Memoirs of the Life and Correspondence of Henry Reeve, C.B., D.C.L. Part 48

Whilst this tremendous storm was raging in the political world in England, France also had been much excited. The letters of the Comte de Paris have shown that he was, in point of fact, conducting an intrigue for the subversion of the republic, the re-establishment of the monarchy; and it is not surprising that the Government, more or less cognisant of what was going on, struck in defence of the const.i.tution under which they ruled.

Their action was said to be illegal; but in time of war the laws depend on, are upheld by, and interpreted by the greater force; and on June 23rd the Comte de Paris, with his family, was ordered to quit France, and the Orleanist princes, including the Duc d'Aumale, were deprived of their rank in the army, their names being erased from the army list. On June 29th Reeve noted in his Journal, 'To Tunbridge Wells, to see the Comte de Paris, exiled the week before;' but that is all; the home interest was too absorbing, though even of that the only trace in the Journal is on July 5th, 'Unionist meeting at Tuckton. I took the chair. Election.'

_To Lord Derby_

_C. O., July 10th_.--I am much obliged to you for the copy of your excellent speech. In this remarkable debate _coram populo_, it seems to me that the defeat of the Home Rulers in argument has been even more complete than their rout at the polling booths. The people have shown more serious intelligence than I had given them credit for. I saw this even in our Hamps.h.i.+re b.u.mpkins.

On July 20th the Gladstonian Ministry resigned, and before the end of the month the new ministry was formed under Lord Salisbury as premier and first lord of the treasury. The Journal is occupied with personal and family affairs of special interest.

_July 25th_.--To Antwerp by the 'Baron Osy.' Forty-seven Americans on board. Aix very dull. Back to London on August 11th.

_August 18th_.--Letter from Hopie announcing her intended marriage.

_September 6th_.--Hopie married at Kirklands to Thomas Ogilvie of Chesters.

Chesters is in the immediate neighbourhood of Kirklands, and the friends.h.i.+p between Miss Reeve and Mr. Ogilvie was of many years' standing, though the determination to marry was rather sudden, and the engagement very short.

Mr. Ogilvie was a man of good family and property, and though several years older than his bride, Reeve appears to have been very well satisfied; his relations with his son-in-law were always cordial, though the distance at which they lived restricted the intercourse, and the formed habits of both prevented anything like intimacy.

Amidst the political excitement and the family interest of the summer, the following comes in almost like the Fool in 'King Lear' or Caleb Balderstone in the 'Bride of Lammermoor.' It refers to a proposition--surely one of the strangest ever submitted to a publisher--which, in ordinary course, had been sent to Reeve for an opinion. And this is what Reeve wrote:--

_To Mr. T. Norton Longman_

_Foxholes, August 24th_.--Your correspondent is the coolest fellow I ever heard of. He not only proposes to complete Macaulay's 'Lays' by some new ones, but to re-edit and correct the original Lays, which, he says, 'are very irregular.' His own verses have not a spark of poetry or fire in them; they are mere trash, and he is an impertinent fellow.

Here the Journal has:--

_September 7th_.--Went to Exeter with Christine; 8th, to Chagford and Dartmoor; 10th, back to Foxholes.

_29th_.--To Holyhead and Penrhos with Christine. Bad weather at Penrhos; gout in hand came on.

_October 2nd_.--To Knowsley; Lord Lyons there.

_6th_.--To London and Foxholes. Christine went on to Chesters. On the 20th, Mrs. Ogilvie came from Scotland. November 2nd, James Watney died.

_From Count Vitzthum_

Paris, November 7th.

Dear Mr. Reeve,--I beg you to accept kindly a copy of my memoirs 'St.

Petersburg and London,' 1852-1864, which Cotta will send you from the author. Please to remember, if you find time to read these two little volumes, that it is a German book, written for Germans, by one who is neither Whig, nor Tory, nor Red; who is very fond of Old England,, but has nothing to do with your party feelings and prejudices. I see men and things, not from the English, but from the European standpoint, and leave it, as far as possible, to the leading men of the day to tell their own tale. If you find time, read the book and tell me what you think of it.

Yours very truly,

VITZTHUM.

_To Mr. T. Norton Longman_

C.O., _November 12th_.--My old friend, Count Vitzthum, formerly Saxon Minister in London, has sent me his 'Reminiscences of St. Petersburg and London from 1852 to 1864' in German, 2 vols. This is a book of extraordinary interest to the English public, full of conversations and confidential details of Prince Albert, Lord Palmerston, Lord Clarendon, Disraeli, &c.--quite a contemporary political history, as amusing and interesting as Greville himself. Vitzthum knew this country well, and all its society.

I shall write on Monday [15th] to thank him for the book, and I propose to ask him whether he has made any arrangements for the translation of it. I am not much in favour of translations; but this book is of such peculiar and exciting interest that I should strongly recommend you to secure it if possible. I think the Taylors, who did Luther, would undertake the translation.

I think this an important affair.

