undergone; and Mr. Stanhope, in seconding the motion, declared that he had come to the House prepossessed in favor of Mr. Hastings, but that nothing less than a miracle could now prevent him from voting for his impeachment. Twenty years after. Mr. Fox and Mr. Windham, two of the severest judges in England, spoke of this speech with undiminished admiration. The former declared it to be the best speech ever made in the House of Commons. The latter said that "the speech deserved all its fame, and was, in spite of some faults of taste, such as were seldom wanting in the literary or in the parliamentary performances of Sheridan, the greatest that had been delivered within the memory of man."3 When the Commons voted to impeach Mr. Hastings, Sheridan was chosen one of the managers, and had assigned to him the charge relating to the Begums of Oude He was thus called upon to reproduce, as far as possible, his splendid oration of the preceding year, in presence of an assembly still more dignified and august, and under circumstances calculated to inflame all his ambition as an orator and a man. The expectation of the public was wrought up to the highest pitch. During the four days on which he spoke, the hall was crowded to suffocation; and such was the eagerness to obtain seats, that fifty guineas were in some instances paid for a single ticket. These circumstances, undoubtedly, operated to the injury of Mr. Sheridan. They aggravated those "faults of taste" which were spoken of by Mr. Windham They led him into many extravagances of language and sentiment; and though ali who heard it agreed in pronouncing it a speech of astonishing power, it must have been far inferior in true eloquence to his great original effort in the House of Com. mous. His success in these two speeches was celebrated by Byron in the following iines, which are, however, much more applicable to Burke than to Sheridan : When the loud cry of trampled Hindostan His was the thunder-his the avenging rod— The wrath-the delegated voice of God, Which shook the nations through his lips, and blazed, Till vanquished senates trembled as they praised. Contrary to what might have been expected, Mr. Sheridan never attempted, in after life, that lofty strain of eloquence which gained him such rapturous applause on this occasion. "Good sense and wit were the great weapons of his oratory--shrewdness in detecting the weak points of an adversary, and infinite powers of raillery in exposing them." This is exactly the kind of speaking which has always been 'It was natural, in respect to such a speech, that some erroneous or exaggerated statements should have been given to the public. There is an anecdote related by Bissett, in his Reign of George III., which must be regarded in this light. Bissett says, "The late Mr. Logan, well known for his literary efforts, and author of a masterly defense of Mr. Hastings, went that day to the House, prepossessed for the accused and against the accuser. At the expiration of the first hour, he said to a friend, 'All this is declamatory assertion without proof;' when the second was finished, 'This is a wonderful oration;' at the close of the third, 'Mr. Hastings has acted unjustifiably;' the fourth, 'Mr. Hastings is a most atrocious criminal;' and at last, 'Of all monsters of iniquity, the most enormous is Warren Hastings!"" ་ Now the natural and almost necessary impression made by this story is, that Mr. Logan, previous to hearing this speech, had written his "masterly defense of Mr. Hastings;" and that, being thus "prepossessed" and committed in favor of the accused, he experienced the remarkable change of views and feelings here described. But the fact is, his defense of Hastings was written after the speech in question was delivered; and Mr. Logan therein charged the Commons with having acted, in their impeachment of Hastings, " from motives of personal animosity-not from regard to public justice." It is incredible that a man of Mr. Logan's character-a distinguished clergyman of the Church of Scotland-should have written such a pamphlet, or brought such a charge, only a few months after he had expressed the views of Mr. Hastings ascribed to him above. This anecdote must, therefore, have related to some other person who was confounded with Mr. Logan, and may be numbered with the many uncertainties which are current under the name of Literary History Сс most popular in the House of Commons. It made Mr. Sheridan much more formida ble to Mr. Pitt, during his long and difficult administration, than many in the Opposition ranks of far greater information and reasoning abilities. Notwithstanding his habitual indolence, and the round of conviviality in which he was constantly engaged, Sheridan contrived to pick up enough knowledge of the leading topics in debate to make him a severe critic on the measures of Mr. Pitt. If authorities or research were necessary, he would frankly say to his friends who desired his aid, "You know I am an ignoramus-here I am-instruct me, and I'll do my best." And such was the quickness and penetration of his intellect, that he was able, with surprising facility, to make himself master of the information thus collected for his use and to pour it out with a freshness and vivacity