be imposing an unreasonable trouble on my executors, who might be 
 unwilling to destroy, yet much at a loss as to the means of rendering 
 them fit for the eye of the public* Under these impressions, I deter- 
 mined on reviewing what had been done, adding what might appear to 
 be wanting, and putting them in form for publication. Towards the 
 close of that year, I accordingly printed a volume, with the title of 
 
 an able substitute in Mr. Mayo, and after two or three weeks of operations, and a month 
 altogether of confinement, I am now tolerably well, and we purpose to set off for Edge Grove 
 
 to-morrow."— Queen Ann Street, I6lh October 1832 Mr. M. to Sir G. T. S.] 
 
 [" It is very true that I ought to have written, but besides the old excuse of having 
 nothing to write about, I have the plea of being extremely bust/. When I was ill, and hints 
 were dropped of my being dangerously so, though I was not of that opinion, it came across 
 my mind that it would be awkward to leave behind me two or three unfinished essays, which 
 my executors would not know what to do with. So I resolved that no further time should 
 be lost in forwarding their completion, should it be in my power. I have therefore been 
 working very hard for the last three weeks, on the dry subject of the Polynesian languages ; 
 which some other persons also are at work upon. But my materials were chiefly collected 
 long since, and I thought it not right that they should be thrown away. It has run to 
 greater length than I intended. I begin, however, to see land. I may next, perhaps, be 
 induced to finish what I had written on the composition of a national English Dictionary." — 
 Edge Grove, 9th November 1832.] 
 
 fj' You cannot be better employed than in assorting your old letters and papers — 
 destroying such as are unimportant, either from their own temporary nature or the lapse of 
 time. It is a duty we owe to those who are to come after us, and who cannot be so well 
 qualified to perform the task of making the selection as ourselves. Twelve months ago 1 was 
 possessed of all yours, but their bulk is now considerably diminished, and only those on 
 private business retained." — 2ith October 1833.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 169 
 
 • Miscellaneous Works,' containing three unconnected tracts, namely, 
 ' on the Polynesian, or East-insular Languages,' ' on a Conventional 
 Roman Alphabet, applicable to Oriental Languages ;' and ' Thoughts on 
 the Composition of a National English Dictionary,' which, in respect to 
 titling and paging, might be detached from each other, if circumstances 
 should require.* 
 
 In 1834, feeling sensibly the infirmities attendant on my advanced 
 age, I became desirous that my collection of oriental coins, unique in 
 England, should pass, in my life-time, from my hands, and be deposited, 
 as well for security as use, in some public establishment, than which 
 none more worthy or more appropriate than the British Museum pre- 
 sented itself. On the 30th June 1834, I accordingly addressed the Trus- 
 tees in the following letter: — " My Lords and Gentlemen: Being ambi- 
 tious of contributing, as much as lies in my power, to the national col- 
 lection of medals and coins in the British Museum, I request you will 
 do me the honour to accept, on behalf of the public, my collection of 
 
 f_" Dear Marsden : — The sight of your hand-writing quite rejoiced me, and the con- 
 tents of your very agreeable letter delighted me. Your being able to dispose of your time 
 and talents to so late a period of life is the best proof of the mens sana in corpore sano; and 
 long may you continue to enjoy both. 
 
 " You do not mention the title of your book ; but as I shall be in town in less than a fort- 
 night, I shall have the pleasure of seeing it, and, if I can, shall also endeavour to see the 
 author ; but I am grown very lame, and though certainly stronger, in most respects, than 
 when I came here in June, can only now and then contrive to make visits. 
 
 " Pray make my kindest remembrances to Mrs. Marsden, and regrets that she is indis- 
 posed. What is the distinction which has been granted to your venerable father-in-law ? I had 
 not even seen it announced in the usual way ; but whatever it is, it has been well and honour- 
 ably earned. Pray make my compliments to him. Yours, very faithfully, Spencer." — 
 Ryde, 28th August 1833.] 
 
 f_" I have just finished a Review of some works on the East-insular Countries, where 
 you appear in your proper position at the head of the list. You will see, though I have 
 always looked up to you as my master in our common pursuits, I have ventured to skirmish 
 
 1 with 
 
170 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 ancient and modern oriental coins. They are enumerated and described 
 in the ' Numismata Orientalia illustrata,' which I published in the 
 years 1823-25, and of which I shall have the honour to present a copy. 
 The coins being systematically arranged in appropriate cabinets, accord- 
 ing to the order observed in the printed work, I presume to express my 
 wish that, as far as may be consistent with established regulations, and 
 the convenience of the numismatic department, they should be kept 
 separate from others of a similar class, and be styled the ' Marsdenian 
 Collection.' I have the honour to be, &c. W. M." — In return to this, 
 I received the following note from his Grace the Archbishop of Canter- 
 bury : — " Addington, July 7th, 1834. My dear Sir : I shall have very 
 great satisfaction in laying your letter before the Trustees of the British 
 Museum, at the next General Meeting, which is appointed for next 
 Saturday, the 12th instant. There cannot, I apprehend, be the smallest 
 doubt, that your munificent present will be most thankfully accepted on 
 the conditions which you have proposed. Your collection of oriental 
 coins is well known to be very valuable and curious, and it will form a 
 
 with you over two-and-thirty octavo pages ; but I am by no means prepared to say I have 
 the best of the battle. The public, however, will decide between us in this matter, when I 
 can almost anticipate the theorists will all be on my side, and the men of experience and 
 practice on yours." — Wilton Crescent, 8th May 1834. — John Crawfurd, Esq. to Mr. M.] 
 
 [" Although still on the sick list, and little qualified for correspondence, for which my 
 head is but imperfectly suited, I must give you a line to thank you for the purport of your 
 last obliging note. My brother also, at the time I began to recover, became seriously ill, 
 and for the last ten days has had three of the faculty in attendance. When we feel easier 
 about him, we shall prepare for re-visiting Edge Grove. The great heat of the weather, 
 and the subsequent wet, has helped to put it out of our thoughts for some time past. You 
 see how indistinctly I write ; but with fresh air and moderate exercise, I hope to improve. I 
 have given my collection of coins to the British Museum, and from the Archbishop of Can- 
 terbury have received many kind and handsome acknowledgments in return." — Queen Ann 
 Street, 22d July 1834.— Mr. M. to Sir G. T. S.] 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 171 
 
 splendid addition to the numismatic treasures of the Museum. I have 
 to apologize for the delay in acknowledging your communication, which 
 I am certain you will excuse, when you consider the multiplicity of 
 business which occupies the whole of my time. I remain, my dear 
 Sir, with great regard, your faithful humble servant, H. Cantua- 
 
 RENSIS."* 
 
 The same sense of increasing infirmities, and the desire of providing 
 against their unavoidable consequences, which had induced me thus to 
 lighten the weight of my worldly concerns, led me, the following year, 
 to consider how I could, in the manner most creditable to myself, with a 
 view to the greatest public utility, make a similar offering of my collection 
 of books and Eastern manuscripts, of which I could no longer hope to 
 avail myself as a subject of profitable study. The nature of this collection 
 had already been made known by the publication of my catalogue in the 
 
 * Subsequently to this, his Grace writes : " Addington, July 12th, 1834.— My dear Sir : 
 I had the satisfaction, this day, of announcing to a very full meeting of the Trustees, your 
 intention of presenting your collection of ancient and modern oriental coins to the British 
 Museum. I hardly need say, that this liberal offer, which will make so important an addi- 
 tion to the Numismatic treasures of our national repository, was most gratefully accepted. A 
 resolution was unanimously passed, requesting me, as the Chairman, to express the acknow- 
 ledgments of the Meeting, for this most valuable present; and at the same time to assure 
 you, that the collection shall be kept separate from others of the same class, and shall be 
 distinguished by your name. I feel more than ordinary pleasure in having been made the 
 channel of communication on this interesting occasion, and remain, my dear Sir, with sincere 
 respect, your very faithful, &c. H. Cantuarensis." 
 
 Accordingly, on the 15th and 16th of July, the cabinets containing the collection were 
 delivered, in my presence, to the custody of Messrs. Hawkins and Barnwell, who have the 
 care of that department. 
 
 Q" Dear Marsden : — I ought to be ashamed of not having sooner answered your kind 
 letter of ten days ago, but I received it before I returned from Worcestershire, and since 
 being here, I have in general been a good deal annoyed with business, which, in addition to 
 
 Z 2 some 
 
172 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 year 1827, the addition of it, as an accession to the long-accumulated 
 riches in literature, of our great national library, not only would be unim- 
 portant, but it was obvious that, upon examination, a great proportion of 
 the books must necessarily prove to be duplicates of those already in the 
 British Museum. On the other hand, the establishment of the King's 
 College, London (its peculiar recommendations out of the question), 
 presented many of the advantages that belong to a modern foundation 
 and recent structure, as respects the forming a library, the space being 
 in a certain sense unoccupied, especially that specific apartment which 
 
 some gout in my right hand, have contributed to enhance the indolence and inactivity which 
 generally accompany the languor of protracted indisposition, though they do not indicate any 
 more considerable symptoms. 
 
 " I am very glad to hear that you have been able to avail yourself of the late favourable 
 change in the weather, which has, as it were, revived the summer, after some days that 
 seemed to bring a rather premature autumn upon us, and your excursion to Richmond must 
 have been very pleasant, and I hope that Mrs. Marsden partook in the benefit of it. 
 
 " I join most cordially in your regrets for Sir Benjamin Carew ; for besides the loss he is in 
 a public view, he had the strongest claims of gratitude on me, individually, for his care and 
 paternal attention to both my naval sons during their earlier progress in the service. With 
 best wishes to you both, I am, dear Marsden, yours, ever faithfully, Spencer." — Althorp, 
 22d September 1834.] 
 
 At the time Mr. Marsden received the account of his noble friend's decease, two months 
 only after the date of the above letter, he was himself slowly recovering from an attack of 
 palsy, which, though very slight, increased the weakness, already occasioned by the illness, of 
 an apoplectic tendency, which he had experienced the preceding summer,(«) and contributed to 
 deprive him of the power of resuming his former occupations. Of this failure, Mr. Marsden 
 was perfectly sensible, and submitted to the sad change it produced, with that philosophic 
 firmness which characterized him, and which actuated him to decide on giving away that 
 library, the collecting and use of which had been to him the source of such rational enjoy- 
 ment, for so many years of his life. — E. 
 
 (</) On both these occasions, as well as on previous attacks of a different nature, Mr. Mars- 
 den was attended by Mr. Mayo, now senior surgeon of Middlesex Hospital, to whose very 
 judicious treatment, and friendly attention, the Editor has great satisfaction in taking this 
 opportunity of bearing testimony. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 173 
 
 it was judged would be best suited to the limited extent, and exclusive 
 reception, of my books. With these considerations impressed on my 
 mind, I thought it advisable to make the offer of them to the Council of 
 the College for its acceptance, and which I accordingly did, through the 
 instrumentality, in the first instance, of my friend the Bishop of London 
 (Dr. Blomfield), the result of which will appear from the following- 
 papers : — 
 
 " London House, 30th January 1835. 
 
 " My dear Sir : — I have the pleasure to transmit to you the copy of a 
 minute agreed to this day by a Committee of the Council of King's 
 College. The Council itself will meet in larger numbers this day fort- 
 night, and will receive, as it deserves, the intimation of your kind inten- 
 tion. I am happy to say, that we have a room already fitted up with 
 cases which will receive the books whenever you think fit to send them. 
 Believe me, my dear Sir, with great regard and esteem, yours, very 
 faithfully, C.J.London.""* 
 
 Measures were soon after taken for the careful removal of the books 
 from Aldenham to the College, which was effected without their sus- 
 taining any apparent injury. 
 
 " King's College, London, 30th January 1835. 
 
 * " At a Meeting of a Committee of the Council held here this day, the Bishop of London 
 having read a letter from William Marsden, Esquire, announcing his intention to present his 
 valuable library to the College, Resolved, That the Bishop of London be requested to com- 
 municate to Mr. Marsden their acceptance of his munificent offer, and to express the sense 
 which they entertain of his liberality towards the College." 
 
 [" I received this morning, with very great pleasure, your kind letter of yesterday, and 
 thank you heartily for the friendly sentiments it expresses on the subject of my donation to 
 the King's College. As I perceive, by the Bishop of London's letter, that a Council is fixed 
 for Friday the 13th, it will be flattering to me if it should suit your convenience to sanction 
 it by your attendance. 
 
 " And now let me congratulate you and our common friends on the well-deserved honours 
 
 conferred 
 
174 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 Some months previous to the circumstance last stated, on the 6th June 
 1834, my younger brother, Frederick, who, many years since, had retired 
 from the military service of the East- India Company in Bengal, with 
 the rank of lieutenant-colonel, died at his seat, Brook Lodge, near 
 Youghal, Ireland, in the seventy-seventh year of his age, and on the 
 
 conferred upon Sir John Barrow, alike creditable to him and to the right-minded statesman 
 who recommended the measure to the King. Altogether it is a most handsome transaction, 
 and worth fifty baronetcies bestowed in the ordinary way. (a) 
 
 " I could discuss with much interest the subject of Chinese political affairs ; but new 
 matters will continually arise and destroy our speculations. What confusion the English tea 
 market, and the revenue connected with it, must unavoidably get into. The annihilation of 
 so noble a military arm as the East-India fleets, also weighs much with me." — Edge Grove, 
 3d February 1835.— Mr. M. to Sir G. T. S.] 
 
 The letters addressed to Sir George Staunton, which bring Mr. Marsden's correspon- 
 dence down to almost the latest period of his being able to write, were very obligingly put 
 into the hands of the Editor by Sir George, accompanied with the following note, dated 
 Devonshire Street, 20th October, 1837 : — " I lend you my little parcel of letters from my 
 late revered friend. I doubt not but you will find matter interesting to you in them. He 
 never took up his pen in vain." 
 
 («) The Editor cannot refrain from subjoining Sir John's acknowledgment of Mr. Marsden's 
 
 congratulations on this occasion. 
 
 " Admiralty, 4th February 1835. 
 
 " My dear Sir : — It is, I assure you, particularly gratifying to me, to have the appro- 
 bation of one so well qualified to judge of the propriety of the boon that has spontaneously 
 been conferred on me, which is the more acceptable as being connected, as you observe, 
 " with the credit of the office," in which you and I have laboured honestly, I will venture to 
 say, and not in any way unworthily. This is the only claim I have any pretensions to ; and 
 for the last four years of my life, under the great change which was made in the Admiralty 
 department, and which fell to my lot (almost exclusively) to work out, nothing could have 
 carried me through, but the uniform good health with which I have been so long blessed. 
 
 " As you have got the copy of Sir R. Peel's recommendations to the King, I must tran- 
 scribe you the concluding paragraph of his Majesty's reply: — 'And no one can admit 
 more strongly than does his Majesty the claims, literary, scientific, and official, which are 
 united in the person of his highly esteemed friend, Mr. Barrow. 
 
 " With our united thanks to Mrs. Marsden and yourself, for your kind and valuable con- 
 gratulations, I am, my dear Sir, very faithfully, yours, " John Barrow." 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 175 
 
 22d September following I lost my youngest brother, Alexander, who 
 died at his house in Portland Place, in the seventy-third year of his age, 
 having long held very important situations in the civil department of 
 the Irish Government.* He was buried in the cemetery at Kensall 
 Green, near Paddington, where I had previously made the purchase of 
 four catacombs, for receiving the mortal remains of so many of my 
 family, and where, in full resignation to the Divine Will, I look forward 
 to my own body being in due time deposited. 
 
