Chapter VI: Part 6

_From the Picture by G. Kneller
in the Collection of the Duke of Marlborough at Blenheim._

Under the Superintendance of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful
Knowledge.

_London. Published by Charles Knight, Ludgate Street._
]

Soon after the Revolution, Lord Churchill was sworn into the Privy Council, and created Earl of Marlborough. He commanded the British contingent in the Netherlands in 1689, and had a large share in gaining the battle fought at Walcourt, August 25. In the two following years he served in Ireland and on the Continent, with the high approbation of King William. But his prosperity was suddenly checked by an abrupt dismissal from all his offices. This was soon followed by his committal to the Tower for high treason; but the falsity of this charge, the profligate contrivance of an obscure criminal, was soon shown. The cause of his dismissal from office is not clearly ascertained: it has been assigned to his advocacy of the interests of the Princess Anne; to his remonstrances against the undue favour shown by William towards his Dutch followers; to the detection of a clandestine correspondence with James II. It is at least certain that such a correspondence existed, and that it is a deep stain upon the honesty of Marlborough’s character; whether we suppose him to have been earnest in the wish to bring back the Stuarts, or merely to have sought an opportunity for grace, if the political changes of that eventful period had restored the exiled family to the throne.

Marlborough continued in disgrace until after the death of Queen Mary, which produced a reconciliation between the King and the Princess. In 1698, he was recalled to the Privy Council, and appointed Governor to the presumptive heir to the crown, the young Duke of Gloucester. From that time to the King’s death, he continued, ostensibly at least, in favour, though not employed in any military capacity; and one of the King’s last acts was to recommend him to Anne, as the fittest person to command her armies. This was not necessary to secure her favour. The Countess of Marlborough had long been endeared to her by the ties of a much closer and more familiar friendship than usually exists between a sovereign and a subject; and the Earl had stood in opposition to the court in support of her interests, and had been disgraced, as many believed, on that account. Accordingly, one of the Queen’s first acts was to confer on him the order of the Garter, and to nominate him Captain-general of the forces, at home and abroad. He was mainly instrumental in inducing the new government to confirm the alliances made by the late King for prosecuting the war of the Spanish succession; was sent ambassador to Holland, and finally invested with the command of the allied army. We can only give a summary of the operations of each campaign in that war, in which Europe was delivered from the fear of France. The first, in 1702, was eminently successful, though the general was much hampered by the interference of the Dutch deputies who attended the army. The strong fortresses which line the Meuse, from Venloo to Liege, were wrested from France. The Queen expressed her gratitude for this auspicious beginning by conferring on Marlborough a dukedom, and a pension of 5000_l._: the two houses of Parliament voted their thanks. The following year was distinguished by no decisive events, chiefly owing to the difficulty of getting the Dutch to act with cordiality or concert: the conquests of the preceding campaign, however, were confirmed and extended. The memorable campaign of 1704 was remarkable for the boldness, political as well as military, of its conception, and the secrecy of its execution. The successes of the French in Germany having reduced the Emperor almost to despair, it became Marlborough’s first object to prevent the total ruin of that monarch, and the consequent dissolution of the confederacy. To this end, without communicating his real views either to the States or to the English ministry, he obtained their sanction for opening the next year’s operations on the Moselle; and passing that river, led his troops on to the Danube, and effected a junction with the imperial generals, the Margrave of Baden and Prince Eugene, almost before his real design was known at home, or even to the enemy. The first fruit of this was the battle of Schellenberg, near Donawerth, on the Danube, where the Elector of Bavaria’s lines were forced, and his army beaten. The French, under Marshal Tallard, advanced to the support of their ally; and, with the Bavarians, took up a strong position near Hochstet, their right flank resting on the village of Blenheim, and being covered by the Danube. The British and allied troops, commanded by Marlborough and Eugene, amounted to about 52,000 men; the enemy were rather more numerous, and very strongly posted. To engage was dangerous; but the circumstances of the campaign rendered it necessary; and, against the advice of several officers and the expectation of the French, the attack was made on the morning of August 7. After a bloody battle, the French position was carried, and their army utterly disorganized or destroyed. By this victory the whole Electorate of Bavaria fell into the hands of the Imperialists; and the French were driven to repass the Rhine. The allies followed them, and besieged and took the strong fortress of Landau, while the Duke, by hasty marches, led a detachment to the Moselle, and secured the city of Treves and the fortified town of Traerbach. To this expedition he attached great importance. “I reckon,” he said, “the campaign well over, since the winter quarters are settled on the Moselle, which I think will give France as much uneasiness as anything that has been done this summer.” In this single campaign, the Emperor was relieved from the fear of being besieged in his capital; Germany freed from the pressure of war; and the troops established in those quarters which afforded the best prospect of opening the next campaign to advantage. And, above all, the charm of a long series of victories, the fancied invincibility of the French, was effectually destroyed.

Every mark of gratitude which a nation can pay was bestowed on the Duke of Marlborough. To perpetuate the memory of his services, the royal manor of Woodstock was granted to him and to his heirs; and, in addition to this, in testimony of her own affection and respect, the Queen gave orders for erecting, at her own expense, the splendid pile of BLENHEIM.

