The following description of a reception at Mr. Murray"s is taken from the "Autobiography" of Mrs. Bray, the novelist. She relates that in the autumn of 1819 she made a visit to Mr. Murray, with her first husband, Charles Stothard, son of the well-known artist, for the purpose of showing him the ill.u.s.trations of his "Letters from Normandy and Brittany."
"We did not know," she says, "that Mr. Murray held daily from about three to five o"clock a literary levee at his house. In this way he gathered round him many of the most eminent men of the time. On calling, we sent up our cards, and finding he was engaged, proposed to retreat, when Mr. Murray himself appeared and insisted on our coming up. I was introduced to him by my husband, and welcomed by him with all the cordiality of an old acquaintance. He said Sir Walter Scott was there, and he thought that we should like to see him, and to be introduced to him. "You will know him at once," added Mr. Murray, "he is sitting on the sofa near the fire-place." We found Sir Walter talking to Mr.
Gifford, then the Editor of the _Quarterly Review_. The room was filled with men and women, and among them several of the princ.i.p.al authors and auth.o.r.esses of the day; but my attention was so fixed on Sir Walter and Mr. Gifford that I took little notice of the rest. Many of those present were engaged in looking at and making remarks upon a drawing, which represented a Venetian Countess (Guiccioli), the favourite, but not very respectable friend of Lord Byron. Mr. Murray made his way through the throng in order to lead us up to Sir Walter. We were introduced. Mr.
Murray, anxious to remove the awkwardness of a first introduction, wished to say something which would engage a conversation between ourselves and Sir Walter Scott, and asked Charles if he happened to have about him his drawing of the Bayeux tapestry to show to Sir Walter.
Charles smiled and said "No"; but the saying answered the desired end; something had been said that led to conversation, and Sir Walter, Gifford, Mr. Murray, and Charles chatted on, and I listened.
"Gifford looked very aged, his face much wrinkled, and he seemed to be in declining health; his dress was careless, and his cravat and waistcoat covered with snuff. There was an antique, philosophic cast about his head and countenance, better adapted to exact a feeling of curiosity in a stranger than the head of Sir Walter Scott; the latter seemed more a man of this world"s mould. Such, too, was his character; for, with all his fine genius, Sir Walter would never have been so successful an author, had he not possessed so large a share of common sense, united to a business-like method of conducting his affairs, even those which perhaps I might venture to call the affairs of imagination.
We took our leave; and before we got further than the first landing, we met Mr. Murray conducting Sir Walter downstairs; they were going to have a private chat before the departure of the latter." [Footnote: "Mrs.
Bray"s Autobiography," pp. 145-7.]
CHAPTER XXI
MEMOIRS OF LADY HERVEY AND HORACE WALPOLE--BELZONI--MILMAN--SOUTHEY --MRS. RUNDELL, ETC.
About the beginning of 1819 the question of publishing the letters and reminiscences of Lady Hervey, grandmother of the Earl of Mulgrave, was brought under the notice of Mr. Murray. Lady Hervey was the daughter of Brigadier-General Lepel, and the wife of Lord Hervey of Ickworth, author of the "Memoirs of the Court of George II. and Queen Caroline." Her letters formed a sort of anecdotal history of the politics and literature of her times. A mysterious attachment is said to have existed between her and Lord Chesterfield, who, in his letters to his son, desired him never to mention her name when he could avoid it, while she, on the other hand, adopted all Lord Chesterfield"s opinions, as afterwards appeared in the aforesaid letters. Mr. Walter Hamilton, author of the "Gazetteer of India," an old and intimate friend of Mr.
Murray, who first brought the subject under Mr. Murray"s notice, said, "Lady Hervey writes more like a man than a woman, something like Lady M.W. Montagu, and in giving her opinion she never minces matters." Mr.
Hamilton recommended that Archdeacon c.o.xe, author of the "Lives of Sir Robert and Horace Walpole," should be the editor. Mr. Murray, however, consulted his _fidus Achates_, Mr. Croker; and, putting the letters in his hands, asked him to peruse them, and, if he approved, to edit them.
