134 On the Neglect of Prefaces. the country to Aix-la-Chapelle, be long to Prussia. The shops were open all Sunday morning, and more business doing than on Saturday. On our arrival at Cologne, we left to the waiter the settlement of expences attending the debarkation of our carriage; they amounted to 10% francs, and the waiter got abused by the Captain for allowing no more. Yours, &c. [To be continued.] Mr. URBAN, X. Feb. 7. I ADDRESS myself to you in sure confidence of our old friendship, that you will do all in your power to relieve my distress; and am well assured that you will have pleasure in restoring and keeping alive old customs that were founded in good sense. I am a Sexagenarian, though not the same as one whose papers we have lately perused with some gratification, and in the experience attain ed by long practice, I have always found considerable pleasure and information in reading the Prefaces to books before I entered upon the Table of Contents, and the Work itself; to have done otherwise would have seemed to me to be like the bireling who attempts an entrance by a wrong course, or rather like an eager young lady who turns to the last chapter in every new novel, that she may be acquainted with the denouement, before she begins the work; she then indulges a vain triumph, in thinking she knows more of the author's secret than all other readers. Having lately finished an elaborate Work, it appeared necessary that it should be introduced by a pithy and interesting Preface; and after ruminating on the leading topics of my labours, I prepared what in due vanity seemed to me in my study to read off very fluently, and would serve to make the reader as familiar as myself with my object and design: but when my MS. was handed to my bookseller, he lamented the hours which these prefatory lucubrations had occupied, and assured me that nobody read Prefaces in these times of business and dispatch! Upon my requesting an explanation of these terms, he said that the times were now so enlightened, that it had long since ceased to be necessary to offer [Feb. any Prefatory observations, nothing was so dry and fatiguing, especially to young minds; and that as every department of business was now pressed into a few hours of the morning, the utmost dispatch was neces sary in every concern; and that therefore no preambles were suffered, but every one was obliged to come instantly to the point in question that no body now read dry details of opinions and systems, but looked_to the conclusion, without reading thro' the premises that no one required an Introduction, as in former years, for every one is now capable, without the tardiness which once belonged to decorum or to respect, of rushing at once into the centre of the subject, and trusted to time and chance to help him through it;-and that some readers, especially those among the great, employ an intelligent librarian to score in the margin at those sentences or figures which are most attractive in description or in composi tion, so as to lead the patron in a few minutes to talk of any new work with all the wit and experience of one who had read the very MS of the author before they were put to the press. Now, Sir, I am sharing the fate of this great dispatch, or rather bending under the modern oppression of yielding to the fashion of the times, in allowing my new bantling, just breathing external air, to be ushered into the world without saying a word about him; and his very title, in which I would have inserted a few more terms than usual, has been cut down to a single word. It concerns me very sincerely, for my brethren of the grey goose-quill, that we must all be condemned to so solitary, and almost silent, a minister of introduction; because an author, when he has closed his work, feels a delicious sensation, like that of a woman's delivery from pain and labour; and while he indulges rest in his easy chair, he reflects how sweet it will be to pour out his motives and design to a candid reader, who, he vainly fancies, will enter into his feelings as tenderly as himself: he thus seeks a means of conciliating his critics, of awakening dullness, and of preparing against attack; he checks sarcasm, appeals to the learned, and invites the unlearned to be instructed or amused; at any rate, his scheme is harmless, for he seldom or ever misleads.. Now, Sir, if the modern plan had always prevailed, what losses would the republic of letters have sustained! The celebrated Preface by Dr. Johnson to his Dictionary, and those to his Edition of the Poets; that by Dr. Parr to Belendenus; and in these our days, that of Crabbe to his Tales of the Hall, would all, cum multis aliis, have been lost to public view.Where, Sir, but in yourself, shall these things find redress? Though, in your own pithy Preface, you are pleased to be short, yet that is well made up in the multifarious subjects of your valuable Volumes. But then, Sir, the dispatch which is so much the urgent topick of modern pursuit, is not always considered, while your pages are under perusal. I cannot but lament for the cause of Literature in general, and for this branch of it in particular, that all readers have not a slice of author ship, if they had, they would so tenderly sympathize with us, that for the mere sake of brotherly love, abstracted from all considerations of their own benefit, they would read our Prefaces with patience and pleasure, and participate in the gratification which accompanies that part of our composition. Such is my case; and my humble suit to you is to afford your patronage and influence with the unlearned, and with the learned also, who, I perceive, are sliding very rapidly into the fashionable neglect, to induce them to consider that they cannot properly enter the temple without passing through the portico; that they cannot find a place in the drawing-room without first approaching the staircase; that they can never relish the wit and spirit of a language without becoming master of the alphabet; all which are no other than prefaces to their respective works.You will thus render a most essential public service, by convincing mankind that the only way to obtain either pleasure, practice, profit, or praise, is to take every thing in its exact order. A. H. communicated by an intelligent Of ficer in his Lordship's service, and who, from being in the same vessel, had the fullest opportunity for ob. servation. A most striking feature in his character, was his strict economy in every thing relative to the service. The sails of his own ship were literally worn to rags before he suf fered them to be condemned. He kept a close watch over his fleet in this respect, and was highly displeased whenever he observed any expense incurred where there was not a strict necessity. A vessel in his fleet having displayed new sails, he ordered the old ones to be brought to him for inspection; and finding them in far better condition than his own, he commanded the foresail to be hoisted in place of the tattered one that was in use: his Lordship then invited the Captain of the gay vessel to dinner; and carelessly asked him what he thought of his foresail?"In fair condition, my Lord," was the unwary answer. "If it be good enough for an Admiral's ship, I think it might have served a Captain's."On another occasion, in the midst of an action, seeing that one of the masts were shivered, he ordered out the boat, and being asked for what purpose? "To take that spar into the store-ship," was the reply. By this unrelaxing spirit of economy, he saved thousands to the revenue. Though his attention was thus alive to every minutim, he gave his orders as calmly in the heat of an engagement, as on ordinary occasions. To his men he was always attentive and kind; but strict with the officers, particularly with young nobility. He could not bear to see promo.. tion, upless arising from merit; and used to say, "I like a man to get in at the port-hole, not at the cabinwindow." He was perfectly plain in his dress, and retained the old fashion. A small cocked hat; a square-cut blue coat, with tarnished epaulettes; blue waistcoat and smallclothes; with boots, guiltless of blacking, but occasionally greased, was his costume on state occasions. In his diet he was strictly temperate, and even abstemious. So long as his health permitted, he constantly regulated the motions of his own vessel: leaving his officers scarcely any 136 Lord Collingwood.-Ancient Anecdotes. daties to perform. His Lordship's declining strength had long called for that repose which his unremitted exertions for a series of years so amply merited; but Government was unwilling to dispense with his abilities. Whilst in this state, an officer, on the night preceding his death, came into his cabin and found him reclining on a sofa, and asked, "Shall we wear, my Lord ""Wear," said his Lordship, "wear-they have worn and torn me."-He expired the following day; and, on opening the body, a stricture was found in the lower orifice of the stomach, which had totally precluded the passage of any nourishment, as it would scarcely permit even a bristle to pass. These particulars may be relied upon as correct, and may not be an unacceptable addition to the Obitu ary of his Lordship, given in your Number for May 1810, p. 486, Yours, &c. M. S. Ancient Anecdotes, &c. THE Menenius Agrippa had enjoyed the consular dignity at Rome, and after ward, as mediator, effected a reconciliation between the nobles and the commons, at the time of a dangerous schism, which seemed to threaten the very existence of the Roman republic. This man, however, was so scantily provided with the boons of Fortune, that (like Poplicola above mentioned) [Feb. he did not, at his decease, leave suffi- Attilius Regulus, commander of the In the second Punic war, Coæus REVIEW 7 REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS. 17. The History and Antiquities of the County Palatine of Durham; compiled from original Records, preserved in public Repositories and private Collections; and illustrated by Engravings of Architectural and Monumental Antiquities, Portraits of eminent Persons, &c. &c. By Robert Surtees, of Mainsforth, F. S. A. Vol. II. Folio, pp. 408. Nichols and Son. AT length we have the pleasure to announce to our Readers the publication of the Second Portion of Mr. Surtees's very valuable "History of Durham." The Volume has been a long time in the press (the First having been reviewed in vol. LXXXVI. ii. 137. 233. 425); but this will be readily excused, as every page of it bears evidence of the Author's accuracy of detail, and happy talent of enlivening his subject with interesting and entertaining observations on The part of the County described in this Volume is Chester Ward, which contains the Parishes of Monk-Wearmouth, Washington, Whitburn, Boldon, Jarrow, Heworth, South Shields, Gateshead, Chester-le-Street, Lamesley, Tanfield, Whickham, Ryton, Medomsley, Ebchester, Lanchester, Ash, Muggleswick, Edmundbyers, Hunstanworth, and Wilton Gilbert. He "Every castle, tower, or manor-house, has its visionary inhabitants. • The cauld lad of Hilton' belongs to a very common and numerous class, the Brownie *, or domestic spirit; and seems to have possessed no very distinctive attributes. was seldom seen, but was heard nightly by the servants who slept in the great hall. If the kitchen had been left in perfect order, they heard him amusing himself by breaking plates and dishes, hurling the pewter in all directions, and throwing every thing into confusion. If, on the contrary, the apartment had been left in disarray (a practice which the servants found it most prudent to adopt), the indefatigable