 With the above sentence Mr. Marsden closed his Memoir ; and it was 
 committed to paper at a time when his enfeebled state rendered writing 
 a great exertion to him, and the allusion to the loss of his two brothers 
 peculiarly painful. 
 
 * In 1798, he was appointed,, by Lord Camden, Assistant Secretary for law business in the 
 civil department of the government of Ireland, about three months previous to the breaking 
 out of the rebellion, and was actively and confidentially engaged in the measures of Govern- 
 ment during that period, and the subsequent one, of carrying the question of the Union. For 
 several years he was Under Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant, which situation he resigned in 
 1806. In January 1810, he was appointed Chairman of the Board of Excise and Taxes; an 
 office of considerable rank and responsibility, which had been held in succession by Earls 
 Annesley and Donoughmore, his immediate predecessors. Some questions of official cour- 
 tesy occurred between him and the Irish Government (perhaps arising from the contemplated 
 removal of the business of the department to England), which occasioned him to resign. 
 Since the year 1814, he resided with his family in England. 
 
 [" I feel much obliged to you for your letter of the 25th, and your kind condolence on 
 the loss of my estimable brother, and your sincere friend. The melancholy event must have 
 proved more sudden to you than it was to the family, who have been more prepared for it. 
 
 " The funeral took place this morning, at the Cemetery at Kensall Green, where the pre- 
 parations I had previously made were more especially intended for myself, as I had been 
 very ill. When you have read these lines, I shall thank you to call on my sister, who 
 will be anxious to hear the latest account of me. Excuse my being so bad a correspondent 
 to you; but, as a wise man has said, the grasshopper becomes a burthen to one of my age." 
 — 50, Queen Ann Street, 21th September 1834.— Mr. M. to T. M. Musgrave, Esq., Bath/] 
 
!76 MEMOIR OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 There remains little more to be told. In November 1835, Mr. Mars- 
 den, while at Edge Grove, experienced another slight stroke, which 
 palsied his left leg: he very soon, indeed, recovered the use of it, but his 
 general health now fully verified the justness of a remark, which sad 
 experience had led his early friend, Major Rennell, to make, " that 
 after a certain age, an illness never leaves us where it finds us." Under 
 these circumstances, it was judged most prudent to remove at once to 
 town, where the season was passed without any fresh alarm, although 
 Mr. Marsdens nerves were much shaken in the spring by the death of his 
 father-in-law, Sir Charles Wilkins,* whose name has so often appeared 
 in these pages. 
 
 Towards the close of the summer, however, Mr. Marsden had so far 
 rallied as to be able to return to the country, and to enjoy walking about 
 the gardens at Edge Grove, in the cultivation of which he had always 
 taken great interest. Such had been his recreation the morning of the 
 5th of October 1836: in the afternoon, the weather being remarkably 
 
 * f_" Monsieur, et cher ami : — Je prends trop de part a la perte que vous venez de fair e 
 
 ainsi que Madame Marsden, pour ne pas vous donner, dans cette triste circonstance, une 
 
 marque de mon attachement. Monsieur Wilkins a pousse loin son utile et honorable carriere; 
 
 mais cette consideration qui peut etre de quelque importance aux yeux de ceux qui ne 
 
 voient dans cet gvenement que la perte d'un savant illustre, dont le nom se transmettra avec 
 
 gloire a la posterite, est bien foible pour ceux qui perdent un pere, un frere, ou un ami. Je 
 
 sais trop par experience, ce que sont ces douleurs qui pesent sur le coeur, et dont on cherit 
 
 le souvenir, malgre 1'amertume qui l'accompagne. C'est du moins la ce que j'eprouve, et, 
 
 1'oubli seroit pour moi le plus importun et le plus odieux consolateur. Je vous prie done 
 
 d'etre bien persuade que ce qui touche de si pres des personnes que j'estime comme vous et 
 
 Madame Marsden, est loin de m'etre indifferent. — Le Baron Silvestre de Sacy."(«[)— 
 
 Paris, 13 Juillet 1836.] 
 
 (a) We announce, with regret, that the Baron S. de Sacy died yesterday, from the paralysis 
 with which he was attacked on Monday, on his way from the Chamber of Peers. His loss 
 will be lamented by the Literati of Europe, as he was one of its most erudite oriental scholars. 
 He had attained his eightieth year. — Galignani's Messenger, 22d February 1838. 
 
WILLIAM MARSDEN. 177 
 
 fine, he drove several miles in an open carriage to visit a neighbour, and 
 passed the evening in the company of his wife and her sisters, in listen- 
 ing, with his usual attention, to one of the latter reading to him, the sub- 
 ject chosen not being of a nature to call forth a train of ideas beyond 
 what (to use his own expression) his head would bear. At eleven o'clock, 
 his accustomed hour, he retired to rest, slept tranquilly during the night, 
 awaking only twice in the early part of it, when he spoke cheerfully ; 
 but before seven o'clock in the morning Mr. Marsden was no more : it 
 had just been perceived he was again awake, when a slight exclamation 
 of "oh!" readied the ear that was on the watch, and was found to have 
 indicated his peaceful spirit having at that moment fled for ever. 
 
 " Thus," in the words of a valued friend, when writing on the occa- 
 sion, "Mas he mercifully removed, without suffering — full of years— (on 
 the verge of eighty-two) — leaving a character which all good men must 
 cherish and respect.'' 
 
 Agreeably to his directions, Mr. Marsden was interred»t the Ceme- 
 tery, Kensall Green, where the funeral procession from Aloll^ham was 
 joined by those of his friends resident in London, who were desirous 
 of paying this last tribute of respect to his remains. 
 
 2 A 
 
Printed by J. L. Cox and Sons, 75, Great Queen Street, 
 XincolnVInn Fields. 
 
MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 TRAGEDY. 
 
The story which constitutes the subject of the following piece is well known 
 in the Irish annals, and may be read in the historical works of Keating and 
 Warner. An abstract of it is given by Jos. Cooper Walker (an amiable friend of 
 the author) in his " Memoirs of the Irish Bards ;" and in the Reliques of Irish 
 Poetry, we find it versified by the elegant pen of Miss Brooke. With the original 
 recorded tale it has been judged expedient to take a few liberties, in order to 
 adapt it more perfectly to the purposes of the drama, and even the names of some 
 of the personages have been changed for others not quite so uncouth in ortho- 
 graphy and pronunciation. This, it is hoped, will be pardoned by the historical 
 critic, and especially as the names of the hero and heroine are retained in their 
 native purity. 
 
 The play was written so long ago as in the year 1776 and 1777, during 
 the author's residence in the island of Sumatra, and having since remained 
 unnoticed amongst his papers, is at length brought from its obscurity by the 
 influence of that sentiment which, at a late period of life, carries back the 
 thoughts with fond recollection to the amusements of our vouth ; and is now 
 submitted to the perusal of a few indulgent friends. 
 
 Aldenham, Ylth December 1819- 
 
 *.* For some reason which does not appear, the intention thus intimated in 1819 was not carried 
 into execution. But as the author of this juvenile effort alludes to it in his Autobiography, the Editor 
 has been induced to append it to the present work. 
 
DRAMATIS PERSONS. 
 
 Kimbath (Cobthach of history), the reigning king of Ierne, or 
 
 Ireland. 
 Maon, sow. of Cathir (Logary), the brother of Kimbath. 
 Moran, or Cathir, under the disguise of a Druid. 
 Dermod, provincial king of Momonia, or Munster. 
 Crimthan, a general in the service of Kimbath. 
 A Druid, the favourite and minister of Kimbath. 
 
 Moriat, daughter of Dermod. 
 
 Eithne, companion of Moriat. 
 
 Chorus of Virgins, Chorus of Bards, Guards and Peasants. 
 
MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Cragetiy* 
 
 ACT I. 
 
 The Scene lies in the southern part of Ireland, with the view of a 
 circular Temple, constructed with large unhewn stones. 
 
 Enter two Peasants, ivho stop at the side of the Stage. 
 
 Fiest Peasant. 
 See ! by that path conducting from the coast, 
 A comely youth draws nigh. His cautious steps 
 And eager looks to ev'ry side directed, 
 Speak him a stranger ill assur'd of safety — 
 The winds rag'd fierce last night and may have driv'n 
 Some foreign bark upon our rocky shore. 
 
 Second Peasant. 
 
 Few from such accidents escape with life : 
 But heav'n may have preserved this favour'd youth 
 
MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 For great designs. Mean while it is our duty 
 
 To hasten to the temple and apprize 
 
 Our holy Druid that an unknown guest 
 
 Appears to claim his hospitable care. [E.veunt. 
 
 Enter Maon. 
 Maon. 
 At length I seem to reach the haunts of men — 
 Of countrymen — for whom my anxious heart, 
 Unchang'd by absence or the sense of wrongs, 
 Glows with the feelings of a patriot prince. 
 But is this state of hopeless enterprize, 
 Of misery, befitting him whose veins 
 Boast the pure blood of kings who rul'd this isle 
 Ere infant time had record? Impotence 
 Of human pride ! What doth it now avail 
 A wretched wanderer, whose native realm 
 Presents a scene of ills more perilous 
 Than was the storm that wreck'd him on her coast. 
 Sure, if my sight deceive not, I should know 
 This venerable grove, and yonder temple, 
 To mighty Belus consecrate, whose beams 
 Shed oVr the nations universal day. 
 From this part of Momonia's friendly province 
 A northern road conducts to royal Tara, 
 Whose halls polluted with a father's blood. 
 Call loudly for revenge. Oh ! madd'ning thought ! 
 Indignant nature works within my breast, 
 And urges me, ere yet report can blazon 
 
A TRAGEDY. 
 
 The tale of my return, to hasten thither, 
 And from his throne, by fratricide obtain'd, 
 Drag, midst a wond'ring court, the proud usurper. 
 But who, of rev'rend aspect, draws this way ? 
 A Druid of the grove 
 
 Enter Moean. 
 
 May health and peace attend 
 Thy sacred steps ! 
 
 Moean. 
 
 Thanks, noble youth — 
 For sure that port no vulgar race proclaims — 
 Thanks for thy pious wish, which heav'n return 
 With int'rest on thy head ! But thou dost seem 
 A stranger in the land. If my advice 
 In aught can be of use, require it freely. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Rightly thou judgest. I'm indeed a stranger ; 
 And much my situation counsel needs ; 
 But the dark story of my wayward fortunes 
 Must yet remain conceal'd. All-righteous pow'rs ! 
 
 Moran. 
 
 What anxious thoughts repress'd within thy bosom 
 Labour for vent? Repose them safely here. 
 I, too, have tasted sorrow's bitter draught, 
 
 b2 
 
MAON AND MORI AT, 
 
 Whose influence has witherM up my frame, 
 And hoar'd my temples with untimely age — 
 Taught by my own, I feel another's woes, 
 And may alleviate though I cannot heal them. 
 
 Ma on. 
 
 That venerable, that benignant air 
 Bespeak the owner of a virtuous mind ; 
 Such cannot be the abject slave of powV, 
 Who flatters to betray. In this my state 
 Of ignorance and doubt, I may from him 
 Gain useful information — 
 
 Moran. 
 Think not strange 
 My forward zeal, nor that I feel a wish 
 To take a nearer part in thy concerns ; 
 To know thy name, thy birth — methinks those features 
 Convey a well-known image. That black deed 
 Which plac'd Ierne's crown on Kimbath's brow, 
 Forcd many a gallant chief — perchance thy sire — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Hah ! dost thou curse the deed ? And dost thou hold 
 In detestation that inhuman brother ? 
 
 Moran. 
 As I should hold my direst enemy. 
 
a tragedy. 5 
 
 Maon. 
 Then will I freely trust thee with my life. 
 The man who hates him most is most my friend. 
 In me behold his nephew, Cathir's son — [Mohan starts 
 
 Cathir, beneath whose wise and virtuous sway 
 lerne smil'd in peace, when that fell monster 
 Dy'd in a brother's blood his cursed steel. 
 
 MoRAN. 
 
 Too well I know the atrocious circumstance. 
 But say — for 'twas reported that young Maon. 
 His only son, had likewise fall'n a victim — 
 How didst thou 'scape the ruthless tyrant's grasp ? 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Some faithful friends who saw th' impending danger 
 Convey 'd me thence in haste to Dermod's palace : 
 While Kimbath fail'd not to proclaim me dead ; 
 Strengthening thereby his title to the crown. 
 Nor was he less attentive to the means 
 Whei-eby he might effect the wish'd event ; 
 Though 'twas not till the third expiring year 
 His spies discover'd where I lay conceal'd. 
 Momonia's king, whose reign was then disturb'd 
 By factious nobles and internal broils, 
 Fearing a pow'r with which he could not cope, 
 Convey'd me secretly to Gallia's court, 
 Where, as my rank and my misfortunes claim'd, 
 I met with kind protection. 
 
MAON AND MORIAT, 
 MoRAN. 
 
 Thanks to heav'n ! 
 Sure some peculiar Providence directs 
 The destiny of kings. — Proceed I pray thee. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Seeing my youthful prowess often tried 
 In feats of chivalry and martial sports, 
 The friendly Gaulish monarch soon intrusted 
 Important enterprizes to my care. 
 Such marks of favour 'twas my pride to merit ; 
 And having, by good fortune, o'er his foes 
 Gain'd such advantage as he deem'd essential, 
 I seiz'd the glad occasion to implore, 
 What long I panted for, his potent aid 
 To rescue from the base intruder's gripe, 
 My crown and kingdom ; to relieve a people 
 Whose happiness or sufferings are mine, 
 From rank oppression — 
 
 Moran. 
 Greatly-minded youth ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Soon as the wish had passed my quiv'ring lips, 
 The king, more gen'rous than my warmest hope. 
 Gave instant order that those valiant troops 
 Whom late I led to conquest, should embark, 
 With all the various requisites of war, 
 
A TRAGEDY 
 
 And follow me. The rites of gratitude 
 
 Observed, with flatt'ring gales we left the port : 
 
 But scarce my country's heights appear'd in view, 
 
 When from the east and north a storm arose — 
 
 The night approached and o'er the angry deep 
 
 Spread horrid darkness. Soon our fleet 
 
 Was widely scatter'd. Many doubtless perish 'd. 
 
 And some perchance regain'd the Gallic coast. 
 
 Steering obliquely to the adverse wind, 
 
 I hop'd to gain Ierne's southern land — 
 
 My hopes, alas ! were horribly fulfill'd ; 
 
 For at the dawn a mighty surge uprais'd 
 
 Our labouring bark, and in its rapid course, 
 
 Dash'd it on shore — which instantly I gain'd — 
 
 But in its fierce recoil the hapless crew 
 
 Sunk overwhelmed. Of all my brave companions 
 
 Descrying none, I struck into the woods, 
 
 (Impervious, had I not from childhood learnt 
 
 To trace the covert of the bounding elk), 
 
 And tow'rds Momonia's hospitable court 
 
 I've bent my toilsome way. 
 
 Moran. 
 
 Thou virtuous prince, 
 Worthy thy ancestor's illustrious line, 
 How greatly meritorious were the views 
 Which prompted thy return. O powerful source 
 Of everlasting light, upon his cause, 
 The cause of injured thousands, shine propitious ! 
 
ma on and moriat, 
 
 Maon. 
 There's somewhat still untold, and which, perhaps, 
 In thy maturer judgment may be thought 
 Better suppress'd. Yet 'twas in part the cause — 
 In part — it were indeed alone sufficient 
 To make me brave th' extreme of human risk — 
 Can'st thou excuse what may appear a weakness ? 
 