The following was Mr. Croker"s answer:
_Mr. Croker to John Murray_.
_November_ 22, 1820.
DEAR MURRAY,
I shall do more than you ask. I shall give you a biographical sketch--sketch, do you hear?--of Lady Hervey, and notes on her letters, in which I shall endeavour to enliven a little the _sameness_ of my author. Don"t think that I say _sameness_ in derogation of dear Mary Lepel"s _powers_ of entertainment. I have been _in love_ with her a long time; which, as she was dead twenty years before I was born, I may without indiscretion avow; but all these letters being written in a journal style and to one person, there is a want of that variety which Lady Hervey"s mind was capable of giving. I have applied to her family for a little a.s.sistance; hitherto without success; and I think, as a _lover_ of Lady Hervey"s, I might reasonably resent the little enthusiasm I find that her descendants felt about her. In order to enable me to do this little job for you, I wish you would procure for me a file, if such a thing exists, of any newspaper from about 1740 to 1758, at which latter date the _Annual Register_ begins, as I remember.
So many little circ.u.mstances are mentioned in letters, and forgotten in history, that without some such guide, I shall make but blind work of it. If it be necessary, I will go to the Museum and _grab_ them, as my betters have done before me. My dear little Nony [Footnote: Mr. Croker"s adopted daughter, afterwards married to Sir George Barrow.] was worse last night, and not better all to-day; but this evening they make me happy by saying that she is decidedly improved.
Yours ever,
J.W. CROKER.
Send me "Walpoliana," I have lost or mislaid mine. Are there any memoirs about the date of 1743, or later, beside Bubb"s?
That Mr. Croker made all haste and exercised his usual painstaking industry in doing "this little job" for Mr. Murray will be evident from the following letters:
_Mr. Croker to John Murray_.
_December_ 27, 1820.
DEAR MURRAY,
I have done "Lady Hervey." I hear that there is a Mr. Vincent in the Treasury, the son of a Mr. and Mrs. Vincent, to whom the late General Hervey, the favourite son of Lady Hervey, left his fortune and his papers. Could you find out who they are? Nothing is more surprising than the ignorance in which I find all Lady Hervey"s descendants about her.
Most of them never heard her maiden name. It reminds one of Walpole writing to George Montagu, to tell him who his grandmother was! I am anxious to knock off this task whilst what little I know of it is fresh in my recollection; for I foresee that much of the entertainment of the work must depend on the elucidations in the Notes.
Yours,
J.W.C.
The publication of Lady Hervey"s letters in 1821 was so successful that Mr. Croker was afterwards induced to edit, with great advantage, letters and memorials of a similar character. [Footnote: As late as 1848, Mr.
Croker edited Lord Hervey"s "Memoirs of the Court of George II. and Queen Caroline," from the family archives at Ickworth. The editor in his preface said that Lord Hervey was almost the Boswell of George II. and Queen Caroline.]
The next important _memoires pour servir_ were brought under Mr.
Murray"s notice by Lord Holland, in the following letter:
_Lord Holland to John Murray_.
HOLLAND HOUSE, _November_ 1820.
SIR,
I wrote a letter to you last week which by some accident Lord Lauderdale, who had taken charge of it, has mislaid. The object of it was to request you to call here some morning, and to let me know the hour by a line by two-penny post. I am authorized to dispose of two historical works, the one a short but admirably written and interesting memoir of the late Lord Waldegrave, who was a favourite of George II., and governor of George III. when Prince of Wales. The second consists of three close-written volumes of "Memoirs by Horace Walpole" (afterwards Lord Orford), which comprise the last nine years of George II."s reign.
