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LORD MONTAGU'S PAGE
AN HISTORICAL ROMANCE
BY G.P.R. JAMES.
PHILADELPHIA CHILDS AND PETERSON, 602 ARCH STREET. 1858.
I. WATY
Lord Montagu's Page:
AN HISTORICAL ROMANCE OF THE Seventeenth Century.
BY G. P. R. JAMES,
_Author of_
"RICHELIEU," "DARNLEY," "MARY OF BURGUNDY," "OLD DOMINION," ETC.
PHILADELPHIA: CHILDS & PETERSON, 602 ARCH ST. 1858.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1858, by CHILDS & PETERSON, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
STEREOTYPED BY L. JOHNSON & CO. PHILADELPHIA. PRINTED BY DEACON & PETERSON.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.
[_From Allibone's forthcoming Dictionary of Authors._]
George Payne Rainsford James was born in London about the year 1800, andcommenced his literary career at an early age by anonymous contributionsto the journals and reviews which catered to the literary taste of "adiscerning public." Some of these juvenile effusions fell under thenotice of Washington Irving, and this gentleman, with his usual kindnessof heart, encouraged the young author to venture upon something of amore important character than the fugitive essays which had hithertoemployed his pen. Thus strengthened in his literary proclivity, theyoung aspirant nibbed his "gray-goose quill," commenced author inearnest, and gave to the world in 1822 his first work,--a Life of Edwardthe Black Prince. Mr. James now turned his attention to a field whichhad recently been cultivated with eminent success,--historicalromance,--and completed in 1825 his novel of Richelieu, which, havingreceived the favorable verdict of Sir Walter Scott, made its appearancein 1829. This was followed in the next year by Darnley and De L'Orme.
Richelieu was so fortunate as to secure the favor of the formidableChristopher North of Blackwood; but this invaluable commendation waswithheld from Darnley:--
"Mr. Colburn has lately given us two books of a very different character, Richelieu and Darnley. Richelieu is one of the most spirited, amusing, and interesting romances I ever read; characters well drawn--incidents well managed--story perpetually progressive--catastrophe at once natural and unexpected--moral good, but not goody--and the whole felt, in every chapter, to be the work of a--Gentleman."--_Noctes Ambrosianae, April, 1830; Blackw. Mag., xxvii. 688, q.v._
From this time to the present Mr. James has been no idler in theRepublic of Letters, as the following alphabetical list of his writingsamply proves:--
1. Adra, or the Peruvians; a Poem, 1 vol. 2. Agincourt, 1844, 3 vols. 3.Agnes Sorrel, 1853, 3 vols. 4. Arabella Stuart, 1853, 3 vols. 5. ArrahNeil, 1845, 3 vols. 6. Attila, 1837, 3 vols. 7. Beauchamp, 1848, 3 vols.8. Blanche of Navarre; a Play, 1839, 1 vol. 9. Book of the Passions,1838, 1 vol. 10. Cameralzaman; a Fairy Drama, 1848,1 vol. 11.Castelneau; or, The Ancient Regime, 1841, 3 vols. 12. Castle ofEhrenstein, 1847, 3 vols. 13. Charles Tyrrell, 1839, 2 vols. 14. City ofthe Silent; a Poem, 1 vol. 15. Commissioner; or, De Lunatico Inquirendo,1842, 1 vol. 16. Convict, 1847, 3 vols. 17. Corse de Leon, the Brigand,1841, 3 vols. 18. Dark Scenes of History, 1849, 3 vols. 19. Darnley,1830, 3 vols. 20. Delaware, 3 vols; subsequently published under thetitle of Thirty Years Since, 1848, 1 vol. 21. De L'Orme, 1830, 3 vols.22. Desultory Man, 3 vols. 23. Educational Institutions of Germany, 1vol. 24. Eva St. Clair, and other Tales, 1843, 2 vols. 25. False Heir,1843, 3 vols. 26. Fate, 1851, 3 vols. 27. Fight of the Fiddlers, 1848, 1vol. 28. Forest Days, 1843, 3 vols. 29. Forgery; or, Best Intentions,1848, 3 vols. 30. Gentleman of the Old School, 1839, 3 vols. 31. Gipsy,1835, 3 vols. 32. Gowrie; or, The King's Plot, 1 vol. 33. Heidelberg,1846, 3 vols. 34. Henry Masterton, 1832, 3 vols. 35. Henry Smeaton,1850, 3 vols. 36. Henry of Guise, 1839, 3 vols. 37. History ofCharlemagne, 1832, 1 vol. 38. History of Chivalry, 1 vol. 