Chapter XVIII: Letter 47: ) (5)

I have seen very little of Mrs. Williams, and am sorry, and indeed surprised to hear so bad an account of a little coquette to whom I only imputed the venial faults of vanity and affectation. I understand she is already on the Wing. Mr. Eliot is still in town: we all try to push him down to Bath; he seems immoveable; but he appears in somewhat better health and spirits. He deplores the state of public affairs, past, present and future. With regard to the last, though from different principles, I am afraid that his apprehensions are not imaginary, and the impending dangers from war and faction are most alarming. I never knew anything equal to the violence of this Session of Parliament, which has not left me a moment of peace or leisure. Adieu! dear Madam, I do most seriously _intend_ to write again very soon. Your _ordinary_ remittance shall reach you on Christmas-day, and I hope that I shall be able to add the _extraordinary_ or rather the new one. But my own supplies, both from Hampshire and from the Exchequer, come in so very slowly that I may be obliged to defer the second £100 till the end of January in case it should not be inconvenient to you.

I am,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

[446] On December 1, Lord Shelburne in the Lords, and, on
December 6, Lord Ossory in the Commons, moved a vote of censure
on the Government for their conduct in Ireland. The Volunteer
movement spread rapidly; a French invasion was dreaded; the
cry for "free trade" rose higher and higher; a non-importation
agreement was entered into; and the relief of Dissenters from the
sacramental test was demanded. In consequence of this pressure,
Lord North (December 13, 1779) proposed and carried a series of
resolutions granting free export trade to Ireland.

384.

_To his Stepmother._

December 25th, 1779.

DEAR MADAM,

Inclosed you will receive two draughts for two different terms, which will each be ready for your commands.--I must delay the pleasure of seeing you; but _hope_ I shall write oftener than usual. I wish you joy of the fair ending of the Year. May 1780 be still more propitious for public and private happiness.

I am,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

[Sidenote: HOLROYD STANDS FOR COVENTRY.]

385.

_To Colonel Holroyd, at Coventry._

London, Monday, February 7th, 1780.

*When the A. G. informed me of the Express he had just sent down to Coventry,[447] I had not the least doubt of your embracing the bolder resolution. You are indeed obliged to him for his real friendship, which he feels and expresses warmly; on this occasion, I hope, it will be successfully, and that in a few days you will find yourself among us at St. Stephen's in the heat of the battle. But you know that I am a dastardly, pusillanimous spirit, more inclined to fear than to hope, and not very eager in the pursuit of _expensive_ Vanity. On this vacancy the celerity of your motions may probably prevent opposition; but at the general election, your enemy, the Corporation, will not be asleep, and I wish, if it be not too late, to warn you against any promises or engagements which may terminate in a defeat, or at least a Contest of ten thousand pounds. Adieu. I could believe (without seeing it under her paw) that my lady wishes to leave Coventry. No news! foreign or domestic. I did not forget to mention the _Companies_, but find people, as I expected, torpid. Burke makes his motion Friday; but I think the rumours of a Civil War subside every day:[448] petitions are thought less formidable; and I hear the Sussex protest[449] does not gather signatures in the country.*

[447] "The character of my friend (Mr. Holroyd)," says Gibbon in
his autobiography, "had recommended him to a seat in Parliament
for Coventry, the command of a regiment of light dragoons, and an
Irish peerage." The seat for Coventry was vacant by the death of
Walter Waring, M.P.

[448] Towards the end of 1779, and in January, 1780, Yorkshire,
Middlesex, Hampshire, and many other counties petitioned the
House of Commons to grant no more taxes till the expenses of
Government were reduced and sinecure places abolished. The tone
of several of these county meetings seemed almost to threaten
Civil War. Devonshire is said to have voted a fund for buying
arms. The Yorkshire petition was presented by Sir George Saville,
February 8, 1780.

[449] In Lord Sheffield's edition of this letter (Gibbon's
_Miscellaneous Works_, vol. ii. p. 239), the words are given as
"I hear your Sussex protest gathers signatures in the country."
The protest was suggested and promoted by Colonel Holroyd.

386.

_To Colonel J. B. Holroyd._

Brookes's,[450] Saturday Night, February (12th), 1780.

I rejoyce in the successful progress, and am convinced that for the _present_ at least the catastrophe will be happy. Your last was safely conveyed to Lord Charles Spencer in the few hours that he happed to be in town. Though I hate to go out in the morning I will be at the Admiralty with Lord Mulgrave, Lord Lisburn and Penton to-morrow at ten o'clock.

[Sidenote: VICTORY OVER THE SPANISH FLEET.]

Burke[451] opened his ingenious partial scheme of public economy yesterday, but I cannot give you a speech of three hours in three lines, and you will hear and see enough about it. What is of much more consequence than this Parliamentary prattle (I talk to you now as a free mason) is the business of which we have received to-day the certain though not official information. Rodney encountered the Spanish Fleet off Cape St. Mary's;[452] the Commodore (90 guns) blew up, three line of battle-ships taken, two more likewise taken, but so much shattered and dismasted, that they were separated and forced by an unlucky gale of wind into the Port of Cadiz. The letters from thence express despondency and fears (which for us are hopes) of several other ships. Patriots very dull, the Duke of Grafton who is now standing by the fire, looks blacker than usual. I dined with Wedderburne (at Lord Carlisle's), who was to see one of your Agents to-night; he is earnest and sanguine--God send a good deliverance to the Colonel and Secretary.