The advantages which Marlborough hoped to derive from his position on the Moselle were entirely lost, through the inactivity of the German confederates. As if aware that this would be the case, the French concentrated their exertions to recover their losses in the Netherlands; and they succeeded so far, that the Dutch sent pressing messages to Marlborough to return to their help. He did so, and soon restored the superiority of the allies in that quarter. But his success was attended with mortification, for the German general left to act on the defensive on the Moselle abandoned his trust, and retired, having burnt the magazines collected on that river; and thus effectually frustrated that scheme of invasion from the Moselle, to which Marlborough had attached so much importance. To guard against invasion from the Netherlands, the French had drawn strong lines across the country, from the Scheldt to the Meuse, from Antwerp to Namur, behind which Marshal Villeroi took post on Marlborough’s junction with the Dutch army. These lines, which had been three years in forming, at a vast expense, were attacked and penetrated almost without resistance or loss. This success, if properly followed up, would have thrown all Brabant into Marlborough’s hands; he was continually embarrassed by the jealousy or supineness of the Dutch generals. Once, at the passage of the Dyle, and again nearly on the field of Waterloo, he was prevented from engaging, when he considered himself certain of victory. By these disappointments, the Duke was severely mortified. Whether from fear that the States, if affronted, would readily conclude a separate peace, or from whatever cause, the misbehaviour of the Dutch officers and deputies was endured by the English Government and General with singular patience. On this occasion, Marlborough’s remonstrances, public and private, though very guarded, procured the removal of those whose conduct had been most offensive. In the course of this autumn the Emperor Joseph created Marlborough a prince of the empire, and conferred on him the principality of Mindelheim.

Disgusted by the vexatious contradiction to which he had been exposed in the past year, Marlborough earnestly desired to march an army into Italy, and to co-operate with Prince Eugene in driving the French beyond the Alps; and he was empowered by the British cabinet to take this step. But he was unable to procure troops for the purpose either from the Dutch or from the German princes; and he relinquished his intention the more willingly on account of some unexpected successes of the French on the Rhine. Marlborough opened the campaign of 1706 with a demonstration against Namur. Marshal Villeroi received positive orders to risk a battle for the safety of the place, and was anxious to fight before a reinforcement of Danish and Hanoverian troops could join the allies. The two armies met, in nearly equal numbers, near the village of Ramillies, May 23; and the French army received a signal overthrow, which led to the immediate submission of all Brabant. Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, and the other chief towns of the province, opened their gates, and with expressions of joy acknowledged Charles of Austria as their legitimate sovereign, and the rightful heir to the Spanish crown. The siege of Ostend was the next military operation; and that important place, celebrated for its desperate resistance to the Spaniards in the preceding century, yielded in a few days. The strong towns of Menin, Dendermond, and Ath also submitted before the end of the campaign.

The following year was fruitful in intrigues at home, and remarkable for the decline of the Duchess of Marlborough’s favour with Queen Anne: the military operations were barren of incident or of interest. The campaign of 1708 opened with a reverse of fortune. Disgusted by the overbearing conduct of the Dutch, some of the most important places which had surrendered to the allies in the preceding year entered into negotiations to recall the French. Antwerp and Brussels were saved by a timely discovery of the plot. Ghent and Bruges passed over to the enemy, who prosecuted their success by forming the siege of Oudenard; but the rapid march of Marlborough compelled them to abandon this design, and brought on another battle, July 11, in which victory again rested with the allies. The next operation was to undertake the siege of Lille, one of the strongest fortresses of France, where the attempt was considered so impracticable, that it became the subject of general ridicule. It proved successful, however, in spite of the presence of a superior army, commanded by the Dukes of Vendôme and Berwick. The prosecution of the attack was committed to Prince Eugene, while Marlborough remained at the head of the covering army, which he manœuvred so ably, that the enemy never found opportunity to venture a battle for the relief of Lille. Marshal Boufflers, the governor, surrendered the town October 23, after a gallant resistance of two months, and retired into the citadel, which he maintained till December 9. Even at that late period of the season Ghent was besieged, and soon submitted. Bruges followed its example. “Thus terminated this extraordinary campaign, perhaps one of the most scientific occurring in the annals of military history. From the commencement to the close, the confederates had to struggle against a force far superior in numbers; to attack an army posted in a position considered as impregnable; to besiege a place of the first magnitude at the very moment when they were themselves in a manner invested; to open and maintain their communications in spite of innumerable obstacles, both of nature and art; and, finally, to reduce, in the depth of winter, two fortresses, defended by garrisons which in other circumstances would have been considered as forming an army of no common magnitude.”[4]

Footnote 4:

Coxe. Life of Marlborough.

