* »Sij': YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY CORRESPONDENCE THE RIGHT HONOURABLE SIR JOHN SINCLAIR, BAR^. // — ^'-'/.'/i^//./' THE CORRESPONDENCE THE RIGHT HONOURABLE SIR JOHN SINCLAIR, Bart REMINISCENCES OF THE MOST DISTINGUISHED CHARACTERS WHO HAVE APPEARED IN GREAT BRITAIN, AND IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES, DURING THE LAST FIFTY YEARS. ILLUSTRATED BY FACSIMILES OF TWO HUNDRED AUTOGRA^tJ^ IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. I. LONDON : HENRY COLBURN AND RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET. 1831. LONDON : PRINTED BY SAMUEL BENTLEY, Dorset-street, Fleet-street. ADVERTISEMENT. An old and much respected friend, the Abbe Gre- goire, Bishop of Blois, recently sent me the History ofthe First French Convention, with the following in scription, written in English with his own hand : " Presented by the Author, To the most indefati gable man in Britain ; and to the man in Europe of the greatest acquaintance." To be " indefatigable," is a characteristic ofthe Scot tish nation ; and a person who, for so many years, has been incessantly occupied with public transactions, — has been engaged in such extensive inquiries, — and has travelled so much in foreign countries, must have " a very numerous acquaintance" The inscription, there fore, was in some degree appropriate, though strongly expressed, and heightened by foreign courtesy. But, besides a mere acquaintance, there is perhaps no private individual, who has carried on a more ex tensive correspondence, with so great a number of dis tinguished characters, both at home and abroad. The truth of this will appear by the following selection from my Domestic Correspondence, and the reminiscences VOL. I. I) vi ADVERTISEMENT. connected with it ; and by the second volume, contain ing my Foreign Correspondence, which, for the pur pose of better elucidation, I propose shall be accom panied by a general view of my travels on the Conti nent. Some may be inclined to censure the apparent ego tism of a publication, which has necessarily led to the mention of many anecdotes and circumstances, in which the Author was personally interested, and to a detail of whatever services to his country he conceived himself to have performed. But I was apprehensive, that no other individual, was likely to undertake the la bour of arranging the correspondence of a life, now ex tended to seventy-seven years, or could do it with equal advantage ; and I felt unwilling to risk the destruction of so many documents, expressing the opinions of a number of the most distinguished characters, both of the present and the last generation, on a variety of in teresting topics, and containing several important facts and disclosures, which throw new light on the history of the times. The extent to which I have enlarged upon my own public labours, will readily be excused by the candour of the reader, who will reflect, that being naturally led to touch upon this subject, I could not but be anxious to set forth, to the best advantage, any exertions I have made for promoting the national interests, during more ADVERTISEMENT. Vll than half a century, and of submitting them, both to the consideration of my friends who are still living, and to the judgment of impartial posterity. I shall only add, that it must be much more desirable to peruse a number of letters, written by a great va riety of persons, than a collection which comes from the pen of the same individual. In the latter case, there must be a monotony in point of style and senti ment ; whereas in the former, especially if accompanied by explanations of the character and history of the wri ters, and a detail of the circumstances which led to the transmission of each separate communication, there is likely to be found, a succession of topics, both novel and interesting. It is hoped, therefore, that the plan of the present work, will meet with the approbation of the public. 133. George Street, Edinburgh, JoHN SINCLAIR. June 1830. CONTENTS. INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS, Explanatory ofthe subsequent Correspondence, and containing a Short Account of the Author and his Writings. Birth and Parentage of the Author, Page xvii Education and Profession, xviii Improvement of the Family Estate, and the District in wbich it is situated, .. ib. Improvements in Scotland, xxiii Improvements in Great Bri tain and its Dependencies, and on the Continent, Page xxiii 6. Parliamentary Proceedings, xxv 7. Military Exertions, . - xxvii 8. Tbe Promotion of Public In. stitutions, - . ib. 9. Literary Labours, xxviii 10. Travels, - - xxxii 11. Conclusion, - xxxiii PART I. Imperial and Royal Correspondence and Reminiscences. 1. The Emperor Joseph, Page 1 12. 2. The Empress Catherine, 7 3. The Emperor Paul, 10 13. 4. The Emperor Alexander, 14 14. 5. George the Third, 16 15. 6. Stanislaus, King of Poland, 23 7. Frederick William II. King of 16. Prussia, 24, 17. 8. Gustavus the Third, King of 18. Sweden, - - 28 19. 9. Charles Jean (Bernadotte), King of Sweden, 32 10. Frederick the Sixth, King of 20. Denmark, 34 IL The Duke of Brunswick and 21. Prince Ferdinand, 37 The Prince'of Orange and Holland, Page 38 - 40 - 41 Austrian Flanders, House of Bourbon, Anecdotes of the Emperor Napoleon, The King of Saxony, . The Duke of York, . The Duke of Kent, - His Imperial Highness, the Archduke John of Aus tria, - . . Prince Oscar, Crown Prince of Sweden, Duke of Orleans, 43 48 5055 - 5758 60 CONTENTS. PART II. Correspondence with British Cabinet Ministers, and Reminiscences of them. Reflections on the General Character and Qualifications of British States men, 1. Lord North, 2. Earl of Sandwich, 3. Lord 'Viscount Stormont, 4. The Right Hon. William Pitt, 81 5. The Right Hon. Charles James Fox, 6. The Lord 'Viscount Melville, 7. The Right Hon. Spencer Per ceval, . . - . 8. Lord 'Viscount Castlereagh, afterwards Marquis of Lon donderry, - - Page 65 e74 9. The Right Hon. George 76 Canning, - - . 117 78 10. Lord Thurlow, 121 81 11. Lord Loughborough, after wards Earl of Rosslyn, - 124 92 12. The Lord Chancellor Er 100 skine, - 126 13. The Marquis of Lansdowne, 129 109 14. The Marquis of Hastings, - 133 15. Earl Bathurst, - - 136 16. The Right Hon. Williain 115 Windham, 137 PART m. Female Correspondence. 1. The Princess Daschkow, Page 149 2. Madame de Stael, - 153 3. Madame de Genlis, . - 155 4. The Duchess of Gordon, - 158 5. Lady Craven, 161 6. Lady Gardiner, . 162 7. Miss Maria Edgeworth, Page 163 8. Mrs Abington, - 166 9. Miss Joanna Baillie, . 167 10. Mrs Hannah More, 170 11. Mrs Frowd, . 172 2. PART IV. Naval Correspondence. Introductory Hints, containing my Correspondence with the lat^ Lord Mul grave, regarding the JJaval Strength of Great Britain, compared to that of France and Spain, Lord Keppel, First Lord of the Admiralty, , Page 187 Lord 'Viscount Howe, First Lord of the Admiralty, . ib. Page '^I'l 3. Earl St 'Vincent, First Lord of the Admiralty, - 188 4. Lord 'Viscount Nelson, - 189 5. Lord 'Viscount Duncan, - 190 CONTENTS. XI 6. Lord Viscount Bridport, Page 191 7. Admiral Lord Keith, . 192 8. Sir Charles Middleton, after wards Lord Barham, 194 9. Admiral Sir Home Popham, 195 10. Singular Naval Anecdote, 198 11. Plan for establishing a new Naval Resource, by which the necessity of impressing Seamen, unless in periods of great public danger, would be prevented, Pag( 201 PART V. Military Correspondence. 1. Le Marechal Compte Ro- manzolF Sadounaisky, Page 209 2. Marshal Blucher, 212 3. General the Baron Muffling, 213 4. Marshal Macdonald, 215 5. Battle of Waterloo, Page 218 6. Hints regarding the proposed Reductions in our Peace EstabUshments, - - 220 PART VI. Clerical Correspondence. I. — England. 1. Dr Moore, Archbishop of Canterbury, - Page 225 2. Dr Richard Watson, Bishop of LlandaflF, 3. The Rev. Dr Chapman, "Vice- Chancellor of the University of Oxford, 4. Dean Tucker, 5. The Rev. Dr Price, 6. The Rev. Dr Kippis, 7. The Rev. Dr Priestley, - 227 232233234235 236 2. — Scotch Clergy. 1. The Rev. Dr Robertson, 237 2. The Rev. Dr Hugh Blair, - 238 3. The Rev. Dr Hill, Principal of the University of St An drews, - - - 240 4. Rev. Dr Davidson, Princi pal of the University of Glasgow, 242 5. The Rev. John Logan, - 244 3. — Amekioan Clehgy. 1. The Rev. Bishop Hobart, - 245 2. The Rev. William M'Whir, 247 4. — French Clergy. 1. The Abbe Gregoire, Bishop of Blois, - - - 249 2. The Bishop of Rodez, - 252 PART VII. Agricultural Correspondence. 1. Account of the Husbandry of Scotland, 2. General Report of Scotland, 3. Code of Agriculture, Page 261263 265 Xll CONTENTS. 1. The Marquis de la Fay ette, - Page 266 2. M. Mathieu de Dombasle, 269 3. Baron Voght, - 273 4. Robert Patterson, Esq. of America, - Page 277 5. G. W. Featherstonhaugh, Esq. of New York, - - ib. 6. General Washington, - . 280 PART VIII. Statistical Correspondence and Reminiscences. J. Extract Letter Rev. Dr R. Henry, . Paye 286 2. Letter, G. Dempster, Esq. ib. 3. Letter, Rev. Ur Blair, 287 4. Letter, Marquis del Campo, ib. 5. Letter, Count de Stadien, - ib. 6. Letter, Comte de Redern, ib. 7. Letter, Professor Zimmerman, 288 8. Letter, Comte de Hertsberg, ib. 9. Letter, Monsieur Plescheef, ib. 10. Letter, Dr Guthrie, 289 11. Letter, Professor Thorkelin, ib. 12. Letter to the Clergy of Corn. wall, Page 289 13. Letter, President John Adams, 290 14. Letter, Mr Kenrick of Bewdly, ib. 15. Letter, General Washington, ib. 16. Letter, Lord Auckland, ib. 17. Letter, John Pinkerton, - 291 18. Letter, Dr Gillies the Historian, ib. 19. Letter, J. P. Andrews, Esq. 292 20. Letter, Bishop de Leon, ib. 21. Letter, Professor George Stuart, ib. PART IX. Medical Correspondence and Reminiscences. I. Letter, John Duke of Ar gyll, Page 298 2. Letter, Sir Adam Fergusson, 299 3. Letter, Sir A. Ramsay Irvine, 300 4. Letter, Rev. J. Townsend, 301 5. Letter, William Spence, - ib. 6. Letter, Rev. Robert Thomas, 302 7. Letter, Rev. Dr Gregory, - 303 8. Extracts of Letters from distin guished Medical Characters. 1. Dr Matthew Baillie, - 304 2. Dr Beddoes, ib. 3, Dr Currie of Liverpool, 305 4. Dr Trotter, 306 5. Dr Willan, - ib. 6. Dr Waterhouse, - 307 7. Dr Rush of Philadelphia, ib. , Letter, M. Chaptal, Ministre de TInterieur, . 309 PART X. Correspondence and Reminiscences, regarding Finance, Currency, and Commerce. I. Finance, 2. Currency. Page 313 I 3. Commerce, - - Page 322 317 CONTENTS. PART XI. Correspondence and Reminiscences, regarding the Publication of the Poems of Ossian in the Original, - Page 327 PART XII. Correspondence with Political Characters, and Reminiscences regard ing them. 1. — Peers. 1. Hugh, second Duke of Northum berland, Page 339 2. Hugh, Earl of Marchmont, 342 ¦3. Horace Walpole, Earl of Or- ford, 343 4. Martin Bladen, Lord Hawke, 345 5. William, Lord Auckland, 348 6. Charies, Lord Colchester, 350 7. Lord Oriel, - 351 8. John, Lord Somerville, 352 2. — Commoners. 1. Edward Loveden Loveden, Esq. M. P. 355 2. George Dempster, Esq. of Dunnichen, M. P. 358 3. Sir George Shuckburgh Eve lyn, Bart. M. P. Page 363 4. Sir John Macpherson, Bart. M. P. . . 365 5. Sir Brook Watson, Bart. M. P. Alderman of Lon. don, . - 366 6. Sir William Pulteney, Bart. M. P. ... 367 7. David Ricardo, Esq. M. P. 370 8. Sir Samuel Romilly, M. P. 377 9. Malcolm Laing, Esq. M. P. ib. 10. S. Whitbread, Esq. M. P. 379 Parliamentary Anecdote, 380 On the proper Line of Con. duct to be pursued by a Pa triotic Member ofthe House of Commons, . - 382 PART XIIL Correspondence with Literary Characters, and Reminiscences of them. 1. — Political Economy and Sta tistics. 1. Dr Adam Smith, - Page 387 2. The Rev. T. Robert Mal- thus, 391 3. 'William Godwin, Esq. 392 4. The Right Hon. Warren Hastings, .398 5. Dr Gillies, the Historian, Page 403 6. The Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks, Bart. F. R. S. 404 2. — Agriculture. 7. Arthur Young, Esq. Secretary to the Board of Agricul. ture, ... 406 CONTENTS. 8. Williara Marshall, Esq. Page 408 9. Dr Erasmus Darwin, 411 10. Mr Joseph Elkington, the celebrated Drainer, . 412 11. Mr Andrew Meikle, the Inven. tor of the Threshing-Mill, 413 12. Dr Parry of Bath, - 415 13. Dr Priestley, - - 416 3. — Health and Longevity. 1. Dr Jenner, - - 421 2. Dr Beddoes of Bristol, . 426 3. Rev. Joseph Townsend, 428 4. Dr Adam Ferguson, - 429 4. — Arts and Sciences. 5. Sir Humphry Davy, Bart. Page 431 6. Dr Black, - 433 7. Professor Playfair, 435 8. Professor Dugald Stewart, 436 9. The Eari of Buchan, - 437 10. Sir David Dalrymple, Bart. Lord Hailes, - 439 1 1. Dr Kelly, Editor of the Cam bist, - 440 5. — Poetry. 1. John Home, Esq. .'Author of Douglas, - 441 2. Robert Pollok, - 443 PART XIV. Miscellaneous Correspondence. 1. Christophe,King of Haiti, Page449 2. The Persian Ambassador, 450 3. The Mirza Abu Taleb Khan, 451 4. " Thayadenegea,'' (Captain Brant,) 453 5. Edmund Kean, Esq. the cele brated Actor, - 454 6. Sir William Nairne, Bart. - 457 7. James Bruce, Esq. of Kin naird, the Abyssinian Tra veller, - 459 8. David Wilkie, Esq. the cele brated Painter, - - 460 9. John Loudon Macadam, Esq. ; and William Nicol, Esq. of Pall-Mali, - - - 462 10. Charles Fraser Frizell, Esq. of Harcourt Street, Dublin, - 464 11. Communication from Mr Adam Flower, . 469 12. Singular Instance of Death bed Repentance, - 470 13. 14.15.16.17.18.19. 20. 21.22.23.24.25.26. 27. John Pinkerton, Esq. Page 471 Henry Brougham, Esq. M. P. 474 Letter from Sir William Jones, 475 Edward Gibbon, Esq. the Historian, - - ib. The Eari of Kellie, - - 476 John Hatsell, Esq. Clerk of the House of Commons, 477 Major-General David Stew art of Garth, Governor of St Lucia, 479 Sir George O. Paul, Bart. 480 John Wilkinson, Esq. of Brad ley, near Wolverhampton, 481 Jeremy Bentham, Esq. 482 Dr William Cullen, - 483 Dr James Gregory, - 484 Mr Richard Bowes, . 485 Sir Robert Peel, Bart. M. P. 487 On the Thames Tunnel, - 489 Conclusion, . 490 ('(INTEN'I'S. XV APPENDIX. 1. Congratulations on Sir John Sinclair's appointment to be a Privy Councillor, Page 3 2. Account of Mr George Sin. clair's being taken Prisoner, aud examined by Bonaparte, 5 3. On tlie Attention paid by Fre derick the Great to Agricul ture, - - 22 4. Extracts of a Letter from Ma. jor- General Sir David Stew. art regarding the state of the West Indies; in particular of St Lucia, - Page 23 Aphorisms, Moral and Political, by Thomas Watson, Bishop of LlandaflF, . . 27 Evidence to prove that the Air, called Grammachree Molly, was composed in Scotland, 31 Brief Account of the Circum stances which produced the Overthrow of Mr Pitt's Ad- ministration, in March 1801, 32 Hints as to Autographs. Autographs from the Letters contained in this CoUection. Ossianic Air, said to be the most ancient Piece of Music extant. INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS, EXPLANATORY OF THE SUBSEQUENT CORRESPONDENCE, AND CONTAINING A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE AUTHOR AND HIS WRITINGS. As it is desirable to have some acquaintance with the his tory of an author, previous to the perusal of his works, and more especiaUy as it would be hardly possible, either to enter into the spirit, or to understand the nature, of the letters com municated to him, unless the reader be previously furnished ¦with some biographical details, I have thought it necessary briefly to narrate the following particulars : I. — BIRTH AND PARENTAGE OF THE AUTHOR. I was born at Thurso Castle, in the county of Caithness, North Britain, on the 10th of May 1754. My father, George Sinclair, Esq. was a highly respectable country gentleman, who had been educated under the charge of the celebrated Dr Isaac Watts, and had travelled abroad, in company with liOrd Sandwich, (the Cabinet Minister), President Dundas, and other distinguished characters. My mother. Lady Janet Sutherland, was sister of William, Earl of Sutherland, descen ded from one of the most ancient families and titles in Scot land. She undertook the charge of the family estate, and xvm INTRODUCTION. superintended the education of her children, who lost their fa ther when I was only in my sixteenth year. 2. EDUCATION AND PROFESSION. The foundation of my classical knowledge was laid at the High School of Edinburgh. I afterwards attended the Uni versities of Edinburgh, of Glasgow, and of Oxford, and have ever since been persuaded of the advantages of a diversified education, it being evident, that a person may thus obtain a knowledge of the world, and may, at the same time be instruct ed, in the several branches of study to which his attention is to be directed, -without the one acquisition being injurious to the other. In 1775, I became a inember of the Faculty of Advocates, and was afterwards called to the English bar, with out intending to practise, either there, or in Scotland, but merely from a conviction, that he who is likely to become a legislator, should be acquainted with the laws of his country, and that every man should have a profession. By these means I acquired, at an early period of Ufe, a numerous acquaintance. 3. IMPROVEMENT OF THE FAMILY ESTATE, AND THE DIS TRICT IN WHICH IT IS SITUATED. It is impossible for any, but those who have been compel led to make the attempt, to conceive, the numerous difficul ties to be encountered, when any endeavour is made, to carry on improvements in a remote and previously neglected dis trict, where every thing is to be done, and where a great va riety of new, and important objects must, at the same time, be attended to. They who live in a part of the island that has already made considerable progress, cannot form an idea of obstacles which must be surmounted, — when towns and vU lages must be erected, as centres of communication and busi ness, — when roads and harbours must be made, for the sake of domestic and foreign intercourse, — when manufactures or fisheries must be established, to provide employment for the surplus population, which an improved system of agricul- INTRODUCTION. XIX ture, and the enlargement of farms, necessarily occasion, — and when new breeds of animals, new instruments of hus bandry, and persons skilled in new modes of cultivation, must be introduced from distant parts of the kingdom. It is pos sible, however, by unceasing attention, and at much expense, successfuUy to carry on these various objects at the same time. The one, indeed, has a tendency to promote and to encourage the others. The spirit that is excited by the im provement of one article, rouses a simUar spirit of energy in regard to others ; and a new race of people is graduaUy form ed, who, from a state of torpor, ignorance, idleness, and its concomitant poverty, are animated to exertion and inquiry, and impeUed, to obtain by their industry, the acquisition of wealth. The various obstacles to improvement above enu merated, existed, in their fidl force, in the remote county of Caithness, the most northerly on what may be called the conti nent of Scotland, being within sight of the Orkney islands. When a spirit of improvement, however, was once introduced there, it was foUowed up with great energy, in regard to va rious departments, which may be classed under the following heads : 1. Roads and bridges ; 2. The erection of villages and towns ; 3. The estabUshment of manufactures ; 4. Im provements in agriculture ; and, 5. The extension of the fisheries. In carrying on these improvements, I necessarily took a lead, being the principal proprietor, and the representa tive of the county in Parliament, but in their progress, had the advantage of being powerfuUy supported by several re spectable proprietors, in particular by the late Earl of Caith ness the Lord Lieutenant, and by James Traill, Esq. of Hob- bister, the Sheriff of the county, who is much distinguished for his public spirit and inteUigence. As it may be of use in other districts, I shaU briefly state the different measures which were then taken, for the benefit of Caithness, under these several heads. 1. Roads. — These are essential for the improvement of any country ; but it was not easy to introduce them into a district XX INTRODUCTION. where the climate was wet, and the soU unfavourable. The making of them was first attempted by enforcing statute la bour, every individual being obliged by law, to work at the roads for six days in the year ; but this system was found to be inefficient *. An act was therefore procured, for converting the statute labour into money ; and afterwards, even turnpikes have been introduced. To assist in making the principal roads and bridges, some public aid was procured ; and with such zeal has this great means of improvement been entered into, that an act has been procured this year, (an. 1830), by which Caith ness, considering its extent, -will be better accommodated with roads than any county in Scotland. 2. Erection of 'Fillages and Towns. — No district can thrive, unless viUages and to'wns are established in it. A scattered rural population, must have a market for the sale of their commodities, and a place where they may be suppUed with the articles they require. In this respect, the county of Caithness, prior to the year 1770, was extremely deficient. Thurso was merely a smaU fishing viUage ; and Wick had only a few hundred inhabitants ; and these were the only two coUections of houses in the whole country. To remedy this great disadvantage, I have commenced a new tovra at Thurso on an improved plan, which though it has not made much pro gress from the want of a harbour, is nevertheless a great orna ment to its neighbourhood. VUlages were founded at Halkirk and Sarclett, and at Castleton and Louisburgh, by two respect able proprietors on whose estates they are situated. But a settlement, made by " The British Fishing Society," at Pul- * There was a hill called the Benechiel, situated in the centre of the county, the carrying a road through which was considered to be impracticable. In order to give the country people an idea, of what might be eflfected by exertion in ma king communications easy, a road was lined out, above twelve hundred people were collected early in a morning in July, supplied with tools and provisions, and the whole extent was made in one day. This convinced the people of what might be eflFected, in regard to road making, by unanimity and exertion, and was the flirst circumstance, that gave me an idea of the practicability of effecting objects on a great scale. A road, however, raade so rapidly, could not be dura ble. INTKODUCTION. XXI teney-town, near Wick, has thriven to a degree, which has excited the admiration of aU who have seen it *. 3. Manufacturiv. — Some branches of manufactures, on a small scale, were likewise established in Caithness. The linen trade was promoted bythe erection of a bleachfield; and a wool len manufacture was set on foot, with a view of promoting the new village of Halkirk. A tannery, a brewery, and a manufac ture for agricultural implements, were established at Thurso ; and, in September 1800, the magistrates of that town, and the gentlemen in its neighbourhood, unanimously voted an address to their representative, " acknowledging with gratitude, that amidst other pursuits of a more extensive tendency, the im provement of his native county had been the peculiar object of his care and attention." 4. Agricultural improvements. — -A considerable portion of Caithness being naturally fertile, rural improvements became, of course, the principal objects of my attention. Their intro duction, however, was an herculean labour. It was neces sary to change the whole system of cultivation ; to bring the fields into a regular shape, and inclose them ; to promote draining ; to introduce the culture of turnips, and of sown grasses ; and to improve the quality of the grain. All this has been done so effectually, in the neighbourhood of Thurso, that there is not a finer, or better cultivated tract of country, in any part of Scotland. Nothing, however, has contributed more to the improvement of the hilly parts of Caithness, and of the neighbouring districts of Sutherland and Strathnaver, than the introduction of the Cheviot breed of sheep, and of south country shepherds and farmers into the north. In the course of these important undertakings, for improving both the live stock, and the husbandry of Caithness, I was under the necessity of enlarging a number of farms, and of remo ving a number of ignorant and useless occupiers, which oc- * A plan of Pulteney-town was drawn up by Mr Telford, on a scale which it was supposed would have taken generations to fill up. But it has been already completely built upon ; and an extended plan has been found requisite, the de mand for gi-ound to erect additional houses being so great. VOL. I. C XX!1 INTRODUCTION. casioned an invidious attack in the English newspapers. This produced a pubUc declaration from the Lord Lieutenant, and the other gentlemen of tlie county, stating, in strong terms, the high sense they entertained of the agricultural services I had performed to my native county. 5. Fisheries. — This branch of industry has reached a degree of prosperity in Caithness, beyond all expectation, principaUy owing to the harbour at Wick, for the erection of which, I pro cured arrant of £.7000 from the forfeited estates in Scotland. There never was a sum so well bestowed. The herring fishery carried on in the town of Wick and its neighbourhood, exceeds any thing hitherto known in Scotland. A scene of industry is here displayed, no where to be surpassed. Along the eastern coast of Caithness alone, not less than fifteen hundred boats go out in an evening to carry on the fishery, and above a hun dred decked vessels have been seen in the harbour at once, besides twenty or thirty at anchor in the bay. Above 200,000 barrels are caught in the season, the very refuse of which 'wUl manure several hundred acres of land. A new harbour is nearly completed, the old one being too smaU to accommodate the number of vessels that flock to it from various parts of Scotland, England, and Ireland. Indeed some vessels have come from Cornwall, and even from France, and the Hanseatic Towns, to prosecute the fisheries here. Nothing is wanting, but the erection of a breakwater at the entrance into the Bay of Wick, to render this remote district, the greatest scene of improvement perhaps in Europe *. The result of these endeavours was in the highest degree satisfactory, and was attended viath this extraordinary circum stance, that on an accurate comparison between the two last national enumerations in 1821, and the preceding one in 1810, the remote county of Caithness surpassed aU the other eighty- * The labour of the convicts could not be so advantageously employed, as in the erection of this breakwater, for the advantage not only of the fisheries, but of the general comraerce of the country ; for the Baltic trade miglit find shelter there in the stormy seasons of the year ; or, in time of war, could be protected from the risk of capture, till they could receive a convoy. iNTRODUCTio>f. xxiii five districts of the kingdom, in regard to that great criterion of national prosperity, (where it is properly regulated and employed), increased population *. 4. IMPROVEMENTS IN SCOTLAND. It would be tedious to enter into the various measures adopted for promoting the improvement of Scotland in gene ral, by completing a statistical survey of that country, — by publishing reports of the agricultural state of every district in it, — by the establishment of a society for the improvement of British wool, — and by being the means of procuring parUa- mentary grants for constructing roads, and erecting harbours, in various parts of the country, under commissioners special ly appointed for that purpose. A sense of the advantages derived from these exertions, ap pears to have been so generaUy felt, that, at different public meetings, the thanks of the following twenty, out of the thirty- three counties in Scotland, were voted to me : List of the several Counties in Scotland, where the Freeholders and Landowners, at their Michaelmas Head Courts, an. 1814, returned their thanks to the Right Honourable Sir John Sin clair, Bart, for his public services. Aberdeen Caithness Elgin Kirkcudbright Argyle Clackmannan Fife Perth Ayr Cromarty Forfar Ross BanflT Durabarton Haddington . Selkirk S. Berwick 10. Dumfries 15. Inverness 20. Sutherland. 5. — IMPROVEMENTS IN GREAT BRITAIN AND ITS DEPEN DENCIES, AND ON THE CONTINENT. Having succeeded in obtaining the estabUshment of a Board of Agriculture, and being nominated its President, I was thence enabled to promote the improvement, not only of Eng- * The increase in some of the counties was at the rate of 1 and 2 per cent., but Caithness was the only district in the kingdora, where it amounted to 29 per cent. The West Riding of Yorkshire, the highest in England, was only 21 per fent. c'2 1. France. XXIV INTKODUCTION. land and oflreland, but of aU the dependencies of the British empire, in both hemispheres. Indeed, being considered in other countries, as a person who had peculiarly devoted his attention to the prosperity of agriculture and other useful pur suits, I had the honour of receiving, on that account, the most flattering testimonials of respect, from a greater number of public institutions in foreign countries, than probably has fallen to the lot of almost any other individual. List of foreign Diplomas sent to Sir John Sinclair. Countries. Institutions. I. The Royal Society of Agriculture at Paris. 2. Dijon Academy of Sciences, Arts and Belles Lettres. 3. The Society of Sciences and Arts at Lisle. 4. Society of La Seine Inferieur, at Rouen. 5. The Central Society of the Department du Nord in France. 2. Flanders. 6. Agricultural Society of Ghent. _ . 5 ^' Roy^l Academy of Berlin. I 8. Brandenburgh Economical Society. . . 5 ^" Agricultural Society of Vienna. *• ¦'*-"5"'^' l 10. Imperial Royal Agricultural Society of Styria. 5. Saxony. 11. Leipsic Agricultural Society. 6. Wurtemberg. 12. Wurtemberg Board of Agriculture. 7. Germany. 13. Agricultural Society of Zell. „ „ , (14. Royal Society of Stockholm. X 15. Academy of Agriculture at Stockholm. Q ^ , < 16. Royal Agricultural Society of Denmark. i 17. Literary Society of Iceland. .« T> . (18. Imperial Agricultural Society of Moscow. (19. Free Agricultural Society of Russia. 11. Italy. 20. Florence Agricultural Society. C 21. American Academy of Arts and Sciences. • o TT -. J o. . ) 22. Historical Society of New York. 12. United States. < „„ „, ., j t ,¦ a ¦ . e i, • ,. J 2o. Philadelphia Society or Agriculture. C 24. The Maryland Agricultural Society *. 1 3. West Indies. 25. Agricultural Society of Santa Cruz. » Nothing could be more gratifying to a person ambitious of reputation, as a benefactor to his fellow creatures, than the approbation of the rising erapire of America. To have my Code of Agriculture reprinted in that country, — to have excited there a degree of attention to that useful science, never feb in it before, — to have been the means of establishing a Board of Agriculture in the United States, — and to have been the correspondent of Washington, on subjects con nected with the culture of the soil, are sufficient to gratify the ambition of any one who has devoted hiraself so much to the pursuits of agriculture. It is singular, the strong manner in which foreigners have expressed their respect for the Author of the Code of Agriculture, by bestowing on him the fol lowing epithets: — " Le Premier Agronome de I' Europe ;" — " te Patriarchede 1' Agriculture Anghise ,-" — " le Grand Pretre de Ceres " — " et le Heros de I'Eco- nomie Hurale." INTRODUCTION. XXV 6. — PARLIAMENTARY PROCEEDINGS. In 1780, when in the twenty-sixth year of iny age, I was unanimously elected the representative of my native county of Caithness, and continued a member of the House, with the exception of a short interval, till July 1811, a period of near ly thirty years. I then resigned my seat, and was succeeded by my eldest son, George Sinclair, Esq. Caithness being only alternatively represented in the British Parliament, I was, whilst its turn of representation ceased, chosen for the boroughs of Lestwithiel in CornwaU, and of Petersfield in Hampshire. During the time I was a member, I brought forward a num ber of useful measures, which I either proposed myself, or prevailed on the minister to adopt. In 1782, I was the means of procuring public aid, for re scuing from the horrors of famine, a tract of country, in the northern parts of Scotland, inhabited by no less a number than 110,000 souls; and by the measures then taken, the progress of disease, misery, and famine was happily arrested. In 1793, I proposed in Parliament, the establishment of a Board of Agriculture, an institution over which I presided a number of years, and to which the country is in a great measure indebted, for its rapid advancement in rural and agri cultural affairs. A common fortress was thus erected for the benefit of aU agriculturists, to which each, as the circumstances of the case might require, could resort for advice and protec tion. By means of this institution, reports were drawn up, describing accurately the agricultural state of every county throughout the united kingdom; — above 2,200,000 acres were added to the cultivation of the kingdom, — and several useful laws were enacted. During the scarcity that prevailed in 1795-6, I made a motion in the House of Commons, for the appointment of a select committee, to inquire into the state of the waste lands of the kingdom ; and strongly recommended a general bill of in closure, " to preclude the recurrence of a similar calamity in future ; to cut up famine by the roots ; to prevent its again XXVI INTRODUCTION. appearing within the boundaries of these islands; and by which, the granting of any bounties on the importation of foreign grain, might be rendered unnecessary." All these great objects, I maintained, might be effected, by cultivating the waste, uninclosed and unproductive lands ofthe kingdom. But after a biU for the attainment of this important measure had passed the House of Commons, it was thrown out by the Lords. I exerted myself successfully, to improve the laws regard ing the highways of the kingdom, and to introduce a better system of police in regard to public conveyances ; and it is a circumstance highly gratifying to me, that the reports pre sented by me to Parliament, were the means by which the system ofthe celebrated Macadam, was originally recommend ed to public attention. In 1797, the minister proposed to give to the subscribers, to what was called the loyalty loan, a long annuity of 7s. 6d. per cent. After a division in favour of that measure, and when every one considered any farther opposition as useless, I suc cessfully opposed it in the next stage of the bill, and was thus the means of saving above half a miUion sterUng to the na tion. On my suggestion, in 1793, Mr Pitt proposed in ParUament, the appointment of Parliamentary Commissioners, to manage the issue of Exchequer biUs, for the relief of the commercial interest, a plan which was found peculiarly useful at that cri tical period. I was nominated one of the Commissioners, and greatly promoted the success of the measure. For these various public services, I was promoted, under the adrainistration of Mr Perceval, to the rank of a Privy Councillor, and was afterwards appointed Cashier of the Ex cise in Scotland, an office incompatible with a seat in Parlia ment *. * By living on the salary of this ofiBce, (£.2000 per annum), and applying the whole rents of the family estate, in discharging the incumbrances aflfecting it, I have been enabled to pay debts contracted in promoting the improvement of the country, without matsrially diminishing the amount of the original estate. INTRODUCTION. XXVII 7. JllLITARY EXERTIONS. In compliance with the wishes of Government, in 1794, I 'raised a Regiment of Fencibles, consisting of 600 men, the first of that description of force levied for the service of Great Britain, Fencible corps having been formerly restricted to the defence of Scotland. I afterwards raised another battalion of 1000 men for the service of Ireland. These corps behaved in so exemplary a manner, as to receive, both from the general officers who reviewed them, and the districts where they were quartered, the strongest testimonies of their good behaviour and services *. Two hundred and twenty soldiers belonging to the second battalion, volunteered to join the expedition to Egypt, a greater number than was furnished by any regiment on that memorable occasion. 