Imatges de pàgina
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himself and to his neighbour, but a duty which he owes to his god, in asserting and maintaining the rank which he gave him in the creation!—to that common god, who, where he gives the form of man, whatever may be the complexion, gives also the feelings and the rights of man-that principle, which neither the rudeness of ignorance can stifle, nor the enervation of refinement extin guish!—that principle which makes it base for a man to suffer when he ought to act, which, tending to preserve to the species the original designations of providence, spurns at the arrogant distinctions of man, and vindicates the independent qualities of his race.

X. Mr. Burke's Panegyric on the Eloquence of Mr. Sheridan.

HE has this day surprised the thousands who hung with rapture on his accents, by such an array of talents, such an exhibition of capacity, such a display of powers, as are unparalleled in the annals of oratory;—a display that reflected the highest honour on himself-lustre upon letters-renown upon parliament-glory upon the coun try. Of all species of rhetoric, of every kind of eloquence that has been witnessed or recorded, either in ancient or modern times; whatever the acuteness of the bar, the dignity of the senate, the solidity of the judgment-seat, and the sacred morality of the pulpits have hitherto furnished; nothing have equalled what we have this day heard in Westminster-hall. No holy seer of religion, no statesman, no orator, no man of any literary description whatever, has come up, in the one instance, to the pure sentiments of morality, or, in the other, to that variety of knowledge, force of imagination, propriety and vivacity of allusion, beauty and elegance of diction, strength and copiousness of stile, pathos and sublimity of conception, to which we, this day, listened with ardour and admiration. From poetry up to cloquence, there is not a species of composition of which a complete and perfect specimen might not, from that single speech, be culled and collected.

XI. The Picture of Athenian Degeneracy.

THE Athenians made a very rapid progress to the most enormous excesses; the people, under no restraint, soon grew dissipated, luxurious, and idle. They renounced all labour, and began to subsist themselves from the public revenues. They lost all concern for their common honour or safety, and could bear no advice that tended to reform them. At this time, truth became offensive to those lords the people, and most highly dangerous to the speaker. The orators no longer ascended the rostrum, but to corrupt them further with the most fulsome adulations. These orators were all bribed by foreign princes on one side or other. And besides its own parties, in this city there were parties, and avowed ones too, for the Persians, the Spartans, and the Macedonians, supported each of them by one or more demagogues pensioned and bribed to this impious service. The people, forgetful of all virtue and public spirit, and intoxicated with the flatteries of their orators, (these courtiers of republics, and endowed with the distinguishing characteristics of all courtiers.) this people at last arrived at that pitch of madness, that they coolly and deliberately, by an express law, made it capital for any man to propose an application of the immense sums squandered in public shows, even to the most necessary purposes of the state. When you see the people of this republic banishing or murdering their best and ablest citizens, dissipating the public treasure with the most senseless extravagance, and spending their whole time as spectators or actors, in playing, fiddling, dancing, and singing, does it not strike your imagination with the image of a sort of a complex Nero? And does it not strike you with the greatest horror, when you ob. serve, not one man only, but the whole city, grown drunk with pride and power, running with a rage of folly into the same mean and senseless debauchery and extravagance?

The whole history of this celebrated republic is but one tissue of rashness, ingratitude, injustice, violence, and tyranny; and, indeed, of every species of wickedness that can well be imagined. This was a city

of wise men, in which a minister could not exercise his functions; a warlike people, amongst whom a general did not dare either to gain or lose a battle; a learned nation, in which a philosopher could not venture on a free enquiry. This was the city which banished Themistocles, starved Aristides, forced into exile Miltiades, drove out Anaxagoras, and poisoned Socrates. This was the city which changed the form of its government with the moon; eternal conspiracies, revolutions daily, nothing fixed and established. A republic, as an ancient philo sopher has observed, is no one species of government, but a magazine of every species; here you find every sort of it, and that in the worst form. As there is a perpetual change, one rising and the other falling, you have all the violence and wicked policy, by which the begin. ning power must always acquire its strength, and all the weakness by which falling states are brought to a com plete destruction.

