gardens, from his own estate, brought by his own horses, which also served for his carriage.

The proximity of Gregories to the metropolis rendered it the easy resort of Burke's distinguished friends: here also he received with the greatest hospitality and attention, the numerous foreigners who desired his acquaintance. It was his delight to accompany these strangers to the showplaces in the beautiful neighbourhood; and especially to Windsor, which he had great pride in showing as a residence worthy of British Kings. When the French Revolution drove a large portion of the nobility and clergy of France to England, Burke's house received many of them, during whatever time they chose to remain; and for others he procured lodgings in the town of Beaconsfield, requesting them to use his table as their own.

How the Gregories purchase-money was procured has led to many surmises. "This," says Mr. Sergeant Burke, " arose, not from any doubt of his honour or conduct in the transaction, but from the complete secrecy he always adopted in any matter relating to himself personally." A part of the money was bequeathed to him by his father and brother, and some portion of it is believed to have come from William Burke. "The remainder," says Prior, was to have been raised upon mortgage; when the Marquess of Rockingham, hearing of his intention, voluntarily offered the loan of the amount required to complete the purchase. It has been said that he even tendered a larger sum, which the delicacy of his friend declined to receive, accepting only what was absolutely necessary; and this upon condition of being repaid the first opportunity. Nevertheless, the money was never reclaimed, nor ever really intended to be so by the Marquess; a generous act, no doubt, on his part: but he was under great obligations to Burke. Politically, Burke was the mainstay of his party; in domestic matters he had served him by advice and assistance in the management of his estates. Mr. Lee, a barrister of eminence, at one time Solicitor-General, the legal adviser of Lord Rockingham, and the trustee of his will, has con

firmed this account of the transaction by the following statement. When the Marquis was near his death, Mr. Lee was summoned to the sick-room. "My dear Lee,” said Lord Rockingham, "there is a piece of business I wish you to execute immediately, as there is no time to be lost. Pecuniary transactions have passed between me and my admirable friend, Edmund Burke. To the best of my recollection, I have added the fullest discharge to bonds and other documents; but, lest my memory should have failed me, I, a dying man, but in the full use of my reason, desire you, as a professional man, will make out a codicil of my will, cancelling every paper that may be found containing any acknowledg ment of a debt due to me from Edmund Burke." This was accordingly done; the termination of the affair is told by a delicate hint from the noble successor of the Marquis, written immediately after his death, July 3, 1782:

"I must recollect myself. It was my duty to have informed you that certain bonds are to be cancelled by a codicil of his will. He felt merit as he ought to have done, and he never did an action in his life more acceptable to your sincere friend, "FITZWILLIAM.”

Burke spent the next recess at Gregories, superintending the alterations in his house, and attending to his farm, being often in the fields in the morning as soon as his labourers. This he described as a luxury after the noise, heat, and drudgery of the House of Commons.

Two years later, Goldsmith writes to Mr. Langton: "Burke is a farmer, en attendant a better place."

In a letter to his cousin, about this time, Burke writes: "We have had the most stormy and rainy season that has ever been known. I have got my wheat into the ground better than some others; that is, about four-and-twenty acres." Of prices: "Peas very high, twenty-seven to thirty shillings the quarter; so that our bacon will come dear to us this season. I have put up four hogs. I killed one yesterday,

Of the other

which weighed little more than twelve score. three, one is near fifteen score, the others about twelve. I shall put up seven more for pickled pork: these weigh, when fit to kill, about seven score a-piece. To what weight do you generally feed bacon-hogs in your part of the country? Here they generally fat them to about fourteen or fifteen score. In Berkshire, near us, they carry them to twenty-five and thirty

score."

Even at Beaconsfield, he could not keep out of the world's eye. He complains jocularly, in 1769, of a news-printer, who, out of the marriage of " an old man that milks my cows, and the old dairymaid, has made a flaming paragraph;" and dreading some ridicule from the account of this simple affair, sent him a message to beg against any notice of his family affairs in future in the newspapers.

