Letters to His Son on the Art of Becoming a Man of the World and a Gentleman, 1756-58 , livre ebook

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pubOne.info present you this new edition. MY DEAR FRIEND: I received yours yesterday morning together with the Prussian, papers, which I have read with great attention. If courts could blush, those of Vienna and Dresden ought, to have their falsehoods so publicly, and so undeniably exposed. The former will, I presume, next year, employ an hundred thousand men, to answer the accusation; and if the Empress of the two Russias is pleased to argue in the same cogent manner, their logic will be too strong for all the King of Prussia's rhetoric. I well remember the treaty so often referred to in those pieces, between the two Empresses, in 1746. The King was strongly pressed by the Empress Queen to accede to it. Wassenaer communicated it to me for that purpose. I asked him if there were no secret articles; suspecting that there were some, because the ostensible treaty was a mere harmless, defensive one. He assured me that there were none. Upon which I told him, that as the King had already defensive alliances with those two Empresses, I did not see of what use his accession to this treaty, if merely a defensive one, could be, either to himself or the other contracting parties; but that, however, if it was only desired as an indication of the King's good will, I would give him an act by which his Majesty should accede to that treaty, as far, but no further, as at present he stood engaged to the respective Empresses by the defensive alliances subsisting with each

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Publié par	Pub One Info
Date de parution	06 novembre 2010
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9782819947820
Langue	English