Discouraged by these reverses, Louis commenced a negotiation for peace; but the terms demanded by the allies were too hard, and with the return of spring both parties took the field with larger forces than had yet been brought together. Tournay, a place of formidable strength, but half garrisoned and half provided, soon yielded to the arms of the allies. The siege of Mons was next formed. No effort had been spared by the French to concentrate their forces against their most formidable enemy; and they took the field with an army not inferior to that of the allies. Villars, the most enterprising and successful of the French marshals, commanded in chief, and the gallant veteran, Marshal Boufflers, volunteered to serve under Villars, though his junior. A crowd of generals of minor note, yet well known in the wars of the age, filled the subordinate commands; and the household troops, the Swiss and Irish brigades, with others, the flower of the French army, were collected in the camp. Not less imposing was the army on the other side, commanded by Marlborough and Eugene, assisted by a train of princes and generals. Numerically, the two armies seem to have been about equal; and both were supported by formidable parks of artillery. The spirit of the French soldiers was high, and Villars undertook to save Mons, at the hazard of a general engagement, which took place September 11, near the village of Malplaquet, a few miles south of the besieged town. Villars had spared no trouble to fortify a post naturally strong; and it was defended with desperate valour. The attack was commenced by the Dutch on the right of the enemy’s line, and by Prince Eugene on the left. Little progress was made on these points, during an obstinate conflict of four hours; but the centre of the French line was weakened by the demands for reinforcements to the wings, and the crisis of the battle at length arrived in a successful attack made upon the centre. Boufflers made a desperate attempt with his cavalry, whom he led repeatedly to the charge, to retrieve the fortune of the day, but the progress of the allies was irresistible. He saw his right wing dislodged, his centre broken, and at length was compelled to order a retreat, which he conducted in a masterly manner, and without loss. All the generals signalised their courage in the hottest of the strife. Villars was severely wounded, and carried fainting off the field, so that the command devolved on Boufflers. Eugene was hurt, but refused to quit the field. Marlborough and Boufflers escaped almost by miracle. The generals were devotedly served by their officers and troops; and the list of casualties presents an unusual number of names of the highest ranks. The official returns of the confederates show a loss of 18,250 men; that of the French was probably considerably less. Villars asserted that it did not amount to 6000, and that the loss of the allies was 35,000. In his anxiety for the honour of his troops, the Marshal said too much; for if their loss was comparatively so small, they ought never to have been beaten. Nevertheless, there was some semblance of truth in his gasconade, that such another victory would destroy the enemy; nor were the results commensurate in importance with the loss of men. Mons was taken, and the campaign concluded.

After placing his troops in winter quarters, the Duke, according to his usual practice, repaired to London. He found his favour on the decline, and the Whig ministry greatly shaken; and after undergoing many vexations, and having been on the point of resigning his command, he was glad to hasten his return to Holland. The most important events of the campaign of 1710 were the capture of Douay, followed by that of the smaller fortresses of St. Venant and Aire. The triple line of fortresses, which protected France on the side of the Netherlands, was nearly broken through by these successes, and the capture of Arras would have opened the way to Paris; but the skilful conduct of Villars rendered it impossible to besiege that town, and checked the progress of Marlborough, without risking a battle. In the course of the summer the long-projected change of ministry was completed, and Marlborough, still retaining the command, was forced to act in concert with his bitter enemies. His correspondence strongly portrays the mortification which he felt, and his evil auguries as to the event of the war.

Villars spent the winter in completing a new series of lines, extending from Namur to the coast near Boulogne, by which he hoped to defend the interior of France; and, confident in their strength, he boasted that he had brought Marlborough to his _ne plus ultra_. To get within these lines was the British general’s first object; and, by a long and deep-laid series of masterly manœuvres, he fairly outwitted his antagonist, and passed the works which had cost such labour, without a shot being fired. This enabled him to take Bouchain, the last operation of the campaign. Marlborough’s ruin was now determined. He was deprived of his employments in the beginning of 1712, and the utmost virulence of party spirit was let loose against him. England therefore became uneasy to him, and he went abroad in the November following. He returned in August, 1714, and landed at Dover, just after the Queen’s death. On the accession of George I. he was treated with respect, and reinstated in his offices of Captain-general and Master of the Ordnance; but he was not admitted to take a leading part in the measures of government. In May, 1716, he was struck by palsy; but he recovered the possession of his bodily and mental powers, and continued to attend Parliament and discharge the regular duties of his office. He tendered his resignation, but the King, out of respect, declined to accept it. From henceforward, however, we consider his public life as at an end. He died of a fresh attack of palsy, June 16, 1722, in the 72d year of his age.

It will be observed that we have taken no notice of Marlborough’s conduct as a negotiator and a statesman, though for a time he was the master-spring which regulated, with princely power, the operations of half Europe. Our apology for this must be found in the length of this memoir: to have entered upon that still more complicated part of the subject would have doubled it. And if we have omitted to discuss the various heavy charges made against Marlborough’s character, it is not that we believe or wish to represent him as a faultless hero, but that in such a memoir as this it is fairer, and to better purpose, to set forward the exceeding value of the services which he rendered to his country, than to expose his failings in a prominent light. And we believe those charges for which there was any ground to have been greatly exaggerated by party spirit.

