Ld. H. was telling us to-day of the whimsical effect produced by a droll manner of compressing the substance of a man’s speech. A Mr. Robson, who is neither witty nor clever by-the-way, gave his whole attention to one of Windham’s speeches; he did not listen to the other debating, and when it came to voting he rose and said that ‘The Honourable Gentleman had declared that we were not fighting for the Restoration of the Bourbons, but that we should fight till they were restored, therefore he should give his vote against him.’ This done with gravity would get the laugh on his side, and provokingly perplex his adversary.
AN UNJUST WILL
Erskine told us a singular cause that he was called to at Uxbridge. It was to decide upon a will supposed to have been made whilst the testator was under the influence of some morbid, mad affection of the mind. He was the elder brother of a man with whom he had lived in the closest habits of friendship, and to whom he was sincerely attached. One day he came home heated and fatigued, complained of the colic, and was advised by his brother to go to bed and drink warm rum and water. He followed his advice, but whether the disease was naturally fever, or that the rum created it, is not known; but the effect was raging madness, during which he furiously inveighed against his brother for having poisoned him in the drink. The frenzy continued, and he was put under a mad doctor. In a few months he recovered his reason to all intents and purposes, acted as a magistrate, fulfilled all the functions of his station, gave law opinions, and betrayed no tokens of insanity. But some years after when he died, it was found by the will that he had excluded his brother, upon the old accusation of his having administered poison to him. It came out that the man, in favour of whom the younger brother had been disinherited, used to listen and rather encourage his rhapsodies. Erskine substantiated the will, but made the heir by will share alike with the lawful heir.
This story of rational madness reminded Ld. H. of one which Fontana was fond of telling, because it squares with the common definition of madness, and proves that a man may reason logically upon false premises. A very intelligent Jesuit went mad, and his predominating madness was that he believed himself to be a Cardinal. He was a loss to their community, and being a very subtle logician two or three of the cleverest of the Order undertook to argue with him, and convince by reason that he laboured under an illusion, which he might dissipate by force of mind. They asked him several questions as to the ceremonies necessary to be undergone previous to the instalment of a man in the College of Cardinals, to all of which he pleaded ignorance. ‘Why then,’ said one, ‘how can you imagine yourself to be a Cardinal?’ He replied, ‘I tell you that I am a Cardinal, and if you do not believe me such when I assure so, you must suppose me to be mad, and if I am mad, how can you be so mad as to try to convince by reason one who in that case must be labouring under an alienation of it?’ This syllogism posed the Reverend Brothers.
Wm. Lamb is returned from Glasgow quite bitten with a Scotch mania. He thinks the Scotch have outdone in moral philosophy and ethics all who have gone before them. To use his own expression, ‘They have gone far beyond Locke and Paley,’ ‘Yes,’ replied Ld. H., ‘so far, that they are unintelligible,’ He was under Professor Millar,[121] a friend of Ld. Lauderdale’s, a man who has written upon Governt., and who is the greatest enemy of all belles lettres and poetry; the latter he calls a mere jingle which proves no facts. Lamb is very clever and pleasing, and will improve when he gets out of his love for singularity.
LORD HENRY PETTY
Ld. Henry Petty unites to a sound, strong understanding a pleasant vein of cheerful humour, with talents and advantages far beyond his years. His simplicity and unassuming manner is the most winning of his qualifications. His character is very like Ld. H.’s, only he has less playfulness of imagination, and less vivacity; his turn of mind is rather serious, but in temper, artlessness, and integrity they are more nearly allied even than by blood. Ld. Lansdown idolises him, and with pleasure I perceive that his tenderness is bestowed upon an object that will reward him with interest; poor old man, he wants filial comfort.[122]
Bonaparte in his passage through Switzerland went to Coppet to see Necker; some imagine that he proposed to him to accept the post of Minister of Finance. Madame de Staël greeted the hero, and made a political tirade for full twenty minutes; when she ceased she expected a complimentary eulogism, all he said was, ‘Madame, a-t-elle nourri ses enfants?’ A cutting rebuke.[123]
Dumont one evening read to us Rousseau’s description, in his Promenades solitaires, of the Isle de St. Pierre, in which he describes the felicity he enjoyed and his regrets at having quitted his delicious retirement. Ld. H., who is no admirer of Rousseau in any way, grew tired, and wrote this:—
Rousseau was so charmed in his island St. Pierre