A new memoir of Hannah More; or, Life in hall and cottage

Front matter

M.W.DODD, I860.

ttt I

BARLEY WOOD THE RESIDENCE OF THE LATE HANNAH MOR

Preface

IT has been written, " that the world's wealth is its original men ; by these and their works, it is a world and not a waste : the memory and record of what men it bore — this is the sum of its strength, its 'sacred property' forever, whereby it upholds itself and steers forward, better or worse, through the yet undiscovered deep of time.

" Science itself, is it not, under one of its most interesting aspects, Biography ? Is it not the record of the work, which an original man, still named by us or not named, was blessed by the heavens to do '?"

May it not be also said, that the wealth of the Church is her godly men, her holy women, her ransomed little ones ? Are not the record and memory of their self-denial and suffering, their

patient waiting, and cheerful courage, their faith 1*

VI P R E Jf A C E.

and love, her richest legacies and dearest treasures? By these is the world an Eden and not a waste ; by these is the Church the true vino and not a withered branch ; a living epistle and not a dead letter ; the memory and record of what Christian men and women it bore — this is the sum of her strength, her " sacred property" forever.

Christianity itself, is it not under one of its most interesting aspects, biography ? Is it not the record of the ivork, which a (rod-man was blessed by the heavens to do ? Have not its doctrines been unfolded by the lives and labors of its eminent disciples ?

In this view, what meaning is there in the Christian life, whenever bearing " precious fruit," within the cottage or the hall, in the little child patiently bearing its weary load for Christ's sake, or in those holy and devout ones, whose faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, and having obtained a good report, have gone to receive their great recompense of reward.

Herein is the beauty and excellency of the life of this eminent servant of God, Hannah More.

Among the household memories, if not among

the nursery rhymes of many in middle life, she is less known to a great multitude of the young, who are just entering upon the duties, the responsibilities, and conflicts of the Christian life, and for them is this sketch prepared. If there is a tendency in the Church, as some fear, to consult worldly advantages more than Christ's requirements, to be content with a weak faith and feeble hopes, instead of the warm, large, generous love which inspired the apostles of old, and eminent saints of later time, to rest satisfied with only a name to live, instead of bringing forth fruits meet

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for repentance, let us turn back and study the characters of those whose lips and lives most eloquently expressed the holy gospel they professed. Let us inquire what doctrines they believed, what principles they adopted, what duties they discharged, what labors they undertook, what amusements they forsook ; in a word, let us seek to find out their apprehension of Bible truth, and how also the Bible shaped their views, moulded their characters, and fitted them for usefulness. Hannah More presents one of the most complete models of Christian character ; her life is a beautiful development of that healthy, vigorous, life-giving,

PREFACE.

and heart-warming piety, which springs from the distinguishing doctrines of the Bible, cordially believed and faithfully acted upon. Let every American woman study her biography. It is a legacy left for our benefit ; a portrait for our contemplation; an example to imitate; a token for encouragement and hope ; an earnest of that fulness in Christ Jesus, " if we do show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end, that we be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises."

CHAPTER I. DnijB

LET us visit the retired hamlet of Fishponds ; it is in the parish of Stapleton, four miles from Bristol, and possesses all the quiet and homely comfort of rural life in England. Among the humble homes of the hamlet, stands that of the Dominie, Mr. Jacob More, a man of piety and learning, who, though bred to larger expectations and an ampler inheritance, is the faithful and contented master of the parish school, the happy husband of his excellent Mary, the proud father of five little girls, and the thankful proprietot of valuable stock in domestic peace and enjoyment. He ia a devoted member of the English Church, and a loyal subject of good King George. The over-cast fortunes of his early days, and the mansion and estates of Wenhaston wrested from him in a suit at law, are well-nigh forgotten amid the manifold cares and busy interests of family rearing. Besides leading a flock of village urchins to nibble in the green pastures of knowledge, his five little girls follow the same friendly crook, and in their training, he beholds the buds and blossoms, as he hopes to realize the fruit, of his professional skill and parental fidelity.