The private character of Marlborough was adorned by many virtues, but lessened by some weaknesses which laid him very open to the venomed ridicule of his enemies; we allude to his avarice, and his deference for his busy and imperious wife. He was prudent, clearsighted, and not deceived nor led away by his passions; faithful to his domestic, and diligent in the performance of his religious, duties. In the field he was humane, sedulous to promote the comfort of his soldiers, and especially anxious, after battles, to minister all possible help and relief to the wounded. He was zealous in enforcing respect to the observances of religion, and in endeavouring to raise the moral character of his troops. “His camp,” says a biographer who had served in it, “resembled a great, well-governed city. Cursing and swearing were seldom heard among the officers; a sot and a drunkard was the object of scorn; and the poor soldiers, many of them the refuse and dregs of the nation, became, at the close of one or two campaigns, tractable, civil, sensible, and clean, and had an air and spirit above the vulgar.”

The Duchess of Marlborough collected ample materials for her husband’s life, and committed the task of writing it first to Glover, then to Mallet. Neither of them, however, executed the commission. Ledyard, who served under the Duke, published a life of him (from which the above quotation is taken), in three volumes 8vo., in 1736. The latest and the most important is that of Mr. Coxe. The materials for the Duke’s military history are abundant, but scattered: they will be found indicated and referred to in Coxe. His political history will be found in the histories of the times; and the literature of the age—the works of Burnet, Swift, Bolingbroke, and others—contain abundant references to the public and private actions of this great man.

[Blenheim House.]
]

_Engraved by J. Posselwhite._

ABBÉ DE L’EPÉE.

_From the original by Desine in the possession of the
Abbé Salvan, at Paris._

Under the Superintendance of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful
Knowledge.

_London. Published by Charles Knight, Ludgate Street, & Pall Mall
East._
]

DE L’EPÉE.

Among those persons who possess the highest claim to the gratitude of mankind, that of having devoted their lives, without a selfish motive, to the alleviation of human misery, the Abbé de l’Epée claims a high and honourable place. Time, as is usual in cases of real excellence, has established on a sure basis merits which were at first slowly acknowledged. Unknown, and unappreciated, this good man lived for many years in obscurity; and, worse than this, he had to endure intolerance and persecution during the greater part of his beneficent career. There exists no memoir worthy of his exalted character. The brilliant genius of Bouilly has glanced upon his virtues and his talents; the eulogy of Bébian (himself a living and a worthy successor in the art of teaching the deaf and dumb) has shed additional lustre on a fame already bright; but still we have much to desire. Our glimpses of the good Abbé in his public capacity, and in the retirement which he loved and courted, only present us with a faint outline of his character,—an outline, however, which is sufficiently distinct to show that the finished picture would have been surpassingly beautiful.

* * * * *

Charles Michel de l’Epée was born at Versailles, in November, 1712. His father was the king’s architect, a man of distinguished talents and enlightened piety. He devoted himself to the instruction of his children, and taught them from their earliest years to moderate their desires, to fear God, and to love their neighbour. Under such a guide, the docile heart of young De l’Epée imbibed its first feelings of virtue. The thought of evil was as displeasing as evil itself to his pure mind, so strictly had he been trained in the love of things “honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report.” It is said that when, at an advanced age, he looked back upon his long career, he did not remember to have had more than one trial to sustain; and the humility which adorned his life led him to consider virtue which had been thus acquired without effort as possessing no merit. The piety which directed all his actions, and the obedience to the precepts of the gospel which regulated his will, seemed peculiarly to fit him for the service of the altar. To this service his early wishes tended, and his parents, who at first resisted, at length complied with his requests.

He received an education to fit him for the church, but at the commencement of his career he had to encounter difficulties and opposition. When he presented himself for admission into the priesthood, probably as a deacon, according to the established practice of the diocese of Paris, he was required to sign a formulary of faith. As he was a Jansenist, and as the form prescribed was contrary to his principles, he refused to avow by his hand what his conscience disapproved. Notwithstanding this, he was admitted to the rank of deacon, but was at the same time told never to pretend to holy orders. This humble station in the ministry was too humiliating for even this lowly-minded man. His breast glowed with ardent charity towards mankind which he longed to put into practice, but which could find no fit sphere for action in his humble office at the foot of the altar. The intolerance of those ecclesiastics who stood in the way of his preferment in the church, obliged him to direct his attention to the bar, to which his parents had at first destined him; he passed through the course of prescribed studies, and took the customary oath. In the practice of the law De l’Epée could find no pleasure. Its scenes of violence, cunning, and cupidity, its hatreds, divisions, chicanery and fury, too deeply affected his mild and tranquil spirit. All his wishes were directed to the service of the altar; his only desire was to be a minister of the gospel of peace, and at last he was successful.

A nephew of the learned and liberal Bossuet, who seems to have emulated his uncle in piety and liberality, was at this period the bishop of Troyes. This good man loved to call around him ecclesiastics of strict piety. Through his means M. de l’Epée was regained to the church; he was ordained to the sacred office, and received a canonry in the cathedral of Troyes. He now devoted himself to the preaching of the gospel; and he knew how to render pleasing by his example those precepts which penetrated the hearts of his hearers. Love towards our neighbour was his predominant theme, and his efforts produced abundant fruits. His happiness was not of long duration. M. de Bossuet died, and Providence had decreed new trials for M. de l’Epée. About this time M. de Soanen was persecuted for holding the religious principles of the Jansenists; and his friend M. de l’Epée, who held the same opinions as this virtuous prelate, was included in the same interdiction. Never was there a devotion less offensive, or a creed more tolerant than that professed by this worthy man. His eulogist says of him, “He spoke rarely to persons of a different opinion of the objects of their faith. When he was led into such subjects, his discussions never degenerated into disputes, he had the talent of keeping them within the boundary of those agreeable conversations where confidence reigns.”