 Moran. 
 Much thou excitest my impatience — 
 
 Maox. 
 
 Know 
 That whilst beneath the guardian roof of Dermod, 
 I innocently pass'd my boyish days 
 With Moriat, lovely partner of my sports, 
 His only object of paternal care. 
 A passion which I scarcely knew to name 
 Gain'd unperceiv'd possession of my heart. 
 With ev'ry day and hour my fondness grew — 
 But ah, what need to trace its subtile progress — 
 Parting to me seemed death — and Moriat's eye 
 Betray'd a tear that eloquently spoke 
 Sweet sympathy. Oft since that hour, my breast 
 Has glow'd with silent rapture, whilst the tongues 
 Of frequent strangers vied in their reports 
 Of her rare beauty and accomplished mind, 
 Till Gallia's court re-echoed with her praise. 
 One 'mongst the rest, a skilful minstrel, came, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 
 
 Who sang in flattering numbers of the deeds 
 Athiev'd by Maon in a foreign realm ; 
 But in the name of honour call'd me thence 
 To vindicate my birth-right, and revenge 
 A parent's wrongs. — Then in a softer strain, 
 And language that bespoke th 1 exalted source 
 From which it AWd, encouraged me to prove 
 My worthiness of her who lov'd my fame, 
 And did not blush to make her hand the meed 
 
 Of patriotic virtue Who comes here, 
 
 To interrupt our friendly conference ? 
 
 Moran 
 
 Dermod himself approaches. At this hour 
 He often seeks our shades, and takes delight 
 Here to forget his state, and to discourse 
 Of things beyond this world. 
 
 Enter Dermod. 
 
 All hail, my liege ! 
 
 Dermod. 
 Peace to thee, holy man ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 My second father, 
 Thus on my knee I pay my filial duty. 
 
 c 
 
10 ma on and moi1iat, 
 
 Deemod. 
 Welcome, my son ; most welcome to these arms ! [Raising him. 
 By honour's and by friendship's sacred ties, 
 Thou art my son — but why this fatal rashness ? 
 Wherefore return whilst yet misfortune's cloud 
 Hangs low'ring o'er thy head ? 
 
 Moran. 
 
 Protect him heav'n ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Spare, Sir, thy kind reproach. Much I've to tell 
 Of good and evil chance. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Fly, fly from hence ! 
 Employ thy quickest speed, and gain my palace. 
 Thou rev'rend Moran too, whose pray'rs ascend, 
 To tyrants inauspicious, leave this spot, 
 And to the temple's dark recess withdraw. 
 Kimbath will soon arrive. At his request, 
 And after due exchange of hostages, 
 Without our guards, we hold a parley here. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Kimbath, and unattended — 'tis my hour — 
 Sure man to man is equal through the world; 
 And now my sword, which lately I have prov'd 
 'Gainst foreign shields, may do my country justice. 
 
Heroic youth ! 
 
 A TRAGEDY. 1 I 
 
 MoBAN. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Restrain awhile thy ardour. 
 Matters are yet unripe for such attempts. 
 Though justice claim the act in proper hour, 
 Strict obligation now binds up our hands. 
 He comes relying on our kingly faith, 
 Which must be kept inviolate, that here 
 His person shall be sacred. Follow then 
 My wiser counsel. Fly ; or in the temple 
 Await the issue of our conference. 
 There I will meet thee, and from henceforth make 
 Thy cause my own. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Reluctantly I yield ; 
 Convinc'd, not satisfied ; for in my breast 
 Indignant feeling, scorning reason's voice, 
 Struggles for mastery and demands revenge. [Evif. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Didst thou observe, (for secrecy is vain,) 
 The gallant spirit of Milesus' line 
 Shine out in each emotion of his soul ? 
 In him behold Ierne's lawful king. 
 
 o 
 
 c 2 
 
12 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 MOEAN. 
 
 I mark'd with admiration all those virtues 
 Which point him out by heav'n itself design'd 
 To rule a nation, did his human right 
 Need such appeal. 
 
 Dekmod. 
 And if Momonia's pow'rs 
 Can o'er a hated tyrant's force prevail, 
 Maon shall wield the sceptre of his fathers. 
 
 Moran. 
 
 'Tis for such glorious purpose thou art bless'd 
 With sovereign sway. The brightest faculty 
 That kings enjoy, is the extensive pow'r 
 Of rend' ring justice to the great and small ; 
 To crush the proud oppressor, to protect 
 And succour innocence, to wipe the tear 
 Of private woe, or bid a nation smile. 
 
 Dekmod. 
 But hark ! the neighing of the monarch's steed 
 Sounds through the grove — 
 
 Moran. 
 
 Trust not too far his faith. 
 
 [Exit. 
 
A TRAGEDY. J3 
 
 Dermod. 
 No, he has violated nature's bond, 
 The ties of sweet fraternal amity. 
 
 Enter Kimbath. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Health to Momonia's king, whose fruitful realm 
 Is crown'd with golden harvests ; on whose plains 
 Graze num'rous herds, whose hills are rich with flocks — 
 Scarce to ourself inferior, on whose head 
 Heav'n, since the death of a much honourYl brother, 
 Has laid th 1 imperial crown's unsought-for weight. 
 
 Dermod. 
 Health, in return, to him who rules at Tara — 
 'Twere well if to the purpose of our meeting 
 With briefness we proceed — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Therefore I urg'd 
 This interview, preferring simple parley 
 To forntal embassy. Report is spread 
 That an impostor, who proclaims himself 
 The son of Cathir, has beneath that title 
 Obtain'd from Gallia's monarch men and arms, 
 And forms pretensions gainst my sacred rights, 
 Relying on thy aid, in hope to join 
 With his, Momonia's force. I now inquire 
 
14 MAONANDMORIAT. 
 
 If thou art privy to these base designs, 
 Or whether fame unjustly has accus'd thee. 
 
 Dermod. 
 No false pretensions to Ierne's crown, 
 Sustain'd by succours from the Gaulish prince, 
 Have met my sanction : but that Maon lives, 
 Th' undoubted offspring of thy royal brother, 
 Is to the world notorious — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 False as hell ! 
 
 Dermod. 
 And that he means to claim of thee his birth-right 
 Is likewise known — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 A vile pretender this — 
 
 Dermod. 
 ShouhTst thou refuse, and this much injur'd prince 
 Solicit my protection, am not I, 
 In honour, justice, and in fealty bound 
 To draw my sword and vindicate that claim ? 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Would Dermod's prudence for an upstart boy 
 Involve his realm in blood ? — But lend thy aid — 
 
A TRAGEDY 15 
 
 Nor thine, nor thy abettor's foreign host 
 
 Shall screen the beardless traitor from my wrath. 
 
 I smile with scorn to hear thee talk of justice, 
 
 Yet instigate to crime. But having rous'd 
 
 My potent indignation, 'tis the sword 
 
 Shall teach such vassal kings to know their sov 'reign. 
 
 Dermod. 
 Think not with impotent parade of words 
 To shake my steady purpose ; for thy threats 
 And boasted pow'r I equally contemn. 
 I know thou prid'st thee in suppos'd possession 
 Of art and courage ; which thou'lt find too late 
 A weak resource. Thy disaffected nobles 
 Are anxious for occasion to shake off, 
 With fair pretext, the galling yoke they bear, 
 To pay with happier omens their allegiance. 
 None but through fear, or hope of aggrandizement, 
 Obey or follow thee: and such, if once 
 Thy rapid fortunes stop in their career, 
 Will instantly fly off, and leave thee friendless. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 I came not hither for thy sage advice, 
 To learn of thee the art of government. — 
 I must dissemble, though that tutoring air, 
 That cold contempt provokes me e'en to madness. [dside- 
 
 Thou art not ignorant how many thousands 
 Wait but my nod to arm them for the field ; 
 
16 MAON AND MOEIAI, 
 
 And that those troops thou termest disaffected 
 
 Will pour their blood in streams whilst I command : 
 
 But I would seek by means less violent 
 
 To crush the seeds of discord ere they spread 
 
 Their baneful influence around. These means 
 
 Are in thy pow'r, yet wantonly thou seek'st 
 
 To scatter o'er the land the direful plague ; 
 
 As if thy mind distemper'd took delight 
 
 In human misery. But hear my words. 
 
 If thou wilt aid me to remove this thorn 
 
 That festers in my side; this noisome fly, 
 
 That petulantly buzzes in my ear, 
 
 And robs me of my rest, th' important service 
 
 A countless sum of treasure, or of land 
 
 Unlimited extent, shall straight repay. 
 
 Dermod. 
 My soul abhors thy execrable bribe, 
 And scorns the man who holds me capable 
 Of so much baseness. What, betray for gold 
 The darling child of my departed friend, 
 Should foul injustice force him to intrust 
 His life, without suspicion, to my honour ! 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 'Tis rank hypocrisy ! for well I know 
 Thy honour and thy conscience are but slaves, 
 To thy base interest. Thou perhaps hast hopes, 
 Vain hopes, to raise this stripling to a throne, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 17 
 
 To be thy tool and act as thou shalt prompt. 
 But quickly I shall spoil these golden dreams, 
 And in thy palace, spite of force or fraud, 
 Annihilate this phantom of a king. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Insolent boaster ; but as weak as vain — 
 The object I despise can never raise 
 A moment's anger. Here our conference ends. [Exit. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Curse on his stubborn pride, which he imposes 
 Upon a silly world for honesty. 
 Yet I had hop'd that all-prevailing gold 
 Would overcome his conscientious scruples. 
 That lure has fail'd ; but not to it alone 
 I've trusted for success. A bolder scheme 
 Must soon conduct this taunter to my feet. 
 Success were cheaply purchased with the lives 
 Of hostages long irksome to my sight. — 
 Where are ye fled, ye ministers of darkness, 
 Who take delight in great atrocious deeds ? 
 Whose altars smoke with blood of human victims. 
 But not by coward Druids idly shed — 
 Ye who inspired my breast with great designs, 
 And leading me through each degree of guilt, 
 Paid my remorseless labours with a crown, 
 Forsake not now your votary. — Oh remove 
 This gnawing worm that preys upon my life, 
 
 D 
 
18 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 And give him to my vengeance. That one crime 
 Shall close the black account, and to my soul. 
 Now with foul boding apprehensions rack'd, 
 Restore its long lost peace. 
 
 Enter Crimthan. 
 
 Where is your pris'ner ? 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Our efforts were too late — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Confusion ! Death ! 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 The hungry wolf-dog pants not for his prey 
 More ardently than we, when 'cross the grove 
 We saw the king, attended by a youth 
 Of noble aspect, issue from the shade : 
 But instantly, and ere we could approach, 
 They gain'd the chariot that awaited. Thence 
 They roll'd on rapid wheel, and soon were lost 
 In dusty clouds ascending from the plain, 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Oh, curs'd delay ! By heav'n we've miss'd a chance 
 Worth half my realm ; for something tells my mind 
 That youth was Maon. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 19 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Such his mien bespoke him — 
 But is he not in Gaul ? 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 'Twas thine to act, 
 And not to reason. Want of promptitude, 
 Or gross neglect, gives colour to suspicion 
 That thy designs are hostile to thy lord. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Thus is my length of services rewarded. 
 If at this day my duty needs the proof, 
 Grant me those men, which, ere to-morrow's sun 
 Regain his present station, I can bring 
 Accoutred to the field, and I will spread 
 Dismay and desolation through his province, 
 Till Dermod, humbled in his pride, betray 
 This formidable youth, to save his crown. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 The means were ineffectual, now th' alarm 
 Is giv'n and preparation made. 
 Moreover, should the veteran Gaulish troops 
 Have join'd Momonia's, e'en our utmost force 
 Were doubtfully employed. I'll still pursue 
 The safer line of policy. There's yet 
 An offer which the calculating mind 
 
20 MAON AND MOHIAT, 
 
 Of Dermod may with eagerness accept — 
 Retire — await me — till instructed further. 
 
 Ceimthan. 
 Whilst we deliberate the foe will act. [Exit- 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 'Twill sow the seeds of jealousy between them, 
 And in its consequences must dissolve 
 This friendship, founded in convenience merely. 
 When once their int'rests clash, my sword prevails — 
 Oh ! 'twere an issue much to be desir'd ; 
 For fancy, ever busy, paints the son 
 Demanding vengeance for his father's blood. [Exit. 
 
 END OF THE FIRST ACT. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 21 
 
 ACT II. 
 
 Scene represents the interior of the King of Momonia's palace, 
 where Moriat, his daughter, appears seated, in a reclining 
 and pensive attitude, attended by Eithne and a Chorus of 
 Virgins. 
 
 Chorus. 
 Why, languid, droops our garden's pride, 
 
 Whilst spring its genial influence sheds, 
 And trivial flow'rs that grow beside 
 
 With vain presumption rear their heads ? 
 
 Ah ! wherefore from those cheeks, whose hue 
 
 The rose's warmest tint outshone ; 
 Why from those eyes of heaVnly blue 
 
 Is all their sweet expression flown ? 
 
 Ah ! why conceal from friendship's ear 
 
 The sigh which swells that throbbing breast. 
 
 The pang which prompts that gushing tear, 
 And robs thine eyes of balmy rest? 
 
 Whilst virtue evVy wish inspires, 
 
 Why blush those wishes to disclose ? 
 Confide to us thy soft desires, 
 
 And let us share thy tender woes. 
 
22 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 MOEIAT. 
 
 Cease, dear companions, cease to importune me. 
 Have not my gayer hours been ever yours ? 
 Then let not friendship, with too curious eye, 
 Explore my griefs. — They're all I would conceal — 
 Deny me not the melancholy pleasure 
 That silent solitude affords my soul. 
 
 Eithne. 
 
 Oh ! Moriat, that rebuke our tears must answer. — 
 Unkindly dost thou chide us, from whose hearts 
 The blood would stream to yield repose to thine. 
 
 Moriat (raising herself). 
 
 What have I said ? and whither have my thoughts 
 Distracted led me ? Ah, forgive your friend — 
 Forgive and pity her; for heav'n can judge, 
 There's not in Moriat's nature aught unkind ; 
 Nor would I for whate'er the world contains, 
 Provoke those tears — Eithne, thou know'st I would not- 
 But why oblige me to reveal, what shame 
 And conscious sense of weakness have suppress'd, 
 For many tedious years ; though on my health 
 An inward flame incessantly has prey'd ? 
 Will you not hold me lightly in esteem, 
 If I reveal the cause? No, no, I see 
 Your eyes express a sentiment more kind. 
 
A TKAGEDY. 23 
 
 ElTHNE. 
 
 Oh, speak sweet mistress — tell thy ingenuous tale 
 And be assur'd our grateful sentiments 
 Will vibrate in fond unison with thine. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 It were unjust to doubt of your discretion, 
 Nor shall I longer hesitate. Know then — 
 Since Maon, once our sportive play-mate, left, 
 For Gallia's safer realm, my father's court, 
 Whither my heart fled with him, I've ne'er known 
 Tranquillity of mind. Ere that, unconscious 
 Of any sentiments but those which mirth, 
 Which passing scenes of gaiety inspir'd, 
 I drank delicious, fatal draughts of love. 
 
 Eithne. 
 