With more enlarged views of female education than were common an hundred years ago, when external accomplishments were principally aimed at, good Mr. More, though not without a certain horror for a learned lady, determined to strengthen the minds of his daughters by a thorough course of study, and to enlarge their range of thought by well-selected reading : his object was to fit them for usefulness, in whatever sphere the Providence of God might direct their steps.

The home influences which surrounded this band of sisters were the purest and the best : not harassed by poverty, or stricken by luxury, but surrounded by the steady, yet gentle, pressure of ever doing, they were early taught the wonderful power of the " diligent hand ;" away from the fevered excitements, and fashionable trickery of city life, they only knew life through the simple and frugal habits of their parents, enriched and beautified by the clear sense and devout spirit of their mother, and by the classic tastes and well-stored mind of their father. There also, was the English culture, which every English child sucks

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as from its mother's milk, veneration for the time-worn and time-honored institutions of his fathers ; the warm glow of loyal affection clustering and centering around a royal household, the obedient heart doing homage to the lofty prerogatives of priestly power, joy and pride over his English soil dotted all over with monuments of historic truth and great men's doings. Those elements which shape the national character, and in a greater or less degree mark and strengthen the individual influence, are perhaps modified since an hundred years ago, although they must ever exercise a strong and decided influence over every true-born English child.

As the sisters passed from infancy to childhood, from childhood to maidenhood, the daily discipline of reading and grammar, of Latin and mathematics, was diversified and relieved by household labors and rural exercises.

To the studies, which fell within Mr. More's own province, he wished to add that of the French language, and for this purpose, when Mary, the eldest, was twelve, she went three times a week to Bristol to receive lessons from the most approved instructors, in order to fit her to become the teacher of her younger sisters : through hot and cold, through wet and dry, with a resolution which ever afterward was one of the most prominent traits in her character, Mary More trod unweariedly her solitary four miles' walk, studying with unflinching earnestness until she became a thorough master of the French, and spoke it with the fluency and elegance of a native.

While the eldest daughter was thus toiling up the bill of knowledge, Elizabeth, next her in age, was busy by her mother's side, plying the needle, turning the wheel, or adding to family comfort through the thousand unseen channels of simple duties and little kindnesses.

Then came -Sarah, brimful of wit and humor, whoso quaint sayings and lively answers were the delight of her companions, and often provoked a smile from the Dominie in his gravest and most thoughtful moods.

Having lost a valuable portion of his library on his mournful pilgrimage from the paternal estate, Mr. More was constrained to teach history in the more animated style of conversation and story ; and his own interest in Grecian sages and Roman heroes was revived and quickened by the bright eyes and earnest glance of his fourth little one, ever first on her father's knee, listening with a glowing face to the wonderful recitals which fell from his lips. While still regarded as " the little one," and long before she was thought worthy of the paternal teaching, the delighted parents were surprised to find her reading

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with intelligence and fluency, Laving slipped through the long apprenticeship of syllables and spelling, they hardly knew when, or how.

The little one had no mind to wait the slow notice of her elders. She learned while they spake one to another, as it were, from the droppings which fell unawares upon her eager and panting spirit ; a scrap of paper and an old pen are among her baby-house treasures ; in rude characters she attempts to put down the thoughts which spring up abundantly within her little bosom. Before her father's door was the high road which leadeth to the great city, Bristol, with its manifold and far-off wonders ; the child, perhaps, often sits and ponders whence it comes and whither it goes, eagerly watching the heavy carts, or the pillion equestrians as they occasionally pass and repass, — each suggesting a new fancy, or pleasing wonder ; as she ponders, she writes dainty thoughts. Behold, the little child of four years is a rhymer — perhaps a poet ! —

" This is the road to a great city Which is more populous than witty,"

is all that survives of this, her earliest essay, through the long lapse of years. Beside the poem, her fourth year

has other marvels for expectant and loving kindred. The 2 village curate awards her sixpence for catechism lessons well learned and perfectly recited : — her first earned sixpence, her own sixpence — how rich is the little one ! — rich in the curate's approval and fatherly hopes ! rich in promise ! Such were the first laurels of the Dominie's fourth, Hannah More, born in the year 1745.