I am anxious to give you the refusal of them, as I hear you have already expressed a wish to publish anything of this kind written by Horace Walpole, and had indirectly conveyed that wish to Lord Waldegrave, to whom these and many other MSS. of that lively and laborious writer belong. Lord Lauderdale has offered to a.s.sist me in adjusting the terms of the agreement, and perhaps you will arrange with him; he lives at Warren"s Hotel, Waterloo Place, where you can make it convenient to meet him. I would meet you there, or call at your house; but before you can make any specific offer, you will no doubt like to look at the MSS., which are here, and which (not being mine) I do not like to expose unnecessarily to the risk even of a removal to London and back again.
I am, Sir, your obedient humble Servant, etc.,
Va.s.sALL HOLLAND.
It would appear that Mr. Murray called upon Lord Holland and looked over the MSS., but made no proposal to purchase the papers. The matter lay over until Lord Holland again addressed Mr. Murray.
_Lord Holland to John Murray_.
"It appears that you are either not aware of the interesting nature of the MSS. which I showed you, or that the indifference produced by the present frenzy about the Queen"s business [Footnote: The trial of Queen Caroline was then occupying public attention.] to all literary publications, has discouraged you from an undertaking in which you would otherwise engage most willingly. However, to come to the point. I have consulted Lord Waldegrave on the subject, and we agree that the two works, viz. his grandfather, Lord Waldegrave"s "Memoirs," and Horace Walpole"s "Memoirs of the Last Nine Years of George II.," should not be sold for less than 3,000 guineas. If that sum would meet your ideas, or if you have any other offer to make, I will thank you to let me know before the second of next month."
Three thousand guineas was certainly a very large price to ask for the Memoirs, and Mr. Murray hesitated very much before acceding to Lord Holland"s proposal. He requested to have the MSS. for the purpose of consulting his literary adviser--probably Mr. Croker, though the following remarks, now before us, are not in his handwriting.
"This book of yours," says the critic, "is a singular production. It is ill-written, deficient in grammar, and often in English; and yet it interests and even amuses. Now, the subjects of it are all, I suppose, gone _ad plures_; otherwise it would be intolerable. The writer richly deserves a licking or a cudgelling to every page, and yet I am ashamed to say I have travelled unwearied with him through the whole, divided between a grin and a scowl. I never saw nor heard of such an animal as a splenetic, bustling kind of a poco-curante. By the way, if you happen to hear of any plan for making me a king, be so good as to say that I am deceased; or tell any other good-natured lie to put the king-makers off their purpose. I really cannot submit to be the only slave in the nation, especially when I have a crossing to sweep within five yards of my door, and may gain my bread with less ill-usage than a king is obliged to put up with. If half that is here told be true, Lord Holland seems to me to tread on
"ignes Suppositos cineri doloso"
in retouching any part of the ma.n.u.script. He is so perfectly kind and good-natured, that he will feel more than any man the complaints of partiality and injustice; and where he is to stop, I see not. There is so much abuse that little is to be gained by an occasional erasure, while suspicion is excited. He would have consulted his quiet more by leaving the author to bear the blame of his own scandal."
Notwithstanding this adverse judgment, Mr. Murray was disposed to buy the Memoirs. Lord Holland drove a very hard bargain, and endeavoured to obtain better terms from other publishers, but he could not, and eventually Mr. Murray paid to Lord Waldegrave, through Lord Holland, the sum of 2,500 on November 1, 1821, for the Waldegrave and Walpole Memoirs. They were edited by Lord Holland, who wrote a preface to each, and were published in the following year, but never repaid their expenses. After suffering considerable loss by this venture, Mr.
Murray"s rights were sold, after his death, to Mr. Colburn.
The last of the _memoires pour servir_ to which we shall here refer was the Letters of the Countess of Suffolk, bedchamber woman to the Princess of Wales (Caroline of Ans.p.a.ch), and a favourite of the Prince of Wales, afterwards George II. The Suffolk papers were admirably edited by Mr.
Croker. Thackeray, in his "Lecture on George the Second," says of his work: "Even Croker, who edited her letters, loves her, and has that regard for her with which her sweet graciousness seems to have inspired almost all men, and some women, who came near her." The following letter of Croker shows the spirit in which he began to edit the Countess"s letters: