vourite expression, "Mon père, Milord Chesterfield." To this childish Folly a period was, however, at length put, to the mutual advantage of Stanhope and his audience; neither were the foolish words ever more repeated after the Gentleman had made the following sharp observation, "Comment, Monsieur, Milord Chesterfield est voire Père? Apparément donc Miladi Chesterfield est voire Mère?" With all these failings, Stanhope was, however, what is usually called a Pleasant Fellow. He was good-humoured though perfectly inattentive. Not unendowed with sense, though his Talent was obscured by a naturally bad Enunciation. A good scholar, and well versed in many of the modern Languages, though the same Defect attended him through them all. His Face was rather handsome, but his person was Dutch built, thick, short, and clumsy; and the very reverse of grace seemed to be the Essence of his whole Demeanour. Yet might he have passed well enough thro' life, if his Father had not insisted upon making him a fine gentleman; and however the memory of Lord Chesterfield may have been affected by the Publication of his Letters, certainly Mrs. Stanhope has thereby most essentially injured the memory of her Husband, whose obvious Deficiencies have been rendered more glaring by our knowledge of the unavailing Pains that were taken to obviate them. So true it is that the first principle of Education is the Discovery of that for which Nature has fitted our Pupil, and that which She has rendered it impossible for him to attain —
Doctrina sed vim promovet insitam.
But where there is no vis insita of the sort you wish to promote. Education, with all its Powers will, I fear, never be able to impart it.
Mrs. Stanhope had two Sons by her Husband, of whom Lord Chesterfield, from his Letters to her, appears to have taken care. His coolness towards the Mother is, however, also apparent from these same Letters, where He never styles Her Daughter, or even Dear Madam, but simply Madam. — From the MSS. of the first Earl of Charlemont.
THE PRAYER OF THE SWINE TO CIRCE.
Huddling they came, with shag sides caked with mire,
With hoofs still sullied from the troughs o'er-spurned,
With wrinkling snouts; yet eyes in which desire,
With some strange light, unutterably burned,
Unquenchable, — and still where'er she turned
They rose about her, striving each o'er each,
As if with brute importuning they yearned
In that dumb wise some piteous tale to teach,
Yet lacked the words thereto, denied the power of speech.
For these, — Eurylochus alone escaping, —
In truth, that small unhappy band had been,
Whom wise Odysseus, dim precaution shaping,
Ever at heart, of peril unforeseen,
Had sent inland; whom then the islet-Queen,
The fair disastrous daughter of the sun.
Had changed to semblants of the beasts unclean,
With evil wand transforming one by one
To shapes of loathly swine, imbruted and undone.
But the men's minds remained, and these forever
Made hungry suppliance through the passionate eyes.
Still searching aye, with impotent endeavour,
To find, if yet, in any look, there lies
A saving hope, or, if they might surprise
In that cold face soft pity's spark concealed,
Which she, still scorning, evermore denies,
Nor was there in her any ruth revealed.
To whom with such mute speech and dumb words they appealed.
"What hope is ours — what hope! To find no mercy.
After much war and many travails done? —
Ah, kinder far than thy fell philters, Circe,
The ravening Cyclops and the Læstrigon!
And, O, thrice-cursed be Laertes' son,
Through whom, at last, we watch the days decline
With no fair ending of the quest begun.
Condemned in styes to weary and to pine.
And beat with mortal hearts through this foul veil of swine!
"For us not now, for us, alas! no more,
The old green glamour of the glancing sea;
For us not now the laughter of the oar.
The strong-ribbed keelson where our comrades be;
Not now, at even, any more shall we.
By low-browed banks and reedy river-places.
Watch the beast hurry and the wild-fowl flee;
Or, shoreward steering, in the upland spaces
Have sight of curling smoke, and fair-skinned foreign faces!