Her father, delighted with the dawning abilities of the child, soon began to teach her his favorite Latin ; amazed at her rapid progress, he abandoned the work, lest Hannah should grow up a pedant ; this, however, he willingly resumed, not long after, at the entreaty of the child, seconded by the persuasions of the mother. The little Hannah was henceforth permitted to read, study and write, as her fancy led ; her scribblings were of divers sorts and kinds ; poems, essays, and stories issued from her pen, and were stored away to be read or recited to her sisters, whose encouragement and interest at that early age, fostered and improved her taste.

Patty was the youngest of the flock, loving and joyous, never jealous of the opening powers of her sister, for whom her admiration was only equalled by her warm sisterly love.

As the family grew up, its increasing wants outran its straitened means, when the elder sisters proposed to

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follow the profession of their father, arid try the experiment of a new boarding-school in the neighboring city.

Warm friends, who knew their worth, seconded the plan, and offered their patronage and influence : among their patrons was Mrs. Gwatkin, a lady of worth and high position, who then little dreamed that through the friendly aid she rendered to this band of teachers, her own naina should be handed to generations yet to come. The family circle was now broken up. Mary, Elizabeth, and Sarah left the paternal roof to try their fortunes in the great world : the school was opened ; scholars flocked to this fold, and the first year confirmed their hopes and encouraged farther efforts. With what solicitude and pride must the father have watched their progress in the same ordeal of daily struggles, in which he had already become a veteran ; and when at last at the age of twelve he suffered the little Hannah to escape from his nest, and become a pupil in the now prosperous school, he gave the strongest proof which a father could give, of confidence in, and respect for the abilities of his daughters for their new and responsible situation.

What a world of interest opened upon the gifted girl in the wider sphere of study and observation, in the diversity of character, in the new friendships and associa-

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tions, in the competitions and struggles of school life in the city. The green banks, the shady groves and soft quiet of Stapleton, gave place to the stirring and endless passing to and fro of people, of scenes, of labors : what a quickening of thought ! what incitements and stimulas ! She was not among strangers who, caring not, crowded her mind, or cramped her heart ; she was not a stray lamb in a strange fold, but affection still folded her in its bosom, defending her from harmful flatteries, and rejoicing in her opening and maturing powers. Her progress was brilliant and rapid, reflecting honor upon the school, and attracting the attention of some of the most cultivated minds in the city. Sir James Stonehouse, a friend and patron of her sisters, whose writings for the spiritual benefit of the sick have been extensively circulated in the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, became deeply interested in her welfare ; he took every opportunity of cultivating the young girl's friendship, and while yet a pupil, predicted her distinguished career.

Beside Sir James, Dr. Tucker, afterwards Dean of Gloucestershire, Mr. Peach, a man of extensive reading and fine taste, and Ferguson, the astronomer, then lecturing at Bristol, sought her society with delight, and were reckoned among her warmest friends. So great,

EARLY DAYS. 17

at that early period, were the charms of her conversation, that Dr. Woodward, her physician, a man of some eminence in his time, is said one day altogether to have forgotten she was his patient, while she regaled his ear with strains it seemed a privilege to hear, until half way down stairs, he suddenly recollected himself, exclaiming, " Bless me ! I forgot to ask the girl how she was !" •while he hastened back to her chamber to make the necessary inquiries.