8. THE PRO-AIOTION OF PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS. There is no duty more incumbent upon a person anxious to promote the prosperity of a country, than to encourage those pubUc institutions which are established for useful purposes. I became a member, therefore, of the Royal and Antiquarian Societies of London, — of the Royal Society of Scotland, — of the Society for the Extension of the British Fisheries, — and of a variety of institutions, calculated to further agricultural and other improvements. I also took an active part in the estabUshment of two insurance companies in London, " The Globe," and " The Rock ;" with a view of enabling persons, possessed of incomes depending on their own Uves, to provide for their wives and families. I was partial to the establish- * These regiments were so well regulated, by a peculiar system which I had adopted, and such attention was paid to their health, as to excite the astonish ment of those, whose duty it was to examine into their state. When the i st battalion was disbanded at Burntsfield Links, near Edinburgh, by General 'Vyse, there was not a sick man in the whole corps ; every individual was able to bring his arms to the field, and deliver them in person. When the 2d battalion was reviewed at Cork, by the late Lord Lake, there was scarcely a sick man up on the list ; and the noble Lord declared, " That though he had often heard be fore of regiments of a thousand men, he had never seen one, till he had review ed Sir John Sinclair's corps of Highlanders." xxviii '-'»¦' -•.^''¦•-' ,-• INTRODUCTION. ment of corporations, and other pubUc institutions of a simUar nature, were it only as furnishing the means of caUing forth exertions, and rewarding merit. The unwearied labours of Mr Arthur Young, to promote the agricultural improvement of the country, would have remained without any pUbUc re compense, had not the establishment of the Board of Agricul ture given me an opportunity of recommending him to be secretary of the new institution ; and the pubUc, in a great measure, owe the discoveries of a Davy, to the formation of the Royal Institution, which Count Rumford founded, but which was placed on a permanent footing, by an act which I was the means of carrying through ParUament. 9. LITERARY LABOURS. The foUo'wing is a short account of the most important U- terary works I have pubUshed, either written by myself, or drawn up by others under my directions. 1. Observations on the Scottish Dialect, in one volume octavo, printed at Edinburgh, an. 1782. This work was drawn up, with a view of diminishing, as much as possible, the distinction between the two nations, in regard to language. In Chap. 4, the plan of " a Bri tish Code of Laws'' was first suggested, (in the preliminary observa tions to an explanation of the difference between the legal words and phrases of the two countries) ; and the authority of Bacon is quoted in support of the plan of " a judicial union *." 2. Lucubrations during a short recess, with some Thoughts on the Means of improving the Representation of the People. Printed at London 1782. This tract was answered by the first Lord Camel ford, and by others, in a manner extremely flattering to the Author. 3. Thoughts on the Naval Strength of the British Empire, in an swer to the late Lord Mulgrave, then one of the Lords of the Admi ralty, in which the grounds of the superiority of the British Navy, over that of France, are explained. This tract was also printed anno 1782. 4. Considerations on Militias and Standing Armies, printed anno * See Lord Bacon's Speech concerning the Union of Laws, and his excel lent observations on the Union between England and Scotland. See also Mr Justice Barrington on the Ancient Statutes, Appendix, p. 499. 1 N T R 0 D U C T 1 0 N^^^'^ liil- *^^^^j3jJ^;l X 1782; containing some observations on the propriety of establishing a Militia in Scotland, a measure which was afterwards adopted. 5. A tract, entitled, " The Propriety of retaining Gibraltar im partially considered." Printed anno 1783. This being published ano nymously, was, by many, attributed to the first Lord Camelford. 6. In 1791, I printed an Address to the Landed Interest, on the Corn Bill theu depending in Parliament. 7. Having published in 1783, " Hints on the State of our Finances," in answer to Dr Price and Lord Stair, I was afterwards led to en gage in a laborious undertaking, that of writing a history of the pub lic revenue of the Biitish empire, from the most remote eras, to the conclusion of the war terminated by the treaty of Amiens. The third edition of this work, including an analysis of the sources of public re venue, was printed in three volumes octavo, anno 1804. 8. In 1802, I printed a volume of Miscellaneous Essays on Agri culture, and other topics. In this volume, I discussed, for the first time, the subjects of health and longevity, to which I afterwards paid such particular attention. 9. It was in the year 1790, that I began that great and laborious undertaking, " The Statistical Account of Scotland," which, after a correspondence during the space of seven years, with all the clergy of Scotland, amounting to nearly one thousand, I was fortunately able to complete in the year 1799, and it is now published in twenty-one volumes octavo. An analysis or compendium of the whole, has since been published, in one volume octavo, as the best foundation of a Code of Political Economy. In reference to this work, the celebra ted Malthus, in his Essay on the Principles of Population, states, " That the valuable accounts which the Author of the Statistical Ac count of Scotland has collected in that part of the island, do him the highest honour, and will ever remain an extiaordinary monument of the learning, good sense, and general information of the Clergy of Scotland. That work, with a few subordinate improvements, and accurate and complete registers for the last 150 years, (which how ever no diligence could haveTsffected), would have been inestimable, and would have exhibited a better picture of the internal state of a country, than has yet been presented to the world." (See the edition of Malthus's Essay, ann. 1803, p. 13, note.) 10. In the year 1795, I drew up for the Board of Agriculture, an account of the northern districts of Scotland, namely, the counties of xxx INTRODUCTION. Ross, Sutherland, Caithness, Orkney, and Shetland ; and previously to my quitting the presidency of the Board, by unwearied exertions, the agricultural survey of the whole kingdom of Great Britain, in ten volumes quarto, was completed. These original surveys were not published, being only considered as a foundation for the corrected re ports of the different counties, the whole of which have since been printed, under the auspices of the Board, and under my immediate direction ; an undertaking of unparalleled labour, the reports being written by a number of individuals, (with each of whom it was ne cessary to carry on a correspondence), and the whole work compre hending about " SEVENTY VOLUMES" octavo. The General Report of Scotland, drawn up from these county re ports, in so far as they regarded the northern part of the kingdom, was printed in five volumes octavo ; and was intended as an example, for the publication of a similar work in England. 11. I have also printed a work in four volumes octavo, entitled, " The Code of Health and Longevity," which furnishes ample infor mation regarding these interesting topics. From the celebrity which it attained, the first volume, which contains the substance of the whole inquiry, has already been translated into several languages on the Con tinent, and has gone through four editions in this country. 12. Nor have I been inattentive to the departraent of poetry. It is well known, that the existence of Ossian, the celebrated Celtic bard, had long been the subject of dispute ; and that the possibility of producing the Galic originals, of the poems which M'Pherson had published in English, was positively denied. The originals having come into the possession of the Highland Society of London, I was placed, by that respectable Society, at the head of a committee to su perintend their publication ; which, after surmounting many difficul ties, was at last accomplished. To this curious and important publi cation, there is prefixed a dissertation, in which I have proved, on the most convincing evidence, that M'Pherson was only the translator, and not the author of " Ossian's Poems." Some of this evidence (as the existence of a manuscript of Ossian, at the college of Douay, pre vious to M'Pherson's publication), I was the means of bringing to light. 13. At the desire of my friend, Sir Joseph Banks, I composed a work on the Husbandry of Scotland, the object of which was, to ex plain to the farmers of England, the agricultural practices of Scodand, INTRODUCTION. XXXI some of which may be found entitled to adoption in several districts south of the Tweed. To render the work more complete, I thought it necessary, not only to correspond with all the most intelligent far mers in Scotland, but also to visit tbe more improved districts, and to inspect the different farms in person, along with the farmers by whom they were cultivated. The result of so extensive and so careful au investigation has proved highly beneficial. 14. Tbe answer I published to the report of the Bullion Commit tee, was esteemed of considerable public importance. The Coramittee had recommended, that the Bank of England should be again compel led to resume its payments in cash. Being convinced of the impracti cability of enforcing such a plan, and the mischief that would result, were the adoption of it even to be attempted, I was induced to prepare " An Answer to the Report of the Committee ;'' which, coming from one who had paid so much attention to these subjects, and the doc trines which it contained, being supposed analogous to those which were entertained by his Majesty's Ministers, tended materially to dis sipate any alarm regarding the solidity of our paper currency, and to establish a deep conviction, ofthe necessity of maintaining it unaltered, at least till the war had terminated. 15. For some time past, my attention has been chiefly occupied, in anxious endeavours to explain to the country, the mischiefs that would result, from the establishment of a metallic currency, and the admission of foreign grain. The system which I endeavoured to inculcate, was contained in this short maxim, " That no country can be either happy at home, or respected abroad, unless it is independent of all other countries for circulation and food.'' I am persuaded that those ministers who act on different principles, are convinced of the superior policy of the system which they support, by an adherence to whicb they are satisfied, that they are most effectually promoting the public interest, though their systera has not hitherto produced the advantageous con sequences they expected from it *. • The following is a list of my hterary undertakings, containing, not only those written by myself, but those drawn up by others, under ray directions, and edited by me : XXxil INTRODUCTION. 10. TRAVELS. There are few individuals who have traveUed more through foreign countries, or at a period of life, when greater advantage is to be reaped from visiting them. In the course of those fo reign journeys, I had an opportunity of obtaining information regarding two points of considerable moment. The first was, the nature of the improved machines for coining money, in vented by Monsieur Droz, a native of Switzerland. They were at that time unknown in England. I prevailed on M. Droz to explain his plans to Mr Boulton of Birmingham, and was thus the means of introducing this superior mode of coinage into the British Mint. I brought over, at the same time, discoveries of stiU great er importance. Having become intimate with Monsieur Clouet, Director of the Royal Establishment for making gun powder at Paris, I prevailed upon him to explain the nature 1. Personal Works. No. of volumes. 1. Observations on the Scottish Dialect, 2. Various Tracts on the Navy, the Militia, &c 3. History of the Revenue, 3 4. Miscellaneous Essays, 5. Husbandry of Scotland, 6. Tracts on the Bullion Question, 7. Tracts on the Authenticity of Ossian 8. Code of Health, (first edition *), 4 9. Code of Agriculture, 10. Analysis of the Statistical Account of Scotland, 16 2. 'Works in general drawn up hy others, hut printed under my directions. 1. The Statistical Account of Scotland, 21 2. County Agricultural Reports, in quarto, ]0 3. The County Reports of England and Scotland, in octavo, 70 4. The General Report of Scotland, 5 105 Total number of volumes, 122 It is now reduced to one volume octavo. INTRODUCTION. XXXUI of some very important processes in that manufacture, which were thus speedily introduced in this country. In 1786-7, I took a very extensive journey through the northern parts of Europe, which it was necessary to complete in seven or eight months, or between the end of one session of ParUament, and the commencement of another. An abstract of this journey is given in the foUowing table : 1786. May 29. Left London. 30. Embarked at Gravesend. June 16. Landed at Gottenburgh. 22. Arrived at Copenhagen. at Stockholm. July 11. Aug. 1. 8. Sept. 10. - at Riga. . at Petersburgh. • at Moscow.In all, about seven months and a half. Sept. 23. Oct. 1.17. Nov. 8. Dec. 5. 23. 29. 1787. Jan. 16. Arrived at Kiew. at Warsaw. at Vienna. at Berlin. ——^ at Amsterdam. -^-^^ at Brussels. at Paris. at London. The whole extended to about 7500 English miles. How ever short the time may appear, yet I found it possible, by great activity and perseverance, even in so short a period as from seven to eight months, to see the objects the best en titled to attention, and the persons the most distinguished for their power, their beauty, or their talents, in the greater, and, (what is justly accounted), the most interesting part of Eu rope. In the course of this journey, I established a correspon dence 'with the celebrated Count Hertzberg of Prussia, Count Bernstoif, Prime Minister to the King of Denmark, Count Marcoif, the Russian Minister, M. de Buffon, and many of the most distinguished Uterary and poUtical characters on the Continent. Of these travels, some account wiU be given in the second volume of this correspondence. CONCLUSION. On the Plans which are still in the Author's Contemplation. After so many years of incessant labour, the publication of so many works, on such a variety of subjects, my having re- XX.XIV INTRODUCTION. cently entered into the seventy-seventh year of my age, and having so numerous a family as thirteen children, and four teen grand-children, many would recommend a life of retire ment and repose ; but various reasons have induced me to re solve on a diiferent plan. 1. I find that a life of inactivity and idleness is the most irksome of any ; and I am persuaded that an active mind de generates, unless some great objects be kept in view ; 2. From the attention I have paid to the subjects of health and lon gevity, I find that I am still capable of great exertion, either personal or mental : and, 3. I have for some time been em ployed in coUecting the materials of some works, as the Au thor of which I wish to have my name handed down to pos terity, looking upon those I have hitherto published, with two exceptions, (the Codes of Agriculture and Health), as of inferior value. On aU these grounds, I have been induced to undertake completing what I caU " Tlie Codean System of Literature," comprehending four great works: 1. A Code or Digest of Agriculture ; 2. A Code of Health and Longevity ; 3. A Code of Political Economy, founded on statistical in quiries ; and, 4. A Code or Digest of Religion. The two first of these works having been already printed, only require to be revised; and the materials of the two latter having been collected, and a plan for drawing them up having been arranged, the principal diificulties in regard to their pubUcation have been surmounted. 1.33. Gcorce Street, Edinburgli, 1830. PART I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCES. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCES, THE EMPEROR JOSEPH. Audience ofthe Emperor Joseph, aud Remarks on his Pr'imttc und Public Character. On the '22d October 1786, I had the honour of being pre sented to the Emperor Joseph, then in the 45th year of his age. The hour was early, (eleven o'clo6k). There was very Uttle ceremony at his court. Some guards were stationed in the anti-rooms ; but there were very few persons in waiting, and only one chamberlain. I was presented by that eminent diplomatic character. Sir Robert Murray Keith, the British Ambassador at Vienna. The Emperor was alone. The first question he asked, and one which was usuaUy put by him to aU strangers, was, " D'ou venez-vous f I answered, " De Russie," as I understood that he preferred talking of Russia rather than of Poland. " Vous avez fait un grand voyage dans le Nord," he rejoined, having, it seems, heard of my recent travels. He then inquired, what route I had taken through Russia to Vienna ? What I thought of the fertility ofthe Ukraine ? &c. He next spoke of his bro- a2 4 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL ther the Archduke, and of his voyage to England, and men tioned how much he and the Archduchess were gratified with their reception in that country; adding-, T7ta^ they preferred London to Paris. He said, that the Archduke had seen at Portsmouth, " une chose unique," — 4000 pieces of cannon ranged together. The audience lasted for about half an hour. The conversation principaUy regarded Russia, but he also made some inquiries regarding the agriculture of England. I had been forewarned by Sir Robert, that the usual signal of an audience being over, was for the Emperor to rub his hands. Upon observing that signal we withdrew. The Emperor had nothing striking in his appearance, and would have passed unobserved, either in the street, or in a drawing-room. I found, that a higher idea of him was enter tained in England than abroad, at least where I heard his cha racter talked of. At the same time, there were many favour able circumstances in his private character, which I have much pleasure in enumerating. He was bred in the school of adversity ; for his mother, the Empress Queen, kept him at a great distance, aUowing him but a very Umited income, and giving a decided preference to another brother, his junior, who died yoimg. This treat ment the Emperor often talked of as a very fortunate circum stance, as it taught him many useful habits. It prevented him from growing either indolent or eifeminate. He became, on the contrary, remarkable for pmictuaUty in business, and endeavoured to have every moment usefully employed. " I must make up, (he used to say), for the three years I lost in my father's antichamber," where his constant attendance was required, and where he was kept in waiting imtU every other person was dismissed. He was accustomed, however, to enter by far too much into minutiae, which is derogatory to the dignity of a sovereign. Even the old shoes and stock ings of his troops were very strictly looked after. He was distinguished for activity. In the summer of 1786, without any necessity, he went a journey of 3000 EngUsh miles. He CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCES. 5 took twenty persons with him, of whom thirtcoii were laid np, with various complaints, in consequence of so fatiguing an expedition, and he himself was in a very indiiferont state of health for some time after his return. He was very attentive to matters of police. The principal towns were well lighted, and under good regulation. All over his dominions the roads were in exceUent order, and as good as in England, with barrieres cr turnpikes. The inns were very tolerable, and they had good horses and drivers. Robberies very rarely happened, and travellers went with equal safety by night as by day, through all parts of his dominions, with the excep tion of the Bannat of Transylvania, where no tra\'eller was se cure, unless he was conducted from one village to another by armed peasants ; to insure whose fidelity, they were made an swerable for the safety of their charge, with their Uves. He was reckoned by his own subjects severe, and even hard hearted. He has been known to aggravate, and not to miti gate the sentences of courts-martial; and, in consequence of his express orders, they have been compelled to increase the punishments they had ordered. He abolished, however, in a great measure, the punishment of death, and malefactors were condemned to clean the streets, working in chains, which, to persons of humanity, was a spectacle of a most disagreeable kind. He obtained great popularity by receiving petitions, even from his meanest subjects, at a certain place in the palace ap pointed for them to stand at, and to which he came personally by a private passage. Sometimes the finest young women in Vienna attended, under pretence of having grievances to be redressed. This often gave occasion for scandal. But he al ways said that he was determined to keep no mistress, lest she should acquire an ascendancy over him ; and, as to debauch ing women of condition, he thought such practices in the high est degree unworthy of a sovereign. He occasionally mixed in private society, where he appear ed to great advantage, being an entertaining and agreeable 6 I. I.MPERIAL AND ROYAL companion ; in particular, an exceUent story-teUer. He was always ready, (having a carriage and horses in waiting), to at tend in person, in case of fire, or any other accident; and some poor people, being on one occasion likely to be drowned in the Danube, a cobler said, " He would bring the Emperor to save them ;" which he actuaUy did, much to the monarch's credit. He occasionaUy amused himself with discussing the modern philosophical discoveries in regard to the nature of air, &c. with the celebrated Dr Ingenhouze ; and he behaved with much generosity to the famous Baron Bom, having permitted him, not only to publish his discoveries in mineralogy, but to teach persons, from any foreign country, their nature and ef fects. In private Ufe, therefore, his character was greatly su perior to what it was usually considered to be. His pubUc character was not so respectable. He was full of projects of aggrandizement, in which he never succeeded. He first attempted to conquer Bavaria, but immediately drew back at the threats of the Prussian eagle. He next intended to open the Scheldt, but gave up that idea when France decla red itself hostUe to the project ; and he likevnse renounced his intention of exchanging the Netherlands, in consequence of the bold, decisive, but judicious opposition he met with from " The Germanic League.'" It is certain that he was anxious to signalize his reign by some important conquest; and for that purpose he entered into the most intimate con nexion with the Empress Catherine, with a view of conquer ing Turkey, and dividing its European dominions between them. As to England, he had conceived some strong prejudices against it, in so much, that when any of his subjects wished to visit it, he generally refused them leave. — " What is there to be seen in that country," (he said), " that may not be seen elsewhere ?" He afterwards, however, altered his tone. He permitted Count Bergen and his son to proceed to England, in the summer of 1786 ; and when the Archduke and Arch duchess had visited the country, and gi\'cn a very flattering ac- CORRESPONDENCE .\ND REiUINISOENCES. 7 count of their journey, tho Emperor expressed a wish that he had been of the party. During the encampment in 1786, he one day sent for Colonel Gordon, a respectable EngUsh oificer, to sit next him at table, and had much interesting conversation with him. He told him, '• Your King does not like Germany, at least Upper Germany. Had I been well used by England, it might have depended upon my friendship, and it would never have lost America." He certainly might have prevented France fi-om aiding the revolted colonies, without which they would scarcely have persevered in the contest, or succeeded in the attempt. Nothing could exceed the negligence of the EngUsh government to its diplomatic concerns with the court of Vienna. Sir Robert M. Keith assured me, that for weeks his letters remained unanswered ; and he wished that his court would only send him large packets of old newspapers, the re ceipt of which would have given him some consequence in the eyes of the Austrian government ; whereas he was sometimes, for weeks together, without receiving any communication what ever. Is it to be wondered at, that, with such culpable negli gence, our foreign aifairs should, in those times, have been unsuccessfully conducted ? II. THE EMPRESS CATHERINE. Audience ofthe Empress Catherine, and Reminiscences of her Character. On the 25th August 1786, I had the honour of being presented to this great sovereign. The court commenced about half past eleven. The rooms were filled with about 400 courtiers. At twelve the Empress came from her private apartments to go to mass. A lane was made for her and her 8 I. IMPERIAL AND EOYAL suite. She was preceded by the Princess Dashkow and six or seven other ladies. The reason why there were no mote present, was, that the ladies only came when the court was held in the evening, unless when they attended officiaUy. Count Czernichew, vice-president of the admiralty, took me to the chapel to hear mass. It was a very poor building for such a ceremony ; but the priests, with their long beards, and rich vestments, made a striking and imposing appear ance. The Empress stood by herself, and went through all the ceremonies with great decorum. When the service was over, I went to the haU where strangers were introduced, and was presented to Prince Potemkin. He was taU, (about six feet two,) and distinguished, not only by his height, but by the strength and manliness of his appearance. His coun tenance was not unpleasant, when he was disposed to be agree able. He entered with great aifability into conversation with me, which was uncommon at a first introduction. He spoke with much contempt of the King of Sweden. He afterwards talked of my intended journey to Poland, where he had great estates ; and expressed a wish that I should give him some advice how to improve them. The return of the Em press being announced, the foreign ministers, and those stran gers who had been already presented, kissed her hand. I was then introduced by Count Osterman. She asked me how I came to Petersburgh ? — if I had had a pleasant voyage ? — and added, that she hoped I would find my stay in Russia agree able. A Swedish oificer, and some of her own subjects, were afterwards introduced; but she spoke to none of them. In short, I found, that I had met with what was considered to be a most gracious reception, as she hardly spoke to any, but per sons of considerable distinction. The court had faUen oif much from its ancient splendour. To check the spirit of luxury and expense, provincial, and even oificial uniforms had been introduced, and none but foreigners were richly habited. The mode of Uving adopted by the Empress was extremely regular. She rose between six and seven, and dedicated the CORRESPONDENCE AND REMI.NISCENCES. 9 morning entirely to business. She dined about one, and after dinner retired to her cabinet. The evening was devoted to amusements of a general nature, either at the theatre, or in the palace, with a select company of her private friends. Her information, particularly in regard to political subjects, was very general and extensive. The instructions written by her oic.'i hand, for drawing up a code of laws, is a most extraordi nary performance for a woman ; being, I believe, the only in stance extant of female judicial legislation *. I have seen her correspondence with the famous Buifon, which proves how well she was acquainted with philosophical subjects. She knew the French beUes lettres perfectly, and, in 1786, was read ing Shakespeare in the German translation. She also wrote comedies herself; and in any part of the world would have been accounted, in private life, a most accomplished woman. Her skUl in government was great. In any progress through her dominions, she suifered the meanest peasant to address her ; and they universaUy caUed her by the friendly and emphatic name of Matouskin, or Mother. To the army, and to the guards in particular, she was very attentive ; and on certain fixed days dined at a table with the oiScers of the diiferent corps. Neither was the church neglected ; for besides much attention to individuals of character and respect in that order, and a strict performance of aU the outward forms of religion, she proved her zeal and devotion, by working, with her own hands, as the priests beUeved or asserted, the most magnificent vestments, for the use of the principal ecclesiastics of her em pire, when they celebrated pid)lic worship on any important festival. She had a number of personal favourites, to whom she was ^ery liberal. She was particularly attached to Landskoi, and attended him personally during his sickness, like a wife. * Upon examining the original MS., which is carefully preserved in the re positories of the Imperial Academy of Sciences, I observed, that the whole of it was not published. The following paragraph, in particular, upon the subject of marriage, was omitted : " Les filles sont assez portecs au mariage. Ce sont les garyons fju'i! faut encouiager. " 10 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL She was, for some time, as inconsolable for him as Elizabeth of England was for Essex. It is said, that he was the hand somest man that coidd be seen ; but naturaUy of so weak a constitution, that he was unable to support the Ufe of a cour tier. Potemkin made the quickest of aU possible journeys from the Crimea, in order to console her. He came in a hibicki, or common cart, the whole way. Rushing into her apartment, he said, " What is the matter with my Empress?" and when she answered, that she was weeping for the death of Landskoi, he repUed, " Why, he was a fool." " Ah !" said the Empress, " but he had an honest heart." To her ministers she was very liberal, and in general fol lowed their advice, except when she chose to let them feel, that there were times when she preferred being both her own, and their mistress. When left entirely to herself, and com peUed to determine on matters of importance, it is said that she was apt to betray some versatUity and weakness. When I visited her court, she was pufled up, beyond all boimds, by the success of her reign, and the consideration in which she was held by every power in Europe. She cer tainly in her heart preferred the EngUsh to the French, and the Danes to the Swedes. In regard to the Germans, it was more from personal attachment to the Emperor, and their joint views upon Turkey, than from a fuU conviction of the poHcy of the measure, that she preferred the Austrian to the Pnis- sian aUiance. III. THE EMPEROR PAUL. Letter from his Imperial Highness the Grand Duke of Russia, afterwards the Emperor Paul, to Sir John Sinclair, respecting the Statistical Account of Scotland, and the Improvement of Wool. J'ai re^n. Monsieur, avec votre lettre du 15. Mai, I'Etat PoUtique de I'Ecosse, et les questions sur les diiferentes CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCES. 11 I'speces de brcliis, dont je V(nis fais mes rcmerciemens ; ot on applaudissant aux vues d'utilite quo ces pieces ronfermeiit, je suis, Monsieur, avec une tres })arfaite cstime, Votre aifectionne, /arscocelo, ^ PaUI. * CO 17. Juillet 1792, ' v. S. S .V Monsieur Jolin Sinclair, Whitehall, Londres. Account of a Visit paid by Sir John Sinclair to the Emperor Paul, when Grand Duke of Rttssia, at his Palace of Pauloski, on fhe 3lsf of August 1786. I arrived at Pauloski, (25 ^ersts f from Petersburgh), at twelve A. JI. About one I had the honour to be introduced to the Grand Duke and Duchess, and met with a most gratifying reception. An hour after we sat down to dinner. I was pla ced opposite the Grand Duke and Duchess, that we might converse more freely ; and as the table, for the sake of greater sociality, was remarkably narrow, (with only one row of dishes in the centre), there was peculiar facility in carrying on conversation. During dinner, the Grand Duke said, that he greatly preferred the Scotch breed of horses, and wished me to procure for him a horse from that country. I begged to mention, that there were ^-arions breeds in Scotland, and * Translation. Sir, I have received, with your letter of the 15th of May, your account of the Political State of Scotland, and your reraarks on the various species of sheep, for which I return you my thanks ; and applauding your attention to the useful objects to which these papers relate, I am, with the most perfect esteem. Your affectionate, Paul. Zarscocelo, ^ 17lh July 1792, C Old .Style. ) To M. John Sinclair, Whitehall, London. j- ,\bout 19 Engli^l) miles. 