It is possible that Vairasse's visit to England may have been connected with his religion. He appears, during his residence here, to have acquired the English language; but it is difficult to understand what are the designs of Lord Clarendon in which he was an "accomplice." Lord Clarendon's exile took place in 1667; which hardly accords with the expression "some years" after 1665. No person of the name of Vairasse is mentioned as having accompanied Lord Clarendon in his banishment.
The first part of the History of the Sevarambians was published in English in 1675, two years before the French edition of the first part. The second parts were published at London and Paris in the same year. Even if Vairasse did not leave England with Lord Clarendon, he had left it before the year in which the first part of this
work appeared in English: for he is stated to have been with the French army in Holland in 1672. It is therefore difficult to account for the publication of the English version of the History of the Sevarambians before its publication in France, upon the assumption that Vairasse was the author. The writer of the life of Vairasse (art. ALLAIS) in the Biographical Dictionary of the Society of Useful Knowledge thinks that he may have been only the translator: but the facts collected by Marchand show that he claimed the authorship; and there is no trace of its composition by any Englishman. Besides, its prior publication in England is just as inexplicable upon the assumption of his being the translator, as upon that of his being the author.
Query, Is Vairasse's residence in England mentioned by any English writer? And can any light be thrown upon the authorship of the History of the Sevarambians from any English source?
L.
ORIGINS OF PRESENT PENNY POSTAGE.
Many of your readers have, I doubt not, perused with interest the vivid sketch of the origin of the Penny Postage System, given by Miss Martineau in her History of England during the Thirty Years' Peace, vol. ii. p. 425., and have seen in the incident of the shilling letter delivered to the poor cottager, somewhere in the Lake district—refused by her from professed inability to pay the postage—paid for by Mr. Rowland Hill, who happened most opportunely to be passing that way—and, when opened, found to be blank (this plan being preconcerted between the woman and her correspondent, to know of each other's welfare without the expense of postage). A remarkable instance of "how great events from little causes spring," and have bestowed much admiration on the penetration of Mr. Hill's mind, which "wakened up at once to a significance of the fact," nor ever rested till he had devised and effected his scheme of Post-office Reform; though all the while an uncomfortable feeling might be lurking behind as to the perfect credibility of so interesting a mode of accounting for the initiation of this great social benefit.
I confess to having had some suspicions myself as to the trustworthiness of this story; and a few days since my suspicions were fully confirmed by discovering that the real hero of the tale was not the Post-office Reformer, but the poet Coleridge; unless, indeed, which is surely out of the range of ordinary probabilities, the same event, corresponding exactly as to place and amount of postage, happened to two persons at separate times.
Coleridge relates the story himself, in one of his "conversations," of which memoranda are preserved in the interesting volumes published by Moxon in 1836 (ii. 114.). "One day,"