only the echo of the court, my lord."One day, in the Irish house of commons, the son of Edmund Burke having appeared in the body of the house to present a petition, was ordered to be taken into custody, when he immediately took to flight, and escaped: on a member observing, no such transaction had ever occurred before, "Oh! yes,' said Lord Norbury; "I found the very same incident, some few days back, in the cross-readings of the columns of a newspaper: "Yesterday, a petition was presented to the house of commonsit fortunately missed fire, and the villain ran oft"- -Some time after his appearance at a private masquerade, where he had assumed the character of Hawthorn, in Love in a Village, he sat on the bench with the same costume concealed beneath his robes, which, the warmth of

the day compelling him to throw partially off, he unconsciously discovered the dress of Hawthorn, which very much disconcerted him, especially as at the moment he was in the act of passing sentence of death upon several of the rebels. On the registrar of the court complaining to him that witnesses were in the habit of stealing the Testament after they had been sworn upon it, he replied, "Never mind; if the rascals read the book, it will do them more good than the petty larceny may do them mischief; however, if they are not afraid of the cord, hang your Gospel in chains, and that, perhaps, by reminding the fellows of the fate of their fathers and grandfathers, may make them behave themselves;" which was accordingly done, and the Testament remained afterwards secure.

WILLIAM SCOTT, elder brother of Lord Eldon, and son of a coal-fitter, at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, was born on the 28th of October, 1745. He was educated at the grammar-school of his native place under the Reverend Hugh Moises, and removed, at the usual age, to University College, Oxford; where he, in 1766, obtained a fellowship. In 1767, he graduated M. A., and, in 1772, B. C. L.; and, besides filling the office of tutor of Corpus Christi College, was, in 1773, elected Camden professor of ancient history; in which capacity he evinced so much ability, as to obtain the praise of the fastidious Gibbon, who was, at the time, attacking the general system of education pursued in the university. In 1779, he attained the degree of doctor of civil law; and coming to London, practised, with success, as an advocate, in the courts at Doctor's Commons.

In 1780, he became a candidate for the representation of the University of Oxford, but withdrew from the contest before the election was concluded. In London, he became the associate of Johnson, Burke, and Reynolds; but could never induce his brother, afterwards Lord Eldon, to court the acquain

tance of those illustrious characters. In 1787, he was appointed king's advocategeneral; on which occasion he was knighted, and he subsequently became judge of the Consistory court of London; vicar-general of the province of Canterbury; master of the faculties; chancellor of the diocese of London; and a lord of trade and plantations. In 1798, he became judge of the high court of admiralty, and was soon after sworn in a member of the privy-council. In 1802, he was elected member of parliament for Oxford; which he continued to represent in the house of commons till 1821, when he was raised, with the title of Baron Stowell, to the dignity of the peerage.

He retired, in 1828,

from his judicial station, which he had filled with considerable ability, and with a reputation for administering the laws with strict impartiality.

Lord Stowell was well versed in his profession, as well as in general scholarship. In parliament, he was not remarkable for his oratory; but he possessed a high character for talent, and was the intimate friend of the brightest literary characters of the period. He shone conspicuously as a judge of the Consistorial court, where the nature of

his office required a deep knowledge of the human heart, for which he was particularly eminent. In parliament, he devoted his energies to what he considered likely to tend to the improvement of society, and vigorously opposed all such measures as might be productive of demoralization. In politics, he never evinced much party spirit, but he professes Tory principles, which he has always maintained with consistency. In private he is much esteemed

for his urbanity of manner, and for the total absence of pride or haughtiness. It is related of him, that, at the age of eighty, he was seen looking on in the street, with great glee, at the tricks of Punch and Judy.

He has been twice married, and has had several children: his second wife died in 1817, and had been the Marchioness of Sligo. His daughter, Mrs. Townshend, was married, in 1823, to Viscount Sidmouth.