1-2 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL that it was impossible for me to judge which sort his Imperial Highness meant, unless I saw the one he preferred. He was thence induced, when dinner was over, to order his favourite charger to be brought to the court-yard, where he mounted him, and, with evident satisfaction, shewed aU his paces *. In the afternoon, I had the honour of attending the Grand Duke and Duchess over their grounds, which were laid out according to the improved English system. We passed a field of barley, of the sort called in Scotland bear or big, which was then ripening, and the Grand Duchess, pulling one of the ripest ears, said, " Sir, take this ear, and try if such grain wiU grow in your country." Unfortunately the ear was lost before I arrived in Scotland. They pressed me with much earnestness to stay supper, and all night. Previous en gagements, which I could not dispense vidth, prevented my accepting this flattering invitation ; but I shall always recoUect, with pecuUar pleasure, my visit to Pauloski. The figure of the Grand Duke was not much in his favour. He was rather diminutive in size, and his nose and face were flatter than is usual in the more southern parts of Europe. He had indeed a good deal of the Tartar in his physiognomy. The expression of his countenance, however, was not then so unpleasing as it afterwards became, when his furious pas sions, which had been kept under complete subjection by ma ternal authority, burst forth. In consequence of some un guarded speeches he had made, the Empress behaved to hira with great coolness at that time, and woidd hardly permit his' name to be mentioned in her presence. His two eldest sons, Alexander and Constantine, (the little Grand Dukes, as they were caUed), were educated entirely by the Empress, and were constantly with her, being in a manner retained as hos tages for their father's fidelity. * I afterwards found that the horse was thorough bred, and had been pur chased from Mr Angelo, the riding-master at Edinburgh. I endeavoured, when I returned to Scotland, to get such another horse, but unsuccessfully. CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCKS. 13 The Grand Duke had, with much prudence, decidedly dis couraged some hints artfully insinuated, tiiat it was full time for him to demand possession of the Crown from his mother, who had evidently usurped it. "¦ 1 wiU never furnish my son," (he said), " with any apology for conspiring to dethrone me." This wise determination was in a great measure owing to his preceptor, Count Panin, ^\'ho had public spirit enough, when on his deathbed, to send for the Grand Duke, and conjure him, by every thing he held dear and sacred, never to attempt dethroning his mother. '' Russia," he said, " had already suifered sufficiently by past revolutions ; and were they not now put a stop to, they might never cease." The Grand Duchess, (Maria, daughter of Eugene, Duke of Wirtemberg), was, when I saw her, beautifid in the ex treme, and remarkable for the superior elegance and fasci nating aifabUity of her manners. The Empress Catherine was very jealous of her superior beauty, and could not bear that the Grand Duke and Duchess should rival their Sovereign, in the decorations of their palaces, — the disposition of their grounds, — the ornaments of their gardens, — or any splendid display of taste. It is highly gratifying to me to recoUect, that I never met any where with a more gracious reception than at Pauloski. The master and mistress of a private gentleman's family could not have been more attentive. It was a pleasing spectacle to see the future possessors of so great an empire, living at their country residence, in the unostentatious style of any noble fa mily ; and as fond of showing their crops, temples, cascades, grottoes, &c. to an entire stranger, as if they had nothing else to boast of. 14 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL IV. AUDIENCE OF THE EMPEROR ALEXANDER. Letter from the Cutint Lieven, the Russian Ambassador at the British Court. Count Lieven presents his compliments to Sir John Sin^ clair, and begs to inform him, that the Emperor wiU receive him to-morrow, (Tuesday), at three o'clock p. M. at the Pul teney Hotel. Harley Street, 7 Monday, 20th June. \ The Emperor was alone in his cabinet, when I was present ed, (June 21. 1814), dressed in a green uniform, with an open, pleasant, and good-humoured countenance, and with an appearance manly and interesting. He did not seem in the least aifected by aU the fatigues he had undergone, though I saw him in the morning after the grand ball at White's. He under,stood EngUsh when addressed to him, and spoke it with out hesitation, but preferred conversing in French. He said, on my entrance, " That he was happy to make the acquaintance of one who had paid so much attention to agriculture." On my mentioning, " That I had once had the honour of seeing his Imperial Majesty at St Petersburgh;" he asked, " If I should have known him now ?" To which I answered, " Tliat it was in the year 1786, twenty-eight years ago, when he was only about nine years of age, and that the change since was very great." He then said, " That the culture of hemp was the great object of Russian agriculture, and that he wished much to know, whether any improvements had been made in regard to that article, or flax ?" I an swered, " That very great discoveries had recently been made, in the culture and preparation, both of hemp and flax. It was ascertained, that after the flax seed was sown, if double the quantity of common salt, in proportion to the seed CORRESPONDENCi; .\ND REMINISCENCE.S. 15 sown, were strewed over the surtaco of the ground, a crop, iu every other respect treated in tho usual manner, would be greatly increased in quantity, and improved in quaUty." I had brought with me specimens of flax of that year's growth, cultivated both with and \i'ithout salt, which he examined, and was surprised at the evident superiority of the salted, over the unsalted flax. I then said, " It was believed that salting hemp would answer equaUy well." I next stated, " That great improvements had likewise been made in preparing hemp and flax, which rendered it un necessary to steep these plants in ;vater, a tedious and hazar dous process. By the new plan, no risk was incurred, the colour was better, and the whole strength of the fibre was preserved." He seemed very much pleased with the speci mens shewn him of these improvements. I then produced samples of the patent machines for carding flax or hemp, invented by one Stead, near Edinburgh, which completed all the operations necessary, preparatory to the spinning process. He said that he had seen, he thought, some invention of the same nature, since he had arrived in England. He farther stated, that any improvements in the cul ture or preparation of hemp were of such importance to his dominions, that he requested me to send an account of them as soon as they occurred ; adding, that he would not pretend to much knowledge of these branches himself, but that he wished to keep the specimens, to communicate to some intel ligent persons, with whom he consulted regarding those points. The subject to which I next caUed his Majesty's attention, was the Statistical Account of Scotland, in which he appeared to take much interest. He examined minutely the tables in which the climate of Scotland was treated of; the extent of ground cidtivated and uncultivated ; the number of acres under the difi'erent crops ; the produce of each, &c. &c. He seemed much pleased with these details ; requested a copy of the ta bles ; and regretted that it had not been in his power to visit that country. 16 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL I then explained to his Majesty the nature of the " Statis tical Pyramid," by which inquiries were first carried on up on a broad basis, beginning with every parish in a kingdom, then narrowed to each county or province, and ultimately con densed into a general view of the political circumstances of a country ; a mode of obtaining information which he seemed to consider as of a superior description. The conversation having turned on the miUtary services of Scotland, his Majesty pronounced a warm eulogium on that weU-lmown corps, " The Scotch Greys," which had frequently attended him. He said, that it was impossible to have a finer corps in any service. He then asked, whether aU the horses in the regiment were brfed in Scotland. I answered, " Not aU ; but that Scotch horses were preferred when they could be got." Upon my taking leave, he said, " That he regretted much the shortness of his stay in England, which prevented him from paying the attention he would otherwise have given to inqui ries of an agricultural nature ; but that he would always be hap py to hear from me regarding those subjects, through the me dium of his ambassador, the Count Lieven." The audience, which occupied about thirty minutes, gave me a very high idea of the Emperor's politeness as a gentleman ; of his an xiety for the acquisition of useful knowledge ; of his zeal to promote the improvement of his dominions ; and of his fitness for the exalted station in which he was placed. V. GEORGE THE THIRD. His late Majesty, (George HI.), occupied a farm at Wind sor, to which he paid much attention. He certainly was more attached to the pursuits of agriculture, than any of his prede cessors on the throne of England, of which the foUowing let ter, regarding the proceedings of the Board of Agriculture, CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCES. 17 written by the Honoiirablo R. F. GroviUe, his private Sooro- tiU'Vi by his Majesty s comnuind, and addressed to mo, as Pre sident of the Board, furnishes very striking ovidonco. Letter written hy his Majesti/s Conimiind. Sir, I had tlie honour of receiving yours from Edinburgh of the 23d instiuit, and had the honour this day of presenting to his Majesty, the letter inclosed and directed to him. His Majesty, in answer to it, was pleased to command me to say, tliat he much approves of the proceedings of the Board of Agri culture, and the zeal with which you, as their President, have forwarded them. His Majesty was also pleased to add, that he considers the success of the Board of Agriculture, as a con cern which very essentiaUy interests the general good of the community at large, and that he shaU consider every person who comes forward with his assistance on this business as contributing importantly to the good of his country. I am further commanded by his Majesty to inform you, that he thinks, during the time you are sending to those, whose abilities have pointed them out to your notice, as proper per sons to assist you in the final execution of the work, that you would do right to digest thoroughly the plan of the whole, under the chapters you mention ; and when you have finaUy settled (to your satisfaction), with them the General Report, his Majesty is pleased to say, that he shall be glad to look at the heads of the chapters of a work, which, when completed, promises such general improvement to the interests of his kingdoms, and to which the attention of the Board of Agri culture is so constantly directed. Tlie names also of the gentlemen who come forward, in as sisting you in arranging the General Report, wiU, I am also commanded by his Majesty to say, be very acceptable. I have the honour to be. Sir, your most obedient and faith ful servant, Robt. F. Greville. Weymouth, 29. Aug. 1 794. VOL. I. B 18 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL In the year 1810, I was sworn in a Member of his Majes ty's Privy CouncU. I received on Tuesday morning, the 28th of August, (the day after my arrival in London irom Scotland), a letter from Lord Viscoimt Chetwynd, clerk of the Privy CouncU, informing me, that a CouncU was to be held at Buckingham House the next day, when my presence was required. My carriage having been a good deal injured by my recent journey, I requested Mr Secretary Ryder to take me to Court, which he very readily agreed to ; and he caUed upon me for that purpose, on Wednesday, about half past two o'clock. On the King's arrival at three o'clock, the persons present in the levee room were marshaUed according to their rank, and respectively introduced to the King by Lord St Helens, the Lord in waiting. When it came to my turn to he spoken to, his Majesty inquired when I had come from Scot land ? What was the state of the crops there ? Whether the harvest had begun ? &c. He added, that he had heard a great deal of the husbandry of East Lothian, and of Berwickshire ; and that even the English traveUers had described to him the agriculture of those two counties as approaching to perfection. He then made particular inquiries into the state of the crops in Caithness, and whether wheat was grown in that northern region. His Majesty had at this period entirely lost his sight ; but his deportment was dignified, — his recoUection perfect,— and his anxiety for acquiring useful information undiminished. When the levee was over, the King and his Ministers re tired to the Council Chamber. I was then called in, and found his Majesty sitting with his Privy CounciUors around a long table. There was a velvet cushion on the floor near the table, on which Lord Chetwynd told me I was to kneel and take the oaths of aUegiance and supremacy. Wlien that ceremony was performed, I took the Privy CounciUor's oath standing, and after kissing the King's hand, and shaking hands with every Member of the Council, I took my seat at the board. CORRESPONDENCE AND REMINISCENCES. I !l Tlio Councillors present wore Lord Camden, Lord Wel lesley, Lord Liverpool, Mr Perceval, Mr Secretary Ryder, Mr Yorke, Mr Robert Dundas, Sir David Dundas, and Mr Manners Sutton, the Judge Advocate. The common routine of business was gone through ; in particular, any recommen dations to mercy, in behalf of condemned criminals, were con sidered. Tlie appointment of Mr Gordon, as Governor of Berbico, was then brought forward, and he was called in to take the oaths in presence of his Majesty in Council, which closed the business *. The persons who attended the levee were all in black. The King was in purple, which is the royal mourning, and forms a handsome costume. He had become considerably slower in his mode of putting questions, a change which lessen ed considerably the diffidence and embarrassment of those with whom he conversed. From the state of confirmed blindness into which he had faUen, there was no likelihood of his re covery, as any operation, at his time of Ufe, must have been attended with considerable danger ; yet it was highly gratify ing to see his Majesty in perfect health and spirits, and ap parently as likely to live for some years, as any individual, of the same age, in his dominions f . Towards the conclusion of the year 1786, and the com mencement of 1787, I had taken a long tour throughout the northern parts of Europe. Soon after my return, having re quested the honour of an audience of his Majesty, I received from the Duke of Roxburghe, then groom of the stole, the subjoined intimation, that an audience would be granted on the succeeding levee day. • In the Appendix, No. I, will be found some congratulations from dis tinguished characters, proving how favourably Sir John Sinclair's appointment to be a Privy Councillor was received by the public. ¦f His Majesty died on the 29th January 1820, in the 60th year of his reign. b2 20 I. IMPERIAL AND ROYAL The Duke of Roxburghe presents his compliments to Su- John Sinclair, and acquaints him, that his Majesty wiU grant him an audience on Friday next. Hanover Square, 7 Wednesday Evening. J On being admitted into the Royal Closet, the King asked a number of questions regarding the various countries I had traveUed through, but seemed particularly anxious to know the state of Sweden, where, in the summer of 1786, a total change of government had very nearly taken place. I stated, that the reports which had been circulated, regarding the criti cal situation ofthe Swedish monarch, at that time, were perfect ly weU founded, and that, had it not been for Count Fersen, a nobleman of Scottish extraction, (his name being properly Macpherson), who enjoyed at that time the greatest power and influence in Sweden, and by whose exertions the Diet was prevented from proceeding to extremities, there must have been another revolution in that country, and the aristocratic system would have been restored. His Majesty's reply was remarkable. " The King of Sweden," (he said), "would have deserved his fate ; for the sovereign of a limited monarchy, if he is an honest man, will never aim at the acquisition of despotic power." The subject of America was accidentaUy introduced in the course of this conference. His Majesty took occasion to declare, " That he considered the American war as a war for maintaining the rights, not of the Crown, but of the Parha ment ; that the Americans had acknowledged the supremacy of the Crown, but had denied the authority of Parliament; that he lamented much the separation of the two countries, but ha ving acknowledged the independence of the colonies, he would never countenance any plan for disturbing their government, or bringing them back to their old aUegiance." These sen timents, spontaneously uttered, and expressed with warmth, and, as far as I could possibly judge, coming from the heart, CORRESPONDENCE AND REIMINISCENCES. 21 sufficiently prove, that str'tct honcsti/, infcvible inte motives of mora' lity, wisdom, and general poUcy^ wiU render a new order* ofl things indispensablfe, which can never produce the good' in*- AND REMINISCENCES OP TIlfeM. 131 tended, if it does not proceed upon those data, the collection of which seems to occupy the most enUghtened part of the Continent, but which you are the only ])erson who has made any attempt worth mentioning to introduce with us. I ear nestly hope that, for your own credit, and the public good, you wiU not give up so honourable a pursiut. Sooner or later it cannot fail of being taken up by Government. I am only in pain for the poor Board of Agriculture, which I am afraid wUl share the fate of most public institutions, as soon as they are out of the care of the first institutor. I am surprised that an Universal Register has never been brotfght forward, particularly in these scraping times, as it appears to me some revenue might be got from it, without much dissatisfaction, and a great deal of knowledge acquired. Henry and Mr Debarry, I should do great injustice to, if I did not bear witness to the grateful sense they must ever retain of the kindness they experienced in Scotland. I have haid a very handsome letter from Mf CuUy about my baUiff. Whenever you have any commands in this country, I hope you wiU honour me with them ; and that you wiU believe me to be, Vidth real esteem and consideration, Dear Sir, your faith ful, humble servant, Lansdowne. P. S. — When I have the pleasure of hearing from you again, wiU you have the goodness to teU me, where I can find an account of the institution of schoolmasters in Scotland. I am curious to see what plan Government wiU adopt for the interior of Ireland when these troubles are over. It is impossible not to be in the highest degree gratified with so friendly a letter from so able a politician. It requi red the weighty exhortations of so powerful a mind, hot to abandon pursuits which had experienced such hostUity on the part of the Minister, who personally attended a ballot, to de prive me of the situation I held as President of the Board of I 2 132 II. CORRESPONDENCE WITH BRITISH MINISTERS, Agriculture, and who used aU his influence, to procure the nomination of a successor, to punish an individual who had presumed to differ with him in some poUtical questions. The ruin of the Board, which Lord Lansdowne so feelingly anti cipated, has since taken place ; and the vast stores of impor tant information which it had been the means of accumulatuig, are now securely locked up in the Tower of London, as if the dissemination of useful knowledge would prove injurious to a counfry. The late Mr Arthur Young, in a lecture on the advantages which had resulted from the institution of the Board of Agri culture *, gives the foUowing statement : " The late Marquis of Lansdowne, (as I know by a conversation I had with him on the subject), was induced, in a debate in the House of Lords, warmly to approve of the estabUshment of a Board of Agriculture, as the only good exertion of Mr Pitt's adminis tration." This was certainly going much too far ; but impar tial posterity vidU, I believe, admit, that without the great re sources which that Board was the means of producing, this country could not successfuUy have withstood the power of the French RepubUc, when it came to be conducted by the energies of Napoleon. At one period, I had the honour of being on such friendly terms with Lord Lansdowne, that he said to me, " I am go ing to Bowood for a fortnight, and have a corner in my post- chaise empty, which I wish much you would occupy. The mornings I must devote to business, but the evenings I shall with pleasure dedicate to conversation with you, and we shall not be troubled with companions, to prevent our having a free and confidential intercourse together." I was much delight ed with the proposal, and most readily accepted of it ; but to my great regret, before the day came, I was taken so ill, as to be obliged to decline so desirable an excursion. I do not recollect having ever met with any circumstance which I re- • Printed by Sir Richard PhiUips, an. 1809. AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 1,33 gretted so much, as nothing coidd have been more gratifying, than to have spent so long a period, in confidential intercourse with a statesman, possessed of so much talent, information and experience. XIV. THE MARQUIS OF HASTINGS. The intimate and friendly intercourse which I long main tained with this iUustrious soldier and statesman, commenced at a very early period. We first met as members of a so ciety constituted with the view of encouraging discoveries in Africa ; and we afterwards endeavoured, by forming political associations of independent members of Parliament, to procure the adoption of measures calcidated to promote the best inte rests of the counfry. But I always found such plans of associa tion among those who caU themselves independent characters, of Uttle real use. Each member of such an association is de sirous, not to foUow, but to guide. AU of them are attached to their own opinions respectively ; and, astonished that any one should presume to differ from them, they graduaUy drop off, either bought by the Minister, or dissatisfied that the mea sures they espouse should not be adopted. Persons of this description are capable of acting only in an isolated state ; and if the House of Commons consisted solely, or even principaUy, of such men, the business of the nation could not go on at aU. In a compUcated government, lUte ours, parties are ne cessary ; and if they are not carried to a factious extreme, are highly beneficial; but they should be weU constituted, and under able leaders. Lord Hastings was not only a warrior and a statesman, but took, as appears from the foUowing letter, much interest in scientific investigations : 134 II. CORRESPONDENCE WITII BRITISH IVJINISTERS, Montal.to, paJlynahinch, October 6. 1795. My Dear Sir John, One day at pur Club, I njentioned a pair of the Irish 4«pr horns that had been found in a turf bog, and were in my pos session ; and I remember to have said, that I thought they were fourteen feet from tip to tip. I have measured them, and I find that I have erred in the statement, by incorrectly applying a fact of which my remembrance was otherwise ac curate. A line drawn straight from the root of the horn to its extreme point, is about seven feet ; and I calculated, I perceive, as if that length were to be doubled for the compu tation of tjie distance between tjp and tip. The horns are palmated, and the branches bend forward, consequently to wards each other. Tlie distance, therefore, b,etween tip and tip is not quite twelve feet ; but that wUl strike you 3s an e?T tent sufficiently remarkable. The horns remain iixpd in t\e head, which is entire. You may perhg,ps think me indolent or indiffer^^t for nof attendipg the opening of Parli^naent. Not so. I?ut as nor thing wiU now preyeijt the evil hour which has long been preparing for the coiintry, wher,efore should one give pne's self the trouble of making an observation ? I do not the less feel for the degradation of the British Empire. ' Believe that I have the honour to be very faithfully yours, IVfoiRA. Sir John Sinclair, Bart. Various circumstances having induced Lord Hastings tp accept of the government of our Indian empire, he had an opportunity there of proving the great talents he possessed, both civil and military. During his residence in the Egst, I had the pleasure of receiving from him the following letter: Calcutta, Oct. 9. 1820. My Dear Sir John, I am sincerely obliged by your kind attention to the re- AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 135 covering for me the balance due to me from Messrs George Baillie and Co. Accept my best thanks for that friendly care. It was gratifying to learn from you, that you thought the fermentation among the lower classes in Scotland had been materiaUy checked. To us at a disttince, (and perhaps some distance is reqiusite to give one a comprehensive view), the dispositions evinced throughout Great Britain appeared of a serious complexion. How you are to get rid of your abusive taxation, I know not. At present the people are hourly goad ed by the way in which imposts are coUected, as well as bowed to the earth by the weight. AU here is perfectly quiet, I mean throughout India, and the Company's finances are most flourishing. I have the honour, my Dear Sir John, to be, with great esteem, your very obedient and humble servant, Hastings. Sir John Sinclair, Bart. Some differences appear, even at a late period, to have subsisted between the Marquis and the Court of Directors ; for I find, in a letter, dated Rome, 27th January 1824, the foUowing remarks. His services, perhaps, were not so justly estimated, while he lived, as since his death. " As to the Directors, I make real aUowance for their not comprehending what was effected in the advancement of their concerns in India. To them, as a body, no man could more invariably maintain that respect which our relative situations prescribed ; but I was not so submissive to perverse consfruc- tions, as they possibly may have found others ; and I think, my being stiff-necked, in such instances, outweighed the sense of any services I rendered to them. I am speaking of them as a body. There are individuals among them who have shewn themselves warmly favourable to me, and whom I have found cause to honour unfeignedly for their manly and generous sentiments ; but they are overborne by the number 136 II. CORRESPONDENCE WITH BRITISH MINISTERS, who have not had time or disposition to ponder accurately transactions, not readily inteUigible without some consecutive application." The concluding years of Lord Hastings's life form a memo rable lesson to politicians, not to suffer any motives, however plausible, to induce them to neglect their private affairs. Under the influence of pecuniary embarrassments, though they may be much respected for their talents, or pubUc ser vices, they never can preserve that health of body, or peace of mind, which are essential both to private happiness and public utility. No man ever possessed greater advantages than the Marquis of Hastings ; but his latter days were em bittered by the vexations of straitened circumstances, and the ingratitude of those, who ought to have felt for him sen timents of a very different nature from those of neglect. XV. EARL BATHURST. One great object I had in view, by wishing to become a Privy Councillor, was to be appointed a member of the Board of Trade, as it frequently happened that points of great im portance to agriculture were referred to that Board. When 1 became a Privy CouncUlor, Earl Bathurst presided at the Board of Trade, and I was thence induced to inform his Lord ship of my desire. In answer to that application, I had the ho nour of receiving the following communication : Letter from Earl Bathurst, President ofthe Board of Trade. Curzon Street, July 4. 1800. Sir, I have to acknowledge the receipt of the letter which you have done me the honour to write to me. AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 137 I can only repeat, that whenever Mr Perceval shall deem it advisable to take his Majesty's pleasure on your becoming a member of the Privy CouncU, I shaU be very happy to have your assistance at the Board of Trade. In answer, however, to an observation of yours, I must in fairness say, that the at tention of the Board of Trade is so much engrossed in com mercial questions, that they never engage, (unless it is una voidable), in agricultural discussions, which have wisely de volved upon a Board estabUshed for that purpose, over which you have with so much abiUty presided. I have the honour to be. Sir, your obedient humble servant, Bathurst. From the difficulty in obtaining an appointment in the Board of Trade, and the subsequent abolition of the Board of Agri culture, I was led to consider, the absurdity of having but one institution of that description, notwithstanding there were so many other important objects which were equally entitled to that mark of public attention and encouragement. How many members are there in both Houses, who would with pleasure dedicate their attention to pubUc objects, even gratuitously, if there were Boards to which they might be appointed ? and numbers would thus get into habits of business, and of atten tion to important matters, who are at present employed in the most frivolous pursuits. I have drawn up a plan for that purpose, which wiUbe found in the Appendix, (No. V.), and which, if adopted, would be of material service to the pubUc. XVI. THE RIGHT HONOURABLE WILLIAM WINDHAM. On the establishment of the Board of Agriculture, I pro posed inserting in the list of members, the name of Mr Wind ham, of whose ability and patriotism I entertained a high 138 II. CORRESPONDENCE WITH BRITISH MINISTERS, opinion. Having informed him of this intention, I received the following communication in reply. It affords a specnaen of that singular indecision, for whieh, notwithstanding his su perior talents, tlus extraordinary man was remarkable. Letter from the Right Honourable William Windham to Sir John Sinclair, Bart. Dear Sir John, I must not let myself be seduced by your compUments, ei ther grave or gay, to accept a situation, for which I am wholly unfit, and for which I have not at present even the purpose of qualifying myself. I can reaUy hardly reckon my self among the genuine supporters of the plan that has pro duced this institution. A wish of finding good in it, and a prepossession in favour of a plan which claimed you for its author, extinguished any disposition to oppose ; but I cannot pretend to have enough considered the subject, to have any decided opinion in its favour. I am doubly bound, therefore, whUe my principles are so unsettled, to decUne a situation, my appearance in which, from my complete incompetence, could only be accounted for by the supposition of extraordinary zeal. I must accordingly, for the present, withdraw with becoming modesty. My wishes for your success wUl not be less, be cause my ignorance of the subject may keep my opinions doubtful, as it renders me at the same time whoUy incapable of being of any use. Since I have known of your being in town, I have regretted the not having been able to caU upon you. This evening I expect to get away ; and the daily prospect of doing so, is that which has prevented my getting so far as Whitehall. 1 am, Dear Sir John, your very obedient and faithful servant, W. Windham. Hill Street, Aug. 21. 1793. Another letter he wrote upon the same subject is Ukewise interesting, more especiaUy on account of the postscript, in AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 139 which he states, with great eai'uestness of feeling, his disap pointment at the unfortunate events at Dunkirk, and accounts for them. Dear Sir John, It is but just, that as you have made me, against my wiU, a Member of the Board of Agriculture, you should allow me a share in the only part of the business for which I am qualified, viz. that of the patronage. The writer of the inclosed letter is known merely by accident, and not ui any way to interest me in his success, otherwise than by a knowledge of his diffi culties, and a beUef in his good character. Of his quaUfica- tions I know no more than is set forth in his letter. Should there be any appointment under the Board, suited to a man such as he appears to be, I reaUy beUeve it could not be be stowed on one more likely to deserve it by his diUgence and fideUty ; nor easUy on one who possesses more of a remaining species of recommendation, that of standing very much in need of it. I am. Dear Sir, yours with great truth, W. Windham. Hastings, September 16. 