Circumstances apparently accidental, which will be related, led M. de l’Epée to devote himself to the wants of the deaf and dumb. In earlier times some learned individuals had bestowed some attention upon the means of educating this unfortunate class of mankind, but they had done this philosophically rather than practically. One of the first of these experimenters was Pedro de Ponce, a Benedictine monk of Leon, who lived between the years 1520 and 1584. Paul Bonet, also a Spaniard, taught several deaf and dumb persons, and published the first known work on the subject in 1620. A relation of his success has been left us from the pen of Sir Kenelm Digby. Bonet’s work was accompanied by a manual alphabet, from which the one now used on the Continents of Europe and America was derived. In England, John Bulwer published his “Philocophus, or the Deaf and Dumb Man’s Friend,” in the year 1648. In 1653 Dr. Wallis appeared as an author on the same subject; he was succeeded by Dr. Holder, George Sibscota, and George Dalgarno. The latter published his “Didascalocophus, or Deaf and Dumb Man’s Tutor,” in 1680. During the same period the attention of several individuals in various parts of Europe was directed to a similar object; the most distinguished of whom was John Conrad Amman, a Swiss physician, who resided at Leyden.

It is not our province here to describe the various methods pointed out by these scientific philanthropists; we have mentioned their labours merely with the view of showing that the art was not altogether unknown to the learned of various countries previous to the time of the Abbé de l’Epée. France was the last to commence this labour of science and charity. It has, however, good cause to be proud of its successful efforts in the great work. It has produced a De l’Epée, a Sicard, a Bébian, and a De Gerando, all energetic labourers in the same vineyard. Its disinterested beneficence in our own days has done enough to perpetuate its name above all nations, in the hearts of those for whom its exertions have been called forth.

The following incident directed M. de l’Epée’s attention to the great work which became the leading object of his life. It is said by M. Bébian that up to this period he possessed no knowledge of the attempts previously made for the instruction of the deaf, and we shall presently give the Abbé’s own account of the first works on the art which came under his notice. Business took him one day to a house where he found only two young women; they were occupied in needlework which seemed to engross all their attention. He addressed himself to them; they did not answer, their eyes continued fixed upon their work. He questioned them again, and still obtained no answer. At this he was much surprised; being ignorant that the two sisters were deaf and dumb. The mother arrived soon after, and explained to him with tears the nature of their infirmity, and of her sorrow. An ecclesiastic, named Vanin, had commenced the education of these young persons by means of pictures. Death having taken away from them this charitable man they remained without further assistance, no person being willing to continue a task so difficult, and apparently so uncertain in its results. “Believing,” says M. de l’Epée, “that these two children would live and die in ignorance of their religion, if I did not attempt some means of instructing them, I was touched with compassion, and told the mother that she might send them daily to my house, and that I would do whatever I might find possible for them.”

The pictures of Father Vanin he found to be a feeble and unsatisfactory resource; the apparent successes obtained by means of articulation had not solidity enough to seduce his philosophical mind. But he had not forgotten that, at the age of sixteen, in a conversation with his tutor, who was an excellent metaphysician, the latter had proved to him this incontestable principle:—that there is no more natural connexion between metaphysical ideas, and the articulated sounds which strike the ear, than between these same ideas, and the written characters which strike the eye. He also recollected that his tutor drew this immediate conclusion from his premises,—that it was as possible to instruct the deaf and dumb by writing, always accompanied by visible signs, as to teach other men by words delivered orally, along with gestures indicative of their signification. “How little did I then think,” says M. de l’Epée, “that Providence was thus laying the foundation of the work for which I was destined!” From that period he devoted himself exclusively to the work which he had commenced, and while some people smiled at his endeavours, he found in his occupation his chief happiness. A respectable minister, after being present at one of his lessons, said to him, “I formerly pitied you, I now pity you no longer; you are restoring to society and to religion beings who have been strangers to both.” The sanguine temperament and zeal of M. de l’Epée led him into some errors, particularly that very pardonable one of supposing his pupils to understand more than they really did understand. His report of their rapid advancement, as compared with the actual practice of modern times, shows this; but with a less active mind, and with less zeal, he would never have succeeded in awakening the public feeling to the important object of his life, and he would never have overcome the opposition of other teachers, and of minds less generous than his own.

“One day,” says M. de l’Epée, “a stranger came to our public lesson, and offering me a Spanish book, he said that it would be a real service to the owner if I would purchase it. I answered, that as I did not understand the language it would be totally useless to me: but opening it casually, what should I see but the manual alphabet of the Spaniards neatly executed in copper-plate! I wanted no further inducement; I paid the messenger his demand, and kept the book. I then became impatient for the conclusion of the lesson; and what was my surprise when I found this title, _Arte para enseñar à hablar los Mudos!_ I had little difficulty to guess that this signified _The Art of teaching the Dumb to speak_, and I immediately resolved to acquire the Spanish language for the benefit of my pupils.”