which were so much the greater because his mind was left free and unencumbered by the effort to obtain it. A curious instance is mentioned of his boldness on such occasions, when his materials happened to fail him. In 1794, when he came to reply to the argument of Mr. Hastings' counsel on the Begum charge, his friend, Mr. Michael Angelo Taylor, undertook to read for him any papers which it might be necessary to bring forward in the course of his speech. One morning, when a certain paper was called for, Mr. Taylor asked him for the bag containing his documents. Sheridan replied, in a whisper, that he had neither bag nor papers—that they must contrive, by dexterity and boldness, to get on without them. The Lord Chancellor, in a few moments, called again for the minutes of evidence. Taylor pretended to send for the bag, and Sheridan proceeded with the utmost confidence, as if nothing had happened. Within a few minutes the "papers" were again demanded, when Mr. Fox ran up tc Taylor, and inquired anxiously for the bag. "The man has no bag," says Taylor, in a whisper, to the utter discomfiture of Mr. Fox. Sheridan, in the mean time, went on-taking the facts for granted-in his boldest strain. When stopped by the court, and reproved for his negligence in not bringing forward the evidence, he as sumed an indignant tone, and told the Chancellor that, "as a manager of the impeachment in behalf of the Commons, he should conduct the case as he thought fit, that it was his most ardent desire to be perfectly correct in what he stated; and that, should he fall into error, the printed minutes of the evidence would correct him!" With all this apparent negligence, however, the papers of Mr. Sheridan, after his death, disclosed one remarkable fact, that his wit was most of it studied out beforehand. His commonplace book was found to be full of humorous thoughts and sportive turns, put down usually in a crude state just as they occurred to his mind, and afterward wrought into form for future use. To this collection we may trace a large part of those playful allusions, keen retorts, sly insinuations, and brilliant salliesthe jest, the frolic, and the fun-which flash out upon us in his speeches in a manner so easy, natural, and yet unexpected, that no one could suspect them of being any thing but the spontaneous suggestions of the moment. His biographer has truly said that, in this respect," It was the fate of Mr. Sheridan throughout life—and in a great degree, perhaps his policy-to gain credit for excessive indolence and carelessness, while few persons, with so much natural brilliancy of talents, ever employed more art and circumspection in their display." Mr. Sheridan usually took part in every important debate in Parliament, and gained much applause, in 1803, by a speech of uncommon eloquence, in which he endeavored to unite all parties for the defense of the country, when threatened with invasion by France. In the course of this speech, he turned the ridicule of the House upon Mr. Addington, the prime minister, in a way which was not soon forgotten. Mr. Addington was one of those "respectable" half-way men with whom it is diffi cult to find fault, and yet whom nobody confides in or loves. He was the son of an eminent physician, and there was something in his air and manner which savored of the profession, and had given him, to a limited extent, the appellation of "The Doctor." Mr. Sheridan, in the course of his speech, adverting to the personal dislike of many to Mr. Addington, quoted the lines of Martial : Non amo te, Sabine, nec possum dicere quare: Hoc tantum possum dicere, non amo te; and added the English parody: i do not like you, Doctor Fell: The reason why I can not tell; But this, I'm sure, I know full well, I do not like you, Doctor Fell. His waggish emphasis on the word doctor, and his subsequent repetition of it in the course of his speech, caled forth peals of laughter; and thenceforth the minister was generally known by the name of the Doctor. The Opposition papers took up the title, and twisted and tortured it into every form of attack, till Mr. Addington was borne down and driven from office by mere ridicule-a weapon which is often more fatal than argument to men of moderate abilities in high political stations. Mr. Sheridan had always lived beyond his means, and was utterly ruined in 1809, by the burning of the Drury Lane Theater, which comprised all his property. He was also betrayed by his convivial habits into gross intemperance. Wine being no longer of sufficient strength to quicken his faculties for conversation or debate, stronger liquors were substituted. A person sitting one evening in a coffee-house, near St. Stephen's Chapel, saw, to his surprise, a gentleman with papers before him, after taking tea, pour the contents of a decanter of brandy into a tumbler, and drink it off without dilution. He then gathered up his papers and went out. Shortly after, the spectator, on entering the gallery of the House of Commons, heard the brandy-drinker, to his astonishment, deliver a long and brilliant speech. It was Mr. Sheridan ! The natural consequences of such a life were not slow in overtaking him he soor became bankrupt in character and health, as well as in fortune. The