1793. P. S. — What shaU be said of those, by whose faidt it has happened, that the naval force and artiUery was not ready for co-operating with the Duke of York against Dunkirk ? I hope that something wiU be both said and done ; for such an instance of flagrant and criminal neglect, to say no worse of it, it wUl not be easy to paraUel in the adminisfration of any country. I have been told, that if the necessary assistance intended had arrived in time, there is reason to think, that the place would either have submitted without resistance, or have been carried by immediate assault. When one considers the unfortunate consequences which resulted from the failure of the attack on Dunkirk, it is impos sible not to lament, that the conduct of those to whose misma- 140 II. CORRESPONDENCE WITH BRITISH MINISTERS, nagement it ought to be attributed, was not more strictly in vestigated. In 1794, a number of members of the House of Commons, desirous that the war should be prosecuted with more vigour, were accustomed to meet at Mr Windham's house in Hill Street, to. consider the best means of urging the Ministers to greater exertions. Among those who assembled for that pur pose, I took a part. Mr Burke was the leader, and had pro posed, without any communication to me, that we should trans fer our meetings from Hill Street to the Duke of Portland's at Burlington House. Mr Windham undertook to inform me of the circumstance, but was prevented, as appears from the subjoined letter, from doing it verbaUy. He intrusted a letter on the subject to the care of Mr EUott, who, not finding me at home, left it at my lodgings, without adding any particular injunctions that it should be forwarded. Thus the meeting at Burlington House, which ended in the junction ofthe Portland party with the Minisfry, took place without my being able to attend it. Letter from the Right Honourable William Windham to Sir John Sinclair. Dear Sir John, I set out this morning from HiU Street with the purpose of caUing upon you, which I regret that I was prevented from executing. I wished to state to you, more fuUy than I could by letter, the detail of proceedings that have taken place since I saw you, and the nature of the meeting to-night at Burling ton House. The object of the meeting is professed to be for supporting a vigorous prosecution of the war ; nor differs, that I know of, from any that might have been held at my house, except in its drawing with it an accession of strength, which could not be on any other ground. If you should feel an ob jection to continue at BurUngton House the same course of conduct, nearly in the same company, as marked our meetings last year in HiU Street, I shaU be happy either to meet, orto AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 141 accompany you there ; and to supply in this manner the omis sion of a notice which the Duke, of course, could not take upon him to send. I am, Dear Sir John, your very obedient and faithful servant, W. Windham. Hill Street, January 20, 5 o'clock. Soon afterwards I received another letter from Mr Wind ham, regarding those energetic measures for carrying on the war, which I was anxious should be adopted. Letter from the Right Honourable William Windham to Sir John Sinclair, Bart. Bath, Feb. 12, 1798. Dear Sir John, I am quite ashamed at having delayed so long to thank you for your obUging letters and communication. An official let ter had gone before I received your last, on the official busi ness, and was, I trust, satisfactory. I am much obUged to you for the confidence which you are so good as to place in me, and of which I certainly should not render myself unworthy, by making any use of what you should confide to me, different from that which you should prescribe. I have no doubt of your zeal for the real weUare of the country, and think we shall soon be in a state in which there wiU be little room for difference of opinion as to the means, at least as to the necessity for taking the most vigor ous measures for preventing this great and ancient nation from faUing into the same state as the rest of Europe. I am, Dear Sir John, your very obedient and faithful servant, W. Windham. Mr Windham's mode of reasoning was, perhaps, too sub tile and refined for his audience. His style was fluent and copious, elegant and impressive, easy and natural. His wit was abundant and uncommon, his aUusions famUiar and just. 14^ II. CORRESPONDENCE WITH BRITISH MINISTERS, and, in general, original. He uniformly deUvered his senti ments with truth and sincerity, and scorned any kind of dis guise or deception. He spoke for some time without that ef fect which his abiUties ought to have produced ; but by per severance, habitual practice, and constant attention to the business of the House, he ultimately reached a high degrfee of eloquence, and was Ustened to with much attention. My acquaintance with Mr Windham led to a frain of ch- cumstances, which, taken together, form one of the most singular series of adventures that ever occurred in real life, and resemble more, a fictitious romance, than an authentic his tory. At a late hour one evening, I received a few Unes from hiy friend Dr Adam Smith, (the particulaa* time I do not recol lect,) requesting my company at dinner next daiy, to' meet thfe celebrated Edmund Burke, and Mr Windham, who had ar rived at Edinburgh, with an intention of making a short tour through the Highlands. The Doctor apologised for the short ness of the notice, stating, that the travellers had arrived only that morning, and proposed remaining but one day more in Edinburgh. I went accoi'dingly, and passed soirie hours, as might be expected in the company of such men^ in the most gratifying manner. I gave them my advice as to the plan they Ought to adopt in making their intended toilr ; and, in particular, dwelt on the beauty of the road between Dunkeld and Blair ; adding, that instead of being cooped up in a poSt- chaise, they had better get out, and walk through the dehght ful woods and beautiful scenes they would pass through, more especiaUy some mUes beyond Dunkeld. I had almost forgotten these circumstances, when, about three years after, Mr WuicUiam, very unexpectedly, came tb me in the House of Commons,, and requested to speak tome for a few moments behind lihe Speaker's chair. " Db you AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 143 recoUect, (said he), our meeting together at Adam Smith's at dinner ?" " Most certainly I do." " Do' you remember having given us directions for our Higldand tour, and more especially to sfroll through the woods between Dunkeld and Blair ?" " I do." He then added, " An event took place in consequence of our adopting that advice, of which I must now inform you. Burke and I were stroUing through the woods, about ten miles from Dunkeld, when we saw a yoimg female sitting under a tree reading. Burke immediately exclaimed. Let us have a little conversation with this solitary damsel, and see what she is about. We accosted her accordingly, and found that she was reading a recent novel from the London press. We asked her how she came to read novels ? how she got such books at so great a distance from the mefropoUs ; and more especiaUy one so recently pubUshed ? She answered. That she had been educated at a boarding-school at Perth, where novels might be had from the circulating library, and that she stUl procured them through the same channel. We carried on the conversation for some time, in the course of which she displayed a great deal of smartness and talent ; and at last we were obUged, very reluctantly, to leave her, and proceed on our journey. We afterwards found, that she was the daugh ter of a proprietor of that neighbourhood, who was known under the name of ' The Baron Maclaren.' " I have never been able," continued Mr Windham, " to get this beautiful mountain nymph out of my head, and I wish you to ascertain, whether she is married or single." He begged me to clear up this point, as soon as possible, as much of his future happiness depended' upon the result of the inquiry. I lost; no time in attending to this request, and applied for inforanation to a most respectable clergyman in the neigh bourhood where Miss'MaclaFenTived, (the Rev: Dr Stewart, rainister of Moulin), who informed me, in course of post, that she was married tO' a medical gentleman of the name of Dick,; who had gone to the East Indies. Upon communica- 144 II. CORRESPONDENCE WITH BRITISH MINISTERS, ting this to Mr Windham, he seemed very much agitated. He was soon afterwards married to the daughter of a half-pay, officer. I have no doubt, however, that had Miss Maclaren continued single, he would have paid her his addresses. Some years afterwards, I happened to be spending some days at Duneira, in Perthshire, with the late Lord Melville, and, in the course of our conversation, mentioned the above anecdote of Mr Windham ; upon which the Noble Lord said, " I am more interested in that matter than you imagine. You must know, that in company with some friends, I was riding down from Blair to Dunkeld, when we called at Baron Mac- laren's, where a most beautiful young woman desired to speak with me. We went accordingly to the bank of a river near her father's house, when she said, " Mr Dundas, I hear that you are a very great man, and, what is much better, a very good man. I will venture, therefore, to teU you a secret. There is a young man in this neighbourhood, who has a strong attachment to me, and to confess the truth, I have a great regard for him. His name is WiUiam Dick : he has been bred to the medical profession ; and he says, that if he could get to be a surgeon in the East Indies, he would soon make his fortune there, and would send for me to marry him. Now I apply to you, Mr Dundas, as a great and a good man, in hopes that you can do something for us ; and be assured, that we shall be ever grateful, if you wiU procure him an appointment." Lord MelviUe was so much struck with the impressive man ner of her address, that he took her by the hand, and said, " My good gfrl, be assured, that if an opportunity offers, I shall not forget your apphcation." Lord MelviUe then added, that some time afterwards, he, received a summons to attend his duty in ParUament ; and in his way, happened to visit a friend who was an East India. Director. After dinner, his friend said to him, " By the bye, Mr Dundas, poUticians, Uke you, have many appUcations in favour of young men, in various lines of life. I think it right, therefore, to teU you, that I have at present, at my dis AND REMINISCENCES OF THEM. 145 an appointment of surgeon in the service of the East India Company, and that it is much at your service." Lord Melville was so much surprised at the singularity of the circumstance, that he struck his hand forcibly against the table where they sat, and exclaimed, uith much \'eliemeiice, "• The very thing I most anxiously ^^'ished for." He then related his adventure at Baron Maclaren's, greatly to the amusement of the India Director. Mr Dick was immediate ly appointed surgeon ; and lia\ing gone to the East Indies, was soon placed in a situation which enabled him to send for Miss Maclaren, to udiom he was married, and Mr Windliam was thus disappointed of his northern aUiance. In the course of the voyage, and after her arrival in the East, she had seve ral offers ; but she refused to hear of any one but Dr Dick. Nor was this aU. Dr Dick having made a handsome for tune in the East Indies, came home and purchased an estate, caUed TuUimet, in the neighbourhood where he was bom. There he Uved in a most hospitable manner, and Mrs Dick and he were highly and deservedly respected. He also had a house in London, where he resided during the winter sea son * ; and having acquired, from his experience in the East Indies, a great reputation for his skiU in the management of liver complaints, he was frequently consulted by his Indian friends, respecting that disorder. It seems that Sir Walter Scott was afflicted with a complaint in his liver, which was Ukely to prove fatal to him. Hearing of Dr Dick's fame. Sir Walter was induced to apply to him for advice, and by his means the life of that celebrated author was preserved. * His daughter is married to the eldest son of Lord Harris, the Conqueror of Tippoo Saib ; and his son is a distinguished officer, who commanded the 12d Re giment at the Battle of Waterloo. VOL. I. PART III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. The fair sex have long been celebrated for their excellence in letter-writing. The correspondence of Sevigne, Mam- tenon, and others, are considered models in that species of composition. In fact, letters may be regarded as " Conver sations in Writing," and should be characterised by aU that ease and sprightliness, by which coUoquial intercourse, of the superior sort, is uniformly distinguished, and in which fe males are so pre-eminent. As the genius of the French lan guage seems pecuUarly suited for letter-writing, I shaU be gin with those which I have received in that language, from my fair correspondents. I. THE PRINCESS DASCHKOW. The Princess Daschkow was one of the most extraordinary characters I ever met with. She was of the Worontzow fa mily, and got the name of the leamed Countess of Woront zow. Another sister, who was caUed the handsome, was rather Ughtly talked off ; and a third, the ugly, found means however to ingratiate herself with the Emperor Peter III. and became his mistress. The Princess Daschkow one day reproached her ugly sister for her conduct in living with the Emperor, disgracing her family, &c. " The time may soon come," said 150 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. the Countess with indignation, " when you wiU talk to me in a different style, and wiU think yourself honoured by a nod." This betrayed Peter's intentions to divorce his wife, and to crown his mistress, and occasioned a revolution, to which the jealousy of an elder sister not a Uttle confributed. The history of the Princess is very singular. She was mar ried at fifteen, at which age she could speak the French lan guage only, but taught herself the Russian. She became a widow at twenty-two ; and her husband having left his affahs in great disorder, she retired to the country, and lived on L.60 a-year, to pay his debts. She devoted herself enthely to the education of her chUdren, and for their sake resided a considerable time in Scotland, where she placed her son un der the care of the great historian Robertson. She after wards traveUed, accompanied by her children, aU over Eu rope. So strong was her appetite for power, that, when they returned to Russia, she vidshed to have her son appointed the Empress's personal favourite. But Potemkin, knowing her boundless ambition, very artfully contrived to defeat her pro ject. The principal handle he made use of, was the fact of young Daschkow having repeated, in a ridiculous manner, in the course of a drunken frolic, some passages from Shakes peare. It is astonishing on what trivial circumstances great events may depend. Had the Princess succeeded in her views, the system of the Court of Petersburgh would have been al tered, and Russia, in the midst of the American war, would probably have declared in our favour. She was a kind of mi nister to the Empress in literary matters, being at the head of the Petersburgh academy. She had sometimes a good deal to say with her sovereign, and knew every thing that passed at Court. The Daschkow property was valued at L. 12,000 per annum ; but was very ill managed, and much of it was wasted in build ing, particularly in the erection of a magnificent palace at Moscow. The Princess was in perpetual difficulties, but was ill. FEMALE COIIIIESPONDENCE. l.f)l too proud to accept of any pecuniary bounty from tiie Empress, though frequently proffered. I was fortunate enough to procure from Dr Robertson, and other eminent literary characters in Scotland, letters of in troduction to this distinguished personage, and received from her, during my stay in St Petersburgh, the most friendly marks of attention. Of the letters which I had the honour of receiving from her, the foUowing is the only one which I can at present discover. Letter from La Princesse de Daschkow, ce 24). Novembre V. S. 1 786 Je vous dois mUle remercimens. Monsieur le Chevalier, pour les lettres charmantes que j'ai re9iie de Kiow, Varsovie, et Vienne. Si j'ai tarde jusqu'a present a vous les accuser, c'est que je savois que ma lettre arriveroit trop de tems avant votre retour en Angleterre. Continuez, je vous prie, de me donner de vos nouvelles. J'ai deux motifs pour vous faire cette priere ; 1°, parce que je prendrai toujours un vif interet en tout ce qui vous concerne ; et '2°, parce que vous me don- nerez par-la un temoignage de votre estime et amitie, qui me flatte infiniment. Je ne saurai vous promettre un equivalent dans notre correspondance ; car nous n'avons point le meme pubUc, et nos nouveUes ce borneroient au promoisions, &c. D'aUleurs, je n'ai point la presomption de croire que mes letfres puissent egaler les votres, qui sont instructives et agreables. Enfin, la balance de ce commerce seroit en ma favour ; mais j'ai trop bonne opinion de votre cceur, pour ne point croire que vous trouvez du plaisir a obliger. Comme vous avez parut prendre interet dans les travaux de rAcademie Russe, je vous dirai, qu'apres demain nous aurons grande assemblee anniversaire, a laquelle Ton lira les feuilles deja imprimee du premier volume de notre Diction naire. Que ce qui en est fait en trois ans de tems est pro- digieux, et nous mettra a meme de livrer au public, en moins 1.52 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 4 .?^Wi an, le premier volume, qui seroit mieux fait, mieux di- "^re, que ne I'ont ete les premieres editions des Dictionnaires des autres langues, que nous avons compare avec le notre. Qu'enfin, nous aurons mieux fait, en quatre annees, (et cela avec moins de ressources), que I'Academie Francoise n'a fait en neuf ans. Dans un de nos committes. Ton parla sur le mot vertu, et Ton eu recours, non seulement aux Dictionnaires efrangers, mais meme a I'Encyclopedie : et comme je pretendai que le sens que le mot impliquoit etoit trop borne, je mis par ecrit ce que je dis extempore a cette sceance. The partiaUty you have shewn me makes me think that you will read it with the indulgent eye of a friend; I therefore inclose it here. Je joins aussi le programme de I'autre Academic, c'est-a-dire, de I'Academie des Sciences. Mon fils est ici depuis trois semaines : U me charge de le rappeUer a votre souvenir. Dans quelques jours je serai aux regrets de son depart ; car il doit etre avant la Cour a Kiow. Voila tout ce que j'ai le loisir de vous dire pour le present, mon cher Chevalier. Donnez-moi de vos nouvelles, je vous en conjure, et croyez-moi, avec I'estime et la con sideration la plus parfaite, votre tres humble servante, Princesse de Daschkow *- • Translation. I owe you a thousand thanks, Sir, for the charming letters with which you favoured me from Kiow, Varsovie, and Vienna. I should not have so long delayed acknowledging their receipt, had I not been aware, that if I had ad dressed you sooner, my letter would have arrived in England before you. I beg of you to continue our correspondence. I have two reasons for making this request ; 1 st, because I take a lively interest in all that concerns you ; and, 2d, because you will thus give me a proof of your esteem and friendship, by which I am much flattered. I know that I cannot promise you an equivalent in our correspondence ; for our public afl'airs are not like yours, and my news would be limited to an account of promotions, &c. Besides, I have not the vanity to suppose that my letters could in any degree afl^ord the amusement and instruction to be found in yours. In short, the balance in this correspondence will be in my favour ; but I think too well of your goodness of heart not to be lieve that you take a pleasure in conferring an obligation. As you appeared to feel interested in the labours of the Russian Academy, I III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 1.5^ II. MADAME DE STAEL. In January 1786 I took an excursion to Paris, and in the employment of my time there, endeavoured to cpmbine use ful and agreeable occupations. With that view, I was ac customed to spend my mornings with the learned ; to dine with the Count de Vergenes, M. Necker, and the other dis tinguished statesmen which France then possessed ; and to dedicate the evening to the society of the gay. Being a Member of the British ParUament, and known from my His tory of the Revenue as an author, I every where met with a most friendly reception. Having received an invitation to a family dinner with Monsieur Necker, I went early, and had the pleasure of finding the ladies occupied in a manner pecu Uarly gratifying to the national feeUngs of a Scotchman ; for Madame Necker was reading Blair's Sermons, and Made- moiseUe Necker playing " Lochaber no more" on the piano. may mention to you, that on the day after to-morrow, we are to have our grand anniversary meeting, at which all that has yet been printed of the 1st volume of our Dictionary will be read. The progress that has beeh made in three years is prodigious, and we shall now be able to publish, in less than a year, the first volume, which will be better done, better digested, than the first editions of any Dictionaries in other languages with which we have compared it. Indeed, we shall have accomplished more in four years, (and that, too, with fewer resources,) than was done by the French Academy in nine. At one of our committees, a discussion arose as to the word vertu; and re course was had not only to foreign dictionaries, but even to the Encyclopsedia. I thought that the signification given was too limited, and I have now written down what I said extempore on the subject. The partiality you have shewn me, makes me think that you will read it with the indulgent eye of a friend : I therefore inclose it here. I also send you the programme of our other Academy, I mean the Academy of Sciences. My son has been here for three weeks. He requests me to recall him to your remembrance. In a few days I shall have to regrfet his departure, for he must be at Kiow before the Court. I have not leisure, my Dear Sir, to say more to you at present. Send me all your news, I entreat you, and believe me, with the greatest esteem and respect, your very humble servant, Princess of Daschkow. 2lth November 1786. 154 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. Monsieur Necker, overwhelmed by the pressure of public bu siness, did not appear tiU immediately before dinner; and even before the cloth was removed, he received two or three letters, which he seemed to peruse with considerable interest. Madame Necker said, that they probably related to the great poUtical contest, which he was then carrying on with Mon-- sieur de Calonne, and which ultimately terminated in the re moval of that minister from the helm. When preparing for my return to London, I sent a note to Madame Necker, containing many grateful acknowledg ments for the attention paid me by her famUy, and a promise, at the same time, to send her daughter, (afterwards so cele brated as M. de Stael), some Scotch music, the beauties of which, I hoped, would induce her to honour Scotland with a visit. Though young *, the answer she sent is expressed with that vivacity and elegance which distinguished her future writings f . Mademoiselle Necker to Sir John Sinclair. Je suis bien reconnoissante de I'aimable attention de Mon sieur Sinclair, et je suis chargee de I'en remercier au nom de Maman et au mien. Je chanterai ces airs avec un interet nouveau. La patrie de Monsieur Sinclair me sera moins etrangere. Nous serous charme de le voir. Mon pere et ma mere n'ont aucune commission qu'ils puissent le prier d'exe- cuter ; mais iis lui renouveUeront, avec plaisir, I'assurance des sentimens distingues qu'il leur a inspire |. * She was born at Paris, on April the 22d 1 766, and consequently was then in the twentieth year of her age. f Madame de Stael's Works, when collected, amount to 18 vols 8vo. \ Translation. I am rauch gratified by the polite attention of Mr Sinclair, and I am request. ed by my mother to add to my own the expression of her thanks. I shall sing these airs with a new interest. The country of Mr Sinclair shall no longer be considered as foreign by me. We shall be (Relighted to see it. My father and mother have no commission with which they would think of troubling him; but they renew with pleasure their assurances of the particular esteem and regard with which he has inspired them. III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 1.5.5 At that time Monsieur Necker was so much occupied with political intrigues, that he devolved, on the female part of his family, the task of entertaining any strangers. He had con trived to inflame the too volatUe spirits of the Parisians ; but being more of a financier than of a statesman, he was quite unfit " to ride in the whirlwind, and direct the storm." Hence he became unintentionaUy the source of all the mis- cluefs and horrors of the French Revolution. M. Necker had adopted one exceUent rule, " To search for able men wherever they coidd be found, and to avail himself of their labours." The truly usefrd minister is he " who does not rely exclusively on his own information and talents, but who makes the most advantageous use of the talents and information of others." III. MADAME DE GENLIS. Among the writings which have done the highest credit to female genius, there are none more deservedly admired than those of Madame de GenUs. During a short excursion to Paris, in January 1786, I had the honour of being made ac quainted with that celebrated authoress, and received an invi tation to dine with her at the " Convent de Bellechasse," where she then resided. It was interesting for a Protestant to visit in a convent, where, before admission, it was necessary to un dergo examination by a porter through a grate. Having pass ed this barrier, I was shewn into an elegant apartment, where Madame de Genlis was sitting with some distinguished Poles of the Potoski family. They went away early, but I remained until the Duchess of Orleans was announced, to whom I had the honour of being introduced. Madame GenUs had at that time the charge of educating the children of the Duke of Orleans, which so much occupied her time that she rarely saw stran- 156 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. gers. The iUness of a near relation, as appears from the sub joined note, prevented my having another interview with this distinguished personage ; but what I saw of her proved, that she was entitled to as much praise for her powers of conversa tion, as for the elegance and ability of her vpritings. Letter from Madame de Genlis to Sir John Sinclair. Madame la Marechale d'Efree, parente fres pres de Ma dame de GenUs, est en apoplexie ; et tant qu'eUe sera dans un etat dangereux, il est impossible que Madame de GenUs s'en- gage a diner dehors. EUe prie Monsieur de Sinclair de ne pas douter de ses regrets. EUe voudroit bien ne pas le priver de rechantillon d'email qu'U a bien voulu lui envoyer, parce qu'il lui suffit de I'avoir vu pour I'imiter. EUe espere qu'eUe aura en core I'honneur de voir Monsieur de Sinclair avant son depart *. 7. Janvier 1786. Being honoured at that time with the acquaintance and friendship of three of the most celebrated literary characters in France, I was accidentaUy led to celebrate their praises ui some EngUsh verses, with which they expressed a degree of satisfaction highly gratifying to the author. I gave this short ode the name of " The Literary Triumvirate." The Literary Triumvirate. Where real merit dwells, the British muse Her just applauses never can refuse ; Can ne'er refuse to praise a Buffon's mind, Where Newton's depth to Bacon's force is joined ; • Translation. Madame the Marechale d'Etree, a very near relative of Madame de Genlis, has been seized with apoplexy ; and while she continues in her present dangerous state, Madame de Genlis cannot think of accepting of any dinner engagement. She begs Mr Sinclair to accept the assuranceof her regret. She would be sorry to deprive him ofthe piece of enamel pattern which he wished to send her, because it was enough to see it to enable her to imitate it. She hopes for the honour of seeing Mr Sinclair again before his departure. 7th January 1786. III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 157 Can ne'er refuse to praise a Necker's page. Full of strong facts, and meditation sage ; Or when Genus sits down with sprightly ease, The young to teach, and even the old to please. Hail I Great Triumvirate ' may you remain. The first, the depths of Science to explain. The next, iu PoUtics to point the way. The last, the charms of Morals to display. John Sinclair. Paris, 18th January 1786. Tiiese verses were soon translated into French by Monsieur Goddard, Advocat au Parlement de Paris, and being inserted in several of the Paris newspapers, were of considerable use to me as an introduction to the Uterary societies of that me tropolis. Traduction par M. Goddard, Advocat au Parlement de Paris. LE TRIUMVIRAT LITTERAIRE. Quelque soit le climat oil regnent les talens, L' Anglois va leur porter le tribut de ses chants. A BuFFON, pourroit-il refuser son hommage, Lorsque dans un seul homme, etonnant assemblage, Des deux plus grands esprits de la iiere Albion, II voit revivre ensemble, et Newton et Bacon ? A Necker, pourroit-il, par un lache silence, Refuser le tribut de la reconnoissance, Et craindre de loiier ses sublimes ecrits ? Pourroit-il hesiter dc celebrer Genlis ; Genlis, dont les lemons instruisant la jeunesse, Eclairent I'age meme, et charment la vieillesse ? Ah ! Que le vobu public soit exauce du ciel ! Triumvirat fameux, que tu sois immortel ! De feu de sou genie, eclairant les sciences, Buffon en creuseroit les profondeurs immenses ; Necker dirigeroit au bonheur des humains, Des chefs d'un grand 6tat, les pas trop incertains ; De la morale enfin, tout precepte severe, Sous la main de Genlis, parviendroit a nous plaire. 158 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. IV. THE DUCHESS OF GORDON. This celebrated character was equaUy distinguished for her beauty and her talents. She lived, for many years after her marriage, at Gordon Castle, and was the admiration and de light of all those who visited it. When her famUy grew up, she resolved to spend the winters in London, and at once took her station at the head of the fashionable world in that metro polis. Having married her daughters to some of the first no blemen in England, (the Dukes of Richmond, Bedford, and Manchester, and the Marquis CornwaUis), she grew tired of gaiety, and frequently resided in Scotland, more especiaUy at Kinrara Cottage, on the banks of the Spey *. She employed much of her time in embeUishing that mountain residence, and improving the situation of the inhabitants in its neighbour hood. For this purpose she estabUshed a farming society in Badenoch, which excited a great spirit of improvement in that part of the kingdom. It is a singular circumstance, to find the same individual who was at the head of fashion in London, declaring, that after aU, " books, peace, and solitude, were the blessings she valued." * The following lines, addressed to the Duchess of Gordon, give but a very im perfect idea of the beauties of Kinrara, her Grace's favourite residence in the Highlands of Scotland. What beauteous scenes attract the ravished eye. Yonder, behold ! a lofty mountain rears Its rocky summits to the azure sky ; Beneath, each species which the forest boasts Spread their wide branches o'er the encumbered slope. Amidst whose foliage, hark ! how the feathered tribe Chaunt their wild notes, and animate the scene ; WTiilst underneath, the bold and rapid Spey Pours forth its tribute to the thirsty main. ^ Here lived the lovely Jane, who best combined A beauteous form to a superior mind. III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 159 Letter from the Duchess of Gordon to Sir John Sinctiiir. Gordon Castle, January i. 1804-. I can wait no longer, and feel that I have delayed too long in claiming your protection and advice for our infant farming society in Badenoch. I sent the papers, with the plan, to be printed at Inverness, and they have never been returned. The first copy was certainly due to you, by every person who feels, as I do, the real use you have been of to your country, and which ages unborn wiU value even more than we do. I need not teU you how ignorant, how lazy, and uninformed, the lower ranks are in Badenoch, particularly our weak sex. With superior minds, and capable of every thing that is great, when brought into the field, or any situation they are fitted to fiU, the brave sons of the hill shew themselves ; but those on whom fortune frowns, and who remain at home, are really wretched. No employment, and constantly taken in by their better informed neighbours. A tryst, (or public market), would prevent imposition ; premiums would excite industry ; and meetings, once or twice a-year, would create a kind of good wdU or friendship, that ought to subsist in all ranks of society. Our funds are as yet very smaU ; but I hope, when the rich and powerful consider the benefit it may be of to the best part of the creation, and certainly the most subUme and beautiful, they wiU come forward, and enable us to have a wooUen manufactory in that country, to give employment to the Highland spinsters. The moment I can get a copy of the papers, I will send them to you. It was you who first inspired me with that desire for im provement in the Highlands, which I now feel ; and I trust to your knowledge and friendship for instruction. Now I have lost my daughters, agriculture, and adorning nature, are my only delights. Yours ever, Avith much esteem, &c. J. Gordon. 160 IIL FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. On the same subject, (the Farming Society of Badenoch,) I find the foUowing communication : Letter from tlie Duchess of Gordon to Sir John Sinclair. Gordon Castle, January 13. 1804. Inclosed is one of the papers regarding our infant society. You love to do good. Now is the time ; for nothing can be more idle or more uncomfortable than the lower ranks of the people in the Highlands. Do protect my bantling, for I wish to make the inhabitants of the most beautiful country in the world, happy, rich, and independent. Yours ever, J. Gordon. Letter from, the Duchess cf Gordon. Kinrara, Perth, May 6. 1809. Dear Sir John, To do good is your motto, and at this moment you can do a great favour to Lord Macdonald. Mr M'Pherson, (Dal- wholie), is most anxious to be appointed factor to his Lord ship. Had I the choice of a hundred, he should be the man. He is quiet, industrious, much respected, weU informed ; and when any disputes arise among the lower ranks, he is always the peace-maker. He is regular in performing every moral and poUtical duty. I have wrote Lord Macdonald, and he may be assured that he cannot find a better man. The awful events of each day fiU me with horror ; and the irritating neglect our great rulers shew to Scotland, wiU soon make us as bad as John BuU. There is a report that the Highland dress is to be given up. Adieu then to the glory of the 42d and 92d regiments, and that noble spirit which distinguishes the sons of the moun tain. I came to meet the spring, and aU her lovely chUdren. Not a leaf on the fragrant birch ; the hiUs white with snow, and the glass little above 30. ShaU I rejoice I am here ? Books, peace, and solitude, are the blessings I value. My compa- III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 16] nion, Jane *, is gay as a lark, and we are planting and watching every flower. I saw the best of Mi\'es, and the most lovely of daughters, the day before I left Edinburgh. Yours truly, J. Gordon. V. LADY CRAVEN. I had the honour of being introduced to this fashionable lady, dm-ing a short excursion to Paris in 1786. She was distinguished for beauty and accompUshments, and in particu lar exceUed in music. Visiting her one morning, I obser ved a plain looking gentleman, dressed like a country squire, who spoke EngUsh remarkably weU, though rather with a fo reign accent. To my surprise, this turned out to be the Mar grave of Anspach. We had an interesting conversation on various subjects, which, it appears from Lady Craven's letter. No. 2, he had not forgotten. Letters from Lady Craven to Sir John Sinclair, No. 1. Lady Craven has received the map and note Sir John Sin clair was so good to send to Lady Berkeley's for her, and re turns him her thanks. She would be glad to know if Robert son the historian is dead or not. She had wrote to have a complete set of aU his works for the Margrave's English li brary, but receiving no answer, is afraid he is dead. Lady Craven wiU be very glad to entertain a Uterary correspondence with Sir John, having just estabUshed a Literary Society here, and would be glad to have all the information she can, of what is going on in the world of letters. • Lady Jane Montagu, daughter ofthe Duke of Manchester, and the Duchess of Gordon's grand-daughter. She died young, universally lamented by all whp knew her. VOL. I. L 162 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. An answer, directed to Lady Craven, under cover to his Serene Highness the Margrave of Brandenbourg Bareith and Anspach, at Anspach in Franconia, will come safe, but the postage must be paid at the office in London. Triesdorf, near Anspach, 29th June 1787. No. 2. Sir, I am very much obliged to you for the curiosities you sent me ; the pebble is particularly beautiful. I shall return your present soon in a literary style, which may entertain you and your fair bride for some moments. If I am to beUeve the news papers, you are married, and I must, in compliance to the old customs of England, wish you joy. I beg you wUl give a jog to the memory of Lord Fife, (from whom I have not heard for some time), and my compliments. Pray, Sir, be lieve me your most obedient servant, &c. Eliz. Craven. Anspach, 21st March 1788. The Margrave does not forget you. Sir. He is in my room, and when I told him I was writing to you, he desired his com pUments. VI. LADY GARDINER. My zeal for the improvement of agriculture, procured me a number of female correspondents, who took an interest in the success of that important department. Having accident ally met with Lady Gardiner, she complained much of the injury which her crops had sufi'ered from the attacks of the wire-worm. I promised to send her a remedy, which she po- III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 168 Utely acknowledged in the subjoined note, and comiiiiiiiicated, at the same time, a very iiitorostiiig fact regarding the wood of the Acacia. Lady Gardiner's compliineiits to .Sir John Sinclair, and is much flattered, and extremely obliged by his polite attention in sending her such a very useful hint for destroying the wire-worm, and which, as soon as she has perused with at tention, she will return to Sir John Sinclair. She is glad to see, in the same work, a treatise on the Acacia, of which wood she ventured to have gate-posts made two years ago, merely upon her own opinion, that from the appearance of the grain of the wood, it might be as durable as oak. 10. Upper Wimpole Street. June 1. 