Imatges de pàgina
PDF
EPUB

these facts the Bible provides and presents suitable evidence of its own, and it neither asks nor can receive witness from men. Such references to the themes of revealed truth we gladly leave to the diligence of Bishop Wordsworth, and those other collectors and commentators who seek, from the study of his works, to throw some additional rays of light upon the poet's character and life. At first sight, it appears strange that he who wears so many masks, and all so naturally, should in his own personality be so dimly seen; and yet, on second thoughts, it is evident that the two things are closely connected. The masks hide the man ; if amid the crowd of the disguises he ever appears in his own face, he makes no sign by which he himself may be distinguished from his creations; and, notwithstanding the Bishop's confidence that he has proved the poet both a good Churchman and a good Christian, it is to be feared that, unless we obtain some fresh materials from contemporary records-some more and more important letters of those written by and to him than the single one of the latter class now known to be in existence-some documents less formal than his will-some books of those used by him more distinctive than the prayer-book said to be recently discovered -his true character in its highest, its religious aspects, must remain a mystery. For ourselves, we cannot as yet venture farther than to say-and it is saying much-that William Shakespeare was not only a poet than whom there is none greater, if there be any so great, but a man who knew and reverenced the word of God, by the influence of which his native strength of mind was increased, and his native delicacy of feeling refined-a man who was acquainted with the characteristics of the religious life as of every other form of human experience-a man who mused deeply on the most awful problems of human destiny, who was accustomed to "Walk thoughtful on the silent, solemn shore Of that vast ocean we must sail so soon;"

and who felt, in reference to entering into the world unseen, what he repeatedly expresses

"Men must endure

Their going hence, even as their coming hither;
Ripeness is all."

"If it be not now, yet it will come; the readiness is all."

W. T.

The Last Duchess of Gordon.

257

ART. III.-The Last Duchess of Gordon.

Life and Letters of Elizabeth, last Duchess of Gordon. By Rev. A. MOODY STUART, Author of "The Three Marys," "Capernaum," &c. London: James Nisbet & Co. 1865.

HE death of the late Duchess of Gordon was generally felt to be a great loss to the church of Christ. For a lengthened period that noble lady had shewn in a conspicuous manner, but without ostentation, that the graces of the Christian life are perfectly compatible with the dignity of the highest rank, and the duties of the most elevated position. Her character had presented a combination of qualities rarely met with in any one person, of whatever rank in life. Naturally firm, and of a somewhat robust mental constitution, she had yet, under the power of divine grace, exhibited in rare perfection the meekness and gentleness which are among the most attractive fruits of the Spirit. Her public Christian usefulness had been in accordance with her spiritual character. She had, in high and slippery places, long lifted up a decided testimony to the truth. She had influenced for good many persons moving in the higher circles. She had openly countenanced evangelical religion, and generously supported agencies connected with the progress of the gospel and of sound scriptural education. The departure from the Church on earth of such an eminent Christian could not fail to be specially noticed and lamented by members of all denominations; and it need not be a matter of wonder, in these biographical days, that an extended memoir of the departed should soon have made its appearance.

Probably no man is better qualified or more entitled to write the life of "The last Duchess of Gordon" than Mr Moody Stuart of Edinburgh. Nearly thirty years ago the Duchess was among the first to discover and appreciate the talents and spiritual gifts of that eminent minister of the gospel, and ever afterwards she honoured him with her confidential Christian friendship. If we mistake not, Mr Stuart stood to her in the relation of a pastor when she was in Edinburgh. Certainly he was a minister whom she specially loved and esteemed for the gospel's sake. The ministry of the word in his church was to her a source of true spiritual instruction and refreshment. In the confidence of Christian intercourse, Mr Stuart also came to know much of her Grace's heart and spiritual history. It is not, then, a matter of surprise to us that he whose practised pen has recently portrayed so well "the three Marys" of Scrip

ture, should have held up to the world that bright and living epistle of Christ, the last and best Duchess of Gordon.

Elizabeth Brodie, who became Marchioness of Huntly and afterwards Duchess of Gordon, was of honourable lineage, being one of the Brodies of Brodie, a family that for centuries has stood in the front rank of the Scottish gentry. It would appear that the present "Brodie" is the twenty-third in direct descent from Malcolm, Thane of Brodie, in the thirteenth century. Mr Stuart gives an interesting account of "Lord Brodie," so called from having been one of the judges of the Court of Session, who lived in the time of Charles I., Cromwell, and Charles II., was a good and pious Presbyterian in his day, suffered much for conscience' sake, yet ultimately prospered in the world and died in peace. In the troubled period of the reign of Charles I., the house of this worthy gentleman was plundered and burnt, and his lands fearfully ravaged by that unscrupulous Royalist marauder, famed in song, Lord Lewis Gordon, a son of the Earl of Huntly. Little could it have been conjectured or foreseen, when the fair mansion of Brodie was committed to the flames by a Gordon, that one day a daughter of the family of Brodie would wed the heir of the house of Gordon, and afterwards share his honours. Such strange turns we are frequently called to observe in the history of families and of nations.