Hannah's literary tastes showed themselves in her pastimes, as well as in her graver pursuits, for we learn that a favorite play at one time among herself and companions, was the gathering of little parties, where the talk should be wholly sustained in the language of Shakspeare, and " it was surprising," she said in after days, " how well the conversation was kept up." It must be remembered that children's literature had then no existence ; the Parent's Assistant, Sanford and Merton, Harry and Lucy, books which a few years afterward delighted and quickened the minds of the young, had not then appeared, nor had Mrs. Barbauld, or Mrs. Trimmer, yet employed their pens in the juvenile department, at once so unambitious and yet so useful and important. Children read then — if

they read at all — books which their elders read and loved, 2*

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and Shakspeare, it seems, must have been among the choice reading of young Hannah More : this unwonted appreciation of, and intimate acquaintance with his writings, was the means of imparting to one of her earliest journeys a zest and enjoyment which few, at her early age, could have been supposed to feel.

In company with some friends, she visited Stratfordupon-the-Avon, the birth-place of the immortal and world-renowned poet, and brought away a branch of the raulberry-tree growing in his garden, said to have been planted by his own hand ; this she had wrought into sugar-tongs and presented to Mrs. Gwatkin, with the verse —

" I kissed the sacred shrine where Shakspeare lay, And bore this relic of my bard away : Where shall I place it, Phoebus ? — where 'tis due, Apollo answered : and I send it — you."

At seventeen a small work issued from her pen, entitled "The Search after Happiness," a pastoral drama, which, with an ever-grateful sense of Mrs. Gwatkin's kindness to her family, she dedicated to that lady. Acting plays was at that time one branch of boarding-school instruction, and this was written to take the place of those,

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of which class there were not a few, not always inculcating the purest sentiments, or the most exalted character : however well it may have answered its purpose, and however great its literary merits were then regarded by admiring and expectant friends, it can hardly now be considered prophetic of anything but the high moral aim which it was the tendency of her maturer efforts to inculcate and to enforce.

Unexpected success had crowned the efforts of the sisters : the faithful and judicious management of the home department, together with the superior course of instruction given in the school, gave it a deservedly high position in the community, and attracted pupils from the most distant parts of the kingdom. The sisters determined now to enlarge their domain, and for this purpose they planned and built a large and commodious house in Park-street, where, notwithstanding their ampler accommodations, twice the number of applicants appeared than could possibly be admitted.

Nor were they unmindful of the comfort, and increasing infirmities of their now only remaining parent. Mr. More, bereft of his family, was by their filial love removed to a pleasant house in the city, and provided with two female servants to attend him, where he passed a green old age, in the enjoyment of his garden, his library, his friends, and, above all, the daily visits and delightful companionship of his five excellent daughters.

After having completed her studies as pupil, Hannah retained her connection in the school as teacher. Beloved and respected in no common degree, the younger sisters were often invited by their pupils to visit their homes during the vacation recesses. They were, at this time, on an intimate footing with the Misses Turner, two older members of the school, and were often invited to accompany them to Belmont, the residence of their cousin, Edward Turner, Esq., six miles from Bristol. The fine taste and cultivated mind of Hannah made a strong impression on the host, who delighted to consult her in his projected improvements, and followed her suggestions in many of the embellishments made at this time on his estate ; — nor did she fail to find themes for her muse in the shady nooks and green winding ways of beautiful Belmont. On the summit of a hill reached by a steep and rugged path through the woods, in whose deep seclusion we may suppose she sometimes loved to linger, there remained, long after her death, a board over-written with a little poem, to inspire the weary pilgrim with hope and resolution through his tedious and rugged

EARLY DAYS. 21

way, suggested by the nature of the scenery around her. In erecting a monument to a departed friend, Mr. Turner was indebted to his guest for the inscription it bears, and which afterward appeared in her works under the title " Inscription on a Cenotaph," and it is no matter of surprise, that one so fitted to sympathize with him in his tastes and pursuits, should have engaged his affection, and, for a time, at least, have wooed him from his love of single life. Though twice her age, for Hannah was now nearly twenty-two, he sought her hand ; the suit was favorably regarded, and the bridal preliminaries were completed, when the current of true love, not always smoothly flowing, drifted them apart, and sundered the tie ; nor does it appear that Hannah ever afterwards freighted her bark on the same dangerous element.