1813, VII. MISS MARIA EDGEWORTH. From simUarity of pursuits, I had become acquainted witii the late Mr Edgeworth, who, though possessed of very con siderable talents, wUl probably be more distinguished, as the father of Miss Maria Edgeworth, than for his personal merits, however respectable. There is no authoress who has done more credit to her sex and counfry, than Miss Edgeworth, and I was happy in an opportunity of attending to her re quest, contained in the foUowing letter : Letter from Miss Maria Edgeworth to Sir John Sinclair. Ardbraccan House, October 19. 1818. Though my acquaintance with Sir John Sinclair be very sUght, I take the Uberty of troubUng him, presuming that he wUl have the goodness to execute a little commission for me. In this, or the last month's Agricultural Magazine, we have seen a letter to Sir John Sinclair, taken from the Trans- l2 164 HI. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. actions of the Caledonian Horticultural Society, on the me rits of the CarUsle codUn apple. Some friends of mine, cu rious in these things, desire to introduce it into this country, and I have undertaken to apply to Sir John Sinclair to pro cure me a slipping or two of this apple. If he is so obUging as to comply with this request, he wUl be so good to order that the sUppmg shaU be cut to the length of a common sized October ; then let it be wrapped round with moss, and put between two covers of an old octavo volume, or pasteboards of that size, and directed, under cover, to Miss Edgeworth,— under a second cover, to Sir E. B. Baker, Bart. Castle, Dublin. He wiU forward it to me. Sir John Sinclair's desire to pro mote every species of improvement is so weU known, that I have reason to frust he wiU pardon me for giving him this trouble. I have the honour to be his obedient humble servant, Maria Edgeworth. My answer, as it expresses the respect I entertain for my ingenious correspondent, I beg leave to subjoin. Madam, It wUl give me particular pleasure to obey the commands of a Lady, from whose Uterary labours, both my iamUy and myself have derived so much entertainment and insfruction. I am glad to find that you have taken the Carlisle codUn under your " Patronage." Be assured that it wUl occasion you no " Ennui ;" and that it wiU be found as valuable a pro duction as could be introduced, either " To-morrow," or at any other period, into Ireland *- To do justice to this useful article, your trees should be planted about this season of the year. They are too bidky to be transmitted from this part of England, but I inclose a few lines to the Bishop of Carlisle, who, I am sure, wiU, with * Alluding to the titles of some of Miss Edgeworth's Tales. HI. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 16.'> much pleasure, supply you and your friends witii as many yoimg trees as may be necessary to give the experiment a fair trial, how far they are suited to the soil and cUmate of your vicinity. I should think that there would be no difficulty in sending the trees from Cailisle to Workington, and from thence to any part of Ireland. For grafts, or cuttings, the month of March is the proper season, and you may rely on my sending you some for trial, under Sir E. B. Baker's cover, though there is a great risk of their becoming too dry for vegetation in their journey to Ire land. I heard, with much regret, of the loss you lately sustained, having had the pleasure of Mr Edgeworth's acquamtance, and occasionaUy an epistolary correspondence with him. He pos sessed great abiUties, which he devoted to useful purposes, and the blank he has occasioned wUl not easUy be made up. If you should ever come to this part of England, I hope that you wiU favour Lady Sinclair and this famUy with a visit. You wiU find in this house a number of admirers, and your works inhabiting every room in it. With my respects to Mrs Edgeworth, I have the honour to be, with much esteem. Madam, your faithful and obedient servant. Ormly Lodge, Ham Common, Surrey, Slst Oct. 1817. N. B. — A gardener to the Duke of Buccleugh, in this neighbourhood, had, last year, a bushel and a half of apples from a young CarUsle codUn *. I was happy to find, by the subjoined letter from Miss Edgeworth, that her vidshes to establish the Carlisle codUn in Ireland had been successfid. * It is now found, that the Manx codlin is still more prolific. 166 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. Edgeworth's Town, April 3. 1818. Sir, Your most obliging note reached me this day ; and with it I safely received the nicely packed cuttings of the CarUsle codlin. I am very much obliged for your wonderfuUy punc tual recoUection of your promise; and I am the more grate ful, as, notwithstanding all my endeavours, I have not yet been able to obtain the trees. All people are not as punctual as Sir John Sinclair. The Bishop of Carlisle did all he could; but he was absent from the country, and in London, at the time I wrote. Mr Curwen has, however, promised to have the trees sent to Drogheda for me. I am so independent now, by your good ness in sending me these cuttings, that I can, at aU events, do without the trees. I wish there was any commission I could execute in this country for you. I will \iTite to my bookseller for the sermon of Dr Chal mers which you recommended. I am. Sir, your most obedient and obliged humble servant, Maria Edgeworth. VIII. MRS ABINGTON. 1 had occasionally an opportunity of meeting with this cele brated actress at Lord Fife's house in London, and could not fail to be highly gratified with the elegance of her manners, and the wit and spirit of her conversation. Not being accus tomed to write down what passed at a convivial table, like my friend BosweU, I only recollect one of her " bon mots." " 1 never wished," (she said), " to be acquainted with a public character, who has not been abused in the newspapers. I III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 167 then passionately desire his acquaintance, for 1 am sure that there is something superior about him to excite the envy of the malevolent." The foUowing note wiU give the reader an idea of her style of writing. 6i. Mount Street, May 11. 1800. Mrs Abington is most extremely sensible of Sir John Sin clair's goodness, in allowing her the perusal of the invaluable work, with which it has pleased him to favour the public ; and returns it with ten thousand thanks. She is miserable in not being able, at this moment, to send the discourse she mention ed to Sir John Sinclair, when she had the honour of meeting him at Lord Fife's. The gentleman she lent it to, has taken it with him to the counfry, where he is gone for a few days ; but at his return Mrs Abington wiU be particularly careful to send it to White haU. IX. MISS JOANNA BAILLIE. There is no dramatist of modern times, more distinguished for splendour of genius, or poetic powers, than Miss Joanna BaUlie. In her style of composition she often resembles Shakespeare. It was much to be lamented, therefore, that her plays, though fitted to make a powerful impression in the closet, were less adapted for representation on the stage ; and that she had taken a particular prejudice against the London Theatres, in consequence of a play written by her, though pos sessed of great merit, not having succeeded. From respect to her great talents, and desire to see them successfuUy employed, I took the Uberty of suggesting to her, the composition of a tragedy, more adapted for stage eifect ; 168 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. and as an inducement to undertake the task, proposed that she should dedicate the profits of the play to a specific charitable purpose. I had sketched out the plan of a tragedy, " On the Fall of Darius," which seemed to me an exceUent subject; and had sent the plan to Dr BaiUie, to be communicated to his sister. The following is the reply which I received from the Doctor, inclosing Miss BaiUie's answer to my proposal. As it does her much credit, I think it right to preserve her letter in this publication. Nov. 20. 1805. Dear Sir, I inclose to you my sister's answer relative to your propo sal. I hope it may prove serviceable to Mr 's family, if it be agreeable to them to be assisted in this way. The pubUc will be gratified when your work upon health and longevity comes out, as it will comprehend every thing which is known upon this important .subject. I remain. Dear Sir, your most obedient humble servant, M. Baillie. Hampstead, October 19. 1805. My Dear Brother, I have considered the proposal contained in Sir John Sinclair's letter, and the ingenious sketch for a tragedy that accompanies it, with the attention they deserve ; and very much regret, it is not in my power, to make the good use of them which he does me the honour to suppose I might, and which I should have so much pleasure in attempting. You may well know I am so circumstanced, that I cannot possibly off"er any play for representation to either Drury Lane or Covent Garden, nor suifer one of my writing to be offered to either of those theatres through any medium whatever. To give up aU idea, however, of being useful to a worthy family, on whom bad fortune has borne so hard, is very painful to me ; and, therefore, though I cannot undertake what Sir John has III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 169 pointed out, there is another way in which I might attempt to serve them ; and if it should meet with his approbation, and be at the same time perfectly agreeable to Mr and his famUy, I shall set myself to work in it most cheer fuUy ; that is, to write a tragedy upon some interesting, but more private and domestic story than that of Darius, which appears to me only fitted for the splendour of a large theafre, and to put it into Sir John's hands, to be offered to the Edinburgh theatre, or any theafre in the united kingdom he may think proper, those of London excepted. If the piece should prove successful, though it might not bring in a large sum from representation, yet it might be published af terwards, in any way that should be tiiought most advanta geous for Mr and his famUy, (whose property I should completely consider it as having become), and produce something considerable. I beg you wUl communicate this proposal to Sir John Sinclair, along with my acknowledgments for the obliging expressions on my account contained in his letter, and for the pleasure I have received in reading his outUne of a tragedy, which, if properly filled up, would no doubt make a striking spectacle in a grand theatre such as Drury Lane. When he has considered it, I hope he will have the good ness to let you know his opinion, without loss of time ; and if it is favourable, no exertion in my power shall be wanting to complete the work. The play having been composed, was represented on the Edinburgh stage. I was not present, but received from a correspondent there, the following account of the reception it met with. " Miss BaiUie's play went off with loud applause. The house was very full, and it is to be repeated every night this week. Henry Mackenzie furnished an excellent epilogue. 170 III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. Some of the critics here, think the inferior characters have; too much to do, as they were very badly sustained here ; but that objection would be obviated on a London theatre." Upon sending this account of the reception her play had met with at Edinburgh, to Miss Baillie, I had the pleasure of receiving the following communication from her : " Miss J. BaiUie presents her compliments and thanks to Sir John Sinclair, for the honour of his obliging note, and the extract of a letter which accompanied it. Nothing can be more highly gratifying to her, than the very favourable recep tion her Highland play has met with from her countrymen at Edinburgh, and the land interest her friends every where have taken in its success ; and it is an addition to her satis faction to think, that it may stiU, in one way or other, be made of some small use to the family, for whose benefit it was originally written, if such assistance should stUl be want ed *. ¦' Hampstead, February 7. 1810." X. MRS HANNAH MORE. There are few authors, in modern times, who have been of more service to religion than Mrs Hannah More, and it was upon that subject that I had occasion to correspond with her. • In the Scotch Magazine for February 1810, there is a critical analysis of Miss Baillie'.s play, to which she had given the name of " The Family Legend." Its appearance, it is said, ought to be considered as forming an era in the literary history of Edinburgh ; for since Douglas, no tragedy had made its first appearance on the Edinburgh stage, or at least had attracted general attention. Tiie beau ties of the Family Legend indeed are such, as to cstiiblish its claim, to be ranked as a popular and pleasing addition to our stock of acting plays. III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 171 My eldest daughter * had left behind her a letter on the Principles of the Christian Faith, a copy of which I sent to Mrs More, requesting her opinion of it. Her answer was so extremely favourable, that 1 have much pleasure in subjoin ing it. When it was known that the work had met with the sanction of Mrs Hannah More, its popularity rapidly increased, and it has already gone through sixteen editions. Letter from Mrs Hannah More to Sir John Sinclair. Sir, I feel much gratified at receiving from your hand, the va luable Uttle work you have done me the honour of sending me. I know not whether I should most congratulate you on having possessed such a daughter, or sympathise with you on having lost her. It is deUghtful to reflect, that while she is gone to join the society above, for which her whole life seems to have been a preparation, she has perpetuated her name by this valuable epistle ; and not only her name, but her desire of doing good, for which she seems to have had a peculiar voca tion. She was, indeed, a most extraordinary young lady. Her views of the Christian reUgion are very deep. She has ta ken, in a short space, a comprehensive survey of its doctrines. These doctrines, in her estimation, are not merely a beauti ful theory, consisting of speculative dogmas, but the sound substratum of all practical holiness. Every other way of con sidering this aU-important subject, is, in my opinion, danger ous and delusive. Those who divide doctrine from practice, of which we have lately heard so m.any unhappy instances, separate what the Scriptures have joined in indissoluble union. This young lady's Ufe seems to have furnished an admirable comment on her writing : She wrote as she lived ; she prac tised as she believed. I trust that this posthumous publication, will not only have the happiest effects on the beloved sisters, for whose use it * Miss Hannah .Sinclair. Her death took place on May the 22H, 1818. 172 in. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. was more particularly intended, but on as many as shaU per use it, particularly on those of her own sex, age, and rank in life. Of her it may, with peculiar emphasis, be said, that, being dead, she yet speaketh. I enter exactly. Sir, into the sentiment with which you conclude your preUminary address ; the very character and exemplary Ufe which so happUy fitted her for the blessed state on which she has entered, unspeakably sharpen the feeUngs, and aggravate the loss of her afflicted relatives. Cordially wishing you. Sir, and your mourning family, all the consolations which religion can bestow, and there are no others worth the name, I remain, with much respect. Sir, your very obliged and faithful servant, Hannah More. Barley Wood, near Bristol, June 13. 1818. XI. MRS FROWD, The Friend of Mrs Hannah More. Among the various literary works which I am anxious to bequeath to posterity, there is none respecting which I feel a greater anxiety, than a Digest, or Code of ReUgion ; and having transmitted to Mrs More an introduction and plan of the work, I had the pleasure of receiving a letter from Mrs Frowd, a friend of Mrs More, dated Barley Wood, June 20. 1820, of which the following is an extract : " I lament exceedingly to inform you, that in consequence of a long suffering, and almost hopeless iUness, Mrs Hannah More has been for very many weeks indebted to my feeble pen, (a friend staying with her), to answer her letters. Since the time she was favoured with a former letter from you. Sir, III. FEMALE CORRESPONDENCE. 173 (I think before Christmas), she lias been a close prisoner in her chamber, and for upwards of three months past, has been confined to her bed or sofa, alarmingly ill ; and 1 am sorry to say, she still continues in a very weak, suffering, and unre- covered state. " Mrs More commissions me with her best acknowledg ments for your last letter. She desires me to say, that she greatly approves of the plan of your work, and fully appre ciates the labour and research which must have been used, to bring, into the compass designed, so large and interesting a mass of reUgious and moral information and improvement. The method and arrangement of it also, she thinks highly use ful ; the deductions arising from considerations of the human mind and body, being novel, wUl be likely to be very strik ing, as they are certainly inteUigible to all moderately inform ed persons. " She desires me to say, it is her sincere opinion, that the work wiU be, as a whole, extremely interesting and benefi cial ; but with respect to the assistance you are so obUging as to hope from her, it would be impossible she could render any, under the present sad circumstances of her declining health, she not being even competent to common correspondence, or reading, excepting in a very Umited degree, on account of a complaint she has been a long time troubled with in her eyes ; independent of which, Mrs Hannah More says, she could not presume any aid of hers would be acceptable, towards the ac complishment of so learned and scientific a work." PART IV. NAVAL CORRESPONDENCE. NAVAL CORRESPONDENCE. Introductory Hints, coiitaining my Correspondence with the i.at.r Lord Mulgrave, regarding the naval strength of Great Bri tain, compared to that of France and Spain. I HAVE always been impressed with the most exalted ideas of the skiU and gaUantry of British seamen*. Their charac ter reflects the greatest credit on the country, and they con stitute its real strength. When I became a member of the House of Commons therefore, I was shocked to hear a naval officer, highly distinguished in the service, and who was also a member of the Board of Admiralty, (Lord Mulgrave), stat ing opinions in ParUament, which seemed to depreciate the nautical strength and power of the British navy, when com pared to the fleets which France was capable of producing. Having studied the subject maturely, and coUected the most satisfactory evidence in support of the opinions I maintained, I resolved, instead of attacking the Noble Lord in the House to write a tract upon the subject, as a more durable mode of giving my sentiments to the public f. " Peter the Great said, " If I had not been Czar of Muscovy, I would have wished to have been an English Admiral." f Among a number of other communications approving ofthe tract, the fol. VOL. I. M 178 IV. NAVAL CORRESPONDENCE. Flaving thought it right, to take an early opportunity of transmitting a copy of the tract to Lord Mulgrave, I was some time afterwards favoured with the following answer from his Lordship, in which he has stated the expressions actuaUy made use of by him in ParUament, respecting the comparative strength of the fleets of England and France, and justifies the opinions he entertained upon that subject. Letter from Lord Mulgrave to Sir John Sinclair. " Courageux, Spithead, June 22. 1782. " Sir, " A severe illness, which o'oliged me to go to Bath, has prevented me from acknowledging sooner the receipt of your note addressed to me at this place, accompanying your very ingenious pamphlet; and from returning my thanks to you, for your polite attention, in com municating to me your observations, on opinions supposed to have been delivered by me in the House of Commons. " It is not at all surprising, if my expressions are sometimes inac curate, as I never speak with any other preparation than tbat of the best information on the subject which my industry can procure, al ways making use of tbe expressions which suggest themselves at the moment to convey my thoughts, without any premeditated arrangement (if words. It is also impossible for any person, particularly one in of fice, who speaks frequently in Parliament, so to guard and qualify every argument he uses, that it may not be construed to mean some thing widely different from what the speaker intended, and to relate lowing from Morris Robinson, Esq. M. P., afterwards Lord Rokeby, was pe. culiarly gratifying. DE.4B Sir, I consider myself as much honoured by your sending me your book. I have read it, and have no scruple to affirm it to be one ofthe most respect.ible works ever published by a native of this island. In it you have fully demonstrated the power Great Britain possesses, of maintaining a naval force, superior to any establishment the resources of France are enabled to furnish. That is so very material a consideration at all times, but peculiarly so in the present situation of aff'airs, that you are undoubtedly entitled to the thanks of your countrymen for your pcrfornwuce; and I beg, in particuhir, you will accept those of your faith ful humble sor\ant, :M on Ills ROBINSOK. January 9. Chailiittp Street, Portland Place. IV. NAVAL CORRESPONDENCE. 179 to subjects wbich he had not at the time in his consideration, by ta king it independent of what it is connected with in the speech, and without its immediate relation to the subject in debate. I say this from my own experience, as I have sometimes found that 1 have been mistaken by persons of the fairest intentions. But it has also fre quently happened to me, that my opponents have taken a more con venient than candid way of answering me, by first misrepresenting what 1 had said, and then answering their own misrepresentation. This has happened to me more than once with respect to the expres sion you allude to. But as I am sensible that when 1 speak in Par liament, I am much more indebted to the indulgence, than entitled to the attention of the House, I never troubled them with explanations, except in points of fact, which related strictly to the business before the House, and the department to which I belonged. I must add, that I have seldom found Almon's Publication of Debates, which you quote, accurate as to what I said. 1 mention all this to shew, that I see many probable causes of mistake, and I have no doubt you really did conceive you were answering arguments and correcting errors of mine, when you, with the most laudable intentions, so happily displayed, in your Thoughts on the Naval Strength of the British Empire, the great variety of information on many branches of that extensive sub ject, wbich you have collected with so much industry, digested with so much precision, and coramunicated with so much elegance. " It has however happened to me, from I know not which of the above-mentioned causes, to have been totally mistaken by you. " In the first place, the expressions imputed to me were not mine, and in the second place, the drift of my argument is totally mistaken. My expression, as nearly as I can recollect, in words, and I am sure precisely in substance, was, ' That the Navy ofthe House of Bour bon must be superior to that of this country, whenever the French were free from a continental war, and should employ their resources and attention to that particular department.' You must remember that it was a frequent topic of the invective of the late opposition to the King's government, that the Admhalty had not a superiority in number of ships over the House of Bourbon. Any inferiority of a fleet, an equality, or even a small superiority, were mentioned as in stances of criminal neglect. It was in answer to one of these asser tions that my expressions, which have been so much mistaken, and so frequently misrepresented, were used. It was, I conceived, unne cessary to declare, that I was not giving a dissertation upon all the various branches which constitute naval strength, when the argument led me only to speak of the number of ships, and to contend that it was by comparing the efibrts of this country at this period with former M 2 180 IV. NAVAL CORRESPONDENCE. ones, and not with those of the enemy, that tbe conduct of the Ad miralty was to be judged of. The drift of my argument was there fore much mistaken, by applying that to every branch of naval strength, wliich related only to ship building. The opinion thus limited, I doubt whether you dififer from. You certainly have not refuted. The idea, tbat tbe Navy of the House of Bourbon must be superior to that of this country, expressed in the most unqualified terms, had I maintained it, would not have been a new one, since tbe conduct of our ablest statesmen, from the time of tbe first partition treaty, to the advice of Lord (Chatham to declare war with Spain, on tbe family compact being formed, appears to have been influenced by that opi nion. To have shewn that any assertions really coming from me xvere ' perfectly ill-founded,' it would have been necessary for you to prove, that this country alone can furnish a larger number of ships of the line than the House of Bourbon, when Fiance and Spain ap ply all their resources to that object, which I tbink you have not at tempted to do. The assertion, tbat the times of King William and Queen Anne furnished instances of the navy of France alone having been .superior to that of England, when they directed their whole at tention to that object, you are so far from having refuted, that you have proved it. " A speculative opinion, however ingenious, is no contradiction of an historical fact, stating what was really the case. — When you tell us that the allies might have been superior to the French, instead of denying the infeviority of one, you admit that of both allies. In your note, page 38, you say the French fleet ofF Beachy-head amounted to 78 men of war, tbe English had 34 in the engagement, and 18 more blocked up, or not ready as was expected. " In your note, page 46, you state the Fiencli fleet at the battle of Malaga, to have been 69 sail ; the Englisb 45. Here then, Sir, has your accurate industry furnished me with examples of an infe riority of :^6 sail in King William's reign, and of 24 in Queen Anne's. You lell us, indeed, in page 43 aud 44, that tbe assistance of the Dutch was of no service to us. As this is an opinion, not a fact, 1 shall not meddle with it further than to observe, that the able mi nisters of those times held a diff'erent one, when tbey sought that as sistance. " The periods you so properly mark of the decline of the French navy in those reigns, are the strongest proofs of tbe justice of my ob servation, a-j to the eff'ect of a continental war on the marine of Fiance. Tlie battle of the Boyne, which, by deciding the fate of Ireland, en abled King William to draw the attention of France to the Continent, WJis foiigbl within a day of that off' Beachy-head ; and in Queen IV. NAV.\I. COHUKSPONDENCE. iHl .Viino's reign, the battle of Mabiga was fought in the year in \vlii
  • 207 staiit vigUaiice, and exemplary conduct of the officers, non commissioned officers and privates of the Caithness Hifrh- landers, imiforndy displayed for upwards of two years, we have been indebted, yor the preservation of tranquillity through out this neighbourhood, and for the fullest degree of protection af forded to our persons and properties, during a period fraught ivith danger and alarm." Resolved, " That not only this town, but the surrounding country, has derived the greatest advantage from the prudent and judicious use that has been made of the high discretion ary powers with which the officers commanding the Caithness Higldanders were invested." There was nothing for which the two corps were more dis tinguished, than the superior exceUence of their health. In the second battaUon, out of 1000 men, officers included, the number of deaths, in the space of seven years, amounted on ly to 2 officers, and 37 non-commissioned officers and soldiers, not being 3-4ths per man in every hundred each year ; and when the first battalion was disbanded at Edinburgh, there was not a single sick man in it. Every individual came to the field, and deUvered up his arms in person. Being apprehensive that men who entered voluntarily into the service, and were to serve during the continuance of the war alone, would not consider themselves tied down to the same strictness of discipline, as regular soldiers who were en listed for life, I thought it necessary to devise some method of encouraging merit and good behaviour, and checking mis conduct ; and for that purpose I tried, with much success, the foUowing plan : Once a month, the regiment was paraded. The officers were assembled around the Colonel, and a muster-roll was given him by the commanding-officer of each company, with eleven columns, fiUed up as foUows : 208 V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 1. No. in the list. 2. Name. 3. County where born. 4. Kingdom. o. Age. 6. Size. 7. When enlisted. 8. Length of Service. 9. State of Discipline. 10. Behaviour in the Corps. 11. General Remarks. Every man in the list was caUed up in rotation, and in pre sence of the whole corps, according to the report made in the muster-roU, he was either publicly applauded or rebuked. On these days, promotions were made ; for instance, a private promoted to be a lance-corporal, or a corporal appointed a sergeant ; and as this was done, in the presence of the whole battalion, it had an astonishing efi'ect in exciting a spirit of emulation, and preserving an anxiety among the men, for ob taining and preserving a good character. If such muster- roUs were adopted in every corps throughout the army, it would enable the Commander-in-Chief to have a complete view of its state. It would be known how many sol diers each of the three kingdoms produced ; how many young, middle-aged, or old soldiers, were in the service ; how many were distinguished by their discipUne and their good beha viour, or the reverse. In short, a better view of our mihtary defence would thus be obtained, than is at present the case in any army in Europe. A plan having been adopted in this regiment, which was likewise introduced into other Highland corps with the best effect, it may be proper here briefly to explain it. It is evi dent that a distinction ought to be made between uninten tional or sUght breaches of discipline, and those proceediag from depraved habits, or hardened guilt. For the latter, courts-martial are necessary ; but for the former, it was the usual practice in this regiment, to empower an experienced soldier in the same company, to bring the offender to account. He was enjoined to award some slight punishment, and to keep a sharp eye over the culprit afterwards. This plan was attended with the happiest effects ; but great caution is re- V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 209 quired in tlie selection of proper men for this moral super intendence. They must be correct in their own conduct ; for pimishments or advice from men who require both themselves, imd shew an example of the very conduct they reprobate, can not be expected to be received even with common patience, far less with respect, and a resolution to benefit by them. The manner in which the men exercise their authority, should also be looked after, lest they should punish with that undue severity, which persons intrusted with power over their equals are too apt to indulge in. I. LE MARECHAL COMPTE ROMANZOFF SADOUNAISKY. On the 21st September 1786, I arrived at the ancient town of Carolowitsh in the Ukraine, (about 265 versts * from Kiew), and there received the foUowing poUte note from the above distinguished warrior : Le Marechal Comte Romanzoff Sadounaisky, tres sensible a I'attention que Monsieur le ChevaUer Baronet Sinclair, Membre de Parlement d'Angleterre, veut bien lui temoigner, sera tres charme d'avoir I'honneur de le re9evoir dans sa mai son f. I immediately proceeded to Wischenskie, where the Mar shal resided, and was received with the utmost politeness and hospitaUty. We dined at two o'clock. A Russian General, two aid-de-camps, and six other officers were present, not • Or 198 English miles. -|- Translation. The Marshal Count Romanzoff Sadounaisky, very sensible of the attention which Sir John Sinclair, Member of the Euglish Parliament, does him the ho nour to shew him, will be delighted to have the pleasure of receiving him at his house. VOL. I. O 210 V. MILITARY COKRESPONDliNCE. one of whom spoke a single word during the whole time, not even to one another. The subserviency of the Russian inferior officers to their superiors, is hardly credible to an Englishman. After dinner, we went in a droski and six, with two hussars superbly dressed preceding us, to see a new house, delight fully situated on the Desna, which the Marshal was building for a winter habitation. It was to contain 120 rooms, besides a theatre, &c. In the evening there was tea, and afterwards a Russian play was acted in a large haU, fitted up as a theatre, which passed off much better than I expected. I had much conversation with the Marshal on various subjects, and was highly pleased with the sound sense, information, and pohte ness he displayed. The epithet Sadounaisky is an honourable addition to his name, signifying " The Conqueror beyond the Danube." Marshal Romanzow was certainly one of the greatest cha racters that Russia ever produced. He was a soldier from sixteen, having served very early under Marshal Keith, of whom he spoke in the highest terms, and to whom he attri buted the foundation of all his fame and glory. He embra ced every opportunity of acquiring military knowledge, and was undoubtedly, when I saw him, one of the first generals in Europe. His only rivals were Marshal Laudohn, and Ge neral Moelendorf, Governor of Berlin. His conduct was re gulated by principles which did great credit to his understand ing. He said, " That one profession was as much as any man could know thoroughly :" and paid little attention, therefore, to any subject, not immediately of a military nature, or con nected with it. " Nothing is more imprudent," he observed, " than to despise an enemy, or by any means to excite his in dignation, revenge, or any other strong passion, the energy acquired from which may make up for want of skUl or courage." " A general," he farther remarked, " must be easy and affable to his own troops, without descending to meanness, or being too often seen by them, which must render him less respected." He himself had learned so much affabiUty by practice, and so V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. "J I I rigidly observed his own rules, that he constantly took oft" his hat to the very children of his own peasants when they bow ed to him. His victories over the Turks are well known. They were founded upon the maxim of acting on the defen sive, and of conducting himself with the utmost prudence and circumspection, watching the decisive moment of attack. " For if the Turks," he said, " once break in, there is no re sisting their impetuosity." His state of health, in 1786, had been for some time very indifferent, ruined, he observed, by two circumstances, the most destructive of any to the constitu tion, namely, " les vieilles de la cour, et les fatigues de guerre ;" of both