Soon after meeting with this work of Bonet, he heard of Amman’s _Dissertatio de loquelâ Surdorum et Mutorum_, in the library of a friend. Conducted by the light of these two excellent guides, De l’Epée continued his task with a success which quite satisfied himself.

It will be well, in the present Memoir, to touch but lightly upon the disputes which agitated the learned in France and Germany when the partial success of the Abbé de l’Epée became generally known. We cannot but give praise to the Abbé for the openness and candour with which he made known his experience and his views; and if his arguments to prove the superior excellence of his own method appear unsatisfactory and inconclusive to the enlarged experience of the present day, such arguments ought to be viewed as those of a zealous-minded teacher of an art yet in the first stages of its infancy. Had his antagonist M. Heinich, the Leipsic teacher, been as communicative respecting his plans as his liberal opponent, good might have resulted from this learned warfare; as it was, to the satisfaction of almost everybody, the Abbé de l’Epée was left master of the field, and received compliments from all quarters, among which should be especially noted the “Decision” of the Academy of Zurich in his favour.

The chief fault in the system of the Abbé de l’Epée seems to have consisted in its being the philosophy of the master, not sufficiently lowered to the comprehension of the pupil; a common error for master-minds to fall into. The pupil might mechanically translate methodical signs into language, without knowing the ideas intended to be conveyed by such signs and by such language. Has not this always been a fault among the instructors of youth? Our school books of the present day contain sufficient evidence of this failing. Before the time of Pestalozzi it was scarcely dreamed of, that the teacher should exchange places with the learner; that he should suffer himself to be led by his pupil to a certain point, in order that he might commence his superstructure on the foundation already formed; that he should ascertain the manner in which infantine impressions are received, and become acquainted with the bent and genius of his pupil, to enable him to determine upon the best mode of rendering his lessons beneficial, so as to correct that which is erroneous, and develop that which is hidden. This is the “true method of instructing the deaf and dumb,” and not less the true method of instructing children gifted with all their faculties. If the good Abbé committed only that error, which was common in his generation, and which is still too common in ours; if he taught words instead of ideas—what did he less than others? This is the great fault in all our seminaries of learning.

The number of children under the care of the Abbé de l’Epée was very considerable. We read in one part of his writings of six hundred and eight pupils having been at various times under instruction, and this was written several years before he closed his career of usefulness. Again we read of upwards of sixty pupils being under his care at one time. All this was performed _for the poor_, unassisted by any pecuniary aid except his own patrimony. It is stated that the income which the Abbé de l’Epée inherited from his father amounted to about 400_l._ sterling; of this sum he allowed about 100_l._ per annum for his own expenses, and he considered the remainder as the inheritance of his adopted children,—the indigent deaf and dumb,—to whose use it was faithfully applied. “The rich,” says he, “only come to my house by tolerance; it is not to them that I devote myself, it is to the poor; but for these I should never have undertaken the education of the deaf and dumb.” There was no kind of privation which he did not impose on himself for the sake of his pupils. In order to supply their wants he limited his own. So strictly did he adhere to the appropriation which he had made of his income, that in the rigorous winter of 1788, when suffering under the infirmities of age, he denied himself fuel, in order not to intrench upon the moderate sum to which he confined his annual expenditure. All the remonstrances of his friends on this point were fruitless. His housekeeper having observed his rigid restriction, and doubtless imputing it to its real motive, led into his apartment his forty pupils, who conjured him to preserve himself for their sakes. He yielded, not without difficulty, to their persuasions, but afterwards reproached himself for this concession. Having exceeded his ordinary expenditure by about 300 livres (about 12_l._), he would afterwards exclaim in the midst of his pupils, “My poor children, I have wronged you of a hundred crowns!”

With that liberality which ever characterizes the true friend of mankind, the good Abbé formed preceptors for many institutions. Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Holland, and many other countries participated in the benefits which were being conferred on the deaf-mutes of Paris.

It is worthy of remark that two of the most eminent European sovereigns of that day encouraged the labours of the Abbé de l’Epée—Catherine II., Empress of Russia, and Joseph II., Emperor of Germany. In 1780 the ambassador of Catherine waited upon the Abbé to congratulate him in her name, and to offer him rich presents from that Empress, who knew well how to appreciate all that was truly great. “My lord,” said the Abbé, “ I never receive gold; tell her majesty, that if my labours have appeared to her to claim her esteem, all that I ask is that she will send me a deaf and dumb person, or a master to be instructed in this art of teaching.” The Emperor Joseph bestowed a still more flattering notice upon these labours. After witnessing the success of the Abbé de l’Epée, he resolved to found in his own dominions an institution so necessary to the wants of his subjects. During two hours and a half, the qualifications attainable by the deaf and dumb, when their powers have been properly developed, were attentively regarded by the Emperor, who had in his thoughts a young lady of high birth at Vienna in this deplorable state, whose parents wished to give her a Christian education. On being consulted as to the measures to be taken for this end, the Abbé offered either to educate the young lady gratuitously, if she were brought to Paris; or to instruct any intelligent person, who might be sent to him, in the method to be pursued. The Emperor accepted the latter proposal, as it opened the prospect of permanent relief for others of his subjects who might be in the same affecting circumstances. On his return to Vienna, he addressed a highly flattering letter to M. de l’Epée by the Abbé Storch, the person whom he selected for introducing the education of deaf-mutes into his dominions. The Abbé Storch is spoken of by the Abbé de l’Epée as “filled with the purest sacerdotal spirit, and amply endowed with every talent his mission could require.” A royal institution for deaf-mutes was founded at Vienna, which was the first national establishment ever erected for the deaf and dumb.

