On this page

• Text (2)

  Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

  • 

    " - - ¦ ¦ r ¦¦- .:*?¦ '- j I isjr? ' Th ...

  • 

    ' LORD CHESTERFIELD'S LETTERS.* Lovers o...

• Transcript

  • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

    Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

    Continental Ifc Oles The Journal Of The ...

    decade from 1860 to 1876 . The volume is published by Mr . William Hertz , of Berlin .

    Mr . J . H . Sehorer , the popular Berlin year publisher ' s issue , sends of his us excellent the third journal part of —Sehorer the fifth s

    Familienblatt . Where the contents are so excellent it is difficult to select articles or illus-I trations for special comment . But we cannot

    help awarding a word jbf praise to the illustration * In the Beechwood and to the portrait

    p of lay Anton great R artistic ubinstein merit . . Both engravings i dis-

    " - - ¦ ¦ R ¦¦- .:*?¦ '- J I Isjr? ' Th ...

    " - - ¦ ¦ r ¦¦ - .: *?¦ ' - j isjr ? ' Th e Publishers ? Circular r ^ c . —^ t $ * j 09 — 1 , . 1 1 1 1 \ ____ p ___

    ' Lord Chesterfield's Letters.* Lovers O...

    ' LORD CHESTERFIELD'S LETTERS . * Lovers of Eng — lish literature owe a debt of

    C 3 gratitude to Lord Carnarvon for having rescued ( from unmerited oblivion a second series _ qiL

    Letters by Lord Chesterfield . More than a hundred years have rolled away since Chesterand field ' rap s 'Letters idly won to his their Son way ' were to public first printed recog- ,

    nition on the ground of literary merit , wide knowledge of the worldj and cynical

    nonchalance . These new letters , cam e into Lord Carnarvon ' s possession __ _ throug ___ _ h his - . wife .. the

    — _— -- — — —r — ^ j — — — , — daughter of the sixth Earl of Chesterfield . ; they ^ * ¦ " ¦ —^ " are —p" ^ ^^™ " ^— - two —T — — — p— a hundred ^^^ p _ —p ^ p _ i p ^ b ^ h - *^^ m « . ^ B ) ~| p ^ ~^^ . and ^ p ^ — p ^ b ^ H —ppr ^ p » thirt —— a ^_ i . ^ pp p ^ pv ^^_ ^ p— ' y w - B sis ^ . ^ p |_ a _ Bpl ^ p * ^ in ^ ^ H ^^ p *

    number , and they deal in a light , graceful , and fascinating mannerwith a variety of

    top pb ics A , which ^ Ki a > •_¦ in aa Lord a » m » » ^ K , Chesterfield ^> % a _ ^_ - . ^^ h ^ pt ' * h s jud A ^ a gment needed to be carefully «/ studied by _ / one

    who desired to be , to quote his own expression , * a well-bred gentleman and not a

    twolegged bear . ' They were written to Philip Stanhope ¦ who - ^ pp- on —— ' Lord --t Chesterfield - ¦ ¦— pp . ~ ' s death

    in 1773 , succeeded , —^ - - , w " ^^ him ^^ pp ^^— . _ ^ P ^ V in ppp _ the —ppp' pppppppp — ¦ famil ~~ ~— ^ ppp . y p ~ ^ ppp . ^^ " title ^ p » ^ P * a ~ ~ fef ^ ~_ and ^ . ^^ T ~ p ^ *¦• a . — estates as fifth . Earl . The correspondence

    began in 1761 , when Philip Stanhope was a little schoolboy — - - — — g at ~— -pp- ~ p— ' Mr p . - pppp . —^ i pp . p ^ r Roberts ¦ — ~ pppp- - i ~ Pp ^ PP- i V ~ ppp ~ ~^ ppp- ' Boarding . ^ " ^ ppp ^ pp ^ ^ q ^ T * P ^» ~ p »» * BpV ^ " ^^ — ^^ p » ^ . ~ ^^ p" ¦ B ^^ L