 So, by the side of some smooth gliding stream. 
 Whose dang'rous brink enamel'd flow'rs adorn, 
 Awhile the witless lamb, in sportive mood, 
 Frisks jocund, but anon, his giddy steps 
 Betray him, unsuspecting, to his fate. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Oh, was he not endow'd with ev'ry charm — 
 For you can witness — did not ev'ry virtue 
 That could engage esteem or raise affection, 
 Beam with expressive lustre in his eye? 
 His very faults, th' o'erflowings of his soul, 
 
24 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Were such as might become celestial birth — 
 
 Impetuous, bold, impatient of restraint, 
 
 As if aspiring to his native skies. 
 
 My thoughts, my happiness were wrapt in him ; 
 
 Upon his smiles I liv'd, and vainly dreamt 
 
 Of long, uninterrupted years of bliss. 
 
 Think then, my friends, how dreadful was the hour 
 
 That snatch'd him hence with sudden cruelty, 
 
 Far from my doating heart. 'Tis too, too much 
 
 For memory to bear. — Th' imperfect tidings 
 
 Which rumour wafted, of his deeds in Gaul, 
 
 Serv'd but to fan the flame. — Must I avow 
 
 The rash extent to which my passion led me ? 
 
 Enraptur'd with the theme of his renown, 
 
 I tun'd the grateful subject to my harp, 
 
 And in persuasive numbers fondly tried 
 
 To rouse the feelings of the gallant youth 
 
 For his neglected country. With this strain 
 
 Fully instructed, I dispatch'd a minstrel 
 
 To Gallia's court ; if haply he might catch 
 
 The prince's ear, and by his tuneful skill, 
 Excite in him a wish to learn the purport 
 
 And framer of the song. With what success 
 
 To me is still unknown; but from that hour 
 
 My spirits, which th' adventurous effort rais'd, 
 
 Have ebb'd apace. — Retire my gentle friends, 
 
 Whilst I endeavour to compose my thoughts 
 
 Too strongly agitated. [Exeunt Eithne and Chorus. 
 
 Mori at resumes her seat and pensive attitude. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 25 
 
 Enter Maon. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Sure, ye powYs, 
 It must be she ! Unutterable rapture ! 
 But why thus sad ? Speak, Moriat — if unehang'd, 
 Thou art the same pure being that inspir'd 
 My early hopes, O, speak and bless thy Maon 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Ye heav'nly pow'rs protect me, nor delude 
 The giddy fancy of a credulous woman 
 With these, your flattring visions. Say, indeed, 
 Art thou that noble youth whose fame in Gaul 
 Ierne's shores have long with pride re-echoed ? 
 
 Maon. 
 
 'Tis he, my princess, he from whose fond breast 
 No eagerness for fame, no vanity 
 Of martial honours, could efface th 1 impression 
 His Moriafs charms in early youth had made, 
 When in the days of artless, purest bliss, 
 We sported down in joy the summer suns, 
 And hailVl the smiling mornings which renew'd 
 Our innocent endearments. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Yes, 'tis he, 
 "Tis Maon, 'tis my hero. — Oh, excuse 
 This forward extasy that leaps the bounds 
 
26 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Which decent custom has prescrib'd our sex : 
 But 'tis not in thy Moriat to dissemble. — 
 Since last we parted, till this happy hour, 
 My soul has never known the voice of comfort 
 In countless sighs and many a silent tear, 
 I've pass'd the tedious interval of sorrow. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Then let me, like the sun that glads the world, 
 Dry up those tears, and never, never more 
 May they have cause to flow. — AVhat bliss, what transport, 
 To find thee all my fond imagination 
 Had painted of perfection — beauteous still, 
 In worth unalter'd, and, delightful thought, 
 Still to thy Maon constant. This one hour 
 Atones for many years of painful exile 
 From this my native land, and thee as dear 
 As native land, or liberty, or life. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Too partial youth. — But say to what event 
 Am I beholden for this wish'd return ? 
 Has fate dispelFd her clouds, and may I hope 
 This prove no transient visit to our court, 
 To spread around a momentary sunshine, 
 And plunge the coining night in thicker gloom r 
 Com'st thou alone, and what are thy designs ? 
 Art thou content, exchanging care for ease, 
 With manly fortitude to wave thy claims ; 
 Or dost thou lead a band of chosen heroes, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 27 
 
 Determine! to assert thy injur'd rights, 
 Thy sacred title to Ierne's crown? 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Forbear to touch that string, which ill accords 
 With our delightful theme. There, thought is death. 
 And memory, too faithful, tortures me. 
 Blest in thy converse 1 awhile forgot 
 Those wounds whose pain no other tongue could charm. 
 No, let us talk of love — cease busy spirit — 
 'Tis not a moment this for schemes of vengeance. 
 
 MORIAT. 
 
 I would I had not waken'd in thv mind 
 Th' ungrateful subject. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Think it not ungrateful ; 
 For next to thee within my breast it holds 
 The warmest place, and shall be yet indulged. 
 But I would dedicate to love alone 
 This blissful hour. Yet wherefore talk of love ? 
 How can a hapless wand'rer, one who lives 
 But in the gen'rous bounty of Ids friends, 
 An outcast from his realm, by heav'n pursud 
 With angry tempests, shipwrecfd, doom'd to see 
 His brave companions perish in the waves, 
 Whilst hardly he himself escap'd, forlorn — 
 How can this child of woe presume on aught 
 
 e2 
 
28 MAON AND MORIAT. 
 
 From Dermod's daughter, but a tear of pity ; 
 The common tribute which the wretched claim ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Why, cruel, wilt thou force me to repeat 
 What ev'ry word, and look, and action tells thee? 
 Oh, Maon, not on outward circumstance 
 My love for thee depends. If thou art still 
 That pure, ingenuous, nobly-minded youth 
 Which erst I knew thee, in that happy time 
 When ev'ry secret thought that each conceiv'd 
 Was irksome till imparted ; when the mind, 
 Encompass'd with a thin transparent veil, 
 In spotless lustre stood expos'd to view ; 
 If thou art still the same, and faithful still, 
 Though I were mistress of the Eastern world, 
 And thou the lowliest hind that ever grac'd 
 With in-born dignity an humble cot — 
 Contented with thy worth, and to derive 
 My happiness from thee, I'd haste to lay 
 My empire at thy feet — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Illustrious maid ! 
 Thou bright example to succeeding ages 
 Of all that can adorn thy lovely sex ! 
 When time, oblivious, shall have swallow'd up 
 The annals of our kings, eternal deem'd, 
 Our story shall survive the genVal wreck : 
 
A TRAGEDY. 29 
 
 Some future bard shall tell of Moriat's praise, 
 And with thy name immortalize his own. 
 But how shall I repay this debt of kindness ? 
 Expression falters when I would describe 
 The feelings of my soul. Interpret for me — 
 My looks, with silent eloquence endu'd, 
 Declare my gratitude, too strong for utt'rance. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Not thou, but I, should speak of obligation — 
 Yet why should gratitude be nam'd with love, 
 Which soars above all interested ties ? 
 But thou didst talk of storms and angry waves, 
 With difficulty 'scapM. — Tremendous chance, 
 On which our mutual safety quiv'ring stood ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Of these I'll tell my love, and thousand tales 
 Of tender import. — Now thy father comes 
 From his assembled nobles. 
 
 MOKIAT. 
 
 Thus he's wont 
 To guard from wrong the int' rests of the state, 
 And hear himself the wishes of his people; 
 Fond to distribute justice. See, his eyes 
 Are fixt, as if in serious thought absorb'd — 
 Th 1 observant duty which a daughter owes, 
 Requires me to withdraw. Farewell ! 
 
30 M AON AND MORI AT. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Farewell, 
 Thou loveliest of women ! How my heart 
 Pants in my breast, and strains to follow her ! 
 
 Enter Dermod. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Maon, the hand of heav'n was manifest 
 In thy so strange deliv'rance, and, I trust, 
 Will lead thee yet to that exalted state 
 From whence thy father fell. 
 
 Maon {continuing to look in the 
 direction taken by Moriat). 
 
 She vanish'd there — 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Let not misfortune take too deep effect ; 
 Nor, with incessant thought, brood o'er thy wrongs; 
 Which leads but to distraction. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Softer themes 
 Employ'd my mind. Thy daughter parted hence, 
 The sweet associate of my youthful hours — 
 But how, with time, have her perfections ripened ! 
 Thou happy father! No, my injuries 
 Arouse my mind to transports of revenge, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 31 
 
 That blunt the sense of sufferings. Oh, for means 
 To reach the tyrant ! Had but heav'n thought fit 
 To spare my valiant Gauls, to-morrow's sun 
 Should view his breathless corse a prey to wolves. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Thou shalt not need their aid ; nor is it meet 
 A foreign monarch should surpass thy friends 
 In gen'rous zeal. Rely upon my faith : 
 Ev'n to extremity I will support 
 Thy just pretensions. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Life were then too short 
 To prove my sense of thy surpassing kindness. 
 Grant but a force sufficient to o'erpow'r 
 The traitor's guards, and bring me near his person — 
 This arm shall do the rest. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Beware of rashness, 
 If not for thine, yet for thy people's sake. 
 For them thou livest ; they look up to thee, 
 As to their common father, for protection, 
 For refuge, for deliverance from wrongs. 
 Thy deeds in Gaul have reach'd thy subjects' ears ; 
 And with regret they have beheld thy valour 
 On foreign triumphs lavish'd. — 
 
32 maon and moeiat. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Oh, I feel 
 Their sufF rings here. An animated zeal 
 Glows through my frame, and urges me to action. 
 
 Dermob. 
 
 'Tis fitting that we spread throughout the realm, 
 The news of thy return ; that thus thy friends 
 May he prepar'd to join thee, or to make 
 A powerful diversion. This may seem 
 The slow proceeding of o'er-prudent age : 
 But trust the experience which that age acquires. 
 As I would act myself I counsel thee, 
 For since the hour thy royal parent fell, 
 And thou didst seek asylum in my palace, 
 I have beheld thee with a father's eye. 
 Thy safety, and my want of pow'r alone, 
 Amidst cabals, to vindicate thy rights, 
 Oblig'd me, as thou know'st, to send thee hence : 
 And now I waited but for happier omens 
 To bid thee gain once more thy native coast ; 
 Secure that in the failure of our hopes, 
 And worst reverse, thou couldst at least enjoy 
 The title of my son. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Thy son — Oh heav'n ! 
 'Tis a distinction which a thousand realms 
 
A TRAGEDY. 33 
 
 Could never bribe me to forego. — Thy son — 
 
 To this my wishes fondly have aspir'd ; 
 
 The glorious prize I long have toil'd to merit. 
 
 Oh, it has been my solace in misfortune, 
 
 And darling subject of my happiest thoughts — 
 
 Make me indeed thy son. — Thou know'st my meaning — 
 
 Grant me to call thy matchless daughter mine ; 
 
 And when I've torn the regal diadem 
 
 From KimbatlVs brow, bestow it at thy will. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Heav^i knows I live but to behold my children 
 Blest in each other. Yes, in happy hour, 
 Accept my Moriat's hand, the dearest pledge 
 Of my affection. As she merits, prize her. — 
 
 Maon. 
 Thou overwhelm'st me with a joy too great. 
 Sure 'tis not all delusion. Where, where is she? 
 Let me not lose a moment to impart 
 To her I love the rapture that I feel. [Exit. 
 
 Dermod. 
 With what impetuous, uncontrolled force, 
 (The fault of genVous minds) his youthful passions 
 Rush to their object ; doubtful if to prove 
 The tide of glory or the stream of woe — 
 
 F 
 
34 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Enter Crimthan. 
 From Tara, if I err not — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Mighty Kimbath, 
 Who wields renowrTd Ierne's ancient sceptre, 
 By me desires to greet Momonia's king. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 This friendly salutation suits but ill 
 The spirit that prevail'd at our late meeting. 
 He breath'd defiance then, and vow'd revenge 
 On all who should abet the son of Cathir. 
 Has he reflected ? Has the storm pass'd off, 
 And reason's calm restor'd his sense of right ? 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 The truly great are always foremost to forgive. 
 Kimbath would wish to live in peace with Dermod, 
 And spare the bloodshed which must wait your strife. 
 He therefore once again solicits thee 
 To yield into his hands the bold impostor 
 Who now, he knows, is sheltered in this court. 
 
 Dermod. 
 Why will he force a needless repetition 
 Of my refusal ? 
 
A TRAGEDY. 35 
 
 Crimthax. 
 Further I am charged. — 
 Enamour'd with the beauty which loud fame 
 Attributes to your daughter, and dispos'd 
 To form a lasting bond of amity, 
 He prays to be accepted as your son ; 
 And with the ardour of a royal lover, 
 At Moriafs feet he lays his crown and person. 
 
 Der.mod. 
 
 Insidious man ! Hence ; tell thy suppliant lord, 
 My daughter scorns his person and his crown — 
 For else she were not mine. — And further tell him, 
 That Dermod ne'er can counterfeit a friendship 
 With one whose hands a brother's blood has stain'd. 
 
 Crimthax. 
 'Tis sland'rous malice — 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Tell him, Cathir's son, 
 Thy lawful king, I shall not cease to aid 
 Till I behold him on his father's throne; 
 To which just heav'n, my pow'r, and his own virtues 
 Will shortly raise him. 
 
 Crimthan 
 These imperious taunts 
 Dermod will rue. My business ends not here. [Aside. 
 
 f2 
 
5 MAON AND MORIAT. 
 
 Derjiod. 
 I am prepar'd to meet his sternest frowns. 
 
 [Exit C rim than. 
 Unnatural proposal. — Could he mean 
 Indeed to wed my child ? 
 
 Enter Moriat. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 The sounds of anger 
 Assail'd my ears — A stranger. — Much I fear'd 
 It might have been my Maon — Whither went he ? [Aside 
 What, may I ask, has warm'd my father's temper ? 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Thou, Moriat, wert the subject — but "'tis past — 
 Nay 'twas not anger. Kimbath would renew 
 His overtures of friendship and alliance — 
 
 Moriat. 
 Moriat the subject — Kimbath seek alliance — 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 My child, I've somewhat to impart to thee, 
 In which thy happiness is deeply staked — 
 
 Moriat. 
 My father!— 
 
A TRAGEDY. 37 
 
 Dermod. 
 1 have plighted Moriat's hand — 
 Why dost thou start ? I trust thy filial duty, 
 That thou wilt also there bestow thy heart. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Ah, wherefore wouldst thou force ? 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Nay, suffer not 
 A wayward fancy to oppose my will. — 
 My resolution's form'd, my honour pledg'd ; 
 And surely thou, whose dutiful compliance 
 Has ever yet kept pace with my commands — 
 Whose prompt interpretation of my wishes 
 Has e'en outstript my words — thou wilt not now 
 Tarnish thy former merit, and in this, 
 The last exertion of paternal right, 
 Display a vain caprice. — 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Distressing state ! 
 Assist me gracious powYs in whose esteem 
 The ties of faithful love are sacred held — 
 If e'er my duteous filial cares were pleasing, 
 Or if in aught I've merited regard, 
 Do not, my father, sacrifice your Moriat — 
 For much I fear her happiness is made 
 The price of some political convenience. 
 
38 maon and moriat. 
 
