MONUMENT OF THOMAS DE VERE, EIGHTH EARL OF OXFORD, AT COLNE PRIORY: DIED SEPTEMBER 18, 1370. (See page 3.) THE LIFE OF ETTY. 41 Book done in a vigorous sympathetic vivacious spirit, and promising me the delineation, actual and intelligible, of a man extremely well worth knowing. Beyond doubt I shall finish steadily what I have begun,—and small thanks to me in this instance. Etty's name was, naturally, familiar to me; but his physiognomy of body and mind, and his great merits as painter and man were a mere rumour to me hitherto. I believe I may congratulate you on accomplishing a good work, of its kind, among your fellow creatures; and it is a real favour to me that I have the opportunity of enjoying myself over it, and instructing myself by it. "I wish you all good speed in your enterprises; and solicit a continuance of your goodwill towards me. "I am, with many thanks and regards, Yours sincerely, T. CARLYLE." The letter led to acquaintance with Thomas Carlyle : 30th May, 1855, a note came from 5, Cheyne Row:"DEAR SIR: If you call here any afternoon about halfpast three, you will commonly find me disengaged, and ready for a little speech with a friend." Six months later, Alexander Gilchrist called, and describes his second visit, in a letter to William Haines :[November 29th, 1855.] "At half-past seven on Friday evening last, an omnibus set me down in Great Cheyne Row. Shown up into the large, comfortable drawing-room, I found Mrs. Carlyle alone (Carlyle downstairs fetching a short allowance of sleep over night), and was more favourably impressed by her than I had expected. After exchanging a few words, as she was making the tea, Carlyle appeared in his long brown indoors coat, and shook me cordially by the hand; was from that moment to the last very kind. I have brought you here on false pretences.' Ruskin was coming the following night; Mrs. Carlyle was engaged out to a party. You must not suppose,' she had before said, 'the wife of a philosopher sits at home over the fire in white satin shoes.' "Carlyle was very pleased with all I had brought him; was like a wild man,' said Mrs. Carlyle, the night before, over the pamphlets. These were nearly all new to him, and nearly all more or less worth seeing." [Alexander Gilchrist was helping Thomas Carlyle to find prints of costumes and portraits: "Frederick's Military Instructions" was among the pamphlets.] "After tea, Mrs. Carlyle left. And for the rest of the evening (till twelve) I sat with him alone, he pouring himself out as is his wont; sitting the latter part of the time on a footstool by the fire, smoking, and looking in his old long brown kind of great-coat, as he was bewailing the pass men and things had come to, and as he thought of it hardly caring to live,-looking like a veritable Prophet, mourning in sackcloth and ashes the sins of the world. "Carlyle gave me a new and heroic view of Marlborough and his Duchess, among other things. Which led to Macaulay and his [C.] blackening of M:'s face, and to a long imaginary address to Macaulay for flying at great men as the canaille of themselves are ever Come out of that, I tell you, you big CHAT BY THE FIRESIDE. 43 blockhead-big as you look, you as you look, you low miserable creature, you." [At another time Carlyle, after reading in Macaulay's History of England," laid down the book and said, "Flow on, thou shining river."!] "Carlyle took me up into his study, showed his daguerreotype from Cooper's 'Cromwell,' for which he has a great fondness; his screen covered with small prints relative to Frederick; a (framed) Albert Durer, that had once belonged to the Elector of Saxony; who saved Luther. Gave me also a plaster mask of Dante's face, which he has had many years. "Carlyle spoke affectionately of Hollar-despondingly of literature. 'If he were on his death-bed' (Carlyle spoke this with intense sincerity), the only thing he had done would give him any pleasure was the 'Cromwell; ' some little pleasure to have done that to have dispersed the lies, and shown him as some day all men would see him to have been!' 'One might as well go on the stage and be a mountebank as take to literature-with other splenetic words,' as on my interposing he confessed them to be. Carlyle showed himself truly lovable, as well as grand, throughout." · From the time of this visit, Gilchrist was in constant correspondence with Carlyle over the "Frederick :" letters wherein the historian is seen at work upon his last great book. For full enjoyment, the communications presuppose close knowledge of the "History of Frederick the Great." As eight of Carlyle's letters to Gilchrist follow one another closely in date, we give them in sequence :— |