[450] Brooks's Club, originally in Pall Mall, was moved to 60,
St. James's Street, in 1778. Gibbon, proposed by Mr. St. John,
was elected in 1777. In Richard Tickell's verses celebrating the
Hon. John Townshend's return for Cambridge in 1780, occur the
following lines:--

"And, know, I've bought the best champagne from Brookes.
From liberal Brookes, whose speculative skill
Is hasty credit, and a distant bill;
Who, nursed in clubs, disdains a vulgar trade,
Exults to trust and blushes to be paid."

[451] On February 11, Burke brought forward his scheme for
securing the independence of Parliament, and for Economical
Reform, in a speech which Lord North said was "such as no other
member could have made." Besides other reductions of expense,
he proposed to abolish altogether the Board of Trade, the Civil
Branch of the Ordnance, and the third Secretaryship of State.
Lord North allowed the Establishment Bill to be brought in,
the only member who opposed its introduction being Lord George
Gordon. The House of Commons went into Committee on the Bill,
March 8, 1780.

[452] On January 16, 1780, Rodney encountered the Spanish Admiral
Langara off Cape St. Vincent, won a complete victory, relieved
Gibraltar, supplied Minorca, and proceeded to the West Indies.
The _San Domingo_ (70 guns) blew up; the flagship _Phœnix_ (80
guns), and three other ships of 70 guns, were taken. The _San
Julian_ (70 guns), after her prize crew was put on board, ran
ashore. Another ship, after her officers were shifted, was
totally wrecked. Four, more or less damaged, escaped into Cadiz.

387.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, March 10th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

*When you awakened me with your pen, it was my intention to have shown some signs of life by the next post. But so uncertain are all human affairs, that I found myself arrested by a mighty unrelenting Tyrant, called the Gout; and though my feet were the part on which he chose to exercise his cruelty, he left me neither strength nor spirits to use my hand in relating the melancholy tale. At present I have the pleasure of informing you, that the feaver and inflammation have subsided; but the absolute weakness and monstrous swelling of my two feet confine me to my chair and flannels; and this confinement most unluckily happens at a very _nice_ and important moment of Parliamentary affairs. Col. Holroyd pursues those affairs with eager and persevering zeal; and has the pleasure of undertaking more business than any three men could possibly execute.* He is much obliged to you for your kind congratulation. Mrs. Eliot is in town; but I am quite ignorant (not more so than they are themselves) of their intentions. I will write again very soon.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

388.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, ½ hour past nine,
Saturday Evening, March, '80.

DEAR MADAM,

If I had written as I intended three or four posts ago, I should have informed you that Turton and myself were very well satisfied with the proceedings of the Gout, that he had behaved like a fair and honourable enemy, and that after making me sensible of his power, he was taking leave in a gentle and orderly manner. I cannot send you at present quite so favourable an account; the Gout has seriously returned into one of my feet; the pair kept me sleepless last night; and I have been low and weak all day. I can easily understand this alteration, and you will not be surprized when you hear that I was forced to go out rather too soon, and to sit up two whole nights in the House of Commons. You will see by the Papers, that a Vote has passed against the Board of Trade,[453] but I can assure you that it has not disturbed my tranquility. It will probably be rejected by the House of Lords; and at all events I have reason to expect some equivalent. I hope I am falling asleep.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

[453] On March 13, 1780, the Board of Trade was declared to
be useless by 207 to 199. Burke alluded to the literary value
of the Board, which had its separate professor for every
department of literature, and paid a sneering compliment to the
"historian's labours, the wise and salutary results of deep,
religious researches." As an Academy of _Belles Lettres_ he held
the commissioners hallowed; as a Board of Trade he wished them
abolished.

389.

_To his Stepmother._

April 3rd, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

I have now the pleasure of informing you that the gout has quite left me, and from the general state of my health and spirits, I am much inclined to believe many of the things that are reported in its favour. I wish it were in my power to embrace your scheme of Lord Mulgrave's lodging: but my two great chains the _press_ and the _house_ chain me by either foot.

I am,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

[Sidenote: RECOVERY FROM THE GOUT.]

390.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, Monday Evening, April, '80(?).

DEAR MADAM,

I should not have left you in suspense, if the Gout had not treated me exactly in the same manner. My journal (had I sent one every post) could only have specified its irregular motions from one place and from one foot to another; swelling, inflammation, weakness, pain increasing, diminishing, shifting, &c.: and the alternative of good and bad nights; sometimes forcing myself out of doors and sometimes nursing myself at home. However the real violence of the fit such as it was during the first week or ten days has never returned, there has not at any time been the slightest symptom or most distant hint in any part except the feet, and I now hope that it is seriously and finally going away. The short interval of the holidays (short indeed, for Parliament meets again to-morrow Sennight) may give me strength and spirits to support a scene which I am heartily tired of. We must again submit to our common disappointment, and if the decline and fall make you any amends you will be glad to hear that the continuation (two quarto volumes) goes to the press in May and will certainly appear next winter.

I am, dear Madam,
Ever yours,
E. G.

391.

_To his Stepmother._

May the 15th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

Your kind epistle gave me much more pleasure than pain; for I am grown callous to shame, but am not insensible of gratitude and friendship.