 Dermod. 
 Why wilt thou thwart my views? Too froward child ! 
 Ierne's crown's annex'd to thy obedience. — 
 To what beyond would thy ambition soar ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 Oh, death to all the hopes that love inspir'd. 
 My apprehensions were too justly founded. — 
 Farewell, thou noble, hapless youth, farewell; 
 For with thy deadliest foe my father's leagifd. 
 But make me not the passive instrument 
 Of his destruction.— It can never be— 
 Nature will first dissolve this wretched frame, 
 Ere you can force me to the loathed arms 
 Of horrid Kimbath — 
 
 Dermod. 
 Ha ! some unknown sense 
 Lies couch'd beneath thy words. — Of Kimbath said'st thou ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 Detested monster ! 
 
 Dermod. 
 Sure thou could 1 st not think 
 That savage destined for thy future lord — 
 Forbid it nature ! Such a choice indeed 
 Would justify resistance to th' extreme. 
 No, 'tis a prince illustrious by his virtues 
 
A TRAGEDY. 39 
 
 As by descent, whom I would call my son — 
 'Tis Maon— 
 
 Ha! 
 
 MORIAT. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Thy favoured playmate once — 
 He loves thee, Moriat, with a gen'rous passion, 
 And knows thy worth. So pow'rfully he urg'd 
 His tender suit, within this hour I proimYd, 
 What long my secret purpose has design'd, 
 Tliat thou should'st crown his wishes. I could speak, 
 If there were need, of his renown in arms, 
 Th' accomplishments that grace his mind and person, 
 And chief, his innate dignity of soul — 
 But thy ingenuous blushes prove full well 
 Thou art already conscious of his merit — 
 And see, he comes ; his every thought on fire — 
 A father's presence here's unnecessary. 
 And now the nuptial preparations claim 
 My next attention, for the setting sun 
 Shall beam with hallow'd influence on the rites. [Exit. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Said he to-day ? this day — so soon — 
 
40 M AON AND MORI AT, 
 
 Enter Maon. 
 Maon. 
 
 My love, 
 My Moriat, with impatient haste I've sought thee — 
 But thou already know'st the happy tidings. — 
 Joy of my life, say what should now retard 
 Our promised bliss ? 
 
 Mokiat. 
 
 Oh, Maon, this event, 
 So late the fondest object of my hopes, 
 Whilst its completion yet remained in doubt, 
 Alarms me now with thousand apprehensions. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Be it the happy object of thy Maon, 
 To sooth these charming fears, and with the voice 
 Of fond endearment chase away each sigh 
 That loss of virgin liberty might prompt. — 
 Oh, think not of me, Moriat, as thy lord, 
 Who claims of surly right thy virgin charms, 
 But as thy fond companion still, thy friend ; 
 As one with whom, in ev'ry tender thought, 
 In wishes, hopes, in ev'ry source of bliss, 
 Thou art united, as another self — 
 Thus let me press my lovely, loving bride, 
 And hang upon thy neck in speechless rapture. [They embrace. 
 
A T R A G E D V. 41 
 
 Mori at. 
 Oh, blame me not, my sex, nor aught impute 
 Of modesty transgress^, if in my amis, 
 With transport I infold this matchless youth, 
 And own the ardent flame my bosom feels — 
 Yes, I'll embark with thee in stormy life, 
 And when the raging elements contend, 
 Blest in each other we will brave their terrors. 
 Thou wilt protect thy Moriat, and her smiles, 
 Inspir'd by confidence in thee and love, 
 Shall cheer her Maon in the dreadful conflict. 
 
 Maon (sudde7ily thoughtful). 
 
 Moriat ! 
 
 Moriat. 
 What would my love? why serious thus? 
 
 Maon. 
 Oh, thou hast flash'd upon my inmost soul, 
 The keen, the piercing sense of my injustice! 
 Blind, wilful passion, that with selfish view, 
 In making thee the partner of my fate, 
 Would make thee sad partaker in misfortune. 
 
 Mobiat. 
 
 Why seek for pain, anticipating ills ? 
 If they must come, alas ! they'll come unbidden — 
 
 G 
 
42 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 But I'm prepared. — The thunderbolt can't now 
 Fall on thy head and pass me by innoxious. 
 
 Maon. 
 Think what a gloom hangs o'er my fairest prospects- 
 I boast presumptive title to a crown ; 
 But which gigantic fraud at distance keeps; 
 And to obtain it, I must first destroy 
 The formidable monster. If I fail, 
 I draw down ruin, not on me alone, 
 But on my friends, thy father, and on thee. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Oh, do not put my feelings to the torture — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Were it not better, ere I tempt that chance, 
 To sacrifice my love and my ambition 
 To thy repose, and prudently retire 
 From thee and from the world ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 To furthest realms, 
 Iberia or Phoenicia ; wheresoe'er 
 Thy fortune lead, there would I follow thee ; 
 In ev'ry state and clime alike devoted. 
 Why wilt thou seek to render me unhappy ? 
 
ATRAGEDV. 43 
 
 Maon. 
 Thou peerless fair one ! How shall I reward 
 This constancy, this generous affection ? 
 Pardon th' unkind procedure, but I've prov'd 
 By these appalling though pretended dangers, 
 By fancied trials of thy fortitude, 
 What 'twere no less than impious to have doubted. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Too cruel Maon ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 No, we'll never part ; 
 No sublunary pow'r shall e'er divide us, 
 Or from the path of honour fright my steps. 
 My love and glory will I cherish here, 
 Till death inexorable tear me from them. 
 
 END OF THE SECOND ACT. 
 
44 MAON AND MORI AT, 
 
 ACT III. 
 
 Scene in the Palace continues. 
 
 Enter Morax. 
 Mohan.- 
 
 The clouds begin to break ; a distant ray 
 Of hope shines forth, and promises to cheer 
 The evening of my days. How short, how weak 
 Is human foresight ! How involvYl, Oh heav'n, 
 Are thy designs, their issue how mysterious ! 
 His princely mien, his well-connected tale, 
 But most th' instinctive sentiment that glow'd 
 Through all my veins, and rais'd my languid pulse. 
 While I gaz'd on him, leave no room to doubt. 
 Oh, Dermod, thou hast prov'd indeed a friend, 
 A brother — Brother ! to my ears the sound 
 Is hateful, and my nature shudders at it. 
 Grant, mighty Belus, ruler of the world, 
 Whose all- pervading heat infuses life, 
 And from whose beams the shafts of death proceeds, 
 That these my failing eyes may yet behold 
 The hero vindicate his sacred rights. 
 Take on that happy hour an old man's life; 
 He yields it up content. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 45 
 
 Enter Dermod. 
 
 Hail, gracious king ! 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Welcome thou holy Druid to our roof. 
 Where now festivity and gladness reign ; 
 But where thy rev Vend years will meet respect. 
 Tho 1 from thy high repute I've sometime known thee, 
 And sought to draw thee from thy life recluse, 
 As yet thou art a stranger to my board, 
 Nor has thy presence sanctified my hall. 
 Proceed — refresh thee — hospitable rites 
 Should ever wait the stranger and the sage. 
 
 MoRAN. 
 
 Accept the thanks of no ungrateful heart ; 
 But I have had refection. Wherefore, say — 
 What glad event inspires this festive scene ? 
 Peace witli a king whose oaths are treachery 
 And friendship, death ? Beware of Kimbath's arts. — 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Far other cause — a cause of happiest tendence — 
 This hour auspicious rites have join'd the hands 
 Of Maon and my daughter. Show'r, sweet heavens, 
 Your goodliest blessings on my children's union. 
 
 Moran. 
 
 Maon and Moriat — 'tis precipitate. — [Aside. 
 
46 MA ON AND MORI AT, 
 
 Dermod. 
 The nobles of my court, with num'rous bards, 
 Await to celebrate in joyous pomp 
 The proud event, and to propitiate 
 With flowing cups the blessing of that pow'r, 
 Now beaming mildly in the western sky, 
 Who rules the world and guides the fate of kings. 
 
 Mohan. 
 
 Had it not been more prudent to have waited 
 The issue of this contest for a crown, 
 Ere thou hadst join'd by ties indissoluble 
 Thy daughter's fortunes with th 1 uncertain hopes 
 Of this unhappy, though advent'rous youth. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 That royal, injur'd youth I long have cherish'd 
 With all a parent's love, since that dark hour, 
 Accurs'd for ever in I erne's annals, 
 That robb'd the sorrowing land of Cathir's virtues : 
 And now in strong assurance of that love, 
 Which knows no int'rest separate from his, 
 Tve given my choicest, dearest pledge. — 
 
 Morax. 
 
 'Tis well— 
 And may high heav'n, in whose peculiar care 
 The wretched stand, repay thy gen'rous zeal. 
 But know — and much thou may'st admire — that he 
 
A TRAGEDY. 47 
 
 Whom thou beholdest, who in lowly guise 
 
 Has here conceal'd himself, and shunn'd the haunts 
 
 Of his perfidious race — is Cathir. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Cathir ! 
 
 Moras. 
 
 Yes, Dermod, Cathir; brother to the tyrant, 
 And parent of thy Maon ; long suppos'd 
 The victim of a monster's fell ambition, 
 And ev'n by Kimbath number'd with the dead. 
 
 Dermod. 
 'Tis strange, 'tis wonderful ! 
 
 Morax. 
 
 Attend a tale 
 Fraught with no common horror. — But my tongue 
 Fails in its office, and my falt'ring speech, 
 With indignation chok'd, can scarce find utt'rance. — 
 I lov'd this brother — Oh, ingratitude, 
 Thou deadliest of vices ! — Yes, I lov'd him, 
 And with fraternal, fond concern beheld 
 Envy, that canker-worm with pois'nous tooth. 
 Prey on his health; ambitious of my birth-right. 
 With most assiduous care I tended him, 
 And sought by princely gifts and soothing words, 
 To work a happy cure: but still he pin'd. — 
 
48 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 At midnight once, his friend, a Druid, rous'd me, 
 
 With tidings of his near-approaching death. 
 
 I found him silent, motionless — my tears 
 
 Gush'd forth apace, whilst o'er the dear remains 
 
 I hung with heart-felt sorrow, and had kiss'd 
 
 The semblant corpse ; when — Oh, most treacherous ! — 
 
 His murd'rous hand, which held a poignard hid, 
 
 Plung'd it into my breast — 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Oh, injur d nature ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 The blushing heav'ns, who saw the deed, can witness. 
 That though it pass'd the bounds of human faith, 
 'Tis yet most true. Devoid of sense I fell, 
 And as they fondly judgM, of life bereft ! 
 Nearly it verg'd on death ; but when I gain'd 
 The use of reason, I perceiv'd me laid 
 Far in the dark recesses of a wood, 
 Where haply my alarming state engag'd 
 The notice of a hind who tracked the blood. 
 His fosfring hand applied such potent herbs 
 As heaFd my wound and soon restor'd my strength. 
 But ah, they nought avail'd to heal the wound 
 That rankled at my heart -—Perfidious coward ! 
 
 Dermod. 
 And didst thou not return to seek revenge ? 
 
A TRAGEDY. 49 
 
 Cathie. 
 Oh no. — The horror which th' attempt inspir'd ; 
 Well-founded apprehension that th 1 assassin 
 Had then completed his infernal deed ; 
 But most of all, the agonizing thought 
 That my unhappy boy, my darling Maon, 
 Had falfn too sure a hapless sacrifice 
 To Kimbath's hate — these plung'd me in despair. 
 Shunning mankind, I sought the gloomiest wilds, 
 Where melancholy, with lethargic pow'r, 
 Benumbd the keener sense of woe. At length 
 A distant hope arous'd me. In a dream 
 Methought I saw my son glide slowly past. 
 Waving his hand, and with an ardent look, 
 Pointing towards the palace of his fathers. 
 
 Dermod. 
 Mysterious presage of a great event ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 In misery imagination gains 
 Th' ascendant of our reason. Sickly fancies 
 Are motives then to action. I assum'd 
 The habit of a Druid of the west, 
 And reach'd this vicinage, in hope to hear 
 Tidings of comfort. Still in ignorance 
 Of Maons fate, the tedious moons return'd. 
 Soon would the hand of death have chill'd these limbs, 
 More worn by care than age. But heav'n is gracious; 
 
 H 
 
50 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 And lo ! in happy hour I've found my son. 
 Yes, found him all a father's sanguine thought 
 Could image of surpassing excellence. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Pride of his friends, his country's ornament ; 
 Nor had our most illustrious chiefs of old, 
 Milesus, Heremon, or Heber, blush'd 
 At such a son. 
 
 Cathie. 
 
 To see him wield their sceptre 
 Is in this life my sole remaining wish. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 If Dermod's pow'r, if all Momonia's force, 
 Strain'd in each nerve, can wrest it from the holder, 
 He yet shall wield it. And what now remains 
 To crown the gen'ral gladness of the day, 
 But that the wond'rous instance of protection 
 By heav'n afforded to our royal brother 
 Be to our court and to thy son made known ? 
 
 Cathir. 
 Motives, my friend perhaps may deem o'erstrain'd, 
 Induce me to conceal it, till the death, 
 If such be heav'n's decree, or deposition 
 Of the usurper, leave my sacred right 
 To empire, more substantial than a name, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 51 
 
 And worth tW acceptance of a youth, whose virtues 
 Will give fresh vigour to Ierne's throne, 
 And make his people happy. 
 
 Deiimod. 
 
 Gen'rous parent ! 
 
 Eider a Herald. 
 Herald. 
 The nobles are already rank'd, and seated 
 Beneath their blazon'd shields, and only wait 
 Your royal sanction to commence the banquet. 
 
 Dermod. 
 
 Then let the trumpet sound. {Exit Herald.) My princely 
 Will he do honour ? [guest, 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Yet awhile indulge me — 
 Tis still expedient I should be unknown. 
 Let me not seem to have engag'd your notice, 
 Further than age and this my garb might claim. 
 
 Dermod. 
 Thy will's my guide. [Exit 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 The temper of my mind 
 But ill accords with festive merriment. 
 
 h2 
 
52 MAONANDMORIAT, 
 
 My feelings long untun'd, now on a sudden 
 Rais'd to their utmost pitch, would scarcely bear 
 The tone of boistVous joy ; and ev'n the voice 
 Of friendship, generous and loud, might prove 
 Too rough a shock, and spoil this frail machine. 
 
 Enter Moriat, attended by the Chorus. 
 Moriat. 
 What, venerable sage — ? 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Fair princess, pardon 
 Th" intrusion of a stranger, who, not knowing 
 The happy cause of that hilarity 
 Which reigns this day within Momonia's court, 
 Came here to pay his tribute of respect ; 
 And having had his audience, thought to rest, 
 In some obscure recess, his care-worn frame. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 The stranger ever, in my father's palace, 
 Finds hospitable welcome ; but when age, 
 When sanctity and wisdom claim our care, 
 To slight them were a crime. Yet pardon, Sir, 
 If my behaviour seem to contradict 
 My maxims. Anxious thoughts employ my mind, 
 And render me unfitting to partake 
 Another's care, or on his wounded spirit, 
 To pour the balm of comfort. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 53 
 
 Cathir. 
 Royal fair, 
 If I intrude not by the question, say, 
 What painful thoughts thy tender mind can harbour, 
 Blest in thy union with a prince, whose worth 
 Makes thee thy sex's envy, as thou art 
 Its pride. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 I'm there too vain — more happy there 
 Than what my fondest wishes could aspire to. 
 But, oh, in his attempt to reassume 
 His father's diadem from Kimbath's brow, 
 The dread of what mishap he may encounter, 
 Whose magnanimity despises danger, 
 Alarms me and embitters ev'ry joy. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Thy Maon's cause is just ; it is the cause 
 Of innocence, of violated right, 
 The gen'ral cause of man, the cause of heav'n, 
 And it must triumph. Oh, all-pow'rful Being 
 Whom, daily, in symbolic fire, we worship, 
 Surround thy champion in th' important hour 
 With all thy terrors; nerve his youthful arm 
 With more than mortal strength, and make his sword 
 Thy dreadful instrument of wrath 'gainst those 
 Who spurn thy altars and defy all laws 
 Divine and human. 
 
54- MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 MoRIAT. 
 
 Hear him, mighty heav'n — 
 And in the perilous enterprize, vouchsafe 
 To shield my valiant hero ! To her heart 
 Restore, unhurt, the lord of Moriat's vows ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 But, lovely princess, this auspicious season 
 'Tis meet thou should'st devote to gentler thoughts. 
 Those strong impassioned sentiments, I fear, 
 Too roughly agitate thy tender frame. 
 I pray unbend thy mind to softer subjects. 
 This beauteous train of virgins who attend thee 
 Are skilFd, I doubt not, with harmonious sounds 
 To soothe anxiety and calm the mind 
 Too exquisitely sensible. 
 
 Moriat to the Chorus. 
 Draw nigh ! 
 
 ElTHNE. 
 
 With more alacrity the parent bird 
 Seeks not, when charg'd with food, its craving nestlings, 
 Nor does, more emulous, its tuneful mate 
 Chaunt forth, the while, its fond enraptur'd song, 
 Than we would vie to please our gracious mistress. 
 My sisters, let the still and solemn scene 
 Which nature now presents inspire our song. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 55 
 
 Such placid themes to fancy only speak, 
 
 Nor touch with dang'rous influence the passions. 
 
 Chokus of Virgins. 
 
 Sunk is the splendid god of day 
 
 Beneath the western wave, 
 And evening from her silent cave 
 Assumes the universal sway. 
 But short her reign — 
 For see, through yonder glade, 
 The shining harbingers appear 
 And tell their mistress near; 
 Supreme ascendant of the spreading night. 
 And now a mild, benignant light 
 Illumines wide the plain ; 
 Save where th ? averted shade 
 Extends with awful gloom its dusky train. 
 
 Blest hour ! for contemplation form'd 
 
 And converse sweet 
 With spirits pure and light as air, 
 
 That oft are wont 
 The solitary grove to haunt, 
 And sacred mysteries declare 
 To minds by holy rapture warmM. 
 At this serene and hallow'd tide 
 In human semblance oft they glide, 
 Their best lov'd sublunary objects meet, 
 And with extatic sounds of heav'nly friendship greet. 
 
56 MAON AND MOEIAT, 
 
 Hail, solemn night ! 
 Whose modest charms surpass the glare of day 
 As temp'rance, innocent and gay, 
 Gives to th 1 ingenuous mind more pure delight, 
 Than all that pomp and luxury can display. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Sweet maids ! How grateful to the serious mind 
 Is this soft minstrelsy. On wings celestial 
 Upborne, it seems to soar above the world, 
 And leave its little cares to meaner beings. 
 The pleasing scene invites our steps abroad : 
 More intimately we shall taste its beauties. 
 It may be long ere from the gay carousal 
 Thy lord shall rise. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 I would they had dispensed 
 With this superfluous ceremonial banquet. 
 I urg'd my father, but he pleaded custom, 
 Th' importance of th' event, and other motives, 
 Which had not weight with me. I dread th' excess 
 By their inebriating draughts produc'd — 
 Strange vestige of barbarian times, that seeks 
 To awake the social sense by drowning reason. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Too just reflection. Wisdom, virtuous lady, 
 No less than beauty, forms thy excellence. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 57 
 
 MoRIAT. 
 
 To yonder avenue's extreme, overhung 
 With branching elms, let's walk and quick return. 
 
 [Exeunt Cathir and Moriat. 
 
 Eithxe. 
 
 My sisters, say, can Contemplation's eye 
 Survey a fairer or more grateful picture 
 Than modest beauty led by rev'rend age? 
 From such a sight the most ferocious beast 
 That terrifies the plain, would turn aside, 
 Forgetful of its nature. Heav'n itself, 
 When in the raging storm it pours destruction, 
 And deals the angry thunderbolt around, 
 Might with complacency behold that pair, 
 And leave them harmless in the gen'ral wreck. 
 Our duty bids us follow. — Let us try, 
 Whilst we admire, to imitate their virtues. [Exeunt. 
 
 Enter Maon. 
 Maon. 
 Where hides my lovely bride her maiden blushes ? 
 Where, where's my Moriat, from whose charming sight 
 The boist'rous sons of joy would have detain'd me ? 
 In vain I've sought her in the palace — Hark ! 
 No, 'tis all still ; or only through the grove 
 The breezes gently murmur. — 'Tis too coy — 
 But I'll have sweet revenge. She fondly thinks, 
 By these her bashful, female wiles, to evade 
 
 i 
 
58 MAON AND MORI AT, 
 
 A lover's promis'd bliss, a husband's rights. 
 So the poor fawn, for festal sacrifice 
 Appointed, and mark'd out amidst the herd, 
 Flies timid, panting, from the keen pursuer ; 
 Essaying to preserve its liberty : 
 Each thicket, ev'ry well-known haunt it seeks, 
 And shuns the flow'ry, the deceitful wreaths, 
 Prepaid to ornament the destin'd victim. 
 
 Enter Eithne in haste. 
 Eithne. 
 The princess — Moriat — Oh, my mistress ! 
 
 Speak 
 
 Maon. 
 
 ElTHXE. 
 
 She's lost — all help's too late. — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 What say'st thou ? heav'ns ! 
 
 Eithne. 
 
 My power of utt'rance fails me — Fatal night ! 
 Few minutes since she walk'd tow'rds yonder grove, 
 Engag'd in converse with the druid Moran. 
 We follow'd at a distance — Suddenly 
 A noise, confus'd, of horsemen as it seem'd, 
 Assail'd our ears — We heard our mistress shriek, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 59 
 
 And hastening to the spot, observVl them scour. 
 Grasping their helpless prey, across the plain. 
 
 Maon. 
 Distraction ! fury ! Who, whence were they — say — 
 And whither did the ruffians bend their course? 
 
 Eithne. 
 Th' uncertain light, and gloomy depth of shade, 
 Cast by the trees that form the avenue, 
 Render 1 d them indistinct : yet from the din 
 And clash of arms, 1 judge their numbers great — 
 But who, or whence, or what their course, I know not ; 
 For like the lightning's flash they came and vanish 'd. [Exit. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Oh, most unlook'd-for blow These villains were 
 
 By Kimbath, doubtless, that arch-fiend, employ 'd 
 In lurking deeds of darkness. Spotless bride ! 
 Are these my promis\l joys ? Confusion, torture ! 
 How shall I act ; what effort shall I make 
 To save her honour and revenge the insult ? 
 Instant pursuit, unhors'd, unarnfd, were senseless. 
 From Dermod and his court, o'ercome with riot, 
 'Twere vain to seek immediate aid — No guard 
 
 Around the palace Curse their festival! — 
 
 Tyrant, there needed not this flagrant deed 
 To rouse the spirit of the son of Cathir, 
 Or stimulate revenge. My wife! what injuries 
 
 i2 
 
60 MAON AND MOBIAT, 
 
 Will she not suffer from their brutal force — 
 Moran the druid led her forth. Perhaps — 
 It wears, indeed, too probable a guise, 
 That this false friend has been the secret agent 
 In working this dark plot. Insidious — hold ! — 
 I'd call him villain — but his rev'rend aspect — 
 And yet in his demeanour and discourse, 
 Something I notic'd which not well accorded 
 With that resign'd and unimpassioifd temper 
 
 Requir'd by his profession Unresolv'd, 
 
 Why do I linger here ? If none be found 
 
 Prepar'd to seize their arms and follow me 
 
 In vigorous pursuit, 'twere well to take 
 
 The road to Tara singly. Heav'n may guide 
 
 My sword to Kimbath's breast, and save my Moriat. 
 
 Depriv'd of her, my hope of future bliss, 
 
 What further value can I set on life? [Exit. 
 
 END OF THIRD ACT. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 61 
 
 ACT IV. 
 
 Scene, a Hall in the Royal Palace of Tara. 
 Kimbath attended by a Druid, and Chorus of Bards. 
 
 Chorus. 
 From regions of ethereal fire, 
 Your blest abode, ye pow'rs repair, 
 Who make the happiness of kings your care ! 
 Your vot'ry with those joys inspire, 
 Which to vulgar souls unknown, 
 
 Mortals nobly born alone 
 By your high sanction taste. — 
 Hither O propitious haste, 
 And hover round your fav'rite monarch's throne ! 
 
 Hence, pale anxiety, desponding fear, 
 
 With haggard eye and jealous ear, 
 
 That on the envied regal state 
 With too officious certainty await — 
 
 Hence from mighty Kimbath's throne, 
 Tow'rds regions to our happy isle unknown. 
 
 Here let peace, auspicious, dwell, 
 And o'er the grateful land 
 Extend her bounteous hand : 
 Whilst war and desolation fell, 
 
62 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Torment no more ; 
 And thousands, loudly, on our golden plains, 
 
 Re-echoing from shore to shore, 
 With joy to heav'n and earth shall tell, 
 That mighty Kimbath o'er Ierne reigns. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Enough — retire ! (Chords withdraw). The boasted charm 
 To me is dissonance. — From this time forth, [of song- 
 
 Let not the minstrelsy of idle bards 
 Distract my thoughts from subjects of more int'rest. 
 In vain their flatt'ring attributes would soothe me — 
 My conscience says, these praises are not mine. 
 
 Druid. 
 Why does my gracious lord indulge in thoughts 
 That do not tend to joy ? What happiness 
 Can earth bestow if he possess it not ? — 
 A throne imperial, firm beyond the pow'r 
 Of destiny to shake — devoted army — 
 Subjects that tremble at their master's nod — 
 With all the proud appendages of empire. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 These to the ignorant, beheld at distance, 
 May seem substantial blessings, and be thought 
 To operate as antidotes to care; 
 But where possess'd, they lose their magic char 
 And kings regard them with a sated eye, 
 
 m. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 63 
 
 • 
 
 As common objects, yielding no enjoyment. 
 But oh, to me the pageantry of state 
 Is not indifferent. I've pass'd long since 
 That middle point, at which the soul, supine, 
 Feels not as yet remorse, though dead to joy — 
 Horrors at ev'ry step surround me now. 
 
 Druid. 
 
 I thought the soul of Kimbath had been proof 
 'Gainst fear in all imaginable shapes. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 But hell itself conspires against my peace, 
 With all its fiends. — Last night, when I would court 
 The long untasted luxury of sleep, 
 A visionary form approach'd my couch, 
 From whose fresh wound the life-blood trickling down, 
 Stain'd deep its rev'rend garb — Its pallid eyes 
 Tow'rds me it turn'd, and on my inmost sense 
 Impress'd the features of a murder'd brother — 
 But list ! what noise is that ? 
 
 Druid. 
 
 I heard no noise — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Danger oft lurks where "'tis the least suspected. 
 Is Crimthan not retum'd? — This looks not well — 
 He cannot have betray 'd me, and embrac'd 
 My rival's cause — 
 
64 MAON AND MOEIAT, 
 
 Druid, 
 His faith to me seems doubtful, 
 Vain of the present influence he boasts 
 In Kimbath's councils, and to higher rank 
 Aspiring with inordinate ambition, 
 He bears a mien too haughty for a subject. 
 But danger might ensue from lus disgrace, 
 So boundless in your armies is his sway — 
 So much he reigns the idol of your men. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 " Danger attend his fall." — Th' alarm is just; 
 And Crimthan soon shall feel a master's powV. 
 When Maori's death, that first, important object, 
 Shall be accomplished by his aid — 
 
 Druid. 
 
 He comes. 
 
 Enter Crimthan. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 My liege ! 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Does haughty Dermod hesitate 
 To sanction the alliance I have proffer'd, 
 That thou hast been thus tardy 
 
A TRAGEDY. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 With disdain 
 He bade me tell thee, that his daughter scorns 
 Thy person and thy crown. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Confusion ! scorns — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 That Cathir's son he never will abandon — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Rash and vain-glorious fool — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 I brook'd not long 
 This insult to my king, but straight retir'd 
 To where my chosen troop awaited me. 
 Unwilling to return without revenge, 
 I sought an opportunity to strike 
 Some unexpected blow. As evening clos'd 
 I suddenly drew near the palace grove, 
 And lurking unperceiv'd amongst the trees, 
 Till chance should favour me, my list'ning ear 
 Distinguished sounds of vocal harmony, 
 And when they ceas'd, I presently observ'd, 
 By the effulgence of the rising moon, 
 The royal virgin, by an aged druid 
 Alone attended, walking tow'Ms our covert. 
 
 K 
 
66 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Like the fierce eagle at my prey I stoop'd, 
 
 And bore them, struggling, off. They now await, 
 
 With sullen pride, their doom at your high will. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Beyond my hopes ! If aught remain'd to give, 
 Of powV or wealth befitting thee, a subject, 
 This service should not want reward ; but thou 
 Contemn'st a monarch's bounty — 
 
 Ckimthan. 
 
 How, my liege — 
 
 What cause — ? 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 It matters not. — Where are thy pris'ners ? 
 Bring them before me. [Exeunt Crimthan and Druid. 
 
 This is sweet revenge — 
 'Tis luxury. — Now, Dermod, we shall treat 
 On equal terms. 
 
 Enter Moriat and Cathir guarded. 
 
 By all the stars, a prize 
 Worthy an age of warfare. More perfection 
 Ierne cannot boast, through all her land. 
 
 Moriat. 
 Monster of insolence — 
 
ATRAGEDY. 67 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Nay why, fair princess, 
 Dost thou with frowns avert those lovely eyes ? 
 Why chill the ardent hopes which I had fornfd 
 Of favour in thy sight ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 I'm doom'd to hear 
 These thy ungen'rous taunts — I am thy captive. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Say rather I am thine— and sure thou wilt not 
 Reject the pleadings of an humble suitor, 
 Who lays his crown as tribute at thy feet. 
 Dismiss thy fear — resume thy wonted smiles, 
 Those winning smiles which add such charms to beauty. 
 Terror shall vanish. — These thy guards we'll change 
 For handmaids such as may befit thy rank. 
 Yon surly druid, who abhors or scorns 
 To look on majesty ; who seems the foe 
 Profess'd of gladness, we'll remove far hence: 
 The sounds of joy shall reign throughout our palace, 
 And, Moriat, this shall be our bridal night. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Oh, give me patience, heav'n ! Unmanly tyrant ! 
 Is this the mighty effort of thy pow'r, 
 The great display of Kimbath's vaunted courage; 
 To seize by stealth a weak unguarded woman, 
 
 k2 • 
 
68 MAON AND MOEIAT, 
 
 And barbarously triumph in her sufferings? 
 Inglorious robber ! Are thy gallant troops 
 Afraid to see the sun, that thus by night 
 They basely plunder ? Do they fear to meet 
 The front of soldiers, that their potent rage 
 Is thus let loose upon th' infirm and feeble? 
 Yes, thou dost fear to meet the arms of Dermod, 
 But, bold in words, thou darest to insult 
 The weakness of his daughter. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Ha! by fate, 
 A very woman — 'tis thv sex's talent, 
 Its privilege, to rail. But know, my fair, 
 That thy consent, though I have deign'd to ask it, 
 Nor idle forms of nuptial ceremony, 
 Are wanted, indispensably, to crown 
 A monarch's pleasure. 
 