A subject of painful and anxious interest occupied the thoughts of the Abbé de l’Epée during his declining years. He had solicited from government an endowment to perpetuate his institution after his own death, but he obtained only promises. However, he knew that his art would exist in Vienna if it should be forgotten at Paris, and this gave him some consolation. When the Emperor Joseph visited his institution he expressed his astonishment, that a man so deserving had not obtained at least an abbey, whose revenues he might apply to the wants of the deaf and dumb. He offered to ask one for him, or even to give him one in his own dominions. “I am already old,” said M. de l’Epée: “if your majesty wishes well to the deaf and dumb, it is not on _my_ head, already bending to the tomb, that the benefit must fall, it is on the work itself.”

M. de l’Epée found, however, some feeling hearts in France. Many masters, taught by him, carried the fruits of his instructions into different cities in that kingdom, as well as into foreign countries. At Bordeaux an establishment had been formed by the archbishop, M. de Cicé, which owed its celebrity to its instructor, the Abbé Sicard, a young priest who had been sent to learn the theory and the practice of the method employed by the illustrious teacher at Paris. It is said by De Gerando, that “the pupil soon became acquainted with his master’s views, and seized them with enthusiasm.” He was eminently calculated to see their value. Gifted with a vivid and fertile imagination, he had a singular ability in clothing abstract notions in sensible forms; he had a particular talent for that pantomime which is the proper language of the deaf-mute, and which the Abbé de l’Epée had proposed to carry to a high degree of developement in his system of methodic signs: endowed with an enterprising and flexible mind, he would search for and discover new and various modes of expressing and explaining ideas and precepts. He appeared to possess a kind of natural talent for communicating with deaf-mutes.

This was the man who was destined to succeed M. de l’Epée. His talents and his virtues proved him to be worthy of receiving that inheritance of glory and of beneficence. His successes filled his master with joy, who, in the overflowing of his hopes, said to him one day, “Mon ami, j’ai trouvé le verre, c’est à vous d’en faire les lunettes.” A testimony as honourable to the modesty of the one, as to the talent of the other. Sicard was in full possession of his master’s ideas; amply has he developed and extended them by his own clear and analytical mind.

If the Abbé de l’Epée was not the first inventor of a system for teaching the deaf and dumb, he was the first who benefited society by any extensive application of the discovery. We hesitate not to assert that he was an inventor of great merit, particularly as regards those details which made the discovery of service to those for whose instruction it was designed. Previous to his time, it had been discussed rather as a possible, than as an extensively practicable, art; and the few persons who had been previously instructed must be viewed more as the results of experiments to test philosophical principles, than as pupils regularly and systematically taught.

The Abbé de l’Epée died December 23, 1789. The Abbé Fauchet, preacher to the king, pronounced his funeral oration; but next to his mute eulogists in all countries, M. de Bébian and M. Bouilly have been the means of making known his fame and his merits to the world. From their writings much of the present Memoir is derived. M. de Seine, a deaf-mute pupil of the Abbé de l’Epée, wrote the following distich to be placed under the bust of his benevolent teacher:—

“Il révèle à la fois secrets merveilleux,
De parler par les mains, d’entendre par les yeux.”

COLBERT.

Jean Baptiste Colbert was born at Rheims, August 29, 1619. His relations, both on the father’s and on the mother’s side, were connected with the civil service of the state. This facilitated his entrance into public life, and may have been the means of directing his mind to the study of statistics, and of the causes of national wealth and greatness: for to these abstruse pursuits it appears that he devoted his attention from an early age. He entered into the service of the Secretary of State, Tellier, in 1648. Tellier introduced him to the prime minister, Mazarin, who exercised the authority of a regent during the minority of Louis XIV.; and having gained the esteem of Mazarin, to whose interests he remained firmly attached during the stormy period of the Fronde, he was rewarded, on the minister’s final triumph over his enemies, by an entire confidence, and an abundant share of lucrative, honourable, and important employment. Mazarin died in 1661, and on his death-bed recommended Colbert to his master in these strong terms:—“I owe every thing to you, Sire; but in presenting Colbert to you, I regard my debt as in some sort acquitted.”

_Engraved by W. Holl._

COLBERT.

_From the original by P. Mignard
in the Collection of the Institute at Paris._

Under the Superintendance of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful
Knowledge.