FRANCIS, son of James Buller, Esq. member of parliament for Cornwall, was born there in 1745, and educated at a private school in the west of England; whence he came to London, and becoming a student of the Inner Temple, devoted himself, with great zeal, to the study of the law. In 1772, he commenced practice as a barrister, in the common law courts, where his business soon became considerable; and his reputation was increased by his publication of a work on the law relative to trials at nisi prius. On the 24th of March, 1777, he became a king's counsel; and, on the 27th of the same month, was appointed second judge of the Chester circuit. He was soon after, on the recommendation of Lord Mansfield, elevated to a judgeship of the King's Bench; and, in 1789, received the rank of a baronet. Being afflicted with gout, and finding the duties of his new office too fatiguing, he was removed to the Common Pleas, in June, 1794; but still labouring under illhealth, he was about to resign his office altogether, when he died, of an apoplectic fit, on the 6th of June, 1800.

Sir Francis Buller was not popular

as a judge, on account of his leaning to the side of power and prerogative. On the trial of the Dean of St. Asaph, for libel, he endeavoured to prevent the verdict of the jury from being recorded, as they had found the defendant guilty of publishing only. His design, was, however, frustrated by the resolute zeal of Mr. Erskine, who would not allow himself to be deterred by the judge from the full performance of his duty. He was often satirized by Peter Pindar, and is said to have been the "very learned and little judge," to whom he addressed the lines ending,

There's no such man!' the world exclaims,-'tis true, But such a monster ev'ry day we view.

He was a sound lawyer; and such was his perception, that he often perceived, at a glance, the drift of an argument, which sometimes made him too hasty in his conclusions. Lord Mansfield had a very high opinion of his abilities, and, it is said, desired he should have been his successor. He married in early life, and had two sons and two daughters.

JOHN FREEMAN MITFORD, Baron Redesdale, was born in Hampshire, on the 18th of August, 1748, and

received his early education at Winchester School, whence he removed to New College, Oxford. He subsequently

became a student of the Temple, and was called to the bar, where he soon became eminent as a chancery pleader. His reputation was increased by a work, which has passed through several editions, On the Pleadings in Suits in the Court of Chancery, by English Bill; and, in a short time, he became one of the principal equity advocates. He became a Welsh judge in 1790; and, in 1793, was knighted, and appointed solicitor-general; in which character, on the memorable trial of Mr. Hardy, for high treason, his opening speech was characterised by acuteness, candour, and feeling, and he is said to have shed tears at its conclusion.

Since 1788, he had sat in parliament as member for Beeralston; and, in 1799, succeeded Sir John Scott as attorney-general. He afterwards was returned to the house of commons as representative of East Looe; and, in 1801, was chosen speaker. He filled his post but for a few months, being raised to the peerage, in 1802, by the title of Baron Redesdale, of Redesdale, Northumberland, upon his being appointed lord-chancellor of Ireland. He was displaced by the coalition administration, in 1806; and, in taking leave of the Irish bar, on the 5th of March,

said, "that he hoped to have ended his days in Ireland, but he was not permitted. His consent to depart from England was yielded to the wish of some who now concurred in his removal: this, he owned, he did not expect;" an address which was delivered in a touching manner, and elicited great sympathy.

Lord Redesdale, upon his return to England, soon appeared in his place in the upper house as a determined opponent of the ministry; and Lord Grenville's motion for catholic emancipation soon gave him an opportunity of evincing his hostility. This administration being overthrown, he generally adhered to those that have been since formed; and he originated the bill for the relief of insolvent debtors. He died, on the 16th of January, 1830, at his seat, Batsford Park, near Moreton.

In the house of lords, he was regarded as a high legal authority, and committees of appeal generally heard his opinion with deference. He was somewhat unpopular with the catholic party in Ireland; but gave satisfaction in the discharge of his duties as chancellor. He married, in 1803, Lady Frances Perceval, by whom he had one son and two daughters.

JOHN FITZGIBBON, Earl of Clare, eldest son of John Fitzgibbon, Esq. a barrister of Limerick, and a member of the Irish parliament, was born in 1749, and, so early as the year 1763, became a fellow commoner of Trinity College, Dublin. Throughout his academical career, he was the rival of Grattan, who, at first, took the lead; but Fitzgibbon, during the latter period of their course, bore off every premium from his talented contemporary. Having become a law student of the Temple, he was called to the Irish bar, possessing, in addition to the advantages of his own industry, his father's high reputation, and a tolerable private fortune. In February, 1777, he distinguished himself as counsel for the University of Dublin, against the election of Mr. Richard Hely

Hutchinson, as member for the society, and his return being annulled, Mr. Fitzgibbon was chosen to supply his place in the Irish house of commons. In the senate, he supported the measures of the British cabinet against the popular party, and he was soon after rewarded by ministers, with the attorney-generalship of Ireland. In this capacity he acted with considerable firmness; and, notwithstanding his unpopularity, forced his way, on one occasion, through the mob, accompanied by one or two friends, and broke up a public meeting, by ascending the hustings, and threatening the sheriff, who was chairman, with an ex-officio prosecution, unless he should immediately cause the assembly to disperse. In 1789, he strongly supported the plan of

the English ministers, for extending to Ireland the power of the Prince Regent; and, in June of the same year, he was elevated to the dignity of lord high chancellor of Ireland; being the first native of the country that had ever received that honour. He was, likewise, by the title of Baron Fitzgibbon, promoted to the Irish peerage; and, on the 22nd of June, 1791, he became vice-chancellor of the University of Dublin. Having been, on the 20th of December, 1793, made Viscount Fitzgibbon, he was created Earl of Clare, on the 10th of June, 1795; and on the 24th of September, 1799, he took his rank as an English peer, with the title of Lord Fitzgibbon, of Sudbury, in Devonshire. He died on the 28th of January, 1802, having, in 1787, married a Miss Anne Whalley, sister of the eccentric Mr. Whalley, who won from Lord Fitzgibbon a considerable wager, by performing a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. His lordship had a considerable fortune by his lady, who bore him five children. In his character of chancellor, "Earl Clare," according to Sir Jonah Barrington, "collected facts with a rapid precision, and decided on them with a prompt asperity; depending too much on the strength of his own judgment, and the acuteness of his own intellect, he

hated precedent, and despised the highest judicial authorities, because they were not his own." His talents were, no doubt, great, but his obstinacy and arrogance often led to their misapplication; yet, though his decisions were often blamed for the haste in which they seemed to be delivered, as they were seldom appealed against, they do not seem generally to have deserved the charge of impropriety. His disposition was haughty, his address imperious, and his language arrogant; he had a bold contempt for public opinion, and daringly followed up his principles, regardless of their unpopularity. His conversation was sometimes immoral, and generally devoid of wit, or even humour; but in private life he was esteemed as an active friend, a kind master and an indulgent landlord. showed the possession of many generous qualities, of which his temper and ambition considerably tended to hinder the growth and development. As a politician, he preferred promptitude to discretion; and his hasty projects, however injudiciously formed, were just as rashly executed.

He

In person, he was about the middle size, his countenance expressive, his eye large, dark, and penetrating.

THIS well known advocate and wit, the son of a naval officer, and descendant of the eminent master of the Rolls, of that name, was born in 1750, and completed his education at Christchurch, Oxford, where he graduated M. A. in 1777. Having previously become a student of the Inner Temple, he was, by that society, called to the bar; where he obtained a silk gown, and was appointed a commissioner of lunatics; and, in 1805, was appointed solicitor-general to the Prince of Wales, as Duke of Cornwall. In 1797, he was in the house of commons, where he voted for Mr. Grey's motion for parliamentary reform, assisted in drawing up the articles of impeachment against Viscount Melville, and supported the Fox and Grenville administration. On the

VOL. II.

motion for criminating Lord Melville, when a committee was ballotted for, he expressed his inclination to challenge the array, as "nothing," he observed, "could be more inconsistent with the principles of justice, than that a right honourable gentleman, whose own conduct was to be the subject of investigation, should be allowed to name the persons who were to compose the jury that was to make that investigation."