 MoRIAT. 
 
 Hear, protecting spirits ! 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Guards, with your hoary prisoner retire. — 
 That aspect — soft — those venerable locks — 
 Hold — I would first inquire — that very form 
 Which haunted my distemper'd fancy — Speak ! 
 Who art thou ? Ha ! 
 
ATRAGEDV. 69 
 
 Cathir. 
 Ye ministers of vengeance, 
 Oh, sure you will no more restrain your wrath ! 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Perdition ! 'tis his form, his voice, his feature — 
 Avaunt ! thou hell-sprung sorcVer, who by spells, 
 By cursed incantations hast assum'd 
 That uncouth shape to terrify my soul ; 
 Break thy infernal charm, and stand confess'd — 
 Else shall my sword — 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Here, strike ; complete thy work — 
 Oh coward guilt ! Yes, I will stand confess'd, 
 And make thee shudder at thy crimes. Behold me, 
 Thy brother, Cathir, whom thy traifrous steel 
 Pierc'd unsuspecting — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Hence ! 
 
 MORIAT. 
 
 Mysterious heav'n ! 
 
 Cathik, 
 
 Insatiate monster, has thy envied throne, 
 The fascinating height of regal pow'r, 
 
70 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 To which by steps of blood thou hast ascended — 
 Have these indeed bestow' d the promis'd joys ? 
 Have they repaid thee for the loss of rest, 
 The keen remorse, the racking thoughts that tear 
 Thy guilty conscience ? 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 I can bear no more — 
 Away with him to instant execution, 
 Lest by his art th' impostor 'scape my vengeance. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Stay, tyrant ! — Oh recall that sentence — dread 
 That fire from heav'n consume thee on the spot. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Descend not, princess, to entreat for me — 
 It nothing matters that an old man's life, 
 By him unvalu'd, useless to the world, 
 Should by the hand of violence be pluck'd, 
 A little space ere it had droop'd and wither'd — 
 But know, vain man, that Cathir has a son, 
 Whom heav'n has hitherto, with gracious care, 
 Protected from thy fury, and whom still 
 It cherishes to prove the certain means 
 Of thy destruction. Think upon that hour 
 When life with strong recoil shall shake thy frame 
 In agonies convulsive, when thy crimes 
 No longer shall avail, nor all thy pride 
 
A TRAGEDY. 71 
 
 Gain the redemption of a little moment — 
 Think how the name of Cathir then will sound 
 To thy departing spirit ; how the murder, 
 Reiterated murder of thy king, 
 Will stimulate the pangs of recollection ! 
 
 Kim bath. 
 
 Cease, cease, thou fiend ! Distraction ! Will no sword 
 Quick cleave him to the earth ? Confusion, see 
 They stand unnerv'd. — 'Tis sorcery, by hell — 
 Let torture straight be brought — but 'tis in vain — 
 
 Cathir. 
 Yes, tyrant, all thy tortures are in vain. 
 These limbs thy slaves may writhe, but Cathir's spirit 
 Thou canst not touch. Secure on wings of peace, 
 And plum'd in innocence, 'twill soar above thee. 
 But know, each pain thou dost inflict on me, 
 Increas'd a thousand fold, shall one day sting 
 Thy breast with anguish far more exquisite. 
 Guilt, horror, and despair shall drive thee howling 
 To seek a shelter from their galling scourge, 
 In misery eternal — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 'Tis too much — 
 Forbear, forbear ! Sure hell already gapes — 
 I sink — my trembling joints begin to fail — 
 Where am I ? Help— Oh let me seek relief — [Exit. 
 
72 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 MORIAT. 
 
 How strong in his distemper 1 d fancy work 
 His guilty terrors ! EvYy word you utter'd 
 Planted a poison'd dagger in his soul. 
 
 Cathir. 
 Oh, princess, 'tis for thee alone I fear — 
 I am prepar'd for death, and scorn his pow'r — 
 Support me guards. — Ye once did homage to me- 
 I'm now your prissier — Such is human life — 
 My spirits, which have overflow'd their bounds, 
 Now ebb apace, and leave me powerless. 
 There needs not to my death much preparation. 
 Small violence will fit me for the grave. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Oh heav'n, look down with pity on our state ! 
 Guard with thy potent arm the life of Cathir ; 
 A father till this fatal hour unknown. — 
 Assuage th' affliction of another parent, 
 By brutal force bereft of her in whom 
 His happiness, his fondest hopes were centred ; 
 And — agonizing thought — alleviate 
 The cruel sufFrings of an outrag'd husband. 
 
 Enter Druid. 
 
 Druid. 
 
 What cause so violent has urg'd the king 
 To this excess of passion ? All his frame 
 
A TBAGEDY. 73 
 
 Appear'd convulsed, and his failing strength 
 With difficulty bore him to his chamber. 
 Let none, he cried, on pain of death approach me. 
 'Tis strange ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 To thee, in sooth, it may seem strange, 
 Thou minister of peace, by crimes untainted, 
 That the rous 1 d furies of a haunted spirit 
 Should stimulate a guilty wretch to madness : 
 Thou'st never felt remorse's barbed shaft : 
 Thy tongue ne'er counselled, nor thy head contriv'd 
 The hellish arts that gain'd thy king his throne. 
 
 Druid. 
 
 Ha ! is it then discover'd ? (aside ) Whence this freedom, 
 This insolence, unmanner'd, vagrant priest ? 
 Think not thy sanctity, that threadbare veil 
 With which hypocrisy would vainly try 
 To cover holy vice, protects thee here. 
 This age, grown wiser, is no more the slave 
 Of antiquated prejudice — 
 
 Enter Crimthan. 
 Ckimthan. 
 
 The king — 
 
 Where is the king ? 
 
74 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Druid. 
 Why this intempYate haste ? 
 No doubt on some officious shew of zeal. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Thou haughty pamper'd minion ; who forsak'st 
 Thy gods to serve thy lusts and thy ambition — 
 But I lose time with thee — I would inform 
 The king, that on the instant I have seiz'd 
 A youth, whose goodly mien and ardent courage 
 Speak him a person of no common sort. 
 
 Moriat. 
 All-righteous pow'rs forbid — (aside.) 
 
 Cathir. 
 Then all is lost ! — (aside.) 
 
 Crimthan. 
 With bold rapidity he pass'd the guard 
 Which held the outer gate, and forc'd his way 
 To the interior of the palace, where, 
 Such was the valiant rashness he displayVl, 
 That scarcely could accumulating numbers 
 Oppose his well-nerv'd arm, and wrest his sword. 
 
 Druid. 
 
 Is this th 1 important news thou would'st impart 
 To Kimbath's ear ? — the frenzy of a madman. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 75 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Of its importance 'tis not thine to judge. 
 Suppose, vain fool, th 1 imprisoned youth were Maon. 
 
 Mokiat. 
 Oh, heav'ns ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 My son ! (aside.) 
 
 Druid. 
 Ridiculous surmise. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Why this is more than patience can endure : 
 I would address the king — 
 
 Druid. 
 
 I say thou shalt not — 
 This is my province, and I know my duty. 
 The king is seeking rest. — By his command, 
 Death waits the forward slave who would disturb him. 
 Take to thy custody yon aged seer, 
 Made captive by thy prowess. — This fair maid 
 Shall be my charge, till more auspicious moments 
 Present her with a nobler, worthier guardian. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Where shall I seek for help, or whom implore 
 To save me from destruction, from these fiends 
 
 l2 
 
) MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 In human shape ? Oh, Maoii ! madd'ning thought- 
 My lord, my husband ! Ye immortal beings. 
 Defend his precious life — 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Despair not, Moriat — 
 His fate is mark'd in characters above, 
 Beyond the pow'r of human machinations. 
 If heav'n respects the cause of injur'd right ; 
 If it rewards according to desert ; 
 If it would rather see fair virtue triumph 
 Than giant vice oppress a groaning world, 
 Our cause shall rise more splendid from the ills 
 With which 'tis now envelop'd — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Haughty Druid, 
 Upon thy head be this unwise delay. 
 
 Druid. 
 
 Fear not for me. My envied favour stands 
 On no uncertain base. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Whose influence rests 
 On adulation and subservient arts ; 
 Who cannot plead or services or talents, 
 Builds on a hollow surface. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 77 
 
 Druid. 
 
 To your cost 
 You'll find what recompense the drudging tools 
 Of pow'r receive, when they have serv'd its purpose. 
 No services ! — but that I pity thee, 
 Fd laugh to scorn thy words. — No services ! 
 Vain man, enjoy thy little term of pride ; 
 Thy doom is near : thou shalt not long provoke me. 
 Princess, 'tis fitting you withdraw — but fear not — 
 Such treatment as becomes your royal birth, 
 And one who yet may be my sov'reign mistress, 
 Awaits you at my hands. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Beneath this roof 
 All situations are 'like perilous. 
 In heav'n alone, to which the innocent 
 Ne'er sue in vain, I humbly place my trust. 
 
 [Exeunt Moriat unci Druid. 
 
 Crimthan (aside). 
 
 Ha ! Druid, thou hast warn'd me to distrust 
 The precipice on which I blindly stood. 
 I mark'd th' ungracious frown on Kimbath's brow, 
 When he receiv'd me. His ambiguous thanks 
 Convey'd reproach. Too sure my fate is doom'd. 
 Attachments form'd in guilt can bear no medium : 
 We must be zealous friends or m6rtal foes. 
 I've been indeed too long his guilty tool ; 
 
78 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 And partner in the crimes that made him king, 
 
 I cannot live suspected in my faith. 
 
 E'en acts of duty may by him be thought 
 
 Rebellion's cloak. To hesitate were death. 
 
 I must resolve and promptly execute — 
 
 Guards, hold your prisoner safe, and wait my orders. [Exit. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 From the black storm impending o'er my son, 
 Protect him heav'n, and manifest thy powV. 
 
 END OF THE FOURTH ACT. 
 
A TRAGEDY, 79 
 
 ACT V. 
 
 Scene, in the Palace of Tara, at night. 
 
 Cathik. Crimthan. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 What means this show of kindness? Whither lead'st thou? 
 Or, thus at midnight, dost thou come employ'd 
 To perpetrate on unresisting age 
 Inglorious murder? — Would my life alone — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Fear not. — Report prevails throughout the palace — 
 And by this glimm'ring light I do perceive 
 Some rev'rend traces that indeed bespeak thee 
 Cathir, my injur'd king — by me too injur'd 
 Beyond all hope of grace — I ask it not — 
 But 'tis my wish to ease a troubled mind, 
 And do an act of justice — to restore 
 To thee that crown which an unnatural brother, 
 Hoping thee dead, has impiously usurp'd. 
 Perhaps revenge, for service ill-requited, 
 Inspires this resolution. — Let it be — 
 I claim no merit. 
 
80 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Cathir. 
 Whatsoe'er thy motive, 
 With gratitude I now accept thy aid. 
 Not that a throne continues in my eyes 
 An object of desire. To die in peace 
 Is all I ask : but for a virtuous son 
 I claim the sacred rights through me transmitted, 
 From his long line of royal ancestry. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 I have adherents ready at my call — 
 But we must 'scape the notice of the guards, 
 Who else, suspicious of our interview, 
 At this unusual hour, might give th' alarm. 
 Hark! who comes here? Let us remain unseen — 
 
 Enter Maon. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Fairn from the unsteady pinnacle of hope 
 To which my steps too rapidly aspir'd, 
 O'erpower'd and helpless, in despair's abyss 
 I lay immers'd. — My disappointed rage, 
 Vainly exerted, soon consum'd its fires, 
 And a perturbed sleep involv'd my sense; 
 When suddenly I heard the dungeon gate 
 Creak on its hinges, and a voice call forth 
 A pris'ner from a distant cell, who seem'd 
 Reluctantly to follow. Quick I rous'd me ; 
 
A T R A G E D Y. 81 
 
 And finding that the wicket lay unclos'd, 
 Pursued their footsteps, guided by the sound, 
 Unknowing whither, till I reach'd a hall, 
 Where, by imperfect light, I could discern 
 Parade of weapons. 'Mongst the rest distinguish'd, 
 Thou my good sword, no maiden instrument, 
 Didst hang, a blushing trophy, to my view — 
 Now grasp'd once more, be faithful to my arm. 
 
 Cathir. 
 'Tis he— 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Forbear — 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 'Tis Maon, 'tis my son — 
 Let us draw near — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 We risk discovVy — hold — 
 
 [Cathir advances. 
 
 Maon. 
 Who's there? Stand off, nor rush on thy destruction — 
 
 Cathir. 
 Art thou not Maon? — speak — 
 
 M 
 
82 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Yes, 'tis Maon: 
 But if thou comest not in friendly guise, 
 Keep thee aloof. — My thoughts are desperate. 
 
 Cathie. 
 Dost thou not know me? — Moran of the grove. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Ha ! Is it thou ? Oh, shameful perfidy ! 
 Then my suspicions were too justly founded. — 
 Thou too (seeing Crimthan) to whom I yielded up my sword- 
 But thou'rt a gen'rous foe comparM to this — 
 Thou never didst usurp the garb of friendship, 
 To act the vile betrayer. Wicked man ! 
 To draw the wrath of heav'n upon thy head, 
 By prostituting to a murdVer's will 
 That rev'rend aspect, thy engaging speech, 
 That well might lure incautious innocence. 
 
 Cathir. 
 I stand confounded — Cruel misconstruction — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Feign not surprise ; thy arts no more deceive — 
 Where is my Moriat ? Where my lovely bride ; 
 Dear object of my yet untasted joys ? 
 Where is she, traitor ? Is she not beneath 
 This cursed roof? — exposed a helpless victim 
 
A TRAGEDY. 83 
 
 To Kimbath's brutal lust ?— Perhaps this hour — 
 Oh, hell, distraction ! — Give her to my arms — 
 Restore my spotless wife, or else, I swear, 
 Thy age and sanctity in vain shall seek 
 To deprecate my swift impending vengeance, 
 
 C RIM THAN. 
 
 Rash youth forbear, and know to thy dismay, 
 That he, 'gainst whom thy daring arm is lifted, 
 Is Cathir, is thy father — 
 
 Maon. 
 Ha! 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Our time 
 Admits not explanation now. — But know, 
 That few hours since I carried off by force 
 This royal personage from Dermod's palace, 
 And now would make atonement for th 1 offence, 
 By favYing his escape. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 And can it be ? 
 Mysterious heav'n ! — I blindly err'd. — Thy son ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 The fault is mine — I am alone to blame, 
 My rank thus long imprudently concealing ; 
 
 m 2 
 
S4 MAON AND MOEIAT, 
 
 Which gave thy gen'rous indignation birth. 
 Oh Maon, know in me thy wretched sire, 
 Whom barb'rous ruffians forc'd from thee, or ere 
 Thou couldst experience all a parent's love ; 
 Who long has borne the hated load of life 
 For thee alone — still anxious for thy fate, 
 Till hope became despair. — When, lo ! the hand 
 Of heav'n propitious, to my longing sight, 
 Gave thee in happy hour to bless my age. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 My father ! for whose death incessant tears — 
 Wrapt in amaze — o'erwhelui'd with joy and shame, 
 I know not how to act, or speak, or think — 
 
 Cathir. 
 Come, let me press thee in my arms, my son — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 It must be so — 'tis nature's genuine voice — 
 My father, oh ! forgive ! — {They embrace.) 
 