XII. Mr. Fox's Eulogium on the Duke of Bedford.

I AM well aware that this is not exactly the place nor the occasion for entering at large into the character of the illustrious personage, whose decease has induced me to come hither to perform a painful duty. As the memory of no man was ever more generally revered, so the loss of no man was ever more generally felt. In a case, there-~ fore, of so much importance, I hope I shall not be blamed, if, in feeling how much the country has suffered by this event, I deviate a little from the usual practice of the house. The noble person to whom the house will perceive these observations are applied, was distinguished by something so great, something so benign, something so marked in his character, that though possessing most opulent revenues, and though placed as high in rank and wealth as hope could make him, yet he seemed to be raised to that exalted station, only that his example might have the greater value. Having, therefore, so much of public calamity to deplore, the house may be assured that I shall not, at present, indulge in the expres

sion of any of those feelings of private friendship and gratitude, which, on another occasion, might be proper. The loss is the more afflicting, the more to be regretted, as it happened at a period when the services of this noble personage were likely to be most beneficial to society; when he was still young enough to give the hope of für. ther services; still active enough for all the duties of public life: and while he still possessed that youthful vigour and energy which would long have enabled him to support those unwearied exertions, which he displayed in every thing that tended to promote the interests of his country; exertions which afforded a sufficient pledge, that, had he lived, the remainder of his days would have been devoted to acts of public benefit. He did not live for the pleasure, but for the utility of life: or rather he lived for the highest enjoyment which existence can afford, -that of doing good to his fellow creatures. There are many other amiable traits in his character which I shall not attempt to describe here. I may be permitted to observe, however, that those who feel that the greatest benefit which can be done to this or to any other country, is to render it more productive, must be sensible that the nation is more indebted to him than to any other person for the efforts which he made to improve its agriculture. What was his motive for attaching himself to this pursuit? Because he was convinced, that in the present times, that was the best direction he conld give to his talents, and to his means in promoting the real interests of his country; for his humility was such, that he conceived no pursuit too low for him to engage in, if he foresaw that it would tend to public utility. I know, that if the noble personage of whom I have spoken could look back to what passed in the world, nothing could afford him such ineffable pleasure, as the reflection that his memory should be, as his life, beneficial to mankind. I shall con

clude with a passage from a very young orator, which appears particularly applicable to what I have said, "Crime is only a curse for the time, even where successful; but virtue may be useful to the remotest posterity, and is even almost as advantageous to future generations as to its original possessor."

XIII. Junius's Eulogium on Lord Chatham.

I DID not intend to make a public declaration of the respect I bear lord Chatham. I well knew what un worthy conclusions would be drawn from it. But I am called upon to deliver my opinion; and surely it is not in the little censure of Mr. Horne to deter me from doing signal justice to a man, who, I confess, has grown upon my esteem. As for the common, sordid views of avarice, or any purpose of vulgar ambition, I question whether the applause of Junius would be of service to lord Chat. ham. My voice will hardly recommend him to an increase of his pension, or to a seat in the cabinet. But if his ambition be upon a level with his understanding; if he judges of what is truly honourable for himself, with the same superior genius which animates and directs him to eloquence in debate, to wisdom in decision, even the pen of Junius shall contribute to reward him. Recorded honours shall gather round his monument, and thicken over him. It is a solid fabric, and will support the laurels that adorn it. I am not conversant in the language of panegyric. These praises are extorted from me; but they will wear well, for they have been dearly earned.

XIV. Mirabeau's Funeral Eulogium of Dr. Franklin.

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FRANKLIN is dead. The genius who freed America, and poured a copious stream of knowledge throughout Europe, is returned into the bosom of the divinity.

The sage to whom two worlds lay claim, the man for whom science and politics are disputing, indisputably enjoyed an elevated rank in human nature.

The cabinets of princes have been long in the habits of notifying the death of those who were great only in their funeral orations. Long hath the etiquette of courts proclaimed the mourning of hypocrisy. Nations should wear mourning for none but their benefactors. The representatives of nations should recommend to public homage, only those who have been the heroes of huma nity.

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