    School at Mary bone by London , ' and Lord Chesterfield was a man of 67 and when he

    wrote the first of these letters ; his young kinsman was a little fellow of sixprancing

    at the heels of a dancing-master , to whose care he had been committed . All the world

    is aware that Lord Chesterfield lavished his wisdom and his wit in vain on his sona

    young man who - - - apparentl r ' - — . ^— — ^^— ^ ^^^ y ^ " ^~ ^ . V had ^^^ - ^— ^^ V neither — ™¦ ^^ ^ M P ^^ " ^^ ^^ ^ K ^ , ca H ^ - h ^^ P pacity nor inclination to follow in his father ' s

    steps . Lord Chesterfi ~~ - ¦— - ^^^ ~— ^^ " ^» •*¦ ^ " eld ' ^^^ ^^ ' ^» ^ was ^ m * ^ . ** ¦¦¦ a ^ brilliant . ^^^ ^»* ^^ ^ ifc ^» tf ^ h ^^ vr ^» * fc ^ rf , K shrewd y ^ j ^ b jb J ^ ^^ r V W ^ fc *^ , (¦

    accomplished man of the world ; as the saying and runs ho , he was knew equall every y bod at y home and went in the everywhere society of ,

    great Carteret statesmen , Pitt , and like great Wal men pole , of Boling letters broke like , Addiaon - ¦ ¦ ¦ S - wiftPope ¦ + ^ Montesquieu pa , ^ and Jt

    Voltaire ^ —— - — . , J ^— - He ^ ^ , m was lr m born ^ p ^_^ , m «^* . ^> in . ^ . ^ «^ ^ ^ the . ^ v- ^ * n » A ^ rei ^ ^> V , gn ^ of V »* William and Maryand lived long h to

    witness the commencemen , t of Georg enoug e the Third ' s inglorious struggle with his thirteen

    revolted Colonies in America . Lord Chesterfield was a man of fashion r a master of subtle

    I and adroit comp — ¦ ' — - ^ liment ^^ ^ ' ^ ¦ ^ »™ ^^ ^^ , ^^^^ whilst »^ , V ^^^ ^— — ^ V ™ - ^ in ^^ ^^ ^ 1 ^ politics - ^»^ «¦« P" ^ ^^ 1 h »^^ ^* he ** ^*^ ¦ p layed « his park _ —as Lord Carnarvon _ __ has not

    failed ^ to point ^ out—as a successful diplomatist II Ait * Godso Letter n and * of Successor Philip Dormer , now , first Fourt edited h Earl from of Chesterfield the originals , to , II with Portraits a Memoir and Illustrations of Lord Ches . terfield The C , larendon by the Earl Prean of . Car Oxford narvon . .

    • fe ¦ . - Twfct

    ' Lord Chesterfield's Letters.* Lovers O...

    and an eminent administrator . His son was awkward , sheepish , apathetic ; but mudh fcfray be forgiven a man whose prospects in life

    r upon were blasted his shield by the . b Whatever ar sinister wliich hopes rested 'H 6 i & -

    were Chesterfield . V - ^^ p >^^ V ^ 1 ^ - 1 ^ finall i ^ l ^ l ^ l ^ SV ^^ b ^ p ^ - ^ p ^ i ^ - ^ ^ i ^ y w cherished exti " ~ " ~ ^^^^ ^ ^^—^ nguished ^¦ r ^ r ~ - ¦ ^ pp ^ M ¦¦ ' ^¦^ ¦—¦ ¦— ¦ regarding - b »^— ' y m W . death ' this , . and son —

    then it was that he turned his attention to the boy Philip Stanhope , who was destined to be

    his successor . . It may . be here i remarked in passing thatthoug »^ pp P » ppp- * p * - HfH h these letters Pi show that

    Lord ^ mm ^ ^»^ F- ^»^ —^^ F" ^ T ^^^ ^¦^¦^^ ' ¦^ B ^>^ B ^^|^ Chesterfield ^ h ^»^ ^»^»» ^¦^¦¦^¦ Bp ^^ p ^ ^^ p ^ , * . - ^^ p ^ p ^ p ^^ p pers ¦¦¦¦ 'p 1 ^ p """» ¦ uaded P" p" ^¦ J ^ P' I I ppi ^—^~ himself ^^ ^— ^—^ ^— ^ that he saw signs of budding -pppppf genius i | ~ ppv t ¦ I in his ¦ young

    kins-P ^ p ^ » p ""^ pF W V V ^ p ^ ^^^^^^^ H ^^ " ^ l ^^<^ lli ^~^ ^^^ " T ^ p ^^ ^ " ^^ p * ^^^^^ p . —p ^ ^ . ^ pppppp- ^_ p ^ p > ^__ pppp ^ pp . ^ pp . ^ pppppp' - ^ ppp ^ -pp ^ — ' ~ ^ — ^» J m man , the latter eventually proved to be neither more or less than an ordinary matter-of-fact ,