of which he had ample experience. He spoke of several English officers with great respect. He was always a staunch friend to an intimate connection between England and Russia, as equaUy useful to both countries. He lived in great state at his chateau of Wischenskie, keeping from eight to ten musicians, a set of Russian comedians, and a number of domestics, his whole establishment affording a very ade quate idea of the ancient feudal magnificence. The following friendly communication from Marshal Ro manzow, I consider one of the most valuable in the whole of this coUection : Monsieur, C'est avec bien de la sensibilite, que j'eus I'honneur de re- cevoir votre billet, Monsieur, et la carte de son voyage sep tentrional qui I'accompagnoit. Ce souvenir flatteur me pe- netre de la plus vive reconnoissance, et me rend d'autant plus empresse a vous assurer pareiUement, qu'U me sera bien doux de conserver celiii de la visite, dont il vous a plu m'honorer sur ma terre, qui, pour tout merite, jouit de I'avantage d'etre inseree dans la carte de ses voyages. Conformement a la circonstance ou je me trouve presente- ment, ma sante ne peut qu'etre bonne. Je desire de tout mon coeur que vous ayez toujours a m'en dire autant de la votre. Monsieur. J'espere que de tems en tems vous voudrez bien m'liono- o 2 212 V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. rer de vos lettres, et m'accorder une fois pour toutes la conti nuation de votre amitie, que je tacherai de m^riter par un parfait retour de la mienne. Agreez, Monsieur, les sentimens de I'estime et de la consi deration distinguee avec lesquels j'ai I'honneur d'etre. Mon sieur, votre tres humble et tres obeissant serviteur, Che Romanzoff Sadounaiski *. Paraiierka, ce 25. Novembre 1787. II. MARSHAL BLUCHER. I wished much to have the pleasure of forming an ac quaintance with this celebrated warrior, when he came over, after the battle of Waterloo, to visit England ; and for that purpose appUed to Alexander Horn, Esq. the British Mi nister at Ratisbon, who happened to be in London at the time, from whom I received the foUowing letter on the sub ject, dated 3d July 1815. Dear Sir John, On my return home, I found a message from Bliicher to say, that he leaves town for the Duke of Cambridge's seat, but returns on Tuesday evening, and that he wiU be happy * Translation. Sm, It was with peculiar pleasure that I received your note, accompanied by the map of your journey to the North. This flattering mark of your remembrance was highly gratifying ; and I hasten to assure you, that I likewise preserve a plea sing remembrance of the visit with which you honoured me, on my residence, which has, as its only merit, the advantage of being inserted in the map of your journey. From the circumstances in which I am at present placed, my health cannot but be good. I pray with all my heart, that you will always be able to give rae the same agreeable information of yours. I hope that, from time to time, you will honour me with your letters, and will favour mc with a continuance of your friendship, which I shall endeavour to rae rit, by repaying it in return with mine. I have the honour to be, &c. V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 213 to make your acquaintance on Wednesday morning at eleven o'clock. Yours most sincerely, Alexander Horn. Nothing could be more flattering than the reception given me by Marshal Blucher. He said, that the war being now over, he was anxious to return to the pursuits of agriculture, for which he had always had a partiaUty ; indeed, that he had already been for fourteen years a farmer. That he had heard a great deal of Scotch husbandry, and wished me to procure for him some Scotch ploughs. He asked. Whether I thought that the Scotch system of husbandry would succeed in Prus sia, and what was the best plan for introducing it ? I short ened my visit as much as possible, as numbers were in atten dance to see him. He was a fine soldier-like person, seemed to possess great quickness of inteUect, and activity of person ; and though General Greisenau was the officer on whom the Prussians principaUy depended, for arranging the plan of a campaign, or of a battle, yet for executing the plan after it was formed, — for rousing the spirit of the soldiery,— for ani mating them to great exertions, — or for retrieving a defeat, — no officer could surpass Marshal Blucher *. III. GENERAL THE BARON MUFFLING. In the course of my inquiries regarding the battle of Wa terloo, I found that the Prussian General Muffling had dravra up an account, not only of that engagement, but of the whole canapaign, with every advantage of procuring information, as he belonged to the staff of the Prussian army, and was in the confidence of the Duke of WeUington. I was anxious, there- * I afterwards sent him an engraving of the Scotch plough, from which it could be constructed. His aid.de-camp said it was one of the most acceptable presents he had received since his arrival in England. , 214 V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. fore, to have so valuable a work pubUshed in England, which • he very readily agreed to, and actually employed some of his staff, who understood both German and EngUsh, to make the translation of his work *. The zeal with which he entered into the plan, wiU appear from the foUowing communication : Paris, Hotel du Rhin, Rue de Helder, 3. Mars 1817. MoN Cher Chevalier, De retour depuis trois mois a Paris, je voulois vous ecrire, pour vous en donner la nouveUe, et pour-la, voir si le projet que j'avois forme, et dont je vous avois fait part, par une lettre ¦ de Coblence, a eu votre approbation. Je vous prie, en tout cas, de me donner de vos nouveUes, avant mon depart de Paris, qui aura Ueu en 20 jours, pour passer I'ete a Coblence. Si 1' Histoire de la Campagne 1815 a paru, M''. Egerton aura bien la complaisance de m'envoyer deux exemplaires ici, ou, si ce seroit trop tard, a Coblence par Bruxelles. L' ouvrage n'a pas encore paru en AUemagne ; mais c'est d'ici a un mois qu'U sera pubUe en Francois et en AUemand. Agreez I'assurance de I'amitie et de I'estime avec lesqueUes je ne cesserai d'etre. Monsieur le ChevaUer, votre tres humble et tres obt. serviteur, Charles Baron de Muffling f. * It is to be had at Egerton's, Charing-Cross, London. .f. Translation. Paris, 3d March 1817. My Deae Sir, Having returned three months ago to Paris, I wished to write and inform you of the circumstance, and also to ascertain whether the plan which I had fonned, and which I communicated to you by a letter from Coblentz, has met with your approbation. At all events, I beg that you will let me hear from you before I leave Paris, which I shall do in about three weeks, to pass the summer at Coblentz. If the History of the Campaign 1815 has appeared, Mr Egerton will have the goodness to send two copies here ; or, if they could not arrive in time, to Coblentz by Brussels. The work has not yet appeared in Germany, but it will be published about a month hence in French and German. Accept the assurance of the friendship and esteem with which I shall ever re main, &c. &c. V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 215 IV. MARSHAL MACDONALD. Among the celebrated generals who contributed to the success of the Republican Government of France, at the com mencement of the Revolutionary war, there is none whose services were of a higher description than those of Marshal Macdonald. I was not, however, aware of their superior importance, until I had lately the opportunity of examining a work entitled, " Campagnes de General Pichegru aux Armees du Nord, &c. &c. Par le Citoyen David, temoin de la pliipart de leurs exploits," A Paris, 1796. This author's authority may be the more confidently relied on, as he was an eye-wit ness of the scenes he describes. The following is the account he gives of Marshal Macdonald's important services in the course of that campaign : " Clairfait s'etant considerablement renforce par les troupes que Cobourg lui avoit envoyees de Tournai, nous attaqua le 25 (13 Juin, v. st.) sur tous les points, depuis Rousselaer jus qu'a Hooglede. Avec des forces superieures et I'initiative de I'attaque, U devoit se promettre les plus grands succes ; U en- trevit meme un instant la victoire ; car son premier choc cul- buta et mit en deroute notre aile droite, qui lui abandonna Rousselaer. Mais la division du General Souham, et sur-tout la brigade de Macdonald, qui occupoit la plaine d' Hooglede, lui fit bientot perdre ce premier avantage. Cette brigade, n'etant plus appuyee sur la droite, fut attaquee de front et de flanc, et eUe etoit dans une si mauvaise position, que tout autre que Macdonald auroit fait battre la retraite; mais ce brave Ecossais soutint le premier choc avec une opiniatret^ extraordinaire ; il fut bientot renforce par la brigade de De- vinther, et ces deux colonnes se battirent avec tant d'acharne- ment, que I'ennemi fut oblige de pUer. On ne fit pas ce jour- 216 V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. la de prisonniers ; mais on tua une tres-grande quantite d'enne- mis, et on for9a Clairfait a abandonner Rousselaer, et a se re- tirer dans ses positions ordinaires de Thielt." " Cette bataiUe a ete une des plus sanglantes de la com- pagne ; mais aussi eUe a ete la plus decisive, puisqu'eUe nous a rendus maitres d'Ypres, de toute la West-Flandre, et que depuis ce moment I'ennemi n'a pu nous resister, ni au centre, ni a droite, ni a gauche." " Macdonald avoit ete destitue par Saint Just, sous pretexte, que n'etant pas vociferateur, il ne pouvait pas etre patriots. Les generaux avoient eu beau affirmer que ce general etoit un exceUent officier, un bon repubUcain, et qu'ils repondoient, qu'au Ueu de trahir la Republique, U la serviroit en brave et bon mUitaire : N'importe, Saint Just voulait desorganiser I'ar mee ; U le destitua. On pretend que Richard ent le courage de faire bruler I'arrete de Saint-Just, et de laisser continuer le service a ce brave mUitaire. Si cela est vrai, graces soient rendus a ce bon representant. Macdonald a parfaitement bien servi dans toutes les occasions ; mais a Hooglede U nous a sauves. S'il ne s'y fut pas trouve, nous aurions ete peut- etre obUges de lever le siege d'Ypres. Que les mihtaires mesurent I'etendue des maux qui en auroient resulte." " La garnison d'Ypres ayant appris la defaite de Clairfait, capitula le 29 (17 Juin, v. st.). Quoique forte de 6 a 7 mUle hommes, eUe ne pouvoit plus nous resister ; eUe accepta done toutes les conditions qu'on lui proposa. EUe laissa tout ce qui etoit dans la place, deposa les armes sur les glacis, et ftit faite prisonniere de guerre *." • Translation. Clairfait being considerably reitrforced by the troops that Coburg had sent lo him from Tournay, attacked us on the 25th, (13th June O. S.) upon all points, from Rousselaer to Hooglede. With superior forces, and the advantage of be gmning the attack, he was justified in promising himself the greatest success; he had even a momentary prospect of victory, for his first onset overthrew and put to the rout our right wing, which left him in possession of Rousselaer. But the division of General Souham, and especially the brigade of Macdonald, which occupied the plain of Hooglede, soon made him lose this first advantage. This brigade, being no longer supported on the right, was attacked front and rear, V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 217 Greater compliments could not have been paid to any ge neral. It is stated, that in the unfortunate position in which his brigade was placed, any other general but Macdonald would have sounded a retreat ; and though he had behaved well on many other occasions, yet that at Hooglede he had saved the army. Marshal INIacdonald is of Scotch extraction, and the French RepubUcans were extremely jealous of his aristocratic name, and the attachment of his famUy to the Royal House of Stu art. His father took an active part in the unsuccessful at tempt made by the Pretender in 1745, to recover the throne he claimed ; and, in the course of a tour which the Marshal made in Scotland, though very short, he went to the island of and it was in such a bad position, that any other than Macdonald would have sounded a retreat ; but this brave Scotsman supported the first shock with ex traordinary obstinacy ; he was soon reinforced by the brigade of Devinther, and these two columns fought with so much fury, that the enemy was obliged to yield. They made no prisoners that day, but they killed a great number of the enemy, and they forced Clairfait to abandon Rousselaer, and to retire to his ordinary position at Thielt. This battle was one of the most bloody of the campaign, but it was also the most decisive, since it rendered us masters of Ypres, of all West Flanders, and as from that moment the enemy was not able to resist us, either in the centre, or to the right or left. Macdonald had been deprived of the command by St Just, under the pretext, that, as he was not a declaimer, he could not be a patriot. In vain did the generals afiirm, that he was an excellent officer, a good republican, and that, in stead of betraying the republic, they would be responsible for his serving it like a brave and good soldier. This was of no consequence. St Just wanted to dis organise the army, and deprived him of the command. It is said that Richard had the courage to burn the decree of St Just, and to permit this brave soldier to continue in the service. If so, gratitude is due to this excellent representa tive. Macdcmald has served perfectly well on all occasions ; but at Wooglede he saved us. Had he not been there, we might have been forced to raise the siege of Ypres. Let military men judge of the extent of the misfortunes which would have resulted. The garrison of Ypres having heard of the defeat of Clairfait, capitulated on the 29th, (I7th June O. S.). Although they amounted to 6 or 7000 men, they could no longer resist us, and therefore agreed to all the conditions proposed by us. They left behind every thing that was in the place, laid down their arras on the glacis, and became prisoners of war. 218 V* MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. South Uist, chiefly to see the cave in which Prince Charles and his father had sheltered themselves from the pursuit of ,, their enemies *. Marshal Macdonald entertains the highest idea of the Scotch Highlanders, for their fidelity, courage, and loyalty. He ac counted it an honour to be considered their countryman, and he resolved to imitate them in the career which he foUowed. He was proud also, to bear the name, and to belong to the famUy of Macdonald, which, for ages, has been so justly cele brated for their courage, and the elevation and purity of their sentiments. When he visited Scotland, he received the most flattering reception ; and, in a recent letter I received from him, dated Paris, 25th March 1830, he expresses his hopes and wishes, that the period wiU yet arrive, when he wiU be able to revisit a country, for which both he and his son (who is to accom pany him), feel so strong an attachment. V. BATTLE OF WATERLOO. Having acquired some knowledge of miUtary matters, I felt a great desire to obtain the most authentic information that could be procured, regarding the greatest military event of modern times, " The Battle of Waterloo," and took an excursion to the Continent for that purpose. Upon applying to the Duke of WeUington, for his aid to complete the account I proposed to draw up of that celebra- * The Marshal is distinguished by a most accurate memory, which he proved by giving his route from the day he left Paris till his arrival at Edinburgh, na? ming every stage where he stopt, the day of the month, &c. He said that mili tary men must accustom themselves to be very exact in those matters. At Paris he usually rises every morning at five. He says, there is so much gossiping and visiting in France, that the morning is the only time for doing business. V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 219 ted engagement, he said, " I can give you no information that would be of any use to you. My mind was so completely occupied with the great events of the battle, that I could not pay any attention to its minor details. All that I can tell you is, that we met the enemy ; that we fought a battle ; and that we gained a victory." The information, however, which I obtained from others, was very satisfactory. I traced in the field itself, and its neighbourhood, the whole progress of the engagement ; and by means of a correspondence with the officers who had com manded at Hougomont and La Haye Sainte, I obtained the most interesting particulars regarding the attacks on those two most important places *. In regard to the account I had drawn up of the attack on Hougomont, in particular, I had the pleasure of receiving the foUowing letter from Colonel Woodford, who, for some time, had the command at that post. Cambray, June 24. 1816. Colonel Woodford presents his compliments to Sir John Sinclair, and begs to return his thanks for the honour he has done him, in sending him the printed account of the defence of Hougomont, which Colonel Woodford would have acknow ledged sooner, had he not been absent from Cambray when that paper was received. Colonel Woodford is persuaded, that the officers and men of the 1st Coldstream, and 3d Regiments of Guards, who had the honour of defending different points of that post, wUl feel particularly indebted to Sir John Sinclair, for the manner in which he has coUected and pubUshed these details. The work of General Muffling, already mentioned, (a trans lation of which into EngUsh I was the means of procuring,) is by far the best mUitary description of Napoleon's last cam- * La Haye Sainte was taken by the French, because there was no access by which ammunition could be introduced into it, but by an entrance which was commanded by the cannon of the enemy. 220 V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. paign, and the great events therewith connected, that has ever yet been pubUshed. General Foy, who was employed in the attack on Hou gomont, made an exceUent remark on the battle of Waterloo. " // ri etoit pas une batailh, mais un duelh" It was not a battle, but a duel, between the two armies ; for there was no manoeuvring, and nothing but sheer fighting. The duration of the combat gave the English army a great advantage ; for though the French ajre equaUy brave, they have not the same bottom, or physical strength, as the EngUsh : and if a battle is protracted for many hours, the former have not the same chance of success. It is said that Grouchy was prevailed upon by Vandamme notto think of joining Napoleon, (who, he said, would defeat the EngUsh without his aid), but to march to Brussels, for the purpose of plundering that city. If so, the ruin of Napoleon was partly owing to his having retained an officer in his ser vice, whom he ought to have discarded, as among the most unprincipled in his conduct, of any that the French Revolu tion had produced. VI. HINTS REGARDING THE PROPOSED REDUCTIONS IN OUR PEACE ESTABLISHMENTS. There is no circumstance that seems to me more dangerous to the prosperity, and indeed the safety, and independent ex istence of the nation, than those plans for reducing our naval and miUtary estabUshments, which it is now so common to recommend. Without the prospect of an adequate subsistence, and per manent employment, there is no inducement to a sufficient number of persons, more especiaUy of those spirited and ele vated characters who are alone capable of adding to the fame V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. 221 of their country, and insuring its safety, to engage in the naval and military professions ; and when it is complained that we are at a great expense in keeping up those establish ments, it ought to be considered, that it is only a provision for some of our countrymen, who are thus retained, in a per petual state of preparation, to defend their fellow-subjects. Indeed, the lowness of our peace establishments has always been of great disadvantage to this country, at the commence ment of a war. In general we have had but few men with much practice in the naval or miUtary departments, or capa ble of teaching those whom we were under the necessity of raising. The consequence has been, that wars were ineffi ciently commenced, were unnecessarUy prolonged, and were ultimately rendered much more expensive, than if we had begun vnth a greater force at our command. It is said, that we must husband our resources, in order to enable us to carry on a new war, should it break out. Such a doctrine seems to me extremely exceptionable. It goes up on the idea, that the national resources are stationary. On the contrary, I maintain that they are progressive, and that if a government would wisely promote, in time of peace, its agricultural, commercial, and other means of acquiring wealth, no apprehension need to be entertained of any deficiency of resources, should a war unavoidably break out. But we are told, that such and such reduced estabUshments were sanctioned by former ParUaments. To that my answer is, " It might as well be contended, that the clothes of a school-boy should be worn by a fuU-grown man, as that the estabUshments of a moderate-sized kingdom are calculated for the preservation and safety of an extensive empire." The great object of a nation ought to be " security," which never can exist without ample establishments, more espe ciaUy with an empire so extensive as Great Britain is at pre sent. Can any thing be more alarming to a right-minded and weU informed patriot, than the information we have just received, that France is sending a formidable fleet, and an 222 V. MILITARY CORRESPONDENCE. army of fifty thousand men, to attack Algiers ? I should be glad to know, if our estabUshments were reduced so low as has recently been contended for, what would become of this country, if such an army were to land in England, to which the invention of steam navigation gives so much facility ? How could we, without volunteers, — without yeomanry, — without a trained militia, — and with contracted naval and military estabUshments, resist such an invasion ? I cannot conclude these cursory observations, without sta ting it as an opinion, with the justness of which I am deeply impressed, that a thorough knowledge of the art of war, is far from being so easily acquired as is commonly imagined. Ac customed to business, and to spare no pains in acquiring in formation respecting any subject to which I might be led to direct my attention, I expected that a very short period would be sufficient to teach me aU that it was necessary for an offi cer to know. I found, however, such an idea was extreme ly iU founded ; — that a man can no more become a real soldier in a few weeks or months, than become thoroughly master, in so short a space, of any other trade. Young men, therefore, ought to be regularly trained to war, as to any other art, from an early period of their life. Hence naval and mUitary aca demies seem to me as necessary, as universities for law, or medicine, or divinity ; and we shall never be able to have a sufficient number of skilful officers, or at least, in that respect, to stand in competition with the warUke nations on the Con tinent, or even with the new empire of America, unless such seminaries as that of Woolwich and Sandhurst, are estabhsh ed in different parts of the kingdom, where aU the young men, destined for the pubUc defence, may have a foundation laid, of knowledge in the art of war, previous to their enter ing into the service. PART VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. I propose dividing my Clerical Correspondence into four branches; 1. England; 2. Scotland; 3. America; and, 4. France. 1.— ENGLAND. I. DR MOORE, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY. One of the great objects I had in view, by the estabUshment of a Board of Agriculture, was to procure a Statistical Account of England, sinular to that which I had completed in Scot land, by means of the clergy of that country. For that pur pose, in forming the plan of the Board, I proposed, that the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, and the Bishops of Lon don and Durham, should be officially members; and when it was intended to appoint two secretaries, that one of them should be a respectable literary character, belonging to the Church of England, for carrying on the statistical correspondence with its clergy. Several respectable characters were mentioned ; but the nomination being left to the Archbishop of Canter bury, he recommended the Rev. Dr Shepherd, who, I be Ueve, was one of his chaplains. Unfortunately, however, the Archbishop was informed, that, in the course of the statis tical researches, the subject of tithes would be included. He VOL. I. p 226 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. immediately informed Mr Pitt, (who was favourable to my plans, but did not wish to enforce them if not approved of by the church), that neither he, nor, he beUeved, any of the Bishops, would promote an inquiry in which the subject of tithes would be discussed ; and he Ukewise sent me the follow ing note, withdrawing his recommendation of Dr Shepherd : Lambeth House, July 26. 1793. The Archbishop of Canterbury presents his compliments to Sir John Sinclair, with many thanks for the papers he has done him the honour to send him. He has not troubled him with Dr Shepherd's address ; because he is of opinion, on ma ture consideration, that the appointment of a clergyman, espe ciaUy a clergyman who has a living with cure of souls, to be an official secretary to any Board that wiU take up so much of his tune, and is not entirely, or at least chiefly, employed in matters relative to reUgion, is liable to much objection. He has therefore withdrawn his recommendation. The opposition of the Archbishop, by influencing Mr Pitt, was fatal to the statistical account of England. No circum stance could have been more provoking, nor in a public point of view more unfortunate. There was not the least idea of interfering with the property of the church, either in regard to tithes, or in any other respect ; and it was with the view of preventing any jealousy of the sort, that the leading members ofthe church, were officiaUy nominated members ofthe Board. Every thing was prepared for carrying on a parochial inquiry on a great scale ; but owing to the circumstance above men tioned, England was deprived of that minute, or " anatomical species of political survey," which would have fuUy explained, both its existing state, and the means of its future improve ment. Had that been accomplished, many of those calamities, so often since experienced, would most probably have been averted. Had the plan of parochial inquiries been adopted, it would have been carried on at a moderate expense ; but when that VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 227 system was abandoned, I was obliged to adopt the plan of county, instead of parochial reports. This occasioned greater expense, (for it was necessary to pay those who executed county reports,) and required a longer period for its execu tion. In a private affair in which I happened to be much in terested, the Archbishop shewed a very flattering mark of his attention. Having heard much of a school at Sunbury in Middlesex, kept by the Rev. Dr Moore, to which I proposed sending my eldest son, I took the Uberty of applying to his Grace for information respecting it. The Archbishop not having any personal knowledge of that academy, took the trouble of applying for information to the Bishop of London, and of sending me the foUovdng letter : Sir, I have to acknowledge the honour of your note respecting Dr Moore of Sunbury in Middlesex : but not having any ac quaintance, nor indeed any knowledge whatever of him, it oc curred to me to write to the Bishop of London, who, as his Diocesan, might probably be able to give a sufficient answer to your inquiry concerning him. I now inclose to you the Bishop's letter, and have the ho nour to be, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, J. Cantuar. Lambeth House, January 2. 1802. II. DR RICHARD WATSON, BISHOP OF LLANDAFF. This celebrated divine * was by far the greatest character, for strength of inteUect, that had appeared in the Church of * The tradition was, that the family originally came from Scotland ; but they had been long settled at Shap, in Westmoreland. Life, p. 3, p2 228 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. England since the days of Warburton. Such was his dignity of manner, and readiness in conversation, that I often intro duced to him a self-sufficient foreigner, whom I wished to see humbled, knowing that there was not an individual better able to administer the wholesome discipUne. I took care to have the Bishop nominated one of the original members of the Board of Agriculture, and he did ample justice to that ap pointment. During his residence in London, he regularly attended the meetings of the Board ; and not only took an active part in all its proceedings, but drew up some usefol papers for it, — in particular, an exceUent introduction to the Agricultural Report of his native county of Westmoreland. The Bishop left behind him a History of his Life, fi:om which a number of aphorisms have been drawn up, which seem to me so extremely valuable, that out of respect to the memory of so exceUent an author, I have inserted them in the Appendix. In his pubUshed life, he has inserted two letters written to me on agricultural topics, which it is unnecessary here to re print *- But I have much pleasure In laying before my read ers, extracts from some of the other communications I had the pleasure of receiving from that great character, whose friend ship I so highly valued, and whose encouragement was so strong an inducement, to prosecute the multipUed and labo rious investigations, to which my attention, from time to time, was directed. Extracts from various Letters from the Bishop of Llandaff to Sir John Sinclair. 1. " You are always employed with honour to yourself and utility to the country. You may be praised, but you will not be promoted to any beneficial situation; for Govemment is jealous of abilities, united with a spirit of independence and political investigation. Your Sta tistical Queries are all good, but they are too numerous to be answer- * One written an. 1799, (see Bishop Watson's Life, p. 333,) and another dated 26th January 1810, (see p. 515.) VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 229 etl with precision by a country clergyman. If answered, however, in part, they will lay a foundation for parochial histories, which will themselves become the corner stones of the national political history of your country." (Oct. 4. 1790.) 2. " As to this country, we have nothing to apprehend from the restlessness of a few individuals. Our constitution is fundamentally good ; and it must be in an hour of extreme distress, such as the American war occasioned, that the nation at large will be brought to think that there are any defects in it. My opinion of defects in the ecclesiastical part of the constitution is well known ; and I have no scruple in saying, that the corruption of Parliament, and the chi cane of the law, are civil evils ; but I am an enemy to any violent modes of reforming these evils. On the other hand, it may be re marked, that no coiTupted body ever reformed itself; — that the ex pectation of the Parliament's correcting its ovi^n abuses is chimerical ; — and that the law and the church have so much influence with the Parhament, that no amendment of them is to be expected from that source." (28th October 1792.) 3. " I have not seen the report on potatoes. Similar reports ought to be made on cabbages, carrots, (a good one on carrots is given in Mr Young's Annals), turnips, clover, &c. &c. By this means know ledge would be more easily circulated than by any other, and every farmer would have an opportunity of consulting that particular report, the subject of which engaged his attention." (November 1795). 4. " Weight of taxation has long ago extinguished the yeomanry of the country. It must compel gentlemen of less than two thousand a- year, either to turn farmers, or to migrate to some country where the luxuries of life, which those of that fortune will have, may be pur chased at an easier rate than they can be in Great Britain. Mr Gouverneur Morris, who staid with me two days, and whose conver sation is intelligent and amusing, speaks of New York, where a man of a thousand a-year, may have as many coraforts and superfluities, which custom has rendered necessaries, as he can for twice that in come in England." (November 1795). 5. " I have not sent any subscription to the Board, not from a de sire to save my money, but from a stevn reluctance to assist, by pri- 230 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. vate donation, a Board, which ought to be liberally supported hy le gislative munificence. When will a great mimster arise, who, detest ing the expenses of war, shall be disposed to expend but ten millions on the agricultural improvement of the country ? This sum, (not a tenth of what this unfortunate war will cost us), would, in less than fifty years, if properly expended, double the number of the inhabitants, and quadruple the wealth and strength of Great Britain." (Novem ber 1795). 6. " I am glad that your active spirit has turned your attention to Gaelic literature, of which I know nothing but from Ossian's Poems. They are now, I presume, originals, and they are certainly simple and sublime. " A Mr Davies lately published a learned book, entitled, Celtic Re searches. I never saw the man, but was so well pleased with his work, that I have given him a living, the best almost in my patronage, and I have not above four or five. You must look upon me, then, as a co- operator, or, at least, a well-wisher in your new pursuit.'' (February 1796). 7. " I must think the kingdom is highly indebted to you, for bring ing forward a species of knowledge, (statistics), wholly new in this country, though not new in other parts of Europe. Such knowledge constitutes the basis of enlightened legislation, and general prosperity; but it requires pains to attain it, and an enlarged mind to comprehend its utility ; and the ministers of the day are so much occupied in the disgraceful operations of securing, " per fas et nefas," majorities in Parliament, that they have neither inclination to enter into, nor leisure to prosecute its inquiries." (16tb August 1800). 8. " I received the statement of your improvements, &c., a post before I got your letter ; and I now write, merely to express to you my high approbation of what you are doing. You are securing opu lence to your family, honour to yourself, and advantage to the conn- try. Go on and prosper." (November 10. 1802). 9. " Your Prospectus (of the Code of Health), I have read with great pleasure, and like tbe plan of it, though 1 think it upon too large a scale to be accomplished, as it ought to be, in the short time you men. tion, notwithstanding my high opinion of your genius and indefatigable VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 2a I ability. Dr Hufeland says, that he spent eight years in composing hia Treatise on the Art of Prolonging Life ; and you talk of a few months. It will be worth your while to look into his book, aud to consult a favourite author of mine, — Sanctorius." (November 1804). 