 Cathir. 
 My long-lost child — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Wilt thou excuse my more than impious warmth, 
 That dar'd, with tongue profane, to cast reproach, 
 Where love and filial reverence are due — 
 
A TRAGEDY. 85 
 
 And dar'd to lift — I shudder at the thought — 
 A threatening arm against that sacred life, 
 For which Fd gladly sacrifice my own ? 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 Thou'rt innocent. — Ah ! fondly I had hop'd, 
 Ere long, with happier omens, to have giv'n thee, 
 By Dermod's aid, an unencumber'd crown — 
 The right is all I now can boast. — That right, 
 Surrounded as it is with pressing dangers, 
 My son, with pleasure I resign to thee ; 
 Forerunning nature but a few short hours. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 My father yet shall reassume his crown, 
 And many years enjoy it, till the voice 
 Of heav'n shall call him to a timely grave. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 We lose the precious hours. — Should morning dawn 
 Ere we effect our scheme, 'twill prove our ruin. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Haste, oh ! my father — save thy valued life — 
 If ere we meet again I'll ask of thee 
 The wond'rous tale of thy deliverance 
 From Kimbath's sword — thy life of solitude — 
 And thousand other matters that awake 
 A boundless curiosity — 
 
86 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Let's onward — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 What, think'st thou I shall fly, and leave my wife 
 A captive in the tyrant's pow'r ? — Not so — 
 Without her, liberty were but a sound, 
 And empires toys. — Oh ! Moriat, I have vow'd 
 To live with thee — with thee too I will die. 
 
 Cathie. 
 
 My son — Oh save ! — But how can I advise ? 
 Her sex, her rank, her weakness — these will prove 
 Sufficient to protect her. — By her death 
 The tyrant gains no end. — But, oh ! on thee 
 His fury will exert its wildest rage — 
 Then fly, my son — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 It cannot, must not be — 
 Why wilt thou force unwilling disobedience ? 
 Sooner, the tyrant with his ruthless hand 
 Shall from my bosom pluck my bleeding heart, 
 Than an inglorious hope of pers'nal safety, 
 Tear me from her, more precious far than life. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Perhaps her rescue too might be effected. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 87 
 
 Maon. 
 Delightful thought ! Be not a moment lost — 
 Quick point me out the walls, the bolts, the guards 
 That keep me from her presence. 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Follow me — 
 The guards alone impede. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 They may be forc'd — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Rash prince ! By stratagem they may be drawn 
 To distance from th' apartment — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Haste we, then — 
 Ye ruling powVs of night, protect my father ! 
 
 [Exeunt Maon and Crimthan. 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 The perils that await his enterprize 
 Fill me with terror for his valued life — 
 And yet my bosom glows when I behold 
 Th 1 undaunted spirit of our ancestry 
 Transport him past the vulgar bounds of prudence. 
 All-seeing Pow'r ! that know'st my inmost thought, 
 Fulfil the solemn wish I now express — 
 
5 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 For all th' offences that have causM thy wrath, 
 Let me, the father, prove the sacrifice, 
 And keep thy mercies for my guiltless son ! 
 
 Enter Druid with Guards. 
 Druid. 
 The prison door unbared, and Cathir fled ! — 
 Curs'd disappointment — I shall fail to show 
 My promptitude of duty to the king — 
 The ardour of my zeal — and satisfy, 
 By the same blow, the deadly hate I bear 
 To him whom I have injur 1 d past forgiveness — 
 Who's there? 'Tis he— Arrest him quickly, guards. 
 
 Cathir. 
 Heav'n has vouchsafd my prayV, and death is nigh. 
 
 Druid. 
 
 Away, and follow your instructions. 
 
 (Exeunt Guards tvith Cathir.) 
 Now, 
 All chances of escape shall be prevented — 
 That done, I hasten to apprize the king. [Exit. 
 
 Enter Maon and Moriat. 
 Maon. 
 
 What transport ! thus to greet, and clasp once more, 
 My lovely bride — 
 
A TRAGEDY. 89 
 
 MOKIAT. 
 
 'Tis joy too great for utt'rance — 
 But ah ! too great, I fear, to prove substantial. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Let not one melancholy thought intrude — 
 The present moment's ours, and we'll improve it 
 To th' utmost 'vantage. Love shall be our theme — 
 For who, beholding such surpassing charms, 
 Could think of aught beside ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Indeed I've cause 
 For rapture, thus possessing what my soul 
 Holds dearest upon earth. This gloomy scene, 
 These still surrounding horrors, may seem fraught 
 With subjects of delight, compar'd with those 
 Which, ere my guardian spirit came, affrighted 
 My sick imagination. I portray 'd thee 
 Assail'd by dangers in each hideous shape 
 That cruelty, ingenious in its torments, 
 E'er yet suggested to a tyrant's wish — 
 Thy dying groans still murmur in my ear — 
 The signs of anguish painted in thy looks, 
 When thou didst seem to catch expiring breath, 
 Still form a ghastly picture to my view. 
 
 N 
 
90 MAONAND MOR1AT, 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Approach thy love, who lives but to protect thee — 
 Rest on his bosom ; bury there thy fears — 
 Those charming fears that render thee more lovely. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Oh, Maon, here I am indeed secure; 
 Here I can brave the rigour of our fate. 
 Thy magic touch conveys a pow'rful charm, 
 That seizes all my frame, and chasing thence 
 The cold effects of fear, reanimates 
 My languid pulse — restores my long-lost hope. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Extatic feelings ! Oh, ye envious pow'rs, 
 Who ne'er will render human happiness 
 In aught complete, lest we should vaunt ourselve* 
 Your equals, and contemn celestial joys — 
 You've blest me with a treasure, rich indeed 
 Beyond all value, but forbid its use — 
 My bride, my virgin wife — malicious fate — [Groa?is without. 
 
 Both. 
 Ha! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 'Twas the voice of agony — my father — 
 I left him here — he may not have escap'd — 
 
A TRACED! 91 
 
 Our guide has prov'd a traitor — or perhaps — 
 I would inquire the cause, but ; thus defenceless, 
 How can I leave thee, Moriat, now expos'd 
 To multiplying dangers. — Yet, a father — 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Think not for me. — Strong in my innocence, 
 I fear not death. — But oh ! of what avail 
 Were Maori's single arm against a host 
 Of armed ruffians, trairid to scenes of slaughter? [Groans. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Again — Oh heav'n ! — [Exit. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Rush not, my life, my lo\t, 
 Into destruction's jaws. — He's gone. — Oh help ! 
 My husband ! Oh protect him, ye sweet heav'ns, 
 From murd'rous swords, which now are drawi. 
 And thirst to drink his blood. 
 
 Enter Kimbath with Guards. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 What uproar ? Ha 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Oh tyrant, if thy savage heart e'er knew 
 The yearnings of compassion, interpose, 
 And save my lord. — E'en now he falls, he bleeds — 
 
 n2 
 
92 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Thou frantic fugitive ! Thy flight is stopt — 
 IVe caught thee on the wing, and thou must yield 
 At mercy now — 
 
 Moiuat. 
 Assist, ere 'tis too late ! 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Thou'st praetisYl with success thy female wiles, 
 To get thus far; but think not I will play 
 The easy fool, and listen to thy tales ; 
 Thou'st forfeited by these dishonest arts 
 All further claim to honourable terms. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Unmanly wretch ! What laws, divine or human, 
 Oblige me to submit to terms with thee, 
 Or wait with resignation on thy will ? 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 That potent law, which supersedes all other — 
 The law of force, that render'd thee my captive, 
 And shall retain thee such — 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 I fear thee not, 
 Thou tyrant, hateful in the sight of heav'n — 
 I fear not death, and cannot dread thy pow'r. 
 
A TKAGEDY. 9tJ 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 No, haughty maid, thou shalt not die, nor gain 
 Vainglorious satisfaction from the thought 
 Of being in the songs of bards recorded 
 A martyr to thy virtue. — Thou shalt live, 
 And long administer to Kim bath's pleasures. 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Tyrant, I still can soar above thy reach ; 
 This arm can free me and preserve my honour. 
 
 Enter Maon, supporting Cathik. 
 
 Maon. 
 Look up, my father — Speak — Oh tell thy son 
 That thou hast hopes of life. — His spirits fail — 
 He droops — 
 
 Cathir. 
 It is enough — Death now prevails — 
 They've gain\l their purpose — 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Merciless barbarians ! 
 Distressing sight ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 May all heav'n's store of curses 
 Light on the tyrant who devis'd the deed : 
 The vile, but less abhorred instrument 
 Is falTn a paltry sacrifice — 
 
94 MAO N AND MORI AT, 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Confusion ! 
 
 Cathir. 
 
 My son — oh, curse him not — his guilt will prove 
 His punishment. Perhaps, impell'd to ill 
 By passions raging with resistless force, 
 We blindly rush on crimes — Despise, but curse not — 
 For thee, my child, I pray the righteous heav'ns 
 To bless thy filial piety— to lead thee 
 Safe from the horrors of this awful hour, 
 The crisis of thy fate. — And now a ray 
 Of prescience opens on my parting soul, 
 Which tells me thou shalt prosper. Pow'r of light, 
 Confirm your omen ! — I have liv'd— farewell ! [Sinks. 
 
 Oh, lie thou good and happy — [Dies. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 From my side 
 That thorn is pluck'd — 
 
 Maon. 
 His spirit's fled, to seek 
 Its seat of bliss — Dear parent, scarcely known 
 But lost. And shall I not revenge thy death, 
 Beloved shade? 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Advance and quickly seize him — 
 
 [Guards move forward, but not promptly. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 95 
 
 Maox. 
 Ha ! I've been lost in thought. — The tyrant here — 
 Then death's at hand. My Moriat, oh, my wife ! — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Keep them asunder — 
 
 Moriat. 
 Tyrant, 'tis my husband — 
 We'll die together — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Husband ! — This is well — 
 Their union makes my vengeance more complete. 
 Now, haughty Derniod, 'tis my turn to triumph. 
 Where is thy boasted pow'r, that should protect 
 This upstart king, and screen him from my justice. 
 
 Maon. 
 Monster of cruelty, whose acts will stain 
 Ierne's annals, canst thou view that corse — 
 That mangled corse, thy brother's sad remains, 
 And yet refrain to curse thy natal hour ? 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 Provoke me not to rage, or thou shalt feel 
 Its dire effects in tortures multiplied, 
 Till thy proud spirit shall be bent to earth, 
 And thou shalt crave from me the boon of death 
 
96 ma on and moriat, 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Think'st thou that Maori, that thy king, will stoop 
 To servile acquiescence, or to aught 
 Beneath the dignity of royal blood ? 
 Proud traitor, no — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Convey the stripling hence — [Guards seize 
 Maon, but without taking his sword. 
 And let the father's fate attend the son ; 
 One hour extinguishing their hated line — 
 For thee, his wife, another fate's reserv'd — 
 
 Moeiat. 
 
 I tell thee, tyrant, if my husband dies, 
 If adverse heav'n has to thy rage devoted 
 That princely victim, we will fall together; 
 We'll prove to thee the mighty difference 
 'Twixt innocence and guilt, and die with all 
 That cheerfulness which conscious virtue gives. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Heroic excellence — thou shalt not die ; 
 Thy Maon too shall live. My loyal subjects 
 Will not obey that monster, stain'd with crimes ; 
 A murderer, a tyrant, an usurper, 
 Whose hands yet reek with fratricidal blood, 
 Nor slay at his command their lawful king, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 97 
 
 TV undoubted heir of Heremon, renown'd 
 
 By all the bards. [Guards appear irresolute. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Away ! or instant death — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Shake off' the tyrant's yoke, my gallant friends, 
 And show the spirit of Milesus' sons. 
 Your king will prove deserving of your love, 
 And grateful for your kindness. — Loose his arms — 
 He'll lead you onward to the path of glory. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Rebellious slaves ! — This, traitor, seals thy doom — 
 
 Mokiat. 
 Stop, Kimbath ; turn your cruel sword on me. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Oft", woman — 
 
 MoRIAT. 
 
 Slay me first — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Oh, heav'n, look down 
 On virtue in its brightest form ! 
 
98 MA ON AND MORIAT, 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Rash fool, 
 Away, and give my vengeance room — 
 
 Moriat. 
 
 Through me, 
 Through this devoted breast hew out your passage. 
 
 Enter Crimthan. 
 Crimthan. 
 Hail ! Maon, hail Ieme's king ! 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 How, slave — 
 
 Crimthan. 
 
 Tyrant, thy doom approaches. — At thy gates 
 Dermod now thunders, with Momonia's force. 
 
 Moriat. 
 All-gracious pow'rs ! 
 
 Crimthan. 
 Thy troops with faint resistance 
 Oppose his progress. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Oh, distraction, death ! 
 Dost thou betray me too? 
 
A TRAGEDY. 99 
 
 Ckimthan. 
 
 Thy guilty heart, 
 Ungrateful man, will tell thee thou deserv'st it — 
 
 Kimbath. 
 
 If hell recalls its fiends, I'm lost indeed — 
 Oh, madd'ning disappointment ! Quick perdition 
 Extend its jaws, and in one common gulf 
 Involve you all — the father and the children. 
 But have I nought save imprecations left — 
 The impotence of words ? Oh, yes, my soul 
 Shall know one transport yet. Dermod shall rue 
 In bitterness of heart this fatal hour — 
 One happy blow shall blast their hop'd-for joys, 
 And give me some revenge. [Seises Moriat's hand. 
 
 Mokiat {shrieks). 
 
 All-pow'rful heav'n ! 
 
 Maon {springing from the Guards). 
 Barbarian, turn ! Restrain thy impious hand. 
 
 Kimbath. 
 Insolent ! But I'll teach thee to thy cost, 
 Rash youth, to match thy boyish force with mine. 
 
 Maon. 
 The weight of all thy crimes shall press thee down, 
 And give my sword cheap victory. 
 
 o2 
 
100 MAON AND MORIAT, 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Beware ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 'Tis Cathir's injur'd spirit leads me on, 
 And guides this blow. — 'Tis done [Kimbath falls. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Enough — I'ui slain — 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Take, pitiable wretch, that death which heav'n 
 Decrees thee by the fated hand of him 
 Whose throne thou hast usurp'd, whose parent's blood 
 Still smokes upon thy floor. 
 
 KlMBATH. 
 
 Oh, horror, horror ! 
 Avaunt, ye furies ! See they hover round, 
 With dismal yells, impatient of their prey — 
 Oh, shield me ! Now they fix upon my heart — 
 They tear my trembling flesh. — Release me — oh ! [Dies. 
 
 Maon. 
 
 Is this the meed of all ambition's toils ? 
 Is this the goal to which her chariot speeds 
 With fervid wheel ; for which she spurns the joys, 
 The sympathetic, social joys of life, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 101 
 
 And tramples under foot the sacred ties 
 Of consanguinity, of love, and friendship ? 
 
 Moriat. 
 My king, my husband, my deliverer ! 
 
 Maon. 
 
 O ! Moriat, first of women ! Let us haste 
 To meet thy father ; and return the gods, 
 As is most due, the tribute of our thanks. — 
 Thou scene of blood, for ever on my mind 
 May'st thou impress the mis'ry that attends 
 On wicked deeds, and scare me with thy horrors, 
 If e'er I deviate from the path of virtue ! 
 
 THE END. 
 
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