39. History ofLouis XIV., 1838, 4 vols. 40. History of Richard Coeur de Lion,1841-42, 4 vols. 41. Huguenot, 1838, 3 vols. 42. Jacquerie, 1841, 3vols. 43. John Jones's Tales from English History, for Little JohnJoneses, 1849, 2 vols. 44. John Marston Hall, 1834, 3 vols; subsequentlypublished under the title of Little Ball o' Fire, 1847, 1 vol. 45.King's Highway, 1840, 3 vols. 46. Last of the Fairies, 1847, 1 vol. 47.Life of Edward the Black Prince, 1822, 2 vols. 48. Life of Henry IV. ofFrance, 1847, 3 vols. 49. Life of Vicissitudes, 1 vol. 50. Man-at-Arms,1840, 3 vols. 51. Margaret Graham, 1847, 2 vols. 52. Mary of Burgundy,1833, 3 vols. 53. Memoirs of Great Commanders, 1832, 3 vols. 54. MorleyErnstein, 1842, 3 vols. 55. My Aunt Pontypool, 3 vols. 56. Old Dominion;or, The Southampton Massacre, 1856, 3 vols. 57. Old Oak Chest, 3 vols.58. One in a Thousand, 1835, 3 vols. 59. Pequinillo, 1852, 3 vols. 60.Philip Augustus, 1831, 3 vols. 61. Prince Life, 1855, 1 vol. 62.Revenge, 1851, 3 vols; so styled by the bookseller, without the author'sconsent. It was originally published in papers under a different name.63. Richelieu, 1829, 3 vols. 64. Robber, 1838, 3 vols. 65. RoseD'Albret, 1840, 3 vols. 66. Russell, 1847, 3 vols. 67. Sir TheodoreBroughton, 1847, 3 vols. 68. Smuggler, 1845, 3 vols. 69. Stepmother,1846, 3 vols. 70. Story without a Name, 1852, 1 vol. 71. String ofPearls, 1849, 2 vols. 72. Ticonderoga; or, The Black Eagle, 1854, 3vols. 73. Whim and its Consequences, 1847, 3 vols. 74. Woodman, 1847, 3vols.
It will be seen that the above list presents a total of 188vols.,--viz.: 51 works in 3 vols. each, 2 in 4 vols. each, 6 in 2 vols.each, and 15 in 1 vol. each. Almost all of these volumes are of thepost-octavo size. Mr. James is also the editor of the Vernon Letters,illustrative of the times of William III., 1841, 3 vols. 8vo; and of Wm.Henry Ireland's historical romance of David Rizzio, 1849, 3 vols. p.8vo; and was associated with Dr. E. E. Crowe in the Lives of the MostEminent Foreign Statesmen, 1832-38, 5 vols. p. 8vo., (4 vols. were Mr.James's, and 1 vol. Dr. Crowe's,) and with Mr. Maunsell B. Field in thecomposition of Adrian, or The Clouds of the Mind, 1852, 2 vols. p. 8vo.
To this list may be added Norfolk and Hereford, (in a collectionentitled Seven Tales by Seven Authors,) and enough articles in variousperiodicals to fill eight or ten volumes. Perhaps we should not omit tonotice that a work entitled A Brief History of the United StatesBoundary Question, drawn up from official papers, published in London,1839, 8vo., and ascribed to Mr. James, is not his production; nor had heany share (further than writing a preface, or something of that kind) inanother work often credited to him,--Memoirs of Celebrated Women, 1837,2 vols. p. 8vo. During the reign of William IV. the author received theappointment of historiographer of Great Britain; but this post wasresigned by him many years since.
There have been new editions of many of Mr. James's novels, and some orall of them have appeared in Bentley's Series of Standard Novels. Therehas been also a Parlor-Library Edition. A collective edition waspublished by Smith, Elder & Co., commencing in June, 1844, and continuedby Parry, and by Simpkin, Marshall & Co. In America they have been verypopular and published in large quantities.
About 1850 Mr. James, with his family, removed permanently to the UnitedStates, and resided for two or three years in Berkshire county,Massachusetts. Since 1852 he has been British Consul at Richmond,Virginia. The space which we have occupied by a recital of the titlesonly of Mr. James's volumes necessarily restricts the quotation ofcriticisms upon the merits or demerits of their contents. It has fallento the lot of few authors to be so much read, and at the same time somuch abused, as the owner of the fertile pen which claims the long listof novels commencing with Richelieu in 1829 and extending to the OldDominion in 1856.