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LETTER CCIII
BATH, November 15, 1756
MY DEAR FRIEND: I received yours yesterday morningtogether with the Prussian, papers, which I have read with greatattention. If courts could blush, those of Vienna and Dresdenought, to have their falsehoods so publicly, and so undeniablyexposed. The former will, I presume, next year, employ an hundredthousand men, to answer the accusation; and if the Empress of thetwo Russias is pleased to argue in the same cogent manner, theirlogic will be too strong for all the King of Prussia's rhetoric. Iwell remember the treaty so often referred to in those pieces,between the two Empresses, in 1746. The King was strongly pressedby the Empress Queen to accede to it. Wassenaer communicated it tome for that purpose. I asked him if there were no secret articles;suspecting that there were some, because the ostensible treaty wasa mere harmless, defensive one. He assured me that there were none.Upon which I told him, that as the King had already defensivealliances with those two Empresses, I did not see of what use hisaccession to this treaty, if merely a defensive one, could be,either to himself or the other contracting parties; but that,however, if it was only desired as an indication of the King's goodwill, I would give him an act by which his Majesty should accede tothat treaty, as far, but no further, as at present he stood engagedto the respective Empresses by the defensive alliances subsistingwith each. This offer by no means satisfied him; which was a plainproof of the secret articles now brought to light, and into whichthe court of Vienna hoped to draw us. I told Wassenaer so, andafter that I heard no more of his invitation.
I am still bewildered in the changes at Court, ofwhich I find that all the particulars are not yet fixed. Who wouldhave thought, a year ago, that Mr. Fox, the Chancellor, and theDuke of Newcastle, should all three have quitted together? Nor canI yet account for it; explain it to me if you can. I cannot see,neither, what the Duke of Devonshire and Fox, whom I looked upon asintimately united, can have quarreled about, with relation to theTreasury; inform me, if you know. I never doubted of the prudentversatility of your Vicar of Bray: But I am surprised at O'BrienWindham's going out of the Treasury, where I should have thoughtthat the interest of his brother-in-law, George Grenville, wouldhave kept him.
Having found myself rather worse, these two or threelast days, I was obliged to take some ipecacuanha last night; and,what you will think odd, for a vomit, I brought it all up again inabout an hour, to my great satisfaction and emolument, which isseldom the case in restitutions.
You did well to go to the Duke of Newcastle, who, Isuppose, will have no more levees; however, go from time to time,and leave your name at his door, for you have obligations to him.Adieu.
LETTER CCIV
BATH, December 14, 1756.
MY DEAR FRIEND: What can I say to you from thisplace, where EVERY DAY IS STILL BUT AS THE FIRST, though by nomeans so agreeably passed, as Anthony describes his to have been?The same nothings succeed one another every day with me, as,regularly and uniformly as the hours of the day. You will thinkthis tiresome, and so it is; but how can I help it? Cut off fromsociety by my deafness, and dispirited by my ill health, wherecould I be better? You will say, perhaps, where could you be worse?Only in prison, or the galleys, I confess. However, I see a periodto my stay here; and I have fixed, in my own mind, a time for myreturn to London; not invited there by either politics orpleasures, to both which I am equally a stranger, but merely to beat home; which, after all, according to the vulgar saying, is home,be it ever so homely.
The political settlement, as it is called, is, Ifind, by no means settled; Mr. Fox, who took this place in his wayto his brother's, where he intended to pass a month, was stoppedshort by an express, which he received from his connection, to cometo town immediately; and accordingly he set out from hence veryearly, two days ago. I had a very long conversation with him, inwhich he was, seemingly at least, very frank and communicative; butstill I own myself in the dark. In those matters, as in mostothers, half knowledge (and mine is at most that) is more apt tolead one into error, than to carry one to truth; and our own vanitycontributes to the seduction. Our conjectures pass upon us fortruths; we will know what we do not know, and often, what we cannotknow: so mortifying to our pride is the bare suspicion ofignorance!
It has been reported here that the Empress of Russiais dying; this would be a fortunate event indeed for the King ofPrussia, and necessarily produce the neutrality and inaction, atleast, of that great power; which would be a heavy weight taken outof the opposite scale to the King of Prussia. The 'Augustissima'must, in that case, do all herself; for though France will, nodoubt, promise largely, it will, I believe, perform but scantily;as it desires no better than that the different powers of Germanyshould tear one another to pieces.
I hope you frequent all the courts: a man shouldmake his face familiar there. Long habit produces favor insensibly;and acquaintance often does more than friendship, in that climatewhere 'les beaux sentimens' are not the natural growth.
Adieu! I am going to the ball, to save my eyes fromreading, and my mind from thinking.
LETTERS TO HIS SON
LETTER CCV
BATH, January 12, 1757
MY DEAR FRIEND: I waited quietly, to see when eitheryour leisure, or your inclinations, would al low you to honor mewith a letter; and at last I received one this morning, very near afortnight after you went from hence. You will say, that you had nonews to write me; and that probably may be true; but, without news,one has always something to say to those with whom one desires tohave anything to do.
Your observation is very just with regard to theKing of Prussia, whom the most august House of Austria would mostunquestionably have poisoned a century or two ago. But now that'terras Astraea reliquit', kings and princes die of natural deaths;even war is pusillanimously carried on in this degenerate age;quarter is given; towns are taken, and the people spared: even in astorm, a woman can hardly hope for the benefit of a rape. Whereas(such was the humanity of former days) prisoners were killed bythousands in cold blood, and the generous victors spared neitherman, woman, nor child. Heroic actions of this kind were performedat the taking of Magdebourg. The King of Prussia is certainly nowin a situation that must soon decide his fate, and make him Caesaror nothing. Notwithstanding the march of the Russians, his greatdanger, in my mind, lies westward. I have no great notions ofApraxin's abilities, and I believe many a Prussian colonel wouldout-general him. But Brown, Piccolomini, Lucchese, and many otherveteran officers in the Austrian troops, are respectableenemies.
Mr. Pitt seems to me to have almost as many enemiesto encounter as his Prussian Majesty. The late Ministry, and theDuke's party, will, I presume, unite against him and his Toryfriends; and then quarrel among themselves again. His best, if nothis only chance of supporting himself would be, if he had creditenough in the city, to hinder the advancing of the money to anyadministration but his own; and I have met with some people herewho think that he has.
I have put off my journey from hence for a week, butno longer. I find I still gain some strength and some flesh here,and therefore I will not cut while the run is for me.
By a letter which I received this morning from LadyAllen, I observe that you are extremely well with her; and it iswell for you to be so, for she is an excellent and warm puff.
'A propos' (an expression which is commonly used tointroduce whatever is unrelative to it) you should apply to some ofLord Holderness's people, for the perusal of Mr. Cope's letters. Itwould not be refused you; and the sooner you have them the better.I do not mean them as models for your manner of writing, but asoutlines of the matter you are to write upon.
If you have not read Hume's “Essays” read them; theyare four very small volumes; I have just finished, and am extremelypleased with them. He thinks impartially, deep, often new; and, inmy mind, commonly just. Adieu.
LETTER CCVI
BLACKHEATH, September 17, 1757
MY DEAR FRIEND: Lord Holderness has been so kind asto communicate to me all the letters which he has received from youhitherto, dated the 15th, 19th, 23d, and 26th August; and also adraught of that which he wrote to you the 9th instant. I am verywell pleased with all your letters; and, what is better, I can tellyou that the King is so too; and he said, but three days ago, toMonsieur Munchausen, HE (meaning you) SETS OUT VERY WELL, AND ILIKE HIS LETTERS; PROVIDED THAT, LIKE MOST OF MY ENGLISH MINISTERSABROAD, HE DOES NOT GROW IDLE HEREAFTER. So that here is bothpraise to flatter, and a hint to warn you. What Lord Holdernessrecommends to you, being by the King's order, intimates also adegree of approbation; for the BLACKER INK, AND THE LARGERCHARACTER, show, that his Majesty, whose eyes are grown weaker,intends to read all your letters himself. Therefore, pray do notneglect to get the blackest ink you can; and to make your secretaryenlarge his hand, though 'd'ailleurs' it is a very good one.
Had I been to wish an advantageous situation foryou, and a good debut in it, I could not have wished you eitherbetter than both have hitherto proved. The rest will dependentirely upon yourself; and I own I begin to have much better hopesthan I had; for I know, by my own experience, that the more oneworks, the more willing one is to work. We are all, more or less,'des animaux d'habitude'. I remember very well, that when I was inbusiness, I wrote four or five hours together every day, morewillingly than I should now half an hour; and this is most certain,that when a man ha