I have heard of you by Mrs. Sarah Holroyd, and was much pleased and edified by the zeal with which you communicated to your family the Colonel's first spirited Oration.[454] He instantly exclaimed, 'Those are the friends I like to have.' He has not spoke since, but he is, as you may well suppose, indefatigable and eager, and it will not be long before he feels a second inspiration. I can only condole with you that a person, in whose fate and reputation you are perhaps more deeply interested, should still continue a dumb dog. He has indeed the grace to acknowledge his infirmity, and if my seat in the House of C. had not some remote connection with a more valuable seat, I should retire without any regret from that scene of noise, heat and contention. A dissolution of Parliament, though it may be delayed many months, is by many expected every hour: and I am totally ignorant of the designs of the Electors of Liskeard. My great constituent grows warmer in patriotism, but he still expresses the same regard for me, and though I have no motives for confidence, I have not any reasons for fear. He is perfectly silent on the subject, and I am prepared for the worst. I saw my young friend John in his passage, and was indeed astonished by the sense and propriety of his behaviour without embarrassment and without forwardness. Mrs. Eliot is not in the least altered.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

[454] In the debate on the Army Estimates and the new Levies
(April 5, 1780), Fox commented on the manner in which Colonel
Holroyd had raised his Regiment of Horse. It is to Holroyd's
reply, and his explanation that the regiment was raised by him
for active service, and not as a "fencible corps," that Gibbon
refers.

392.

_To his Stepmother._

June 6th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

*As the old story of Religion has [raised] most _formidable_ tumults in this town,[455] and as they will of course seem much more formidable at the distance of an hundred [miles], you may not be sorry to hear that I am perfectly safe and well: my known attachment to the Protestant Religion has most probably saved me. Measures, and effectual measures, are taken to suppress these disorders, and every street is filled with horse and foot. Mrs. and Mrs. Sarah H. went out of town yesterday morning. The Colonel shews his usual spirit.*

I am sincerely Yours,
E. GIBBON.

[455] On June 2, 1780, Lord George Gordon presented the petition
of the Protestant Association against the relaxation of the Penal
Laws against the Roman Catholics. The "No Popery" riots took
place on the 6th and 7th, when London was for some hours in the
hands of the mob.

[Sidenote: THE GORDON RIOTS.]

393.

_To his Stepmother._

London, June 8th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

*As a M. of P., I cannot be exposed to any danger, as the H. of C. has ajourned to Monday sen'night; as an individual, I do not conceive myself to be obnoxious. I am not apt, without duty or of necessity, to thrust myself into a Mob: and our part of the town is as quiet as a Country Village. So much for personal safety; but I cannot give the same assurances of public tranquillity; forty thousand Puritans, such as they might be in the time of Cromwell, have started out of their graves; the tumult has been dreadful; and even the remedy of military force and martial law is unpleasant. But Government with 15,000 Regulars in town, and every Gentleman (but one) on their side, must extinguish the flame. The execution of last night was severe; perhaps it must be repeated to-night: Yet upon the whole the tumult subsides. Col. H. was all last night in Holbourn among the flames, with the Northumberland Militia, and performed very bold and able service.[456] I write again in a post or two.*

I am, Dear Madam,
Ever Yours,
E. G.

[456] On Wednesday night, June 7, the riot was quelled by
military force. The Northumberland Militia, which reached London
on June 7 by a forced march of twenty-five miles, were led by
Colonel Holroyd into the thick of the riot at High Holborn, to
prevent the mob advancing westward, and to protect, if possible,
Mr. Langdale's distillery. By Thursday morning the tumult was
entirely suppressed. "To Colonel Holroyd, since deservedly
raised to the British peerage as Lord Sheffield, the Country was
eminently indebted for repelling the fury of the Mob at the Bank"
(Wraxall's _Historical Memoirs_, 3rd edit., vol. i. p. 351).

394.

_To his Stepmother._

June 10th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

*I should write with great pleasure, to say that this audacious tumult is perfectly quelled; that Lord G[eorge] G[ordon] is sent to the Tower; and that instead of safety or danger, we are now at leisure to think of justice; but I am now alarmed on your account, as we have just got a report, that a similar disorder has broken out at Bath. I shall be impatient to hear from you; but I flatter myself that your pretty town does not contain much of that scum which has boiled up to the surface in this huge Cauldron.*

I am, Dear Madam,
Most sincerely Yours,
E. G.

[Sidenote: HIS TWO VOLUMES IN THE PRESS.]

395.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, June 27th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

*I believe we may now rejoyce in our common security. All tumult has perfectly subsided, and we only think of the justice which must be properly and severely inflicted on such flagitious criminals. The measures of Government have been seasonable and vigorous; and even opposition has been forced to confess, that the military force was applied and regulated with the utmost propriety. Our danger is at an end, but our disgrace will be lasting, and the month of June 1780, will ever be marked by a dark and diabolical fanaticism, which I had supposed to be extinct, but which actually subsists in Great Britain, perhaps beyond any other Country in Europe. Our Parliamentary work draws to a conclusion;[457] and I am much more pleasantly, though laboriously engaged in revising and correcting for the press, the continuation of my history, two Volumes of which will certainly appear next winter. This business fixes me to Bentinck Street more closely than any other part of my litterary labour; as it is absolutely necessary that I should be in the midst of all the books which I have at any time used during the composition. But I feel a strong desire (irritated, like all passions, by repeated obstacles) to escape to Bath.* And if the summer should pass away, the autumn shall not elapse without gratifying my wishes. As you are my sole object, it is a matter of perfect indifference whether the place is full or empty, but I should like to know your summer plan, and if you have any design to climb the Welsh mountains. I am ashamed that Midsummer day should have passed in silence, but I am not able to get a shilling from Hampshire, and the treasury, my best support, is uncommonly backward. Next week, however, you may depend on receiving the proper line from me.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly Yours,
E. GIBBON.

[457] The session ended July 8, 1780.

396.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, July 8th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

I keep my promise though I have been driven to the last verge of breaking it: but I hope you have not felt any inconvenience from the delay. The World disperses and London grows a very pleasant retire[ment]. We are now so quiet that the tumults of last month appear a very incredible dream. Colonel H. passed through town in his way to his Regiment. I understand that his spirited behaviour in London has firmly seated him at Coventry.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly Yours,
E. G.

397.

_To Colonel Holroyd._

July 25th, 1780.

*As your motions are spontaneous, and the stations of the Lord Chief[458] unalterably fixed, I cannot perceive the necessity of your sending or receiving intelligence. However, your commands are obeyed. You wish I would write, as a sign of life. I am alive; but, as I am immersed in the decline and fall, I shall only make the sign. It is made. You may suppose that we are not pleased with the junction of the fleets; nor can an ounce of West India loss be compensated by a pound of East India success; but the Circuit will roll down all our news and politics of London. I rejoyce to hear that the Sussex Dragoons are such well-disciplined Cannibals; but I want to know when the chief Cannibal will return to his den. It would suit me better that it should happen soon. Adieu.*

[458] Lord Mansfield.

398.

_To his Stepmother._

July 29th, 1780.

I have not heard from Way. It will be necessary that I should be provided with a Bucks Steward to make his visit soon after Michaelmas to examine the state of things and inspect the late Harris's accounts which an Attorney (Mr. Hearne) has offered for my perusal. Such extra trouble will doubtless claim an extra allowance.

We are pleased that Clinton[459] has returned to New York, as an army on the salt water is a very helpless animal. Greaves[460] has been seen on the coast with a wind fair for the northwards. He has certainly the start of Ternay, who is still invisible. I cannot send you the least account or even conjecture of Lords to be created or Commons to be dissolved. Adieu, I shall expect you about the middle of next month; and I find that it will suit me to visit the Castle within a few days of your return.

[459] Sir Henry Clinton had captured Charleston, May 12, 1780.
Early in June, he re-embarked on Admiral Arbuthnot's fleet and
returned to New York. Sir Henry was married to Miss Harriett
Carter, a first cousin of Colonel Holroyd.

[460] Admiral (cr. 1794 Lord) Graves sailed, June, 1780, with six
ships of the line, to reinforce Admiral Arbuthnot at Long Island,
and joined him in July. The French fleet under d'Estaing was at
the same time strengthened.

399.

_To his Stepmother._

Reading, Six o'clock, Sunday evening, '80.

_Eels, Beer and fowl._--A nasty day makes a good Inn appear still more comfortable. And now let me look back to Bath, and declare in sober truth, that I number the last three weeks among the happiest of my life. The best ingredient in that happiness was the satisfaction of seeing you more perfectly alive both in mind and body than I have known you for many years past. My best compliments to all friends, &c., Jews and Christians, particularly to Sarah, who was a naughty girl for not staying dinner. Pray send me with all convenient speed, the adventures of a tame Cat.

Bentinck Street--Monday half-past one.

Safely landed--I ran my time to the last moment, and find on my table some respectful complaints from Mr. Cadell, and a summons for the Board of Trade to-morrow, which particularly requires _my_ attendance.

400.

_To Mr. Eliot._

August 11th, 1780.

DEAR SIR,

Before you leave town, I cannot refrain from applying to you on a very interesting subject, and I trust that you will excuse either my past silence or my present importunity. The former has not been the effect of presumption, nor does the latter proceed from any want of confidence in your friendship.

[Sidenote: UNCERTAINTY OF HIS SEAT.]

It seems to be universally understood that this parliament will be dissolved in a few months and perhaps in a few days--and you are not ignorant how much the whole colour of my future life depends on your resolution. Unless I obtain a seat in the next parliament, I cannot flatter myself with a hope of remaining at the board of trade; such is the unpleasant state of my private affairs, that I must resign with my office all prospect of living in England, and the discontinuance of your favours will therefore be a sentence of banishment from my native country. My firm assurance that your kindness will allow some weight to these personal considerations will teach me to acquiesce, whatever may be your designs, with sincere and grateful resignation. I could not even lament that I was not sooner apprized of your intention to withdraw this mark of your friendship at the time when it became the most valuable. The largest notice would not perhaps have enabled me to take any other measures for the attainment of the same object, and your silence, though it may have excited some anxious thoughts or nourished some delusive hopes, has not made any real difference in my situation.

It gives me pain at the same time to mention another topic. Various circumstances of public and private distress have hitherto prevented me from disposing of my Buckinghamshire Estate, from whence I may expect to derive a considerable supply, and I shall find myself under the necessity of soliciting your indulgence till I can discharge what I shall always esteem a very small part of my obligations.

401.

_To Mrs. Holroyd._

August 31st, Bentinck Street, 1780.

The Colonel left town about seven o'clock. Could he have held a pen with each finger and each toe, at the same time, he would have found employment for them all. He therefore named me his Secretary to signify to Sheffield Place his health, duty, impatience, &c.--The _Intrigue du Cabinet_ shall not be neglected. But the _Intrigue du Parlement_ is now the universal pursuit. It will be dissolved to-morrow,[461] the Writs will be out Saturday night, and a few days will terminate the business. You probably receive my last frank. I have _found_ reason to believe that I shall never rise again, and I submit to my fate with Philosophic composure. If any parcels or letters directed to me should arrive at Sheffield you will be so good as to return them by the Coach.--Adieu.