The diaries of Lord Brodie, lately published by the Spalding Club, are very curious and interesting. While they exhibit the unfeigned piety and religious experience of the writer, they fling much light on the manners of the times in which he lived. Mr Stuart quotes some characteristic extracts illustrative of the trials and graces of the Christian, and the habits and pursuits of the country gentleman. Lord Brodie, a conscientious and God-fearing man, by no means neglected his estate or his library. We find him inquiring in London about new plants and trees for his grounds, and also making purchases of valuable books. But his spiritual life is ever uppermost in his thoughts; and he pours out, in the record of his experiences, many views and feelings that were afterwards to be thoroughly realised by his honoured descendant. Grace is certainly not hereditary, but we should not wonder at seeing the literal fulfilment of the words, "The promise is unto you and your children."

This excellent man, though bearing true loyalty to Charles II., in whose restoration he had taken an active part, was too good a Christian and Presbyterian to be liked or let alone by the miserable Government of that monarch. He was constantly in danger of being heavily fined, or even of forfeiting his estate, on account of favouring conventicles, and sympathising with the ejected Presbyterian ministers. But, partly owing perhaps to that circumspect gravity which was a fea

Parentage and early Character.

259

ture of his character, he escaped the fury of the persecutor, and was suffered to remain in peace on his paternal fields. He died in 1680, in his sixty-third year, having the high satisfaction of seeing his children and his children's children walking in the fear of the Lord. His son James, inheriting his father's principles with his estate, was less fortunate in regard to his worldly goods. In the year 1685, when the persecution in Scotland was at its height, he and his wife, Lady Mary Ker, a daughter of the Earl of Lothian, were severally examined by the Privy Council, on a charge of absenting themselves from the ordinances of the Established Church. They were found guilty, and the penalty was a fine of £24,000 Scots, or £2000 sterling. But this worthy couple lived to see the glorious Revolution, to retrieve their worldly losses, and to transmit an honoured name to their descendants. They died about the year 1710, within a few days of each other, and were buried together in the same grave.

Elizabeth Brodie was thus one of the seed of the godly; and while she inherited the blood, she also possessed not a few of the mental characteristics of her pious ancestors. Solidity and sincerity of character, good sense, truthfulness, and integrity, appear to have been qualities of her race; and these she exhibited at all periods of her life. She was born in London on the 20th of June 1794. Her father, Alexander Brodie, a younger son of Brodie of that Ilk, had acquired a large fortune in India, and, soon after his return to his native country, had been elected as their representative in Parliament by the Elgin burghs. Her mother, Elizabeth Wemyss, was a granddaughter of the Earl of Wemyss, and was also connected with the noble family of Sutherland. When she was six years of age she lost her mother, whose image, therefore, soon faded. from her memory; but she kept through life what she called her "mother's box," containing little reminiscences of her departed parent and of her own infant days.

In her childhood she lived much at Leslie House, Fife, the residence of the Earl of Leven; and received much motherly attention from the Countess, an excellent Christian lady. After her mother's death she resided for some time with her maiden aunts at Elgin,-"a happy, mirthful child, robust in frame and vigorous in mind, extremely amiable, but possessed of a strong and resolute will, wanting less than most girls a mother's arm to lean on, however much she needed a mother's eye to guide. She was not straitly fettered by her kind old aunts, but allowed to run about in a liberty healthful both to body and mind. Elgin, therefore, she always remembered with affection as the home of her early years, little thinking then, while she played in a merry childhood under the shadow

of the broad and lofty pile of its august cathedral, that she was to sleep within its ancient aisles as the last Duchess of Gordon."

At the age of eight she was sent to school in London, where she had diligently to unlearn her Scotch accent, and to acquire a correct English pronunciation. She was quite successful in these lessons, and in others of greater importance. Her talents, of a solid and superior order, were well cultivated, and the native vigour of her mind came out in various ways. She learned a little of mathematics, and studied drawing with success. With the accomplishments that became her position and prospects, she acquired various branches of knowledge that served her well in after life, when the details of business required her attention. She learned to write and speak French with the fluency of a native; and her musical talent, which was decided, was cultivated with great care. Having strong national feelings, she became a proficient in Scotch music. During her early married life, Sir Walter Scott, who was her friend and correspondent, took great delight in hearing her sing Scotch songs, and play accompaniments with brilliant

variations.

One feature of her character which shewed itself in early life, and which never left her, was a strong, innate spirit of independence. "This moral element," says Mr Stuart, "characterised her throughout life, and when she had become the subject of divine grace, stood her in good stead in many a severe trial of principle. Those who had seen only her kindly and yielding disposition were often taken with surprise by her immoveable firmness; for while she would give way to others in things indifferent, and yield even too easily in points where she had not made up her mind, no opposition had the slightest effect in moving her from the position she had once deliberately taken." Akin to this independent spirit was that moral and physical courage by which in youth and in riper years she was distinguished. Instances are related of her firm adherence to principle while others gave way, and of cool selfpossession in the midst of danger, which shew that she possessed from the first those more vigorous qualities without which no great excellence of natural or of Christian character can ever be attained.

When she left school, though well-trained and well-principled in an eminent degree, she appears to have been destitute of any deep religious feelings or convictions. She was educated for the gay world, and into that world she was launched, at the Fife Hunt ball, while hardly seventeen. Her personal appearance, it would seem, was such as became a young lady of her rank and expectations. She was, of course, admired, not, how

« AnteriorContinua »