relief which he occasionally obtained from his friends served only to protract his misery. He was harassed with writs and executions, at the moment when he was sinking under disease; and a sheriff's officer, but for the intervention of his physician, would have carried him in his blanket to prison. A powerful writer in the Morning Post now called the attention of the public to his wretched condition. "Oh! delay not to draw aside the curtain within which that proud spirit hides its sufferings. Prefer ministering in the chambers of sickness to mustering at the splendid sorrows which adorn the hearse'—I say, life and succor against Westminster Abbey and a funeral "" Men of all ranks were roused. His chamber was crowded with sympathizing friends, but it was too late. He died on the 7th of July, 1816, at the age of sixty-four, a melancholy example of brilliant talents sacrificed to a love of display and convivial indulgence. He was buried with great pomp in the only spot of the Poet's Corner which remained unoccupied. His pall was borne by royal and noble dukes, by earls and marquesses, and his funeral procession was composed' of the most distinguished nobility and gentry of the kingdom.5 • The Scottish members having deserted Mr. Addington in some debate about this time, M▾ Sheridan convulsed the House by suddenly exclaiming, in the words of the messenger to Mac beth, Doctor, "the THANES fly from thee!" Mr. Moore, in the following lines, gave vent to his feelings at the conduct of those who deserted Sheridan in his poverty, but crowded around his death-bed and flocked to his funeral with all the tokens of their early respect and affection: How proud they can press to the funeral array Of him whom they shunn'd in his sickness and sorrow How bailiffs may seize his last blanket to-day, Whose pall shal be held up by nobles to-morrow! (over) Wraxall, in his Posthumous Memoirs, vol. i., 36-8, gives the following description of Mr. Sheridan's person and manner of speaking in his best days, before intemper ance had begun its ravages on his body or mind. 'His countenance and features had in them something peculiarly pleasing, indicative at once of intellect, humor, and gayety. All these characteristics played about his lips when speaking, and operated with inconceivable attraction; for they anticipated, as it were, to the eye the effect produced by his oratory on the ear; thus opening for him a sure way to the heart or the understanding. Even the tones of his voice, which were singularly mellifluous, aided the general effect of his eloquence; nor was it accompanied by Burke's unpleasant Irish accent. Pitt's enunciation was unquestionably more imposing, dignified, and sonorous; Fox displayed more argument, as well as vehemence; Burke possessed more fancy and enthusiasm; but Sheridan won his way by a sort of fascination." "He possessed a ductility and versatility of talents which no public man in our time has equaled; and these intellectual endowments were sustained by a suavity of temper that seemed to set at defiance all attempts to ruffle or discompose it Playing with his irritable or angry antagonist, Sheridan exposed him by sallies of wit, or attacked him with classic elegance of satire; performing this arduous task in the face of a crowded assembly, without losing for an instant either his presence of mind. his facility of expression, or his good humor. He wounded deepest, indeed, when he smiled, and convulsed his hearers with laughter while the object of his ridicule or animadversion was twisting under the lash. Pitt and Dundas, who presented the fairest marks for his attack, found, by experience, that though they might repel, they could not confound, and still less could they silence or vanquish him. In every attempt that they made, by introducing personalities, or illiberal reflections on his private life and literary or dramatic occupations, to disconcert him, he turned their weapons on themselves. Nor did he, while thus chastising his adversary, alter a muscle of his own countenance; which, as well as his gestures, seemed to partici pate, and display the unalterable serenity of his intellectual formation. Rarely did he elevate his voice, and never except in subservience to the dictates of his judgment, with the view to produce a corresponding effect on his audience. Yet he was always heard, generally listened to with eagerness, and could obtain a hearing at almost any hour. Burke, who wanted Sheridan's nice tact and his amenity of manner, was continually coughed down, and on those occasions he lost his temper. Even Fox often tired the House by the repetitions which he introduced into his speeches. Sheridan never abused their patience. Whenever he rose, they anticipated a rich repast of wit without acrimony, seasoned by allusions and citations the most delicate, yet obvious in their application." Still, it should be remembered that such desertion is the inevitable fate of degrading vice, and especially of the beastly intemperance to which Sheridan had so long been abandoned. Large contributions had previously been made for his relief, but his improvidence knew no bounds; and he had for some time reduced himself to such a state that few of his old acquaintances could visit him