That there should be a family likeness in thisnumerous race--where so many, too, are nearly of an age--can be nomatter of surprise. The mind, like any other artisan, can only constructfrom materials which lie within its range; and, when no time is allowedfor the accumulation and renewal of these, it is vain to hope thatvariety of architecture will conceal the identity of substance. Yet,after all, the champion of this popular author will probably argue thatthis objection against the writings of Mr. James is greatly overstatedand extravagantly overestimated. The novelist can draw only from theexperience of human life in its different phases, and these admit not ofsuch variety as the inordinate appetite of the modern Atheniansunreasonably demands. A new series of catastrophes and perplexities, ofmortifications and triumphs, of joys and sorrows, cannot be evoked forthe benefit of the reader of each new novel. Again, Mr. James's admirerinsists that this charge of sameness so often urged against ournovelist's writings is perhaps overstated. Where one author, as isfrequently the case, gains the reputation of versatility of talent bywriting one or two volumes, it is not to be believed that Mr. Jamesexhibits less in one or two hundred. He who composes a library is not tobe judged by the same standard as he who writes but one book. And evenif the charge of "sameness" be admitted to its full extent, yet manywill cordially concur with the grateful and graceful acknowledgment ofone of the most eminent of modern critics:--
"I hail every fresh publication of James, though I half know what he is going to do with his lady, and his gentleman, and his landscape, and his mystery, and his orthodoxy, and his criminal trial. But I am charmed with the new amusement which he brings out of old materials. I look on him as I look on a musician famous for 'variations.' I am grateful for his vein of cheerfulness, for his singularly varied and vivid landscapes, for his power of painting women at once ladylike and loving, (a rare talent,) for making lovers to match, at once beautiful and well-bred, and for the solace which all this has afforded me, sometimes over and over again, in illness and in convalescence, when I required interest without violence, and entertainment at once animated and mild."--LEIGH HUNT.
Two of the severest criticisms to which Mr. James's novels have beensubjected are, the one in the London Athenaeum for April 11, 1846, andthe one in the North American Review, by E. P. Whipple, for April,1844.
We have spoken of Mr. James's champions and admirers; and such are by nomeans fabulous personages, notwithstanding the severe censures to whichwe have alluded. A brief quotation from one of these eulogies will beanother evidence added to the many in this volume of a widedissimilarity in critical opinions:--
"His pen is prolific enough to keep the imagination constantly nourished; and of him, more than of any modern writer, it may be said, that he has improved his style by the mere dint of constant and abundant practice. For, although so agreeable a novelist, it must not be forgotten that he stands infinitely higher as an historian.... The most fantastic and beautiful coruscations which the skies can exhibit to the eyes of mankind dart as if in play from the huge volumes that roll out from the crater of the volcano.... The recreation of an enlarged intellect is ever more valuable than the highest efforts of a confined one. Hence we find in the works before us, [Corse de Leon, the Ancient Regime, and The Jacquerie,] lightly as they have been thrown off, the traces of study,--the footsteps of a powerful and vigorous understanding."--_Dublin University Magazine_, March, 1842.
The Edinburgh Review concludes some comments upon our author with theremark,
"Our readers will perceive from these general observations that we estimate Mr. James's abilities, as a romance-writer, highly: his works are lively and interesting, and animated by a spirit of sound and healthy morality in feeling, and of natural delineation in character, which, we think, will secure for them a calm popularity which will last beyond the present day."
We have before us more than thirty (to be exact, just thirty-two)commendatory notices of our author, but brief extracts from two of theseis all for which we can find space.
"He belongs to the historical school of fiction, and, like the masters of the art, takes up a real person or a real event, and, pursuing the course of history, makes out the intentions of nature by adding circumstances and heightening character, till, like a statue in the hands of the sculptor, the whole is in fair proportion, truth of sentiment, and character. For this he has high qualities,--an excellent taste, extensive knowledge of history, a right feeling of the chivalrous, and a heroic and a ready eye for the picturesque: his proprieties are admirable; his sympathy with whatever is high-souled and noble is deep and impressive. His best works are Richelieu and Mary of Burgundy."--ALLAN CUNNINGHAM: _Biographical and Critical History of the Literature of the Last Fifty Years, 1833._
The critic next to be quoted, whilst coinciding in the objectionsprominently urged against Mr. James as an author,--repetition,tediousness, and deficiency of terseness,--yet urges on his behalf that
"There is a constant appeal in his brilliant pages not only to the pure and generous, but to the elevated and noble sentiments; he is imbued with the very soul of chivalry; and all his stories turn on the final triumph of those who are influenced by such feelings over such as are swayed by selfish or base desires. He possesses great pictorial powers, and a remarkable facility of turning his graphic pen at will to the delineation of the most distant and opposite scenes, manners, and social customs.... Not a word or a thought which can give pain to the purest heart ever escapes from his pen; and the mind wearied with the cares and grieved at the selfishness of the world reverts with pleasure to his varied compositions, which carry it back, as it were, to former days, and portray, perhaps in too brilliant colors, the ideas and manners of the olden time."--SIR ARCHIBALD ALISON: _Hist. of Europe,_ 1815-52, chap, v., 1853. See also _Alison's Essays,_ 1850, iii. 545-546; _North British Review,_ Feb. 1857, art on Modern Style.
Lord Montagu's Page: An Historical Romance Page 1