To Gregories came, of course, Burke's friend, Dr. Johnson; when he showed him the fine house and grounds, Johnson coolly said: "Non equidem invideo; miror magis." Boswell was not entirely without suspicion that Johnson may have felt a little momentary envy. "I attempted," continues Boswell, in a newspaper, "to comment on the above passage, in the manner of Warburton, who must be allowed to have shown uncommon ingenuity in giving to any author's text whatever meaning he chose it should carry.

"No saying of Johnson's has been more misunderstood than his applying to Mr. Burke, when he first saw him at his fine place at Beaconsfield, Non equidem invideo; miror magis. These two celebrated men had been friends for many years before Mr. Burke entered on his parliamentary career. They were both writers, both members of the Literary Club; when, therefore, Dr. Johnson saw Mr. Burke in a situation so much more splendid than that to which he himself had attained, he did not mean to express that he thought it a disproportionate prosperity; but while he, as a philosopher, asserted an exemption from envy, non equidem invideo, he went on in the words of the poet, miror magis; thereby signifying that he was admiring what he was glad to see; or

perhaps, that considering the general lot of men of superior abilities, he wondered at Fortune, who is represented as blind, should, in this instance, have been so just."

BURKE AND GARRICK.

Garrick and his wife were frequently invited to Gregories, at Beaconsfield. "You first," Burke writes, "sate yourself with wit, jollity, and luxury, and afterwards retire hither to repose your person and your understanding on early hours, boiled mutton, and a little clabber milk." In June, 1769, some pressing necessity compelled Burke to solicit a loan from his friend." My dear Garrick, I make no apology for asking a favour from you, because you need make none in refusing it. I wish then that you would let me have a thousand pounds upon my bond until this time twelvemonth. I shall at that time, possibly before, be able to discharge it, and will not fail to do so. I am, with great truth and affection, dear Garrick, most sincerely yours,

"EDM. BURKE.”

Whether the money was lent does not appear. The actor's usual address in reply was " Carissimo mio Edmundo." Burke had been obliged to refuse a public request of his shortly before, from its being against the wish of his constituents; but he soon afterwards sent him, as a tacit apology for the refusal, the following pleasant note, the original of which is in Mr. Prior's possession:

"(August, 1769.)

"Dear Garrick,-I send you a Rosa sera, a late turtle -an entertainment at least as good for the palate as the other for the nose. Your true epicureans are of opinion, you know, that it contains in itself all kinds of flesh, fish, and fowl. It is therefore a dish fit for one who can represent all the solidity of flesh, the volatility of fowl, and the oddity of fish. As this entertainment can be found no longer anywhere but at your table, or at those tables to which you give con

viviality and cheerfulness, let the type and the shadow of the master grace his board. A little pepper he can add himself. The wine likewise he will supply: I do not know whether he still retains any friend who can finish the dressing of his turtle by a gentle squeeze of the lemon. Our best regards to Madam.

"Ever, dear Garrick, most faithfully yours,
"EDM. BURke.

"Westminster, Tuesday. One day before

the meeting of the

the finishing stroke."

that gives

Mr. and Mrs. Burke were constant visitors of Mr. and Mrs. Garrick, at their well-appointed house in the centre of the Adelphi-terrace. In the spring of 1777, Garrick chanced to be present in the gallery of the House of Commons during a debate, when he was seen by a Shropshire member, who immediately moved to clear the House. Garrick, however, contrived to conceal himself, and avoided the consequence of the illiberal motion: but next evening, the same member addressed the House on the impropriety of suffering players to hear their debates. Mr. Burke rose, and appealed to the House, whether it could possibly be consistent with the rules of decency and liberality to exclude from the hearing of their debates a man to whom they were all obliged-one who was the great master of eloquence-in whose school they had all imbibed the art of speaking, and been taught the elements of rhetoric. For his part he owned that he had been greatly indebted to his instructions. Burke said much more in commendation of Garrick, and was warmly seconded by Mr. Fox, and Mr. Thomas Townshend.

Within two years after this, on Jan. 20, 1779, Garrick died; and as Johnson said, "his death eclipsed the gaiety of nations:" but Walpole says: "Garrick is dead; not a public loss; for he had quitted the stage." His remains lay in state at his house in the Adelphi, previous to their interment in Westminster Abbey, with great pomp: Walpole says, there were not at Lord Chatham's funeral half the noble coaches