10. " Your tracts on longevity I see are in the press. I cannot but admire, both tbe activity of your genius, and the versatility of your talents. Take care, however, that you do not injure your health. The desire of fame is as dangerous to a literary man, as that of martial cele brity is to a soldier." (October ] 806). 11. "I rejoice in your being again in Parliament: your country is greatly obliged to you ; and the improvement in agricultm-al pursuits, which is observable in every county I passed through in my journey, ought to be ultimately referred to you." (July 4. 1807). 12. " To say of you that you are more indefatigable than a Scotch man, (though an bigh praise), is not saying half enough of you ; for who but yourself would have ever tbought of writing the history of a voyage from Caithness to Aberdeen ? I thank you for it, and see tbat nothing respecting the public good escapes you." (June 1807). 13. " You are constantly distinguishing me by your attentions, and I accept tbem as honourable marks of the regard of a man, whose exertions, on the improvement of the country, have been uniform and successful. To you we owe the establishment of the Board of Agri culture, and to that Board we owe the spirit of rendering cultivated lands more productive, and waste lands cultivable." (6. April 1810). 14. " My head has a constant pain in it ; but whether it will end in a paralytic stroke in the spring, no doctor can teE ; therefore I con sult none, but wait, with fortitude and humble trust, the EXIT OF THIS LHJ-E, AND THE BEGINNING OF ANOTHER. Your af fectionate friend, 11. L." (December 1811). (The initials of Richard, Bishop of Llandaff.) The above is the last letter I received from this excellent character. He died on the 4th of July 1816, in the 79th 232 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. year of his age. Some time before he died, his health had rapidly decUned, and bodUy exertion had become extremely irksome to him. Though his mental faculties remained unhn- paired, yet he cautiously refrained from every species of Ute rary composition, having resolved not to expose himself to the admonition of a GU Bias. III. THE REV. DR CHAPMAN, VICE-CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD. Having been partly educated at Trinity CoUege, Oxford, and taking an interest in the prosperity of that celebrated Uni versity, I was happy that, in the course of my great continen tal tour, I had procured an ancient edict, which I thought would be acceptable in that celebrated seat of learning. It was the edict agauist the Bacchanals, which I had procured at Vienna. I thought it right therefore to send it to my old tutor, Dr Chapman, who was the Head of Trinity, and Vlce- ChanceUor of Oxford. His answer I subjoin. Sir John, I had the honour of your obUging letter some days since, with a copy of the celebrated edict against the Bacchanals, which shaU be properly placed in the Bodleian Library. I beg you wiU accept the acknowledgments of the Univer sity for your polite attention, and beUeve me. Sir John, your obliged and obedient humble servant, Jos. Chapman. Trin. Coll. May 31. 1788. I thank you for the map of your tour. VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 233 IV. DEAN TUCKER. This respectable dignitary of the church had a peculiai' turn for poUtical discussions. He was almost the only man In Eng land who contended, that the independence of the American colonies, instead of ruining England, (which was the general beUef, both at home and on the Continent), would ultimately prove highly advantageous to both countries, — an opinion which has been justified by the event. In fact, overgroAvn do minions are as Injurious to a state, as corpulence to an indivi dual. They are the source, not of strength, but of weakness. When a war breaks out, the fleets and armies of the country are employed in protecting distant possessions, instead of be ing used as the means of internal defence ; and it is thus expo sed to risks, from which it might otherwise be exempted. How far such observations may be appUcable to any of the possessions of the British Crown, it would certainly be de sirable that our Government should deUberately consider. The work aUuded to in the subjoined letter from the Dean, was an account, I proposed to draw up, of an excursion to France, in the course of which I had coUected much informa tion favourable to the system of commercial freedom which the Dean had inculcated. Gloucester, Feb. 23. 1786. Sir, Being seized with a giddiness, which has continued a long time, I am obUged to have recourse to an amanuensis to answer your letter. I am happy to hear that you are re turned from the Continent, fuU of instruction to our deluded countrymen. The right way to proceed is to mind their own afiairs. We have no need to wage war with other nations, ei ther in a commercial or a martial sense ; for If we seU our own 234 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. goods cheaper, foreigners wiU certainly buy of us, and we can not expect they would lay out their money on other terms. Whenever your book shaU appear, I wiU do myself the pleasure to give it a thorough reading, and promise myself much information from its contents. With these sentiments, I am, Sir, your obUged humble servant, J. TUCKEII. John Sinclair, Esq. V. THE REV. DR PRICE. We were both much attached to financial discussions, in consequence of which I was induced to draw up, not only some tracts on the subject, but also a general history ofthe revenue of the British empire. Dr Price having commu nicated to me some tables he had prepared, explanatory of the powers of a sinking fund in reducing a national debt, I proposed to the Doctor, annexing them to a work, which I was about to publish on our finances ; but I was glad to find, that he had communicated the tables to Mr Pitt, as it was probable he would avail himself of them. Dr Price's letter on that subject Is subjoined. Newington Green, April 30. 1786. Dear Sir, I have considered anxiously your proposal to me with re spect to the publication of my tables, and cannot but be sorry, that there shoidd be any reasons, which oblige me to decline complying with your desire In this Instance. I feel a dehcacy with respect to Mr Pitt ; and I should wish, were they to be published, to accompany them with some explanations and re marks, which I think necessary to fit them more for the pub lic Inspection, but which I cannot now get time to prepare. I VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 235 am likewise not without all hope, that should Mr Pitt persist in the plan he has adopted, he may think proper to insert, In the act of Parliament, (as the King of France has done in his edict), some table of the same kind, with one of these tables as a proper direction to the commissioners, an encouragement to the public, and a secmdty to the fund. Under a sense of the honour you do me, by desiring that any thing of nune should make a part of your publication, and with great respect, I am, Dear Sir, your most obedient and humble servant, Richd. Price. To Sir John Sinclair, Bart. Mr Pitt's plan of a sinking fund certainly originated with Dr Price ; but that does not detract from the merits of a mi nister, whose duty it is, and whose glory it ought to be, to avaU hlmseLf of the talents and information of others, for pro moting the public good. VI. THE REV. DR KIPPIS. Among my other Uterary correspondents, the Reverend Dr Kippis was one in whose judgment I placed considerable re liance ; and having transmitted to him a tract, written in the year 1782, on the propriety of retaining Gibraltar, I trans mitted it to him for his opinion whether the work should be published. His answer Is subjoined : Dr Kippis's compliments to Mr Sinclair, and cannot but express his earnest wish, that he would set his name to so va luable a pubUcation, and which may be of the greatest impor tance to this country at the present juncture. Crown Street, Dec. 27. 1782. 236 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. VII. THE REV. DR PRIESTLEY. The merits of Dr Priestley as a phUosopher are weU known, and, though compeUed to take refuge In America, he was not indifferent to the agricultural prosperity of his native country. He sent me therefore, as President of the Board of Agricul ture, an account of a very interesting discovery made by Mr Cooper, an American farmer ; and soon afterwards I received the foUowing letter from the Doctor, introducing his son, an American farmer, to whom, of course, I paid every attention In my power during his residence in England. Sir, In answer to your obUging letter, I sent you an account of some agricultural Improvements made by a Mr Cooper of this country, which Mr Liston, the EngUsh ambassador here, un dertook to transmit to you. I therefore hope you have re ceived it. This vfIU be deUvered, I hope, by my son, who Is an American farmer, and very desirous of learning every thing new and important relating to agriculture. You vdU obhge me very much by putting him In the way of receiving any information of the kind. My pursuits have but Uttle con nexion with yours. I admire, however, the zeal and Intelli gence with which you apply to them, and rejoice in your suc cess. With every good wish, I am, Sir, yours sincerely, J. Priestley. Northumberland, (in America,) Dec. 22. 1798. VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 237 2.— SCOTCH CLERGY. I. THE REV. DR ROBERTSON. This celebrated historian, who was the leader of the Church of Scotland, warmly supported my researches into the poUti cal circumstances of that country, and indeed, without his powerful aid, I could not have expected so much success in the undertaking. He furnished me with a particular detaU of his own parish, and pressed aU his friends to foUow his example. From the subjoined letter it appears, that he had come from his residence in the country, on purpose to meet me at Edin burgh, partly in consequence of my having drawn up some remarks on his History of America, in the success of which I took a warm interest. He seems to have taken my stric tures in very good part, as a truly great mind always wUl do, for an author ought to consider that he writes, not so much to please himself, as for the pleasure and instruction of others. Sir, As I reside In the country during the vacation of our Col lege, I was so unfortunate as not to hear, in proper time, of your being in Edinburgh in September. The moment I knew of your being there, I came to town, in order to wait upon you ; but you had set out for the south the day before. I wished to have retumed you thanks, for some very inge nious remarks on my History of America, which Mr Strahan communicated to me. Most of them are so just, that I have adopted them in an edition of that book now in the press. With respect to a few of the strictures, I difiiered from you in opinion, and shoidd have been glad to have benefited by a conversation with one, who had read the work with so much attention and discernment. 238 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. I have the honour to be, with great respect. Sir, your most obedient and most humble servant, William Robertson. College of Edinburgh, December 18. 1777. II. DR BLAIR. The celebrated Dr Blair was my father's intimate friend, and I had been taught to regard him with hereditary respect and affection, I had also attended his lectures on rhetoric in the University of Edinburgh, and was anxious to cultivate an intercourse with one who was so much distinguished for his literary powers and accomplishments. On forming the inten tion of visiting Russia, I naturally thought, that a letter from Dr Blair, to the Princess Daschkow, would be of great use ; and, as appears from the subjoined letter, he Immediately com pUed with my request. Dear Sir, I was favoured with your letter this forenoon ; and accord ing to your desire, I now, by the return of post. Inclose a let ter of introduction to you to the Princess Daschkow. I have had no occasion to write to her, except once, since she left Scotland ; but as I was much in habits of friendship with her, I make no doubt of my letter answering the purpose you would wish, of procuring you aU civilities from her. She is an uncommonly clever and accomplished woman. You will find her acquaintance very worthy of being cultivated, espe cially as she is at the head of the Academies of Petersburgh. In her political principles she Is much inclined to repubhc anism and Uberty ; and when here, was always more connect ed with Opposition than with Government. I hope It Is mere- VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 239 ly improvement, or pubUc business, and not any consideration of health, that leads you at present to go abroad. I most heartUy wish you an agreeable journey, and safe return ; and shaU be happy to have the pleasure of seeing you again in this country : having the honour to be, with great respect, Dear Sir, your most obedient and most humble servant, Hugh Blair. Edinburgh, 22d May 1786. As the Doctor had taken so warm an interest in my north ern tour, I sent him the perusal of a very interesting commu nication from Count Hertsberg, and also some accounts I had dravra up and printed, but not pubUshed, respecting Denmark, Sweden and Russia. The subjoined letter, which he sent me regarding those particulars, is evidently written with consider able abiUty. My Dear Sir, I return you, with a great many thanks, the Comte de Hertsberg's letter, which gives a very natural picture of the melancholy and discontented state of a great minister, dis missed from office, and reduced to a private station. From the account he gives of his services to the pubUc, I should incUne to think, he has been hardly used by his sovereign. The presumption is, that one who had been so long employed by the great Frederick, must have been an able and discern ing man. The translation, which reads exceeding weU, does honour to Lady Sinclair. I showed the letter, as you aUow ed me, to Dr Robertson. I return you also your observations, in three parts, on Rus sia, Sweden and Denmark ; for the perusal of which I am exceedingly obUged to you. They convey much curious mat ter, and much information on the state of these kingdoms ; and do honour to that accurate and scrutinizing observation, with which you surveyed public affairs when you was abroad. Indeed, neither at home, nor abroad, do you aUow yourself to 240 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. be unemployed, or inattentive to the public. Since the time you made that tour, the face of afiairs In some of these coun tries, in Sweden particularly, has altered greatly. But still, many of your observations remain applicable to the present state of things. Though I wish the pubUc were in possession of part of your inteUigence, yet considering some of the anec dotes you relate, and the freedom with which you treat some distinguished persons in high office in those kingdoms, I think you were much In the right, not to aUow these papers to go into public circulation, but to print only a few copies for the perusal of your friends. Wishing you aU success in your pubUc-spIrited and useful labours, I have the honour to be, with great respect and esteem, my Dear Sir, your most obe dient and faithful humble servant, Hugh Blair. Argyle Square, Sth December 1792. III. THE REV. DH HILL, PRINCIPAL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS. On the death of Dr Robertson, the Rev. Dr HiU of St Andrews became the leader of what was distinguished by the name of" The Moderate Party," in the Church of Scotland,— a situation to which he was weU entitled, not only from the exceUence of his talents, but from the superior powers of elo quence by which he was eminently distinguished. The foUowing letter gives a favourable specimen of Dr HiU's turn for epistolary correspondence : St Mary's CoUege, St Andrews, May L 1809. Sir, I have observed, with much satisfaction, the Uberal invi tations given, by some great pfoprietors in England, to Scots VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 241 farmers ; and as you have not adopted the doctrine of Sir Francis Burdett, that attention to agricultural pursuits is In consistent with the character of a statesman, I know that it wiU be gratifying to your patriotic mind to observe tbe im provement of land, and a just appreciation of its value, mo ving from the north southwards ; and I may count upon your giving this spirit every encouragement that can be ex pected from a person in your condition. Entertaining these sentiments, I muU make no further apo logy for the trouble I now presume to give you. Mr Alexander Meldrum, who resides about ten inUes from this place, is to set out, in a few days, upon a tour of some weeks, through England ; and proposes, at the end of it, to treat with the Earl of Suffolk, Lord Porchester, or any of the other great proprietors who have expressed an Inclination to receive tenants from Scotland. He belongs to a class of sober industrious farmers, in this corner of Fife, who have risen, during the course of last century, by that profession, to considerable wealth ; and, in their several branches, are now possessed of a great deal of landed property in this neigh bourhood. My information concerning Mr Alexander Mel drum, with whom I am not personaUy acquainted, is derived from Mr Maule, the clergyman of his parish, (Forgan), a person in whom I can place entire confidence. He is unmar ried, about forty, a steady correct man, an inteUigent active farmer ; perfectly acquainted with the modern Improvements, and accustomed to practise them with success. He has rea lized a capital of eight or ten thousand pounds, which he carries to England, and wishes to devote to agricultural pur suits ; and his sklU Is not Inferior to his capital. His nephew, Dr Ramsay, a respectable physician, to whom I Ue under great domestic obUgations, caUed upon me, a few days ago, to say that his uncle wished, upon going to Lon don, to have some respectable person in an eminent situation, to whom those with whom he was to treat, might be referred ; and to request my assistance in procuring him that most ho- VOL. I. S 242 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. nourable and essential advantage. You vidU not be surprised that your name instantly occurred to my mind ; and you will not easUy conceive the satisfaction which 'Dr Ramsay derived from the hope which I opened to him, that his uncle might be permitted to refer to a name which carries with It so much re spect and authority. I trust you know me weU enough, to consider me as inca pable of attempting to impose upon you, an account of any person, which I have not the best reason for beUeving to be true. Of the greater part of what I have said in relation to Mr A. Meldrum, he Is in possession of written documents; and If you discern any defect in what he may request leave to shew you, I beUeve it can easUy be suppUed. But as many persons wiU be more disposed to rest upon your testimony than to read a number of papers, I have ventured to promise that you wiU encourage this adventurer, and invite others to foUow his steps, by having the condescension to permit him to say to the Earl of Suffolk, Lord Porchester, or any other person with whom he may treat, that you have seen testimo nials of his character, his sklU, and his substance, with which you are satisfied. I have the honour to be, with great respect, Sir, your most obedient and very humble servant, Geo. Hill. Sir John Sinclair, Bart. IV. REV. DR DAVIDSON, PRINCIPAL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOVl^. During the course of my northern tour, I was fortunate enough to obtain a fac-sImUe copy of the famous Senatus Con- sultum against the Bacchanals, which I resolved to present to the University of Glasgow. I entertained a filial respect for VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 243 that learned foundation, having been partly educated there, principally for the advantage of attending the legal and po litical lectures of the celebrated Professor John Millar. It appears, by the subjoined letter from Dr Davidson, that the University, at the same time that they thanked me for this mark of attention, had the goodness to confer on me the dig nity of Doctor of Laws. Sir, I had the honour of presenting the fac-simile of the famous Senatus Consultum against the Bacchanals, which you were so good as to give me at Edinburgh, to the Senate of this Uni versity, on the 10th of June current, which they highly esteem, and truly reckon it a great acquisition to our Univer sity Library, and desired me to return you our most sincere and cordial thanks for this valuable and acceptable present. This I now do with the greatest pleasure ; and I have, at the same time, the honour and pleasure of informing you, that our Senate, as a testimony of their high esteem for your dlstln- gmshed Uterary merit, unanimously conferred upon you that same day, an honorary degree of LL. D. I should certainly have done myself the honour of writing to you before this time, had I not waited for the diploma be ing ready and signed ; but I now find, that as aU our Pro fessors are dispersed in the vacation, it wiU be impossible to get it signed tiU they assemble again. But I shall take care when they do, to send the diploma to Isaac Grant, Esq. to be transmitted to you. I have the honour to be, with most perfect esteem, Sir, your most humble and most obedient ser vant. Arch. Davidson. Glasgow College, 24.th June J 788. Sir John Sinclair of Ulbster, Baronet. 22 244 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. V. THE REV. JOHN LOGAN. Among the preachers of the Church of Scotland, there was none more celebrated for talents or eloquence than the Rev. John Logan, minister of Leith. He was recommended by Dr Blair to be my private tutor ; and when some of my friends remarked to the Doctor, that the young divine was rather un couth in his appearance and behaviour, the Doctor answered, " I thought it was not a dancing-master, hut a scholar, that the friends of the young gentleman wished for." A volume of sermons published by Mr Logan were much admired; and in consequence of their merit, the celebrated Warren Hastings took an active interest in the sale. Dr Blair also recommended them ; and his friends were thus enabled to raise money, sufficient not only to pay his debts and some le gacies he had bequeathed, but also to distribute a small sum among his relations. The foUowing letter proves the anxious zeal he felt for the success of his former pupil : Dear Sir, Mr Lothian, the minister of the Canongate, Ues so danger ously Ul, that he is not expected to Uve two days. Some of my friends, particularly Dr Smith and Dr Blair, have desired me to appear as a candidate for the succession. The presen tation is in the gift of the Crown, and Lord North, as Secre tary for the Northern Department, wiU have the disposal of it. Dr Blair suggested, that from your having property in the Canongate, there would be a propriety in your making application for It ; and from your merit in ParUament, a pro babUity of your obtaining so small a favour. If any apphca tion Is to be made, necessity wiU require it to be done ira mediately. VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 245 I feel a reluctance to pursue a subject of this kind farther, and shall leave it entirely to your judgment and friendship. I was sorry that my being in the country prevented me from having the pleasure of waiting on you, when you was down in Scotland. I hope in the next session of Parliament to mark your name frequently in the Ust of the speakers, and expect that you wUl excel your cotemporaries as much in speaking as you have done in writing. I am. Dear Sir, your most obedient and most humble servant, John Logan. Leitli, October 23. 1783. 3.— AMERICAN CLERGY. Two clergymen from America, who visited me at Edin burgh, gave me a very favourable impres,sion of the clerical character In that country. The first was Bishop Hobart of New York, from whom I received the foUowing communica tion : Dear Sir, I had left Edinburgh the day before that on which you and Lady Sinclair honoured me with a note of Invitation to din ner, and you favoured me with a letter and an accompanying pamphlet, and the valuable present of your " Code of Health," aU which I found on my return to this place last evening. This explanation wUl account to you for my apparent neglect of your favours. I had possessed myself of your " Code of Agriculture," which had been reprinted in the United States, and shall value highly the " Code of Health," which evidently contains a condensed summary of very important information on this subject. With respect to the proposed " Code of Natural and Revealed Religion," were I competent to suggest any 246 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. remarks worthy of your attention, the importance of the sub ject would require more time than I can command, as I re sume my journey on Thursday next. But it occurs to me to suggest, what, doubtless, however, has received your conside ration, whether there be such a system as natural religion, strictly so called, that Is, a systera of divine truth actually dis covered by human reason. The fact, that there was at the first, a revelation of the being and attributes of God, which has been handed down and dispersed by written records, and by tradition, one would think, would decide this question In the negative. The arguments a priori and a posteriori, In proof of the being and attributes of God, so ably discussed by Clark and others in the sermons at Boyle's Lectures, serve to confirm the truths originaUy revealed ; but it Is questionable, whether men would have attained a knowledge of a Supreme Being, such as natural reUgion now presents, by any process of their InteUeetual powers, if this knowledge had not been originaUy revealed. On this point, there is much ingenious observation and reasoning in a treatise by an Irish wiiter, en titled, " The Knowledge of Divine and Spiritual Things from Revelation, not from Reason or Nature." With many thanks to you for your kind attentions, and with my best compUments to Lady Sinclair and the family, I have the honour to be, very respectfully, your most obedient friend and servant, J. H. Hobart. Edinburgh, Tuesday evening, January 13. The Other letter was from the Rev. WiUiam M'Whir, minister of Sunbury, in Georgia, who seemed strongly im pressed with the idea, that there is a great disposition among all the well-informed and respectable classes in both coun tries, to be cordially united. Ever since the independence of North America was acknowledged by the British Govern ment, I have always promoted a cordial union between the VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 247 two countries, by every friendly attention In my power to every native of America who visited the mother country. The following is one of the letters, with which Mr Mac- whir favoured me, and which Inculcates the same ideas : Most Honourable, and much Honoured, and Dear Sir, I blush to acknowledge my neglect, in not having long ago acknowledged the receipt of your very kind favour, commu nicated to me through the Minister of the U. S. of America. Your kind expressions of friendship, even had I been insen sible of the honour done me by your correspondence, ought to have compeUed me to write. But, Sir, although I have not written often, very often have I thought of yourself and amiable and hospitable famUy. Often have I spoken to my friends of that kind condescension with which you were pleased to take me by the hand, invite me to your hospitable home, and introduce me to your friends, when an entire stranger to you. Since I last addressed you, I have laboured hard in my Master's service, and undergone many dangers and perils, by land and water, by night and day. The greater part of last summer I spent in Florida, which, although not situated in the torrid zone, is too near it to be very comfortable in sum mer. But neither ease, nor bodily comfort, were my objects in visiting that uncultivated and unchristianlzed region. A young Missionary, whom Providence cast in my way, who had spent some months In St Augustine, represented the de plorable state of the people, as to morals and reUgion, in such affecting terms, as to excite my compassion, and cause me to believe it to be my duty to encounter a long and perilous journey, under a burning sun, to " go over and help them." And this I did, I trust to divine acceptance. The people re ceived me with open arms, and attended faithfully and thank- fidly to all my ministrations among them. I preached to them, and prayed for them, by night and by day, during my 248 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. stay. Three times every Lord's day did I preach or exhort ; and every evening, during the week, had we public or private prayer meetings. If no appointment was made, famiUes were sure to attend at my lodgings, at the hour In which prayer was wont to be made : And we have cause to beUeve, that our labour of love was not in vain in the Lord. Before I left St Augustine, by divine aid, I was made the humble Instru ment of constituting the first presbyterian church ever esta blished in Florida ; and there Is cause to believe that It is owned and blessed by the great Head of the church. They have got a pastor, and have raised almost 4000 doUars to build a church. I know this Uttle narrative wiU deUght Sir John and his pious family ; and perhaps not the less, because one whom they had honoured with their friendship bore a part in it. This country is in a most flourishing and prosperous state. Religion, arts and sciences, agriculture and commerce, are all marching on, hand in hand, to a greater degree of perfection. CanaUing and road-making are aU the rage. The State of New York, it is said, has made more canals In the last few years, than any other nation has made during its whole exis tence, I know. Sir, your benevolent heart is delighted to see that kind feeling which exists at present betwixt the United States of America and the united kingdom of Great Britain. Mr Canning speaks In high terms of America and Americans, ,. and so do Americans of him. Several English gentlemen' who have lately travelled through this country do the same ; and I trust these two great nations, already united to each other by consanguinity, language, interest, and above aU by the religious principles they profess, wiU continue to live in the unity of the Spirit, and the bond of peace, as long as they .shall exist as nations. I was much infiuenced by your counsel respecting my people, and the project of accompanying them to Siberia, and VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 24& have now entirely laid it aside, and have made up my mind, God wiUing, to visit my native land, in the course of next summer. If I do, shall try to be present at the sitting of the General Assembly in Edinburgh, and certainly shall not deny myself the pleasure and honour of visiting yourself and very amiable famUy. Please to present my most respectful com pliments to Lady Sinclair, and the other members of your household, to whom I had the pleasure of being introduced. May I hope to have the honour of hearing from you soon ? I know I do not deserve it ; but be assured I earnestly desire and solicitously request It. And if I can in any way serve you, Sir, in this country, command me ; I shaU do it with pleasure. With every sentiment of respect, I am, Honoured and Dear Sir, your obedient humble servant, Wm. M'Whir. Sunbury, Georgia, North America, June 10. 1825. 4.