E. G.

[461] Parliament was dissolved September 1, 1780.

402.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, Sept. 2nd, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

In the general dissolution you will be anxious to know my fate, and I wish it were in my power to send you a more agreeable account. Mr. Eliot, actuated, as it should seem, by the Demon of Party, has renounced me.[462] I am not without resources; but his civil ambiguous silence, by feeding my hopes, has encreased my difficulties. I doubt whether my _real_ friends will be able to serve me at so short a notice, and I think it more than probable that I shall not be in the new Parliament, at least in the beginning of it. A few days however will determine that question, and I still proceed with perfect composure to prepare for my lying-in. They will be twins, and I reckon about next February.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly yours,
E. G.

Col. H. who came with me Thursday from S. P. darted down to Coventry. I think he is secure.

[462] The Hon. Wilbraham Tollemache was elected in Gibbon's place
for Liskeard.

[Sidenote: PROMISE OF ANOTHER SEAT.]

403.

_To Colonel Holroyd._

September 7th, 1780.

I shall again breathe the pestiferous air of St. Stephen's Chappel.[463]--The sagacious Eden whom I accidentally visited the day after your departure pressed and persuaded me to make a bold application to the powers above. I fairly stated my public disappointment and private difficulties, and declared to Lord N. in the most explicit terms, that notwithstanding my sincere desire to replace myself in a situation, where I may be serviceable to his Government, _small indeed_ must be the effort which I shall be capable of making for that purpose, an idea which I explained to Robinson in a more familiar tone, by asking for an _almost_ gratuitous seat. After some importunity and delay, I saw the Secretary yesterday; and he communicated Lord N.'s resolution of bringing me into Parliament, either for the first meeting, or at the Re-Elections which will immediately be occasioned by the option of those who are returned for two places. He did not mention terms; if any, they must be very light. On my return home I found a letter from Lord L[oughborough][464] worthy of himself, and may now remain perfectly quiet and secure. Success produces good humour; and I shall be very gentle in my answer to the Port, which I do not hurry. This event, as you will easily understand, decides in a great measure the rest of my life. You will growl if I lament in some sort that it has disconcerted a very pleasant scheme, a sweet vision of _Helvetic_ retirement: I know that a prudent man ought not to make himself happy.

While I steal in through a postern, you thunder at one of the great gates: knock and it shall be opened unto you. Your victory appears certain, and it will be productive of a lasting conquest. Eden is not yet returned from Woodstock; I will confabulate with him.

The Westminster battle[465] begins this morning; Rodney will be chose almost unanimously. It was imprudent to propose Lord Lincoln; he is disliked by the substantial tradesmen: but they _abhor_ Fox, and the Patriot, after his appeal to the _People_ of Westminster, must probably retire to the Duke of R.'s dependent voters of Chichester, where I am told Keppel[466] will make room for him.

Not a word of news. Adieu.

[463] The newly elected Parliament met October 31, 1780. Gibbon
was elected, at a by-election, M.P. for Lymington, June 25, 1781.

[464] Alexander Wedderburn succeeded Sir W. de Grey (afterwards
Lord Walsingham) as Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, with
the title of Lord Loughborough (June, 1780).

[465] Admiral Rodney and Charles Fox were elected for
Westminster, September 22, 1780, against Lord Lincoln.

[466] Admiral Keppel was returned for Surrey, after being
defeated at Windsor by Portlock Powney. George III. canvassed for
the latter. "The pony with the powerful rider has carried away
the plate" (Warner to G. Selwyn, September, 1780).

404.

_To Mr. Eliot._

B. S., Sept. 8th, 1780.

MY DEAR SIR,

I have not attempted to shake your decided resolutions nor shall I presume to arraign the consistency of the Electors of Leskeard, whom you so gravely introduce. You are undoubtedly free as air to confer and to withdraw your parliamentary favours, and I should despise my own ingratitude were I capable of forgetting my past obligations to you because you are not disposed to render them more perfect, or more permanent. I am still ignorant what will be the consequences of your refusal; but I declare upon my honour, at the date of my last letter that they appeared to me exactly in the light in which I represented them, that I had never formed any hopes much less any claims of ministerial support, and that I never opened my lips on the subject to the noble friend whose character seems to extort the praise of his political enemies. Since your absolute refusal, I have been encouraged to hazard an application which has been kindly entertained. If it proves unsuccessful the principal difficulty will arise from the lateness of my request. I am asked why Mr. Eliot, who re-elected a placeman last year, maintained to the last moment an ambiguous silence without condescending to inform me that I must not depend on his friendship at the General Election. I confess that I am at a loss for an answer.

[Sidenote: DEFENCE OF HIS CONDUCT IN PARLIAMENT.]

I am equally at a loss how to answer the part of your letter, which in polite language represents my parliamentary conduct as the cause of your displeasure. You will not expect that I should justify the grounds of every silent vote which I have given, or that I should write a political pamphlet on the eventful history of the last six years. But I may fairly rest my apology on the truth of one single assertion, that I have never renounced any principle, deserted any connection, or violated any promise. I have uniformly asserted both in private and public the justice of the American War. I have constantly supported in Parliament the general measures of Government, except at one particular crisis while it was doubtful, after Bourgoyne's defeat whether they would offer terms to the rebels. I agreed with you in a speculative opinion, almost equally rejected by both parties, that after the substance of power was lost, the name of independence might be granted to the Americans. I have often and severely censured the faults of administration, but I have always condemned the _system_ of opposition: and your judgment will allow that in public life, every man is reduced to the necessity of choosing the side which upon the whole appears to him the least reprehensible. The mere acceptance of a seat at the board of trade does not surely convey any reproach or disgrace, since you yourself, my Dear Sir, have held the same disqualifying place under several successive Administrations, without any of those domestic reasons, which, if an excuse were necessary, might be alleged in my favour. You revive an old conversation between us concerning Mr. Peachey's election, which passed, if I am not mistaken, in the garret of the House of Commons. At that time I had never given a single vote against the actual measures of Government, and the indiscreet opinion which you urged me to declare must apply to your sentiments, not to my own. I thought and I still think, that, were I master of a Borough, I would not from motives of interest, elect a _stranger_ whose political principles were repugnant to my own.

Thus far for my own honour, I have been forced into this unpleasant, though I hope not intemperate explanation, but I perfectly concur with your wish to avoid all future complaints or apologies. I most willingly embrace the offer of your private friendship, and I shall always cultivate a cordial intercourse with a person who is entitled to my esteem and gratitude.

I beg you would present my kindest wishes and compliments to Mrs. Eliot and the rest of your family. I suppose Mr. Edward will succeed me at Leskeard.[467]

I am, &c., &c.

[467] Edward James Eliot, eldest son of Mr. Eliot, was elected
for St. Germains. He was made a Commissioner of the Treasury in
July, 1782.

405.

_To Colonel Holroyd._

Sept. 15th, 1780.

I expect but cannot send news. I am passive, you are active, without the form of a letter you might dispatch every night the numbers of the poll.--Fox is victorious, and though some Enemies have been thrown out, I do not find that we gain so much as might be wished. Lord L[oughborough] is not yet arrived, but I have conversed with the future Secretary of the bog:[468] he approves and will assist your vanity. I am very sorry to hear that Batt is detained at Oxford in a bad state of health, with some symptoms of a growing dropsy. Adieu.

[468] William Eden, M.P. for Woodstock, was appointed in October,
1780, principal secretary to the Lord Lieutenant and Privy
Council of Ireland.

[Sidenote: HIS WEARINESS OF POLITICAL LIFE.]

406.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, October 5th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

I have delayed answering your kind enquiry about my seat in Parliament, till I should be able to say something satisfactory and positive. Had Mr. Eliot been explicit some months since, another arrangement would have been made without difficulty. His silence has occasioned some delay, but I have the strongest reason to believe that I shall be again in the House of Commons before Christmas. I expect the event with the most tranquil indifference: I am heartily tired of the place, and if such indulgence were compatible with my situation and prospects I should be glad to find myself released from such troublesome attendance. Your anxiety lest any coldness should arise between Mr. E. and me will, I hope, prove groundless. I have nothing to reproach myself, I do not reproach him, and from the letters which have passed between us, I should imagine that we shall meet next winter on proper terms of friendship and civility. You see by the Gazette that Langlois[469] is dismissed; and he himself has not received any other information from Cornwall. You may easily suppose that in my present state of suspence and attendance, it is not in my power to leave town: but I am almost offended that you are not angry! I think I may venture to promise not you but myself, that no considerations human or divine shall prevent me from eating my Christmas dinner at the Belvedere.

I am, Dear Madam,
Most truly yours,
E. GIBBON.

We need not trouble Sir Stanier; three shillings (no very considerable sum) pay twelve letters. The economy of the age on the subject of Franks and postage has always amazed me.

[469] Benjamin Langlois, M.P. for St. Germains in the last
Parliament, made room for Mr. Dudley Long. He was made keeper of
his Majesty's stores, ordnance, and ammunition of war in June,
1778, and was appointed a Commissioner for Trade and Plantations
_vice_ Soame Jenyns.

407.

_To Mrs. Holroyd
(announcing that Colonel Holroyd was created Lord Sheffield[470])._

Bentinck Street, Nov. 27th, 1780.

Mr. Gibbon presents his respectful compliments to Lady Sheffield and hopes her Ladyship is in perfect health, as well as the Honble. Miss Holroyd, and the Honble. Miss Louisa Holroyd. Mr. Gibbon has not had the honour of hearing from Lord Sheffield, since his Lordship reached Coventry, but supposes that the election begins this day.

Be honest? How does this read? Do you not feel some titillations of vanity? Yet I will do you the justice to believe that they are as faint as can find place in a female (you will retort, or a male) heart, on such an auspicious event. When it is revealed to the Honble. Miss, I should recommend the loss of some ounces of noble blood. You may expect, every post, a formal notification, which I shall instantly dispatch. The birds, as well as I now recollect their taste, were excellent. I hope the _Voyages_ still amuse. I had almost forgot to say that my seat in parliament is deferred. Stronger and more impatient rivals have stepped before me, and I can wait with chearful resignation till another opportunity. I wish the Baron's situation (and temper) were as placid as mine. No news--we are very dull. Adieu--I shall go to Bath, about the 15th of next month--But silence.

[470] The _Gazette_ for December, 1780, announces that the grant
of the dignity of a baron of the kingdom of Ireland was conferred
on John Baker Holroyd, Esq.--Baron Sheffield, of Dunamore, in the
county of Meath. "I had a long conversation," writes Miss Burney
in 1781, "with the new Lord Sheffield. He gave me a long account
of his Coventry affairs, and of the commitment of the sheriffs to
Newgate. He is a spirited and agreeable man, and, I doubt not,
will make himself conspicuous in the right way."

