A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W X Z

Memoirs of James Robert Hope Scott, Volume 2

R >> Robert Ornsby >> Memoirs of James Robert Hope Scott, Volume 2




Another undertaking of some importance in which he took great interest in
those days, relating both to literature and religion, was the 'Anglia
Christiana,' a series of the monuments of English history, which was
publishing in 1844-45. Only three volumes of it came out--'Chronicon
Monasterii de Bello' (Battle Abbey), Giraldus Cambrensis 'de Institutione
Principis,' and 'Liber Eliensis.' Mr. Hope much wished to have had included
in the list the work called 'Pupilla Oculi,' a treatise on moral theology
by John de Burgh, Chancellor of the University of Cambridge about the year
1385, which was much in use among the clergy before the Reformation. Mr.
David Lewis, of Jesus College (as a Catholic so well known for his
admirable translations of the works of St. John of the Cross and of St.
Teresa), collated the text for him, but I believe it was never published. I
find in the Badeley correspondence a very interesting letter of Mr. Hope's
dated February 28, 1843, about the 'Pupilla Oculi,' its history and
authority. The book had been cited by Mr. Badeley in the Court of Queen's
Bench, and by others in the House of Lords, in the case of the Queen v.
Willis. Lord Lyndhurst and some of the judges objected to its value as
evidence on the ground of its contradicting the common law on the question
of legitimation by subsequent marriage. Mr. Hope discusses the subject in a
masterly style: I must refrain from quoting such merely antiquarian or
legal matter for its own sake, yet will subjoin some paragraphs of the
letter which illustrate the line taken by him as a lawyer at that time on
the important point of the relations of Church and State:--

There can be, I think, little doubt that in old times the distinction
between Church and State was one of jurisdictions rather than of laws. I
mean that each was supposed to have its proper subject-matter of
legislation as well as of judicial inquiry. Where the subject-matter was
conceded to the Church altogether, there the Church law prevailed
absolutely; where the subject-matter was of mixed cognizance, there the
Church law was modified by the common or the statute law; where the subject
was altogether lay, there both the laws and the tribunals of the Church
were silenced. When, therefore, we would ascertain whether the law of the
Church is to govern a given subject, we must first ascertain how far it was
of the exclusive cognizance of the Church; and, if we find that it was
principally but not exclusively of ecclesiastical cognizance, how far the
common law interfered to modify the ecclesiastical laws by which it was to
be determined.

Now, in the case before us, this much, I think, must be admitted, viz. that
marriage, as a sacrament, was exclusively subject to the ecclesiastical
jurisdiction; and, therefore, that whatever view the common law might
entertain as to the consequence to be attached to this or that form of it,
the essence of the sacrament itself was determinable by the doctrine of the
Church, and by that alone.

But if this was so, then whatever was accepted by the Church of England as
to the essence of marriage must necessarily be allowed to have been the
common law upon that point, i.e. there could be no other law by which it
could be decided.

Granting, therefore, that J. de Burgh, or any other ecclesiastical writer,
has laid down rules upon subjects of mixed jurisdiction which the common
law disallows, it by no means follows that his authority is to be slighted
where he speaks of matters that were exclusively ecclesiastical. Indeed,
the opposition of the common law upon given points, e.g. the legitimation
by subsequent marriage, gives a pregnant meaning to its silence upon
others.

I find that in the autumn of that year (1843) Mr. Hope spent some time in
making researches into the records at York connected with the law of
marriage. In a letter to Mr. Badeley (September 28) he says, 'At York I was
successful in finding a variety of matrimonial causes, from A.D. 1301
downwards, which I think illustrate the right view of the question. The
records there abound in well-preserved forms of proceeding, and it was with
regret that I gave up further investigations. The labour, however, of
reading and transcribing extracts was occasionally harder than suits
holiday work.' In the same letter he speaks with much pleasure of a day
spent at Burton Agnes with Archdeacons E. Wilberforce, Manning, &c., and as
particularly indebted to the Archbishop of York and his family for the
reception they gave him. The correspondence, indeed, affords a gracious
epistle from the Archbishop himself (then nearly eighty-six years of age)
to Mr. Hope, dated Trentham, September 30, 1843, in which, after expressing
his high satisfaction at some legal advice which he had received from him,
he goes on to say:--

I have only to add that nothing could gratify us more than your having
occasion--and the sooner the better--to refer again to the York archives
for any purpose whatever; 'provided always, and be it hereby enacted, that
such reference be had during the period of the Archbishop's annual
residence at Bishopthorpe.'