without pain, or (it may be added) without the deepest mortification to himself, though they might wish, after his death, to do honor to his memory as a mar of genius. SPEECH OF MR. SHERIDAN ON SUMMING UP THE EVIDENCE ON THE SECOND, OR BEGUM CHARGE AGAINST INTRODUCTION. THE Begums, or princesses referred to in this speech, were the mother and widow of the celebrated Sujah Dowlah, Nabob of Oude, a kingdom on the upper waters of the Ganges. At his death, he bequeathed for their support large yearly revenues from the government lands, called jaghires,1 in addition to the treasures he had accumulated during his reign. He left his throne to Asoph Dowlah, a son by the younger Begum, who proved to be a man of weak intellect and debauched habits, and who soon became a mere vassal of the East India Company, under the government of Mr. Hastings. To secure his subjection, and guard against invasion from the neighboring states, Mr. Hastings compelled him to take large numbers of British troops into his pay; thus relieving the Company of enormous expense, and subjecting the natives to the severest exactions from men ostensibly placed among them for their protection. Single officers of the British army were known to have accumulated fortunes of several hundred thousand pounds during a few years service in Oude. Nearly the whole kingdom was thus reduced from a state of the highest prosperity, to beggary and ruin. The young Nabob was unable to make his regular payments of tribute, until, at the close of 1781, a debt of £1,400,000 stood against him on the Company's books Mr. Hastings was, at this time, in the most pressing want of money. He had powerful enemies at Cal cutta; his continuance in office depended on his being able to relieve the Company at once from its financial difficulties; and to do this effectually was the object of his memorable journey into upper India, in July, 1781. He looked to two sources of supply, Benares and Oude; and from one or both of these, he was determined to extort the means of relief from all his embarrassments. In respect to Benares, Mr. Mill states, in his British India, that Cheyte Sing, the Rajah of that kingdom, had paid his tribute "with an exactness rarely exemplified in the history of the tributary princes of Hindostan." But the same system had been adopted with him, as with the Nabob of Oude; and when he at last declared his inabil ity to pay, Mr. Hastings threw him into prison during the journey mentioned above, deprived him of his throne, and stripped him of all his treasures. They proved, however, to be only £200,000, a sum far short of what Mr. Hastings expected, for he had always supposed the Rajah to be possessed of immense hoards of wealth. Disappointed in his first object, the Governor General now turned his attention to Oude. He knew the young Nabob would be ready, on almost any terms, to purchase deliverance from the troops which were quartered on his kingdom. He accordingly appointed a meeting with him at Chunar, a fortress of Benares, September 19th, 1781. Here the Nabob secretly offered him a bribe of £100,000. Mr. Hastings took it; whether with the intention to keep it as his own or pay it over to the Company, does not certainly appear. The transaction, however, soon became public, and the money was finally paid over, but not without a letter from Mr. Hastings to the Board of Directors, intimating in the most significant terms his anxiety to retain the money. On this point, Mr. Sheridan touches with great force in the progress of his speech. But Asoph Dowlah was not to escape so easily. A much larger sum than £100,000 was needed, and he was at length driven to an arrangement by which it was agreed, in the words of Mr. Mill, "that his Highness should be relieved from the expense, which he was unable to bear, of the English troops and gentlemen; and he, on his part, engaged to strip the Begums of both their treasures and their jaghires, delivering to the Governor General the proceeds."-Brit. India, iv., 375. In other words, he was to rob his mother and his grandmother, not only of all their property, but of the yearly income left by his father for their support. But it was easier for the Nabob to promise than to perform. Such were the struggles of nature and religion in his breast, that for three months he hesitated and delayed, while Mr. Hastings, who was in the atmost need of money, was arging him to the performance. Finally, Mr. Middleton, the Resident at Oude, was ordered to cut the matter short-"to supersede the authority of the Nabob, and perform the necessary measures by the operation of English troops," if there was any further delay. Under this threat, Asoph resumed the jaghires; but declared, in so doing, that it was "an act of compulsion." The treasures were next to be seized. They were stored in the Zenana or Harem at Fyzabad, where the princesses resided; a sacred inclosure, guarded with superstitious veneration by the religion of the Hindoos, against access of all except its own inmates. A body of English troops, under the guidance of Mr Middleton, marched to Fyzabad, on the 8th of January, 1782, and demanded the treasures. They were 'The lands thus farmed were also called jaghires, and those who farmed them jaghiredars. 1 |