[Sidenote: THE COVENTRY ELECTION.]

408.

_To Colonel Holroyd._

Brookes's, November 28th, 1780.

*Perhaps the sheriffs, the tools of your enemies, may venture to make a false and hostile return, on the presumption that they shall have a whole year of impunity, and that the merits of your petition cannot be heard this session.[471] Some of your most respectable friends in the house of Commons are resolved, (if the return should be unfavourable) to state it forcibly as a special and extraordinary case; and to exert all proper strength for bringing on the tryal of your petition without delay. The knowledge of such a resolution may awe the sheriffs; and it may be prudent to admonish them of the _impending_ danger, in the way that you judge most advisable. Adieu. God send you a good deliverance.*

[471] At the general election in September, 1780, Colonel
Holroyd's re-election for Coventry was prevented by no return
being made. After a hearing before the House, the sheriffs of
Coventry were committed to Newgate, and a new election ordered.
The poll began towards the end of November, and remained open
for thirty days. At the close, though a large majority voted for
Colonel Holroyd and Mr. Yeo, Sir Thomas Hallifax and Mr. Thomas
Rogers were declared duly elected. The unsuccessful candidates
petitioned against the return. The first day on which a committee
could be balloted for was June 26, 1781. But on the motion of
Lord Beauchamp (January 23) the petition of Lord Sheffield and
Mr. Yeo was referred to a committee for February 15. The return
was amended by an order of the House, dated February 27, 1781, by
substituting for Hallifax and Rogers the names of Colonel Holroyd
(who in the interval had been created Lord Sheffield) and Mr.
Edward Roe Yeo.

409.

_To his Stepmother._

December the 7th, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

My restoration to the character of a Senator has suffered some delay by the impatience of some strong competitors who have pushed between me and the door. I have received from the fountain head every kind of apology and assurance. I believe them to be sincere, and it is a matter of perfect indifference to me whether I enter the H. of C. the beginning or the end of the winter. My journey to Bath is not an object of indifference, and as nearly as I can calculate the business (for there is business) of the board of trade, I think I shall have the pleasure of embracing you about the 23rd or 24th of this month. You mentioned a lodging near your aerial castle (my sole object at Bath), and I shall be glad if you will secure it for that time.

Poor George Scott died this morning of the consequence of falling down a flight of stairs at Lord Bathurst's. His life was long and happy, and his death was not painful. After a false alarm I was glad to hear that Dr. Delacour was not in the bosom of Abraham. The poor Colonel is fighting with the monsters of Coventry. I think he will conquer, but his victory will be dearly purchased.

I am, Dear Madam,
Ever yours,
E. GIBBON.

Young Eliot is in town and dined with me Tuesday. The kindest enquiries passed reciprocally between Port Eliot and Bentinck Street. The father does not come till after the Holydays.

410.

_To J. B. Holroyd, Esq._

[Dec. 9th], Saturday Night, 1780.

Succeed--and may you say, such another victory would ruin us! The messenger has returned from the Bog, but Lord B[uckinghamshire][472] has not yet sent the necessary forms and titles for his creatures; it will not however be in his favour to delay, that or any other business much longer, and I wish your entrance into one house was as secure as the other.

An express has just arrived in nine days from Vienna; the Empress is dead,[473]--and the Austrian Eagle may soar.--It is confidently said that the two great fleets are in sight, and expectation is high and eager. For my own part I do not believe that there ever can be a sea-fight.

[472] Lord Buckinghamshire was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. The
reference is to Colonel Holroyd's elevation to the Irish peerage
as Lord Sheffield.

[473] The Empress Maria Theresa died November 29, 1780.

[Sidenote: HOLROYD CREATED LORD SHEFFIELD.]

411.

_To J. B. Holroyd, Esq._

Monday Night, December, 1780.

All delays are at an end--Tuesday--to-morrow the final warrant will be signed; Friday next, you may salute the Royal paw.

Saturday the gazette will announce his Lordship, and Sunday (December 24th) I shall set out for Bath. Be resolute and conquer. We have forgot the fleets, but it is supposed that d'Estaing is in Brest. It is time that everybody should go to sleep for the Winter.

412.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, December 21st, 1780.

DEAR MADAM,

I am sorry to inform you that I shall be forced to trespass a few days beyond the precise term which I had fixed. The constant attendance on the board of trade almost every day this week, has obliged me to defer till next Monday a visit of inclination and propriety to Lord Loughborough (at Mitcham in Surrey). I shall not return till Wednesday or Thursday, and instead of my Christmas, I shall eat my new-year's dinner, at the Belvidere. May that new year prove fortunate to you, to me, and to this weary country, which is this day involved in a new War. I shall write again about the middle of next week with a precise account of my motions. I think the gallant Colonel, who is now Lord Sheffield, will succeed at Coventry _perhaps_ on the return, certainly on the petition.

I am, Dear Madam,
Ever yours,
E. GIBBON.

413.

_To Lord Sheffield._

_Prophecy of the events of two years._

[Sidenote: December 31st, 1780.]

A profane historian will depart from Bentinck Street, London, and drink tea, sup and lye at Newbury in Berkshire.

[Sidenote: January 1st, 1781.]

The same historian will gently proceed from Newbury to Bath till he reaches the aerial cell of the Fairy of the Green, or more probably the white mountain. It is apprehended that the said Fairy will not be able to dine that day before four o'clock in the afternoon.

414.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, February 24th, 1781.

DEAR MADAM,

*As you have probably received my last letter of thirteen hundred pages,[474] I shall be very concise; Read, judge, pronounce: and believe that I sincerely agree with my friend Julian,[475] in esteeming the praise of those only who will freely censure my defects. Next Thursday I shall be delivered to the World, for whose inconstant and malicious levity I am coolly but firmly prepared. Excuse me to Sarah. I see more clearly than ever the absolute necessity of confining my presents to my own family; _that_, and that only, is a determined line, and Lord S. is the first to approve his exclusion. He has a strong assurance of success, and some hopes of a speedy decision. How suddenly your friend General Pierson[476] disappeared! You thought him happy. What is happiness?*

I am, My Dear Madam,
Ever Yours,
E. GIBBON.

[474] The second and third volumes of the _Decline and Fall of
the Roman Empire_. Gibbon had presented his first volume of the
_Decline and Fall_ to the Duke of Gloucester. When the second
volume appeared, it was, in like manner, presented to the Duke,
who "received the author with much good nature and affability,
saying to him, as he laid the quarto on the table, 'Another
d--mn'd thick, square book! Always scribble, scribble, scribble!
Eh! Mr. Gibbon?'" (Best's _Personal and Literary Memorials_, p.
68). "You will be diverted to hear," writes Walpole to Mason,
January 27, 1781, "that Mr. Gibbon has quarrelled with me. He
lent me his second volume in the middle of November. I returned
it with a most civil panegyric. He came for more incense; I gave
it, but alas! with too much sincerity; I added, 'Mr. Gibbon, I
am sorry _you_ should have pitched on so disgusting a subject as
the Constantinopolitan History. There is so much of the Arians
and Eunomians, and semi-Pelagians; and there is such a strange
contrast between Roman and Gothic manners, and so little harmony
between a Consul Sabinus and a Ricimer, Duke of the Palace, that
though you have written the story as well as it could be written,
I fear few will have patience to read it.' He coloured: all his
round features squeezed themselves into sharp angles; he screwed
up his button-mouth, and rapping his snuff-box, said, 'It had
never been put together before'--so well, he meant to add--but
gulped it. He meant _so well_ certainly, for Tillemont, whom he
quotes in every page, has done the very thing. I well knew his
vanity, even about his ridiculous face and person, but thought he
had too much sense to avow it so palpably."

[475] "When he ascended the throne, his pride was sometimes
cruelly mortified by the reflection that the slaves who would
not dare to censure his defects were not worthy to applaud his
virtues" (_Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire_, vol. iii. ch.
xxii.). Gibbon quotes the sentiments from the words of Julian
himself (Ammianus, xxii. 10).

[476] Probably General Sir Richard Pearson, K.B., who died
suddenly at Bath of gout in the stomach, February 13, 1781.

[Sidenote: RECEPTION OF HIS NEW VOLUMES.]

415.

_To his Stepmother._

Bentinck Street, April 13th, 1781.

DEAR MADAM,

I am always obliged to you for waking me by a friendly pinch from my silent lethargy, and I think it most prudent to write before I fall asleep again.

An author must always begin on the subject of his own work, the subject always most interesting to himself, but on this occasion he may assume the privilege of friendship and justly believe that it is not less interesting to you. Your praise has afforded me real satisfaction, not only because I wish to please you, but as I do not know any person (where questions of pure learning are concerned) from whose approbation I should derive more pride. To speak frankly, I am of your opinion with regard to the improvement of the style, nor is it very surprizing that my long practice should make a workman more expert and ready at his trade. I am curious to learn what passage in Prior you have in your eye: but as the works of that agreeable Poet are not extremely familiar to me, the resemblance is more probably the effect of chance than of design. The reception of these two volumes has been very unlike that of the first, and yet my vanity is so very dextrous, that I am not displeased with the difference. The effects of novelty could no longer operate, and the public was not surprized by the unexpected appearance of a new and unknown author. The progress of these two volumes has hitherto been quiet and silent. Almost everybody that reads has purchased, but few persons (comparatively) have read them; and I find that the greater number, satisfied that they have acquired a valuable fund of entertainment, differ the perusal to the summer, the country and a more quiet period. Yet I have reason to think, from the opinion of some judges, that my reputation has not suffered by this publication. The Clergy (such is the advantage of total loss of character) commend my decency and moderation: but the patriots wish to damn the work and the author.

Mrs. Hester Gibbon is now in town and stays some weeks. Her house is repairing, and her old friend Mrs. Hutchinson[477] is just dead, without leaving her anything, at which Hester expresses more resentment than seems becoming in the character of a Saint. She is still healthy and sensible, refuses as formerly to enter my house, but appears pleased with my attentions, and those of Mrs. and Lady Porten and of Lord and Lady Sheffield, who have all visited her in Surrey Street. She enquired civilly and even quietly into your situation, and approved the sentiments which naturally fell from me.--When I sent you my book I likewise despatched another with a very polite letter to Port Eliot--A dead silence--I accidentally called in Spring Gardens to visit the son, and heard that the father had been three weeks or a month in town. I instantly wrote a note to express my surprize and concern,--a dead silence of four days terminated only by a mute, blank, formal visit. Mrs. Eliot however (they are an odd family) has called upon me this morning to announce her arrival; and I shall return her visit this evening.