_November 15th_.--I am afraid you are out of town, but it is of great importance to come to an immediate decision about Count Vitzthum's book. It is a work of the greatest possible interest and importance, and contains many entirely new facts and anecdotes as to contemporary history. You will perceive this from the enclosed notice of the book which appeared last week in the 'Daily News.' [Footnote: November 6th, 'From our Berlin Correspondent,' a notice mostly made up of extracts from the book, then described as 'just about' to be published by Cotta of Stuttgart.]

The Queen has seen the sheets and approved them.

The result of this notice was that three English publishers at once applied to Cotta for the right of translation; but the Count has retained that in his own hands, and he says that, if _you_ will publish the translation on suitable terms, and if _I_ will edit the translation with my name, and write a preface to it, he will make an arrangement with us. This I am ready to do, and I shall tell him so to-day. There is not a moment to lose; and as you appear not to be in town, I must act myself in the matter. I want to know as soon as possible what terms you would offer. I think the Count would accept either a sum down or a share of the profits; you might propose either alternative. The Taylors would execute the translation promptly and the book would appear in May. I do not suppose that you will hesitate to agree to so important a proposal; but if it does not please you, I am certain that Murray or Macmillan would jump at it.

_C.O., November 17th._--Max Muller has written to Count Vitzthum, to make exactly the same suggestion I have done. He highly applauds the book and recommends the Count to make arrangements with _you_ for the translation. I have seen Fairfax Taylor. He will undertake to complete the translation by the 15th or 20th of February. The printing can go on when he has got some copy in hand, and the book can be brought out early in April, which is a very good time. I have given him my copy of the first volume to begin upon.

Pray get another copy of the book.

_November 18th._--Count Vitzthum accepts your proposal. He asks me whether he should write to you; but that is unnecessary. _Four_ other English publishers have applied to him for the right of translation.

_November 23rd._--It will be necessary that the translation of Vitzthum's book should be set up in slips, in order that he and I may have an opportunity of adding notes or making omissions.

At this time the question of having him elected as a foreign member of the Inst.i.tute was mooted by Reeve's friends in Paris. It is to this that the following letters refer. Though not successful on this occasion, because--as Reeve was afterwards told--two out of the six foreign members were already English, they carried their point some eighteen months later, on an English vacancy.

_From M. Jules Simon_

Paris, 18 decembre.

Cher Monsieur,--J'ai en effet exprime a notre ami commun, M. Gavard, le desir que j'eprouve de vous attacher plus completement a notre Academie.

C'est line operation a.s.sez difficile, car les a.s.socies etrangers pouvant etre choisis indistinctement dans tous les peuples du monde, il y a rarement disette de candidats. A chaque vacance, une commission est nominee au scrutin. Elle presente trois noms a l'Academie, qui consacre une seance a les discuter, et vote dans la seance suivante. Nous devons elire tout a l'heure le successeur de Ranke. Parmi les deux noms qui ne sortiront pas de l'urne, il y en a un qui pourra bien reussir quand on elira le successeur de Minghetti. En general on est porte deux ou trois fois avant de pa.s.ser.

Vos amis s'occuperont d'abord de vous faire figurer sur la liste. Il faut pour cela qu'un d'entre eux ait la liste exacte de vos ecrits, et de tous les t.i.tres que l'on peut invoquer en votre faveur. Les debats ne sont pas publics; les candidats n'ecrivent pas de demande; celui qui les propose parle en son propre noni, ct est meme cense les proposer a leur insu.

Enfin, le public ne connait que le nom de l'elu. Je crois que vous avez envoye a M. Barthelemy St.-Hilaire les renseignements necessaires. Si cela n'est pas fait, faites-le, je vous prie, sans delai. Vous pouvez, si vous le preferez, les envoyer a M. Gavard, qui me les remettra, ou m'ecrire directement. Je vous prie, cher monsieur, de croire a mes sentiments cordialement devoues.

JULES SIMON.

_From M. Leon Say_

Paris, 25 decembre.

Mon bien Cher M. Reeve,--Je ferai naturellement tous mes efforts pour vous rapprocher encore plus de l'Inst.i.tut, et vous y donner un rang digne de vous; mais je ne dois pas vous laisser ignorer qu'il y aura lutte. Je ne sais s'il vous conviendra que votre nom soit discute. Pour vous eclairer sur ce point, je vous envoie a t.i.tre confidentiel un billet que me fait parvenir M. Aucoc pour faire suite a un entretien que j'ai eu avec lui.

Je vous prie de croire a mes sentiments les plus distingues et les plus affectueux.

LeON SAY.

Jules Simon m'a promis une note qui me servirait a soutenir vos t.i.tres, et me permettrait de dire aux Francais de ma section, pa.s.sablement ignorants de l'etranger, avec exact.i.tude ce que vous avez fait.

Meantime the Journal notes:--

_December 7th._--Meeting of the Liberal-Unionist party. On the 11th, dinner at home. Duc d'Aumale, Froude, Carnarvon, Lady Stanley, Colonel Knollys, F.

Villiers, Lady Metcalfe, Newton.

_19th_--Dined at the Duc d'Aumale's, who had bought Moncorvo House in Ennismore Gardens. Comte and Comtesse de Paris, Haussonville, Segur, Target, Audiffret, Leighton.

_December 21st_.--To Timsbury. 24th, to Foxholes. The Ogilvies there.