— FRENCH CLERGY. I. THE ABBE GREGOIRE, BISHOP OF BLOIS. In this country we can hardly form an Idea, of the ardour and vivacity with which the natives of a warmer climate, prose cute any subject of new inquiry to which their attention may be directed. Of this I had frequent instances in France ; but none more remarkable than that of the Abbe Gregoire, of whose good feeUng and abiUty, the foUowing commimication affords an interesting specimen : Paris, ,30. Janvier 1815. Cher et savant Sinclair, Je me fellcite des circonstances, qui, en vous amenant a 250 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. Paris, m'ont procure le plaisir de connoitre personeUement un homme que depuis longtems j'avois appris a estimer et a aimer d'apres ses ecrits, et la reputation honorable dont il jouit. J'acquitte ma promesse en vous envoyant mon traite sur la Domesticite. D'apres un calcul approximatif, je value a un miUion le nombre des domestiques en France, qui sont attaches au service personnel, et non compris les domestiques attaches au travail rural. Mon desir etoit d'ameliorer les mceurs et la condition de cette classe de la societe. Les Anglois nous ont mon tre I'exemple a cet egard, et Ici j'ai la douleur de n'avoir pu reunir seulement dix personnes pour s'occuper de cet ob- jet. II y a un demi-siecle que Chamousser fit dans le meme genre des tentatives infructueuses. Ce phUan trope, qui n'a vecu que pour faire du bien, fut outrage, calomnie, persecute. Je vols qu'U faut se resigner aux memes disgraces. Ici bas sou- vent le crime est triomphant, et rarement la vertu est impunee. Heureusement la reUgion trouve I'avenir, pour montrer une region nouveUe, ou regne I'eternelle justice. Je ferai rechercher en Lorraine 1' opuscule fort rare de Ba- gard sur la Longevlte. J'espere etre plus Ubre sous quinze jours, et m'occuper du plan dont nous avons parle. Je vous enverrai mon travaU. ReUgion, Uberte, vertu, science, amitie, — ces mots renfer- ment tout ce qui peut interesser I'esprit et le coeur, et c'est dans les sentimens qu'ils m'inspirent que je vous embrasse cor- dialement. Gregoire *, Ancien Eveque de Blois, &c. * Translation. Paris, 30th January 1814.. My Dear and Learned Sinclair, I congratulate myself on the circumstances which, by bringing you to Pans, have given me the pleasure of a personal acquaintance with a man whom 1 had long ago learned to esteem and love, on account of his writings, and the honour able reputation he enjoys. I now fulfil the promise I made to send you my Treatise on Domestic Ser vants. According to the nearest calculation I can make, I estimate at one roil- VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. '251 The following anecdote of the worthy Abbe will interest the reader : During the short peace between France and England, the Abbe Gregoire came over to this country, where he made a tour through England ; and, from his amiable character and exceUent qualities, obtained a cordial reception in the best so cieties. On his return to Paris, an American gentleman asked him how he liked England. He replied, " The people were a generous, hospitable, good people, and it would be a charming country, bad It pleased God to give them more sunshine and French cooks." The country, he said, " was always enveloped in clouds ; and he was almost starved, having nothing to eat but abominable legs of mutton, roast beef, beef-steaks, cab bages and potatoes, none of which were half cooked. The porter was bitter, and the port wine was so strong that he could not drink it." In fact, the good Abbe preferred France, and being of a humane disposition, seemed to lament the many inconveniencles under which, as he conceived, the good people of England laboured. lion the number of domestics in France, who are engaged in personal service, exclusive of those employed in rural labour. My desire was to improve the manners and condition of this class of society. The English have shewn us the example in this respect ; but it is with grief I say that I have not been able to unite more than ten persons to aid in bringing about my object. It is half a cen tury since Chamousser made fruitless attempts of a similar kind. This philan thropist, who lived only to do good, was attacked, calumniated, persecuted. I perceive that I must prepare myself for the same treatment. Here below vice is often triumphant, and virtue rarely goes unpunished. Happily religion antici- cipates the future, to point out to us a new abode where eternal justice reigns. I shall try to procure in Lorraine the very rare little work of Bagard on Lon gevity. I hope to be more at leisure in about fifteen days, and I shall then set about the plan of which we talked. I shall send you the fruits of my labours. Religion, liberty, virtue, science, friendship, — these words comprehend all that can interest either the head or the heart ; and it is with all the sentiments which they inspire that I cordially embrace you. Gregoibe, Late Bishop of Blois, &c. 252 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. II. THE BISHOP OF RODEZ, With an Account of the Birth, Education, and original Progress of Robespierre. The Bishop of Rodez was of Scotch extraction, his name being Cuthbert ; and he had several relations who resided In the town and neighbourhood of Inverness. In the year 1797, he visited Scotland ; and I had much pleasure in shewing him every attention in my power. He happened accidentally to inform me, that the Bishop of Arras was then in Edinburgh, and that he was particularly weU acquainted with the early history of Robespierre. Being anxious to coUect Information respecting a revolutionary leader, who had been guUty of such atrocities, I requested my friend the Bishop of Rodez, to ap ply to the Bishop of Arras for any particulars he could recol lect regarding him. The result was the foUowing communi cation, which contains some interesting facts not hitherto, I believe, known to the pubUc ; and at the same time clearly Ulustrative of the danger of giving way to popular tumults, the result of which may be, subjection to the tyranny of the fiercest and most sanguinary ruffians whom the convulsion may produce. Edin. le 3. de Mai 1797. J'ai vu, a plusleurs reprises, M. I'Eveque d' Arras, Mon sieur le Chevalier, et ce Prelat m'a dit ce qu'U a pu se rap peUer de I'hlstoire du monstre Robespierre ; mais pour de plus amples details, il m'a renvoie a I'ouvrage de Monsieur VAbbe Proyard, (Histoire de Robertspierre, par, &c. chez De Boffe, Gerard Street, London), dans lequel tout ce qui regarde ce fameux revolutlonnaire est rapporte avec assez d' exactitude, L'Abbe Proyard etoit Grand Vicaire d' Arras, et I'Eveque m'a fait I'eloge de l'homme, et de la verite qui regne dans son ouvrage. Si vous ne trouvez pas ce livre chez De Boffe, vous VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 253 pouvez vous adresser pour I'avoir au No. 107. Wardour Street, Soho. Deux eccleslastlques Francois fournlssent la la lecture de tout ce qui a ete pubUe sur la revolution Francoise ; je ne me rappelle pas lem'S noms. II paroit, d'apres ce que m'a dit M. I'Eveque d' Arras, que Robespierre etoit fils ain6 de M. Robespierre, avocat, natif d'un viUage pres d' Arras. II etoit tres jeune lorsqu'il perdit ce parent, lequel laissa une veuve avec trois enfans, viz. deux gardens et une fiUe, depourvus de fortune, et reduits meme a la plus grande pauvrete. Robes pierre pere etoit un homme assez aimable, mais mordant dans ses discours et dans les plaidoyers qu'U pubUoIt pour ses cllens. II aimoit la depense, et ce gout I'empecha de pouvoir amasser des ressources pour sa famille, que sa mort inattendue et pre- maturee mettoit dans la plus penible situation. M. I'Eveque d' Arras venoit de former dans sa viUe episcopale un etabUsse- ment pour I'education gratuite d'un certain nombre de jeunes enfans pauvres, qui paroissoient desirer d'embrasser I'etat ec- clesiastique. On lui parla des deux orphelins Robespierre, et U les re^ut dans son petit seminaire, fournit a leur entretien, et a leur education, ainsi qu'au soulagement du reste de cette famiUe pauvre. L'aine Robespierre commen^a avec succes a paroitre parmi ses condisciples ; et au bout de quelque tems U fut envoie, par les soins et aux frais du Prelat, au coUege de Louis le Grand a Paris, pour y completter ses etudes. Le jeune eleve continua d'y avoir des succes, remportoit des prix aux distributions qu'on en falsoit chaque annee ; mais on re- marqua des lors en lui ce caractere factieux qui devoit un jour devenir si funeste a sa patrie. Ces dispositions etolent bien contraires a ceUes qui devoient lui ouvrir la porte du sanc- tuaire, aussi Robespierre ne tarda-t-U pas a temoigner son elolgnement pour I'etat eccleslastique. La bonte de I'Eveque n'en continua pas moins d'etre sa ressource, et de fournir aux frais de son cours dans I'etude du droit, et a ceux qui etoient necessaires pour le faire recevoir avocat. Admis au bureau, U s'en retourna dans sa patrie pour y exercer sa profession. Dans le commencement de cette carrlere, il developpa son 254 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. mauvals naturel ; et se trouvant engage dans une cause qui in- teressoit les etats de la province, desquels M. I'Eveque d' Ar ras, son bienfaiteur, etoit President, U s'emporta dans un dia tribe amer centre ce corps respectable, et n'en epargna pas meme le chef. II crut cependant ne pouvoir pas publler ce plaidoyer, sans en faire part au Prelat. Celul-ci en fut egale- ment cheque et surpris ; mais meprisant les phrases indiscret- tes d'un petit avocat forcene, il lui remit le manuscrit, en lui en disant sa fa^on de penser, et lui permit d'en faire I'usage qu'U jugerolt a propos. Le memoire parut, et fit du bruit, mais beaucoup plus de tort a I'auteur qu'a ceux qu'U y atte- quoit. Robespierre continua de se faire connoitre, moins ce pendant par des talens distingues, que par un esprit factieux, un caractere intriguant, feroce et indomptable. Dans la ville et communaute d' Arras se trouvoit a cette epoque un grand nombre de mauvais sujets, d'hommes avides de nouveautes, et de gens revoltes centre toute autorite. Robespierre etoit leur favori : Us parvinrent a le faire noimner I'un des deputes du Tiers Etat de leur balUage aux Etats Generaux. II etoit alors si pauvre, qu'il ne put se procurer I'argent necessaire pour faire les frais de son voyage a VersaUles, Ueu indique pour la tenue des Etats Generaux. II eut le front de recourir a la bourse de I'Eveque d' Arras, qu'il avoit cesse de voir et de cultiver, et ce- lui-ci eut de nouveau la bonte et la faciUte d'accuelUer sa de- mande, et de lui fournir la somme dont il avoit besoin. Le scelerat sortit du cabinet du trop bon Prelat, ne le revit plus, et ne le remercia jamais de tous ses bienfaits. II les auroit vraisemblement pales de la guiUotlne, si, lors du regne du monstre, I'Eveque ne fut hors du royaume aupres des Princes emigres. Voila, Monsieur le ChevaUer, en gros, ce que M. d' Arras m'a appris sur les commencemens de Robespierre, en m'indiquant I'ouvrage oii vous trouverez un narre plus detaille des circonstances qui ont trait a ce monstre. M. Montjoie a aussi ecrIt I'histoire de Maximilien Robespierre, et de sa con juration ; mais je pense que vous trouverez plus d'lnstruction VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 255 :i ce sujet, et plus d'exactltude, dans I'ouvrage de I' Abbe Pro- yard. Je vous rend bien des gi-aces. Monsieur, de I'imprlme que vous m'avez fait passer, lequel contient vos pensees sur la guerre d'ltaUe. Quoiqu'il s'eu faiUe bien que ses pensees s'accordent avec les miennes sur le meme sujet, et quoique je distingue a peine le general de I'armee Francoise d'un cruel chef d'une horde de barbares, ou d'une troupe de brigands, repandne en ItaUe et en AUemagne pour y porter le ravage, la mine et la desolation ; quoique je sois bien convaincu que les nouveUes republiques Cispadanes et Transpadanes sont aussi eloignees de la vrale Uberte qu'eUes sont volsines ou de I'anarchie ou de la tyrannic ; quoique je pense que le changement adopte par ces nouveaux repubUcalns soit les finiits empolsonnes du Jacobinisme, de I'atheisme, et de la desorganisation GtaUIcane, et qu'Us ne dureront qu' autant que ces malheureuses contrees seront desolees par la presence de cette armee de bandits, et qu'un echec eprouve par eUe se roit le signal de leur retour a 1' ancien ordre ; je rends nean- moins justice a la valeur de ces memes brigands, a I'actlvite et aux talens miUtaires de leurs chefs, et particulairement de ¦ Buonaparte. Mais je ne prononcerai sur leur prudence, qu' apres que j'aurai vu qu'eUe sera I'issue definitive de la cam pagne actueUe. Si eUe est heureuse pour Buonaparte et les Francois, je regarderai leurs nouveaux triomphes comme de nouveaux malheurs pour 1' Europe et pour I'humanite. SI, comme j'aime a I'esperer et a le croire, Us eprouvent le meme sort qu'essuyrent I'annee derniere Jourdan et Moreau, je ne pouvais m'empecher de regarder Buonaparte comme un fol, meme comme un sot, qui s'est laisse prendre aux pleges de son ennemi, et accabler par ceux qu'U a d'abord mepriser, et dont U a betement cru pouvoir faire une conquete facUe, au milieu d'un des pais les plus difficiles et les plus dangereux. Les evenemens feront voir lequel de vous ou de moi auront en visage ce general, son armee, ses succes et ses republiques sous le plus veritable point de vue. Recevez, Monsieur le 256 VL CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. ChevaUer, I'hommage du sincere et respectueux attachement avec lequel je suis votre tres humble et tres obeissant servi teur, S. Ev. DE Rodez*. * Translation. Edinburgh, 3d Itfay 1797. Sir, I have several times had an opportunity of conversing with the Bishop of Arras, and that Prelate has told me all that he could recall of the history ofthe monster Robespierre ; but for more complete details he has referred me to the work of the Abbe Proyard, {History of Robespierre, published hy De Boffe, Ge rard Street, London), in which all that regards this notorious revolutionist is re lated with suflScient accuracy. The Abbe Proyard was Grand Vicar of Arras, and the Bishop spoke highly to me, both of the man, and the truth which per vades his work. If you cannot procure this book from De Boffe, you may apply for it at 107. Wardour Street, Soho. Two French ecclesiastics keep there a cir culating library of all that has been published on the French Revolution ; I can not recollect their names. It would appear from what the Bishop of Arras told me, that Robespierre was the eldest son of M. Robespierre, an advocate, native of a ¦village near Arras, He was very young when he lost his father, who left a widow with three children, two sons and one daughter, not only without fortune, but reduced to the greatest poverty. Robespierre's father was a man amiable enough ; but satirical in his conversation, and in the pleadings which he published for his clients. He was also expensive in his habits, and was thus prevented from laying up any fortune for his family, whora his sudden and premature death placed in the most distressing situation. The Bishop of Arras happened to form, in his episcopal town, an establishment for the gratuitous education of a certain number of poor children, who might appear desirous of embracing the ecclesiastical pro fession. He was told of the two orphan sons of the late M. Robespierre, and he received them into his little seminary, adapted as it was for their improve. ment and instruction, besides affording consolation to the rest of this poor family. The elder Robespierre began with success his career among his schoolfellows; and, at the end of some time, he was sent by the care, and at the expense ofthe Prelate, to the College of Louis the Great at Paris, there to complete his studies. The young man was here no less successful, and carried off several prizes at tlie annual competitions. But it was already remarked, that his character was of that factious kind which afterwards turned out so fatal to his country. His dis positions were very different from those most likely to open for him the doors of the Church, and it was not long before he intimated his disrelish for ecclesias tical pursuits. The goodness of the Bishop, nevertheless, did not fail bim, and through the kindness of his patron he was furnished with the means of studying law, and defraying all the expenses attendant on his passing advocate. Admit ted to the bar, he returned to his own country, to practise his profession. At the very outset of his career he betrayed his evil disposition ; for, being engaged in a cause which affected the States of the Province, of which the Bishop of VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. 257 Arras, his benefactor, was President, he pronounced a bitter philippic .igainst this respectable body, and did not even spare its President. He thought, how. ever, that he could not publish tliis pleading before submitting it to the Prelate, who was equally shocked and surprised at its tone ; but, despising the indiscreet expressions of a young hot lawyer, he sent him back the manuscript, telling him what he thought of it, and permitting him to make what use of it he deemed proper. The memorial appeared, and made some noise, but did more harm to the author than to those whom he attacked. Robespierre continued to keep him self before the public, less, however, by any distinguished talents, than by a fac tious spirit, and a character remarkable for intrigue, ferocity, and obstinacy. In the town and community of Arras there were at this time a great number of bad subjects, — men desirous of change, .and unwilling to submit to any constituted authority, Robespierre was their favourite, and they agreed to send him as one of their deputies to the States General, He was then so poor that he could not get money sufficient to defray the expense of his journey to Versailles, where the States General were to be held. In this emergency he had the audacity to apply once more to his old friend, the Bishop of Arras, whom he had ceased to visit or acknowledge ; and the Bishop had again the goodness and the weak ness to comply with his demand, and to furnish him with the sum vvhich he re quired. The wretch left the chamber of the too good Prelate, never saw him more, and never thanked him for all his kindness. He would probably have paid for it on the guillotine, had not the Bishop, during the reign of the mon ster, been out of the kingdom along with the emigrant Princes. Such, Sir, is the substance of all I learned from M. d' Arras, concerning the early history of Robespierre, at the same time that he pointed out to me the work, where you will find a more detailed account of the circumstances which have reference to this monster. M. Montjoie has also written the History of Maximilian Robespierre, and of his conspiracy ; but I believe you will find more information on this subject, and more accuracy, in the work of the Abbe Pro- yard. I return you many thanks. Sir, for the pamphlet which you have sent me, containing your thoughts upon the war in Italy. Although it is certain that these sentiments agree with my own on the same subject, and although I diS" cover with difficulty the general of a French army in a cruel chief of a horde of barbarians, or of a troop of brigands, spread over Italy and Germany, to carry thither ravage, ruin, and desolation ; although I am fully convinced that the new republics, both on this and the other side of the Po, are as far removed from true liberty as they are bordering either on anarchy or tyranny ; although I believe that the changes adopted by these new republicans are the impoisoned fruits of Jacobinism, of Atheism, and of Galilean Disorganization, and that they will continue in force only as long as these unhappy countries are desolated by the presence of this army of bandits, and that a check given to it will be the signal of their return to ancient order ; I nevertheless render justice to the valour of these very brigands, to the activity and military talents of their leaders, and par ticularly of Buonaparte ; but I shall not speak of their prudence, until I have seen the definitive issue of the present campaign. If it ends fortunately for Buona parte and the French, I shall regard their new triumphs as new misfortunes for Europe and humanity. If, as I love to hope and believe, they experience the VOL. I. R 258 VI. CLERICAL CORRESPONDENCE. same fate which last year attended Jourdan and Moreau, I shall certainly look upon Buonaparte as a fool, — a very fool, — who allowed himself to be caught in the snares of his enemy, and to be put down by those whom he formerly despis- cd, and over whom he madly thought to gain an easy conquest in the centre of one of the most difficult and dangerous countries in Europe. The result will shew whether you or I have lobked upon this General, his army, his successes, and his republics, in the true point of vieyr. Accept, Sir, the assurances of the sincere and respectful attachment with which I remain your very humble and very obedient servant, S. Bishop of Rodez. PART VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. The correspondence I carried on, respecting the various topics connected with agriculture, would fiU many volumes. Its substance wUl be found In the several works I pubUshed on that subject, more especiaUy, 1. In the Account of the Husbandry of Scotland; 2. In the General Report of the Agricultural State of Scotland ; And, 3. In the Code of Agri culture. 1. ACCOUNT OF THE HUSBANDRY OF SCOTLAND. This work was undertaken in the year 1809, at the parti cular request of Sir Joseph Banks, who urged, in a letter dated September 3. 1809, " That an account of the systems of husbandry adopted in the more improved districts In Scot land, would be of the greatest advantage to the agricultural interests of the united kingdom ; and that It was incumbent upon a native of Scotland, while presiding at the Board of Agriculture, and possessing aU the means of Information which that situation afforded, to undertake the task." To other re spectable friends to agriculture, the same idea had occurred. Many objections had presented themselves to the engaging in such an attempt : 1. The labour was likely to be very great ; 2. It might be difficult to procure the necessary information ; and, 3. It would furnish snarUng critics with a favourable op- 262 VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE, portunlty of attacking, not only the President of the Board of Agriculture, but the institution itself, as promulgating doc trines, which, if acted upon by the farmers of the country, would be ruinous to them. But every obstacle to the under taking of the proposed task vanished, when Sir Joseph urged, " that agriculture has derived, is deriving, and wiU derive more benefit, from Scotch industry and skiU, than has been accumulated, since the days when Adam first wielded the spade *." In drawing up this work, it seemed to me necessary, not only to visit the districts In Scotland the most celebrated for cultivation, but also to circulate a number of queries among the most inteUigent farmers ; — to compare their answers, so as to fonn them Into a regular system ;— -and to print and cir culate the results, for the remarks of some inteUigent friends, before the work was published. Mr Arthur Young, to whom I had transmitted copies of the original sketches I drew up, sent me the following re marks upon them: " Mr Young has read the papers on the husbandry of Scot land with attention ; and he waits, with great impatience, to see a work complete, which will form a new era in agricultural knowledge. He sincerely hopes that Sir John Sinclair will be blessed with health, strength, and spirits, to perfect so great an undertaking. " Bjadfield Hall, September 4. 1810." In March 1812, the whole was completed ; and I had the pleasure of sending a copy of the work to Sir Joseph Banks, accompanied with the following letter : • Sir Joseph thus justified that assertion. « The Scots," (he said) " gre a nation of gardeners, which accounts for their success in agriculture ; for horti culture always precedes agriculture in the amount of its produce. In Scotland, agriculture treads on the heels of horticulture ; and, by raising double produce, the Scots are enabled to pay double rents." vn. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. 'JliO " Mv Dear Sir Joseph, " I have at last the pleasure of sending you a complete copy of the work, undertaken at your desire, on the Husban dry of Scotland. Whether you will have any grounds to re gret having made the request, from defects in the execution of the plan, or I to lament complying with your wishes, in consequence of the peltings which I shall receive, as a mat ter of course, from the critics who may be Induced to rail at It, wiU, In process of time, appear. At aU events, I shaU have one satisfaction, that it may be the means of handing down our names to posterity together, as zealous friends to the improvement, and agricultural prosperity of the country," &c. Sir Joseph's Answer, dated Soho Square, Marcli 11. 1812, was as foUows : " On my return from Lincolnshire this morning, I found your favour, and am thankful for it in aU ways. I thank you for having aUowed my Uttle bark to sail in company with your vessel down the stream of time. I have no fear of criticism on your book. It contains a mass of valuable information, suf ficient to resist aU the attacks which envy and malice can aim at it." 2. GENERAL REPORT OF SCOTLAND. It is a favourite principle with me, " That extensive in quiries should be made the basis of condensed information;" and it has been fortunately in my power to prove the practicabih ty of carrying this principle into efiect. I had pubUshed ac counts of every " Parish" in Scotland, from returns transmitted to me by the resident clergymen ; — with the aid of the Board of Agriculture, regular reports had been pubUshed of the agri cultural and political state of every " County" In it ; and to complete the system, nothing now remained, but to pubUsh a " General Reporf of the state of the whole kingdom. For this purpose, a number of able men were selected, to each of 264 VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. whom a chapter or section of the General Report was assign ed, and from the materials with which he was thus furnished, he was directed to draw up the result of aU the previous in quiries. The whole system may be compared to a pyramid, an idea of which may be obtained from the foUomng outUne : In drawing up a General Report, condensation Is the great object to be kept in view. Every sentence should con tain the essence of a paragraph ; — every paragraph of a sec tion ; — every section of a chapter, — and every chapter of a volume. Such works ought to be completed at the public expense ; for though, with much difficulty, and by great perse verance, it was carried through in Scotland, in a great mea sure by an individual, yet it was eff'ected by exertions for which few have sufficient strength or perseverance. It would appear, indeed, by a communication from Mr Say, dated 1st January 1821, that the aid of even a despotic government could not always accomphsh the object; for he mentions that Buonaparte, with all his power, could never obtain from his " Prefets" and " Sous Prefets," those reports, which he fre-' quently demanded from them, with regard to the statistics of France. VH. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. 'J(!.') 3. CODE OF AGRICULTURE. Having thus laid an ample foundation, I at last resolved to undertake a work of still greater importance, namely, a Code of Agricidture. My object was, to condense into one volume the leading principles and facts of a science, on which so many hundred volumes had been previously published. The work was received with much applause by the agri culturists of England and Scotland. It has already run through three editions, and a fourth is now In preparation. It was re printed in America, (where its publication excited a great spi rit of improvement) ; and it was translated into several foreign languages, in particular the French, the German, and the Danish. Foreigners, mdeed, expressed their opinion of its merits in the strongest terms, designating its author as " /e Premier Agronome de f Europe * ; — le Patriarche de I' Agricul ture Angloise f ; — le Grand Pretre de Ceres \ ; — et le Heros de VEconomie Rurale §." From the great improvements which had taken place in this country, a number of foreigners had come over to avail them selves of the information which had been thus accumulated, and many of them visited Scotland, knovnng that its system of agriculture was peculiarly calculated for adoption in foreign countries, from the economy with which it was conducted. I remember, in particular, an application from a Livonian nobleman, who, in a letter to me, dated 20th July 1828, appUed for information regarding the best plan for carrying on the improvement of his estates, in the foUowing terms : " La reputation done vous jouissez, et d'apres laqueUe vous passez pour etre ami et protecteur des etrangers qui viennent visiter I'Ecosse, pour s'instruire dans I'agricultare, m'encourage * Letter from M. Mathew Dombasle, 7th November 1821. t Letter from the Dijon Academy, 10th May 1818. I Letter from M. Meen, a great proprietor of land in Flanders. § Letter from the Abbe Pierrard, containing the substance of a communica tion from General d'Armfelt, requesting information regarding the means of improving his estates in Finland. 268 VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. a vous adresser, en vous priant de me seconder dans mes ef forts, mes recherches, et projets." It would be tedious to insert the numerous letters in which my works on agriculture have been favourably spoken of. I shaU restrict myself to communications from the following dis tinguished characters: 1, The Marquis de la Fayette; 2. M. Mathfeu de Dombasle ; 3. Baron Voght of Hamburgh ; 4. Robert Patterson of America; 5. Mr Featherstonhaugh of New York ; and, 6. General Washington. I. THE MARQUIS DE LA FAYETTE. There are few characters in modern times, who will be held in higher estimation than the Marquis de la Fayette. His conduct in private life is most exemplary ; and In public affairs, he always adopted that line of conduct which seem ed to him the most Ukely to promote rational liberty : I am happy In this opportunity of laying before the reader a most friendly letter addressed to me, which proves his ardent zeal in the pursuits of agriculture. Paris, 20. Janvier 1819. Monsieur, La lettre que vous m'avez fait I'honneur de m'ecrire a ete longtems a me parvenir. Le zele que j'ai mis a remplir vos intentions, quoique jusqu'a present sans succes, a retarde de jour en jour ma reponse. EUe vous sera presentee par mon ami M. Ficknor, citoyen des Etats Unis, a qui je me fait un plaisir de procurer cette occasion de vous rendre ses devoirs. II sent comme moi tout le prix d'une introduction aupres de Sir John Sinclair. L'avantage de renouveUer mon ancienne connaissance avec vous. Monsieur ; celui d'etre honore de votre confiance sur VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. 267 un objet cher tl nous deux, mais ou je ne puis ctre qu'a une grande distance de vous ; et la bont(i que vous avez eu dc m'envoyer votre important et si iiistructif ouvrage, sont des circonstances flatteuses pour moi, et dont j'ai ete senslblement touche. II serait injuste d'attribuer a un ton de negUgenee, dont je suis bien loin a votre egard, les delais, d'abord invo- lontaires, et ensuite bien intentionnes, qui ont eu lieu. Agreez ici I'hommage de mon admiration pour le livre, et de ma re connaissance pour I'auteur. J'ai re9U dernierement une lettre de M. Jefferson, qui vient d'echapper a une longue et dangereuse maladie. Son esprit et son coeur ont conserve toutes leurs nobles, etendues, et aimables facultes ; mais sa sante se ressent des progres de I'age. M. Ficknor, que j'ai I'honneur de vous presenter, au nom de M. Jefferson comme au mien, est aussi un de ses amis particuliers. Penetre comme je le sius de I'utiUte de votre ouvrage, par le profit que j'avals tire moi-meme, je desire vivement en faire jouir mes compatriotes. Parmi les personnes en etat de me conseUler et de m'aider pour cet objet, je vous citerai MM. GraUois et Charles Lasteyrie, dont les noms vous sont connus. Le dernier est fort Ue avec M. Lafont Ladebat, qui s'est occupe avec beaucoup d'interet de faire traduire dans notre langue des productions sclentlfiques de votre pais. Le triste resultat de mes consultations aupres d'hommes plus en etat que moi de juger, parcequ'Ils sont plus verses dans les affaires de Ubrairle, a ete, que dans ce moment, oii tout le monde est occupe de discussions et d'Institutlons poUtlques, on ne trouveralt personne qui se chargeat de I'entreprise. J'observerais que les amis auxquels je me suis adresse sont tout admlrateurs de I'ouvrage, et convaincus de son utilite. II nous serait fecUe de trouver un traducteur; mais le Ubraire, charg6 de le dedomager des ses trauvaux, et de faire Imprimer la traduction, craindrait a present de se livrer a une specula tion etranger au cours actuel des idees. Cette difficulte ne peut pas diirer longtems. La France, qui depuis que vous 268 VIL AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. I'avez connue en 1789, n'a pas cesse, a travers tant de vicissi tudes, de resistances, d'exces, et de malveiUance exterleur, de vouloir ce qu'eUe voulait alors, finira, j'espere, par obtenir la joulssance reeUe de les droits qui assureront son repos, et le Ubre developement de son Industrie. C'est alors qu'elle sentira tout le prix des le9ons qu'on trouve a chaque page de votre livre, et que sa traduction sera generalement recher- chie. Quant a moi. Monsieur, qui sans etre un des moins inte- resses dans les objets politiques, n'en apprecie que mieux le merite de vos ecrits, et I'honneur de votre correspondance, je serai toujours heureux des occasions qui m'en feront jouir. Je continuerai a m'occuper de votre commission, et de toutes ceUes que vous jugerez a propos de me donner. C'est avec toute la deference d'un disciple, et tous les sentimens d'un ad- mirateur, que je vous prie d'agreer 1' expression de ma haute consideration et de mon sincere attachement. La Fayette *. * Translation. Paris, January 20. 1819. Sir, The letter you did me the honour to write to me has been a long time in reaching me. The zeal with which I have endeavoured to fulfil your intentions, although hitherto without success, has retarded my reply from day to day. It will now be presented to you by my friend Monsieur Ficknor, citizen of the United States, for whom I am glad to procure the present opportunity of paying his respects to you. He feels as I do the full value of an introduction to Sir John Sinclair. The advantage of renewing my old acquaintance with you, Sir ; that of being honoured with your confidence upon a subject dear to us both, but in which I must be far behind you ; and the kindness which you have shewn in sending me your very important and instructive work, are very flattering circumstance? for me, and of which I am truly sensible. It would be unjust to ascribe to a feeling of neglect, from which I am so exempt with regard to you, the involun. tary, and afterwards well-intended delays which have occurred. Accept the homage of my admiration for the book, (The Code of Agriculture,) and of my gratitude to the Author. I received lately a letter from Mr Jefferson, who has just recovered from a long and dangerous illness. His mind and heart have preserved all their noble, extensive and amiable faculties; but his health is affected by advancing age. VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. 269 11. M. MATHIEU DE DOMBASLE, President of the Agricultural Society of Nancy. Among the agriculturists of France, Monsieur do Dom basle stands pre-eminent, both for zeal and knowledge. It was impossible, therefore, to be more highly gratified than by the determination of so distinguished a character to translate Monsieur Ficknor, whom I have the honour of presenting to you in Mr Jeffer son's name and my own, is also one of his particular friends. Convinced as I am of the utility of your work, by the benefit which I have derived from it myself, I desire much to enable my countrymen to profit by it likewise. Among the persons in a situation to advise and assist me in this ob ject, I may mention to you MM. Gallois and Charles Lasteyrie, whose names are known to you. The latter is very intimate with Monsieur Lafont Ladebat, who has occupied himself very much in getting translated into our language the scientific productions of your country. The discouraging result of my consul tation among men better calculated than myself for judging, because more versed than myself in bookselling transactions, has been, that at this time, when every one is occupied with political discussions and institutions, no one wonld be found to embark in such an undertaking. At the same time the friends to whom I addressed myself are enchanted with the book, and convinced of its usefulness. It would be easy for us to find a translator ; but the bookseller, being liable to the expense of remunerating him for his trouble, and also to that of printing the translation, would fear at present to undertake such a speculation foreign to the existing current of ideas. This difficulty cannot last long. France, which, since you knew it in 1789, has not ceased, amidst so many vicissitudes, struggles, excesses, and foreign ill-will, to desire what she then desired, will finish, I hope, by obtaining the real enjoy ment of her rights, which will assure her tranquillity, and the free development of her industry. It is then that she will feel the full value of the lessons which are to be found in every page of your book, and that the translation of it will be generally sought for. As to myself. Sir, who, without being one of the least interested in political objects, only appreciate the more the merit of your writings, and the honour of your correspondence, I shall always be happy of any opportunity which affords me that pleasure. I shall continue to give my best attention to your commission, as well as to all others that |you may judge proper to give me. It is with all the respect of a disciple, and all the sentiments of an admirer, that I beg you to accept the expression of my great respect and sincere attachment. (Signed) La Fayette, 270 VII. AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENCE. The Code of Agriculture into French, an intention which he first communicated to me in the foUowing letter : Le President de la Societe Centrale d! Agriculture de Nancy, a Sir John Sinclair, Baronet, &fc, Nancy, le 7 Novembre 1821. Monsieur, J'ai I'honneur de vous prevenir, ^ue, dans sa seance du 3. de ce mois, la Societe Centrale d' Agriculture de Nancy a inserit votre nom sur la Uste de ses coxrespondans etrangers. L6 diplome vous en sera expedie sous pen. J'espere que vous voudrez bien ne pas refuser a un societe naissante, I'dliistrar tion que votre nom doit lui procurer. Je vous prie de me permettre. Monsieur, de vous temoig ner ici toute la satisfaction que je prouve d'un choix aussi honorable pour la societe, et de vous dire aussi combien je suis flatte personneUement de I'espece de confraternity qu'il me donne avec un homme que je considere comme le pre mier agronome de I'Europe. Depuis quelque tems je m'occupe, Monsieur, de traduire en Fran9ais votre exceUentissime Code