_London. Published by Charles Knight, Ludgate Street._
]

Colbert, in his daily intercourse with the minister, had many opportunities for explaining and exposing to his youthful master the malversations and abuses practised in all matters connected with the revenue. Louis, therefore, was already prepossessed in his favour, and at once appointed him Intendant of Finance. But Fouquet, the chief minister of that department, interfered both with Colbert’s hopes of promotion, and his power of introducing any beneficial reforms. Fouquet was a patron of art and learning, of generous temper, and agreeable manners; but he was a corrupt and lavish financier, and his unbounded expenses were defrayed from the public purse. To attempt reform under such a superior was hopeless; and to declare open hostility was dangerous: avoiding both these perils, Colbert made it his business privately to open the eyes of Louis to the frauds practised on the government. In this he succeeded. Fouquet was displaced in 1661, and Colbert succeeded to his functions, with the new title of Comptroller General of Finance. His conduct in this affair did not escape censure, and the epithet of traitor was liberally bestowed upon him by the friends of Fouquet. It is clear that Colbert was right in bringing to justice the frauds of his predecessor; and it is easier to expose continued, than to give proof of foregone abuses. But, in such cases as this, concealment and duplicity are separated by a very uncertain boundary; and while we hesitate, in the absence of minute information, to stigmatize with treachery this high-minded and unbending man, we must confess that his character would have been spared some obloquy, if his hostility to the rival whom he supplanted had been more open.

In 1669, Colbert, in addition to his other offices, assumed the functions of Secretary of State and Minister of Marine; but from the year 1670 his influence declined, in proportion as his rival Louvois obtained a greater ascendency over the king’s mind. He died, September 6, 1683, unregretted by the king, who owed the means of his greatness to him; and lampooned and hated by the people, for whose relief he had done more, both by the correction of abuses, and by opening new sources of national wealth, than any French minister either before or since.

To estimate his services properly, it must not be forgotten that, since the time of Sully, no minister had seriously endeavoured to lighten the public burdens, to reform the system of taxation, or to introduce order and economy into the public expenditure; and the good which Sully had done was neglected or undone in the long administrations of Richelieu and Mazarin. When Colbert came into office, all was in confusion: taxes were levied without system; money spent without thought how to meet the expenditure; new taxes imposed and farmed to collectors, as new wants for money occurred; until disorder reached such a height, that as the nominal taxes were increased, the money paid into the treasury diminished. The whole was a system of shifts, temporising, and corruption, in which every public servant felt the insecurity of his position, and made the most of his opportunities while they lasted. The first business of the new Comptroller General was to introduce strict order into every department of the revenue, and to render every subordinate officer duly responsible. Under the pernicious system which exempted the nobility from payment of direct taxes, a great number of persons had fraudulently assumed titles, and claimed rank, while another class had obtained immunity from taxation, by the prostitution of court-favour, or the abuse of official privileges. These cases Colbert caused to be investigated, and those who failed in making out a legal claim to immunity, were compelled to pay their share of the public burdens, to the relief of the labouring classes, on whom nearly the whole weight of taxation fell. A more extensive relief was afforded by modifying and diminishing the existing imposts; which was done with so much judgment, that the revenue was improved, in consequence of the stimulus thus given to industry. Colbert abolished most of the provincial tolls, which offered a continual temptation to fraud, and a constant hinderance to internal trade: he mitigated the _taille_, which pressed most heavily upon the poor cultivators of the soil: he improved the means of transport, by altering old roads, cutting new ones, and digging canals, especially the celebrated Canal of Languedoc, connecting the Mediterranean and Atlantic. By these facilities of communication the interests of agriculture and trade were alike promoted: but to the improvement of the latter, to render France a manufacturing nation, and to increase her commercial resources in every respect, the minister’s attention was particularly directed. The silk trade of Lyons; the cloth trade of Abbeville, Elbœuf, and Louviers; the celebrated Parisian manufactories of plate-glass and tapestry, with other sources of wealth, owed their commencement or their extension to his care. To tempt capital and talent into these new employments, Colbert advanced sums of money without interest; he granted exemptions, honorary distinctions, and even letters of nobility. By another regulation, which shows a mind advanced beyond the prejudices of his day, liberty was granted to the nobility to enter into commerce, and for a time to lay down their rank; with the power of resuming it, when the purpose of their temporary industry had been answered. Thus far the valuable services, and the enlightened views of the minister, will be acknowledged by all; but when it is added that the infant manufactures of France were propped by prohibitory laws, minute regulations, and protecting duties, the agreement ceases; and the two great parties which respectively support and oppose free trade, will judge him in accordance to their opinions on this important subject. So also with respect to another great question, the free or limited exportation of corn. M. Necker, in his ‘Eloge de Colbert,’ has argued strongly in favour of the course which the minister pursued, of opening and shutting the ports by royal edict, as the exigencies of the season seemed to require; and his authority is entitled to respect, from those who hesitate to admit the soundness of his arguments on this subject. But whatever judgment be passed on Colbert’s policy touching these questions, it should not be forgotten, in estimating his character, that at the time, political economy had no existence as a science, and that he had to think out for himself the principles which conduct nations to wealth and happiness. What wonder then if old prejudices did sometimes stand in his way, or if he deviated from the straight line to his object, where there was no track to guide him?