goblin arranged every thing with the greatest precision +. This poor esprit folet, whose pranks were at all times perfectly harmless, was at length banished from his haunts by the usual expedient of presenting him with a suit of cloaths. A The Brownie was meagre, shaggy, and wild, in his appearance; in the daytime he lurked in remote recesses of the old houses, which he delighted to haunt, and in the night sedulously employed himself in discharging any laborious task which he thought might be acceptable to the family.' The Brownie, whom Sir W. Scott supposes with great probability to be a regular descendant of the Lar familiaris, had a prescriptive right to the kitchen fire; and on one occasion, when the servants of a Scottish family protracted their vigils to an unreasonable hour, the Brownie appeared at the door, and warned them to bed, Gang a' to your beds, sirs, and dinna put out the wee grieshoch' (glowing embers)." "Border Minstrelsy, introd. p. c.-cii." + "Hail from thy wanderings long, my much-lov'd sprite! Thou friend, thou lover of the lowly, bail! "Erskine, Border Minstrelsy, introd. p. clxv." "Yet how do these lines, all soft and beautiful as they are, fall before one stroke of Milton's 'shadowy flail'." "The offer of reward, particularly of food, infallibly causes his disappearance for On one occasion, when the lady of the house was crying out, Brownie mounted his master's best horse, swam the Tweed in flood, and re-crossed it with the midwife en croupe; he then proceeded to the stable, and bestowed a severe horsewhipping on the lingering domestic, who was only drawing on his boots. The master imprudently rewarded this important service by the present of a green coat, and lost his faithful Brownie for ever. 'We may suppose that, tired of his domestic drudgery, he went in his new livery to join the fairies'." Scott, ibid. c. 111. GENT. MAG. February, 1821. green 138 REVIEW-Surtees's History of Durham. green cloak and hood were laid before the "Here's a cloke, and here's a hood, "The genuine Brownie, however, is supposed to be, ab origine, an unembodied spirit; but the boy of Hilton has, with an admixture of English superstition, been identified with the apparition of an unfortunate domestic, whom one of the old chiefs of Hilton slew at some very distant period, in a moment of wrath or intemperance. The Baron had, it seems, on an important occasion, ordered his horse, which was not brought out so soon as he expected; he went to the stable, found the boy loitering, and, seizing a hay-fork, struck him, though not intentionally, a mortal blow. The story adds, that he covered his victim with straw till night, and then threw him into the pond, where the skeleton of a boy was (in confirmation of the tale) discovered in the last Baron's time. I am by no means clear that the story may not have its foundation in the fact recorded in the following inquest+: [Feb. "Coram Johanne King, Coron, Wardæ de Chestre, apud Hilton, 3 Jul. 7 Jac. 1609. "Inquisitio super visum corporis Rogeri Skelton, ibi jacentis mortui. Jurati presentant quod Robertus Hilton, de Hilton, Gen. die et anno supradictis inter horas 8 et 9 ante meridiem falcans gramen cum quadam falce Anglice a Syth ad valenc. xxd. quam ipse in manibus suis tenuit, eundem Rogerum stantem à tergo casu infortunii cum acie ejusd. falcis, Anglice the Syth point, percussit supra dextrum femur ejusd. Rogeri unam plagam mortalem longam unius pollicis et lat. duor. pollic. ex qua plaga idem Rogerus eadem hora mortuus ibidem obiit: et quod casu et non aliter, &c. "Nevertheless, I strongly suspect that the unhousel'd spirit of Roger Skelton, whom in the hay-field the good Hilton ghosted,' took the liberty of playing a few of those pranks which are said by writers of grave authority to be the peculiar privilege of those spirits only who are shouldered untimely by violence from their mortal tenements: "Ling'ring in anguish o'er his mangled clay, "A free pardon for the above manslaughter appears on the rolls of Bishop James, dated 6 Sept. 1609 ||." We shall take an early opportunity of recurring to Mr. Surtees's entertaining history of Hilton Castle, and his baronial owners. (To be continued.) "This account of the cauld lad's very indecorous behaviour, on receiving his new livery, seems apocryphal. The genuine Brownie always received the present which was to banish him from his long-loved haunts with tokens of deep regret. Like Milton's more elegant fay, "From haunted spring and dale, Edged with poplar pale, The parting Genius is with sighing sent”.” "The last Brownie who haunted a wild and solitary spot in Ettrick forest, was banished by the mistaken religious notions of a foolish old devotee, who presented him with a milk porringer, and a piece of money. The parting sprite was heard to howl and cry the whole night, Farewell to bonny Bodsbeck'." Ibid. For the whole evidence of the Lad of Hilton I am indebted to the indefatigable zeal of my worthy friend J. B. Taylor, (et est mihi sæpe vocandus,) who collected and collated all the floating oral evidence which all the seniors of Hilton and Wearmouth could afford." "Boyd's Penance of Hugo." ; "You must not stay here,' replied Mercury (filling two posts-supervisor of thieves, and chief usher of ghosts), You must not stay here, unless you had been murdered; in which case, indeed, you might have been suffered to walk some time but, if you died a natural death, you must set out for the other world immediately'." "Journey from this World to the next-Fielding." "And again, How did you come to your end, Sir?' I was murdered, Sir.' 'I am surprised, then, that you did not divert yourself by walking up and down, and playing some merry tricks with the murderer.' Oh! Sir, I had not that privilege, I was lawfully put to death'." Ibid. "Rot. W. James, A° 4," 18. Historical |