Like his celebrated Whig ancestor, Sir Joseph Jekyll, observes Wilson, in his Biography of the House of Commons, for 1806, who was said, by one of the great poets of the day,

"Ne'er to have changed his principles, or wig,"

he was always considered a man of great wit, as well as considerable talents;

and he is mentioned as such by Mr. Wilkes, in one of his letters to his daughter. He was the staunch political friend of Fox, Erskine, Sheridan, and all the leading men of the Whig party; and possessed talents, both as a parliamentary debater and advocate, of an original and superior cast.

He distinguished himself as an author, by publishing the letters of Ignatius Sancho, the African, and friend of Sterne and Garrick, to which he prefixed a life of the author; and Facts and Observations relating to the Temple Church. He became also himself the subject of a satirical poem,' entitled, a Political Eclogue, printed in the European Magazine, which was the joint work of some eminent Whigs, to whom he had given offence by some portion of his parliamentary conduct. He married, about 1803, the daughter of Colonel Sloane, M. P., and had issue by his wife, who brought him a large fortune.

The following are a few specimens of his wit, which procured him a high reputation as a punster :-Garrow was once endeavouring to elicit from a reluctant witness, evidence of a tender,

which would have been fatal to the cause of his client's adversary. The witness was a very wary, acute, elderly woman; and there appeared but little hopes of obtaining from her the desired admission. Garrow, however, persisted, until Jekyll handed him a slip of paper, on which the following lines were written:

Garrow, forbear; that tough old jade Will never prove a tender made (maid.) Garrow read the lines, and immediately sat down, laughing immoderately.-The late Lord Ellenborough was said to be a severe judge. Dining once, during an assize, a gentleman requested to know if he should help his lordship to some fowl. "No," said Lord Ellenborough; "I mean to try that beef." "If you do, my lord," said also made the following epigram on Jekyll, "it will be hung beef."-He the word "lien," which Lord Eldon used to pronounce with the i sharp, as lyon; and Sir Athur Pigot with the i soft, as lean :

Sir Arthur, Sir Arthur, pray, what do you mean,
By saying the chancellor's lion is lean?
D'ye think that his kitchen's so bad as all that,
That nothing within it can ever get fat?

was

JOHN PHILPOT CURRAN born of humble parents, at Newmarket, in the county of Cork, on the 24th of July, 1750. His mother, whose maiden name was Philpot, is said to have been a woman of considerable intellect; and, as he himself took pleasure in asserting, was the inspirer of those talents which rendered his future career so brilliant and successful. The first indication he gave of the nature of his abilities was, on the arrival of a puppet-show at his native village, when he supplied the place of punch's prompter, who had been taken ill; and satirized, with much wit and severity, the vices and follies of the neighbourhood. The circumstance which led to his education is thus described by himself: "When a boy, I was one day playing at marbles in the village ball alley, with a light heart and lighter pocket. The gibe and the jest

went gaily round, when suddenly there appeared amongst us a stranger of a very remarkable and cheerful aspect; his intrusion was not the least restraint upon our merry little assemblage; on the contrary, he seemed pleased, and even delighted; he was a benevolent creature, and the days of infancy, (after all, the happiest we shall ever see,) perhaps, rose upon his memory. God bless him! I see his fine form, at the distance of half a century, just as he stood before me in the little ball alley in the days of my childhood. His name was Boyse, he was the rector of Newmarket. To me he took a particular fancy. I was winning, and was full of waggery, thinking every thing that was eccentric, and by no means a miser of my eccentricities; every one was welcome to a share of them; and I had plenty to spare, after having