    somewhat dull , and altogether respectable nobleman . In his day he held one or two

    minor positions about the Court , and he was accustomed to , amble about Weymouth in

    attendance on ' Farmer George / when the old King sallied forth for his leisurely morning

    canter along the shore . Lord Carnarvon thinks that he can discover a higher moral tone in

    these new letters ; they certainly are less suggestive of intrigue . than their predecessors ;

    but ^ _ it hardl ^ A p ^ b ash y follows . pBk ^ m that «¦¦ ^ . a man . has ^ B altered ^ B a ^ 9 his *^ feh ^ p ^ b W ^^ 0 way V V ^¦ p . ' ^^ pV of ^^¦^ p' p ^ p ^ pV looking . ^ P * ^^^^ ^ p ^^ r *^ B »*^ p ^ v a ^ . a * M ^^ y ^ k at ^ p ^ ' ^ v w ¦¦¦ life * p . Bb'p . w ^ . j ^ . because . ^^^ p ^ ^^ pqp ^ ^^ r ^ v ^ ar ^ pV p ^ p ^ ^ p ^ p ^ he pbbpw ^¦^ pH ^ has ¦ " ^^¦¦^ ^ . *^ . ~ ¦

    enough good sense and right feeling left not to poison X the mind of a child with evil

    communications . These Letters are full of elegantly expressed latitudes of an Jk unassailable / 4 kind V i

    but |** ^ - * . * W too «^ V * VVII evident JI > VWIVUMAI « K that V - * * Lord - * . *« . ¦¦^»* m ; « y , Chesterfield — _____ — ' s — chief __ __— _ — __ conqern __ — ______ —was with manners

    rather than morals . Here _ and there the old wit sparkles JL , y and occasionally •/ we come

    across some epigram on conduct or society which reveals in almost a startling way how dep was the writer ' s knowledge of the hidden

    workings of the human heart . We are grateful to Lord Carnarvon for these Letters ,

    li especiall ht on y the as character they cast of fresh Lord and Chesterfield attractive and g at the same time help us better to ,

    understand the social aspects of the brilliant world in Which he moved . Nothing could well be better than the monograph with which

    Lord Carnarvon has enriched this splendid volume ; . it _ is _ scholarl __ _ „ y , careful , and ____ comp — _ _ lete _ , -

    and though we are compelled to add that we fail to see that the general opinion which has hitherto jprevailed . concerning o Lord — — Chester— - ,

    field requires to be materially modified by this important contribution to our knowledge of his characterwe areat leastglad to make

    his acquaintance , at moments , _> , when CP his sarcastic powers were not called into play , and when his better nature was in the ascendant .

    At the same time , we do not think that Mr . Lecky was in the least degree unjust when he referred _ in the _ pages — —— of — his — * History T of

    j _ -g-J - ~ ^ ^ ' England in the Eighteenth Century ' to the * delicate but fastidious tastelow moral

    , . bjt of princi Irmlip Philio ple , . Dormer Dormer and hard , tourth fourth , keen . Earl _ Earl * nd worldl or of ( Chesterfi Jhesterneld y wisdom eld .. '

    The book is printe , d- in large quarto , on hand " made paperwith —~ - -- gilt i topand rough _) d ges ;

    it contains — - ^ m j - — a , y facsimile — — — — — — - ^ . ^^_ p , ~ - ~ letter — ^~ m -m ~ , j - — ^ of ~~ — - — — -pp Lord — — —• - ~— —— ^ T ^^^ B ^^ ¦ Chester ^^^^^ ^^ ¦ ¦ ^^^^ B ^^^ ^^^^^ * fie — k ld - ~ — , j and _ — I « A — ¦ . some . — _ - p- — fine - .-p — - full -. __ - ^ r ' _ _¦ L -- page ^ ^ _ ^ _ " ^ ^^ B portraits ^^ H ^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^ ^^ A ^ _ and ^» T" >* " ^^ P ^ __ " ^^ p »^ MF

    other illustrations ; and it is most exquisitely I bound in half vellum extra . We are not , m

• Citation
  • Publishers’ Circular (1880-1890), Dec. 16, 1889, page 1812, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/pc/issues/tec_16121889/page/10/