Ever truly yrs,

E. EBOR.

It may here be permitted me to quote a few lines from memoranda about Mr.
Hope, kindly written at the request of one of his nearest relatives by a
lady whose genius as well as catholic feeling especially fitted her to
preserve those traces which I am sure no reader would wish should be
allowed to fade away. They afford at once a proof that when doubts as to
his religious position were approaching their most painful stage, he never
allowed them to interfere with those duties of religion which are binding
on all intellectual states alike, and they present a glimpse both of his
appearance and manner at that date which will greatly assist the reader in
forming an idea of him.

I think it was in 1843 that I first saw your dear brother in Margaret
Street Chapel, the favourite place of worship of the Puseyites in those
days, and noticed him and his friend Mr. Badeley walking away together, and
was more struck with his appearance than with that of any other person I
have ever seen before or since.... It is only in pictures that I have ever
seen anything equalling, and never anything surpassing, what was, at the
time I am speaking of, the ideal beauty of his face and figure.

During the next two years I used often to see him at Margaret Street
Chapel, and I may say that his recollection in prayer and unaffected
devotion made a strong impression upon me. Having been very little in
England since my childhood, it was quite a new thing to me to see a layman
in the Anglican Church so devout, but without a tinge of fanaticism or
apparent excitement. In 1844 I made acquaintance with Mr. Hope, and met him
occasionally in society. He was all that his appearance would have led one
to expect; the charm of his manner enhanced the effect of his
conversational powers. [Footnote: Lady Georgiana Fullerton to Lady Henry
Kerr, May 5 [1881].]

I have not found any record of Mr. Hope's personal religious state about
that time, like the diaries of his earlier manhood. He writes, however, to
Mr. Newman on March 1, 1844 (from Lincoln's Inn): 'If I can manage it, I
should much like to spend Passion Week at or near Oxford. Could you let me
into the guest-chamber at Littlemore?' Mr. Newman (March 14) writes in
reply that the guest-chamber was quite at his service, but adds: 'Pray do
not fancy us in such a state that we can profess a retreat, or any one here
able to conduct one.' In another letter Mr. Newman acknowledges 'a splendid
benefaction' of Mr. Hope's to the house of Littlemore.




CHAPTER XX.

1844-1845.

Mr. Hope's Tour on the Continent in 1844--Visit to Munich--Dr. Pusey's
'Library of Roman Catholic Works'--Dr. Pusey and the Spiritual Exercises--
His Opinion of the Discipline--Mr. Hope's Visit to Tetschen in 1844--Count
Leo Thun and his Friends--Mr. Hope's Interview with Prince Metternich--The
Hon. Sir R. Gordon, Ambassador at Vienna--Visit to Prince Palffy and to
Prince Lichtenstein--The Hungarian Diet at Presburg--Letter of Manzoni to
J. R. Hope--Visit to Rome--Bishop Grant and Mr. Hope--Mr. Hope resigns
Chancellorship of Salisbury--Dr. Pusey and the Stone Altar Case--Mr.
Oakeley and Mr. Hope--Scottish Episcopalian Church and its Office--Mr.
Gladstone endeavours to hold Mr. Hope back--Proposes Tour in Ireland--
Conversion of Mr. Newman--Mr. Hope on the Essay on Development--Letter of
Mr. Newman to J. R. Hope from Rome--Reopening of Correspondence with Mr.
Newman.


At the end of August or beginning of September 1844 Mr. Hope set out for a
tour on the Continent, accompanied by Mr. Badeley. Of the earlier days of
it I have no information, but they parted at Heidelberg about September 12,
Mr. Badeley for the Rhine country and Belgium, Mr. Hope for Munich. By this
time, as has already been evident, he was deeply engaged in professional
pursuits, and his health had begun to suffer from his unremitting labours.
Several passages might be quoted from the letters of his intimate friends,
showing the anxiety they felt on the subject. Some real relaxation,
however, had at last become necessary; and it would appear that he rather
wished to leave the turmoil of the movement, as well as business, behind
him. In a letter of Mr. Badeley's to him, dated Brussels, September 22, the
following sentence occurs:--'If you like to see what is going on in this
[the affair of opposing Dr. Symonds' election as Vice-Chancellor at
Oxford] and in Church matters, I will send you the "English Churchman;"
but as you said "No," when we parted, I forbear to forward any papers till
further orders.' Afterwards, however, 'after all,' he asks Mr. Badeley to
send it. On his way to Munich, Mr. Hope stopped at Augsburg, where 'of
course he visited Butsch the bookseller,' buys a copy of the 'Summa Divi
Thomae Aquinatis,' and sees _some_ good books which he did not want.
At Munich, where he arrived on September 14, rooms were provided for him at
the Austrian Legation by the kindness of his friend Count Senfft. These
particulars I take from a letter of his to Mr. Badeley, dated Munich,
September 22, and subjoin some further details in full:--

D[öllinger] is, I think, remarkably well, and I am more struck with him
than ever. I found him already deep in Ward's book, with which he is much
struck. I have already had some interesting conversation with him, and
anticipate more. He is rector elect of the University, and highly spoken of
by all I see. My new acquaintances consist of the Papal Nuntius Viale, a
very striking person, Professor Walther, the canonist, and some intelligent
Bavarians. I am to visit Görres this evening.... There is an English
service here very decently and nicely performed by Mr. de Coetlogon, a man
in Scotch orders, and the chapel is a modest but respectable room.... I ask
hard questions upon marriage, and receive very doubtful answers; but I am
resolved, if possible, to get some definite information from the best
sources in Germany.

The following letter, connected with this tour of Mr. Hope's, is also very
instructive as to a particular phase of the movement:--

_The Rev. Dr. Pusey to J. R. Hope, Esq._

My dear Hope,--I have no news as yet to communicate to you, except that
some few are taking up ye matter of ye V. C. in rt earnest, and so I
suppose it will be a pitched battle, and we shall win at last, even if but
a handful as yet.

I have 2 or 3 commissions for you, wh will not occupy your time, and wh
will, I hope, be a subject of interest to you. It is for my little library
of R. C. works. The perplexity is to find out ye best books upon difft
subjects, for I cannot read all. The general class is, as you know, ascetic
books, books of guidance, wh shall give people knowledge of self, enable us
to guide consciences, build people up in ye higher life, force them to
mental prayer, or give them subjects of meditation in it, the spiritual
life, Xtian perfection, holy performance of ordinary actions, love of God,
or any Xtian graces in detail, devotions, books on holy seasons--in a word,
anything in practical theology in its widest range, or, again, cases of
conscience.

I have learnt more or less as to French & Spanish, & some Latin works, but
of Italian I know those only of Scupoli, and of German absolutely nothing.
The only books I have seen are some sermons by Sailer, wh, altho' clear and
energetic, contain nothing wh one did not know before; they have nothing to
build people up with.

I shd be glad also of any information on a subject wh I know drew yr
thoughts when you were last abroad--the system as to retreats. I saw a
book,' Manuale dell' Esercitatori,' but I shd be very glad of any
information or any guidance.

If it wd not occupy you too much, I shd be much obliged to you to procure
on my account any practical works wh mt be recommended.

Perhaps also Dr. Döllinger could give you some information as to S.
Ignatius Loyola, 'Exercitia Spiritualia,' for they seem to have been so
often re-moulded, that there is some difficulty to ascertain (1) what is ye
genuine form, or at least to obtain a copy, (2) whether any other re-
casting of it be found easier to use.

I trust these inquiries will not be so much an encumbrance to you, as lead
you to happy subjects and more acquaintance with happy-making books. God
bless you ever.

Yrs affectionately,

E. B. PUSEY.

Christ Church: September 9, 1844.

[P.S.] There is yet a subject on wh I shd like to know more, if you fall in
with persons who have ye guidance of consciences,--what penances they
employ for persons whose temptations are almost entirely spiritual, of
delicate frames often, and who wish to be led on to perfection. I see in a
spiritual writer that even for such, corporal severities are not to be
neglected, but so many of them are unsafe. I suspect ye 'discipline' to be
one of ye safest, and with internal humiliation the best.... Cd you procure
and send me one by B.? What was described to me was of a very sacred
character; 5 cords, each with 5 knots, in memory of ye 5 wounds of our
Lord.... I shd be glad to know also whether there were any cases in wh it
is unsafe, e.g. in a nervous person.

On October 1 Mr. Hope left Munich to pay a visit at Tetschen, the seat of
his friends the Thun family (described vol. i. p. 42), taking Ratisbon and
other places in his way. At Tetschen, where he stayed from October 5 to 12,
he found a sad blank in the recent death of the Countess Thun. From an
interesting letter to Lady Hope (dated Vienna, October 26, 1844) which
furnishes these dates, I transcribe also the following particulars:--

Countess Anna is still in very uncertain health.... The Count himself seems
to have rallied lately, but it will be long before he gets over his loss.
The second daughter, Countess Inza, seems to be now the stay of the family.
Of the sons, only Francis, the eldest, was at home. He is devoted to art,
and has besides abundance of business in the management of the estates
which his father has made over to him, and with various charitable
societies at Prague, in which he and his family are interested. From
Tetschen I went to Prague, with Count Joseph Thun, a cousin, with his wife
and two sons. At Prague I spent Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, in constant
admiration of the town, to which I did not do justice when I was last
there. It is really beautiful, and, out of Italy, I think Edinburgh alone
equal to it, of all the towns which I have seen. With Tetschen for summer,
and Prague for winter, I think the Thuns have two as charming residences as
could be found.

On Tuesday evening [Oct. 15] I left for Königsgrätz, a provincial town,
where Leo Thun, the youngest, is officially employed. He is a noble fellow,
and has devoted himself for years to the details of business, with a view
to becoming useful to Bohemia, to which he is very much attached. He is
also prominent among the revivers of the Bohemian language and literature,
which is Sclavonic, and has thus become well known in Germany, as well as
in Hungary and other countries where there are Sclavonic tribes. The
movement is in a political sense important, as well as influential upon
manners and modes of thinking, and it has already excited a good deal of
discussion and some animosity. It would take too much time, however, to
explain what I have learnt of its bearings. With Leo I spent two very
agreeable days, and have had much to talk about, as I had not seen him
since I was last in Bohemia. I was introduced to the _notables_ of the
place, his _chef_ and the commander of the garrison (an old Irish
officer of the name of Fitzgerald), and saw his mode of life, which to a
man with plenty of employment must be convenient, though not very amusing.

From Königsgrätz I started on Thursday night, and arrived here [Vienna] on
Saturday week, the 19th [Oct.], and took up my abode at the same inn with
Fritz Thun, the diplomat, who was here on his way from Turin, which he has
now left for Prague. You will remember how pleasant a person he is, and
will be glad to hear that his professional prospects are excellent, as he
is in high favour with Prince Metternich, to whom he was strongly
recommended by Schwartzenberg, his last _chef_. One of my first acts
was to call on Sir R. Gordon [the British Ambassador], who has been
_most_ kind, giving me dinner as often as I can go to him, and
assisting me in everything. On the evening of my arrival he took me to
Prince Metternich, when I had the honour of a conversation with the great
man. George was remembered by him and his daughter, and by the Countess
Zichy, the Princess's mother, and I was very kindly received by them all.
Palmerston was expected here, and the Prince told Sir R. Gordon that, if he
came, I should be invited to meet him at dinner; but unluckily he has
changed his plans, so that I shall not see him and Metternich together,
which would have been a great sight. I gave Sir Robert your good account of
Lady Alicia,[Footnote: Sister of the Earl of Aberdeen and of Sir R. Gordon,
died 1847.] and beg that you will in return tell her that Sir R. is very
flourishing, and that in my opinion he is a very magnificent ambassador,
and, what is better, a very kind one. His establishment is admirably
_monté_, and I found in François a friend of the Hope family in
general. George's letters of introduction I duly received. Schwartzenberg
is not here, but I have seen Esterhazy, who has asked me to his country
place, about three hours' drive from Vienna.... Besides the people I have
named, I have seen others, to whom I get access through Count Senfft, among
whom is the Dowager Duchess of Anhalt-Cöthen, a natural sister of the King
of Prussia, and a clever woman....

Your affect. Son,

JAMES R. HOPE.

Mr. Hope was unable to accept the invitation of Prince Esterhazy, in
consequence of an engagement to visit another Hungarian magnate, Prince
Palffy. The latter visit, with various other interesting details, is
recorded in the following letter:--

_J. R. Hope, Esq., to Edward L. Badeley, Esq._ Vienna: Nov. 7, 1844.

Dear Badeley,--[After giving some account of his visit at Tetschen, Mr.
Hope goes on to mention his interview with Prince Metternich.] Prince
Metternich honoured me with a conversation of some ten minutes or so, and
which would probably have been both longer and more interesting but for the
intrusion of a German who chose to thrust himself upon us. He spoke of some
points of commercial and manufacturing interest, and pleased me very much
by the simplicity of his manner. By means of letters which Count Senfft
gave me I have also become acquainted with several of the persons who are
known as active friends of the R. C. _High_ Church party; but I do not
know very much of them, and of the Vienna clergy nothing at all....

On Sunday, the 28th [Oct.], I started for my promised visit to Prince
Palffy at Malatzka, and arrived there in a few hours. The house resembles
most of those one sees abroad, built round a court, with long passages,
white exterior, &c., and, as the country round it is very flat and sandy,
it cannot be called a very interesting place. It was, however, my first
resting-place in Hungary, and as such, an object of curiosity to me.
Besides which, I found in it a hearty welcome, and a large family party,
which gave me a good idea of the society of the upper class. The Prince is
an extensive landowner, holding it all in his own hands (as is generally if
not universally the case, both in Bohemia and Hungary), and working it by
the tributary labour of the peasants, who, besides a small money payment,
contribute labour for a certain number of days in each year. With the
obligation of this quittance, the latter class hold in fee the cottages and
plots of land which they occupy, and appear to be a thriving and
comfortable race. They are, however, exclusively the tax-payers, as the
nobles are still free from all imposts. An effort has indeed been made
lately, which has partially succeeded, to tax the nobles; and it is
probable that amid the numerous reforms of the Hungarian Diet, this
will eventually be fully carried out. Our mode of life at Malatzka was
to rise when we chose, breakfast in our own rooms, to meet at half-past
twelve for luncheon, then to go out, and to dine at six, and to spend
the evening in the drawing-room. Coursing, a badger-hunt, and an
expedition to a property of the Prince's at the foot of the Carpathians,
constituted my out-of-door amusements; and of these, the last at least was
very interesting. I saw an immense tract of wood and pasture, a herd of
wild oxen, sheep innumerable, a curious stalactite grotto, and an Hungarian
farmhouse.

From Malatzka I went, furnished with letters, to the seat of Prince
Liechtenstein in Moravia--Eisgrüb. He is one of the richest men in the
Austrian dominions, having possessions in Moravia, Bohemia, and Hungary,
and several houses in Vienna. A great sportsman, and in this point, at
least, a great imitator of English manners. The house at which I was is a
summer residence, with very fine pleasure-grounds, park, &c.; but he has an
autumn château not far off, which I also visited, and which is a fine
specimen of foreign country architecture. Everything about him seemed to
teem with expense and luxury, which, although probably not greater than
what is to be found in the residences of English noblemen, appears greater
from its contrast with the rudeness and simplicity of the general condition
of the country. These great nobles seem, in fact, to combine the most
striking points of barbarism and civilisation, and to turn them both to
their enjoyment. I stayed only one day at Eisgrüb, though I had pressing
invitations to remain longer; but I was anxious to go to Presburg to see
the Diet, and so returned to Malatzka, which I left again the next morning,
Saturday, 2nd Nov., for the seat of the Hungarian Parliament.

At Presburg I spent four days. The place itself is uninteresting, though
there are points of beauty about it; but it contains at this moment some of
the most turbulent politicians in the world; and their movements are of
considerable importance as well to the twelve million souls who constitute
the population of Hungary, as to the integrity of the Austrian Empire.

I should write a book were I to tell you all I have heard from different
quarters upon this question; but this much seems certain--that Hungary is
in a state of violent transition, and that in a few years its internal
condition and perhaps its relations to the Austrian monarchy will have
undergone a complete revolution. Sir R. Gordon gave me a letter to an
Englishman who is employed by the British Embassy to attend the sittings of
the Diet; and by his kindness I was enabled to make acquaintance with many
of the most distinguished men. I was also present at several debates in the
two Chambers of the Diet, and though (the language being Hungarian) I could
not understand a word, yet it was most interesting to watch the proceedings
of this Magyar Parliament, in which freedom of speech exists as fully as in
any assembly in the world. The members all attend in Hungarian costume,
which, on common occasions, consists of a laced surtout coat, a cap, and a
sword. They speak from their places and without notes. Each member may
speak as often as he pleases, and some take advantage of the privilege to a
somewhat formidable extent. There seemed to be much fluency and not a
little action; but the management of the voice was bad, and energy seemed
to pass at once into violence. Though party runs high, organisation is very
little understood, and business is transacted both slowly and with very
uncertain results. They have the misfortune of all foreign constitutional
states, that of desiring to imitate England, i.e. to do in a few years, and
designedly, what the accidents of centuries have produced with us. There
is, however, no lack either of talent or courage, and one governing mind
might make Hungary a nation. It is immensely rich in natural productions,
and wants only a market to have a great trade. This they are well disposed
to establish with England, and I hope they may succeed; but Austria has
interests which I fear may render this difficult. In both Chambers the
clergy are represented: in that of the magnates by the Bishops; in the
Lower House by deputies of the chapters. To the Primate I was introduced at
one of his public entertainments. He is said to have 40 or 60,000_l_.
per ann., and his personal carriage as well as his establishment are quite
becoming his station. I made acquaintance also with the Archbishop of
Erlau, a poet and a man of taste and learning, but victim to the tic
douloureux. Lastly, with the Bishop of Csanad (Mgr. Lonowics), who has
charmed me. He is well read, in English as well as other literature and
history, and is as kind-hearted and Christian a man as I ever met with.
Indeed, I shall be tempted to visit Hungary again, if it is only to spend a
day or two with him. In the meantime we have established a mutual book-
relation. He is to send me works on Hungarian Ecclesiastical Law, addressed
to Stewart, and I have promised to send him some things which I beg you
will at once see to. [Mr. Hope mentions Winkle's 'Cathedrals;' Ward's
'Ideal;' Newman's last vol. of 'Sermons;' the 'Life of St. Stephen;'
Oakeley's 'Life of St. Austin;' and his own pamphlet 'On the Jerusalem
Bishopric.']

Copyright (c) 2007. famouswriterz.com. All rights reserved.