The gentleman never ceased to regard her with respect and interest, and his first toast every day, whether alone, or in society, ever was " Hannah More." In after years, their long-suspended intercourse was renewed, and continued with the utmost cordiality until his death, when he bequeathed to her a thousand pounds. There are no tearful regrets to bestow over this severed tie, for Mrs. Turner might have deprived the world of the brilliant career and valuable services of Miss Hannah More. She x

afterwards received an offer of marriage from Dr. Langborne, vicar of Blagdon, author of several works, a man of lively wit and cultivated intellect, with whom she became acquainted while in quest of health and strength on the coast of Somersetshire. Behold her on the beach, sometimes on a pillion behind her servant, sometimes accoutered for a walk in company with the Doctor, sometimes surrounded by a group of admiring friends, drawn thither by the charms of her brilliant and animated conversation. Though a rejected suitor, the Doctor maintained a poetical and literary correspondence with the lady until his death, which took place in the prime of manhood, although not before his usefulness had become blighted by irregularities and misfortune.

Thus far have we caught passing glimpses of Hannah More in the dear seclusion of her birth-place, the busy retreat of her sisters' school, and the agreeable circle of Bristol society, where her simple manners, her good sense, and the unaffected friendliness of her heart, gave an added lustre to those brilliant powers and that ready wit, which, afterwards, made her a welcome and honored guest in the most elegant and refined circles of the metropolis. How much is there in her early life of which the few and scanty records that remain, fail to inform

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us ! How many an earnest mother would rend the veil which conceals her childhood to learn the secret springs of that Christian nurture, which enabled her to pass nnseduced and unscathed through the trying ordeal of folly, of fashion, and of fame which awaited her. The glitter and pomp of fashionable life never seems to have dimmed the clearness of her moral vision, or prevented her from making a rational estimate of its maxims, habits, and pursuits; there ever accompanied her an integrity of moral consciousness, a hidden strength, which stronger than breast-plate or shield, defended her from the corrupting influence of flattery, and enabled her to maintain that singleness and purity of character, and to foster those religious convictions which formed the beauty and excellence of her riper years.

Chapter II

BRILLIANT minds centre around this period of English literature. The splendid diction of Burke had kindled a fresh glow around " The Sublime and Beautiful ;" the Deserted Village was surrounded by admiring groups : Johnson fed and fattened the world of letters from the storehouse of his strong and affluent mind ; Sir Joshua Reynolds was in the zenith of his popularity; and Garrick, the enchanter of the English, ruled the stage.

London society was rife with genius, wit, and learning : the famous Blue Stocking Club was then in its glory, and its accomplished patrons figured in the most elegant and refined circles of that day. This gathering, which has unwittingly given a name of implied reproach to women of literary tastes and pursuits, was composed of persons distinguished for wit and talent, who met at each other's houses, without ceremony or supper, to enjoy the charm

Introduction To London Society. 25

of each other's society, without the interloping aid of cards or dancing, as we learn from a little poem entitled the Bas Bleu, written by Hannah More a few years after —

" Long was society o'erruu By Whist, that desecrating Hun, Long did Quadrille despotic sit, That Yaiidal of colloquial wit, And conversation's setting light Lay deep obscured in Gothic night ; At length the mental shades decline ; Colloquial wit hegius to shine ; Genius prevails, and conversation Emerges into reformation."

An object befitting the cultivated minds of that day, when speech, we may suppose " to have been the golden harvest that followed the flowing of thought :" an object too which it might not be amiss to revive, if, in the feverish reading, and rapid flight of news, people can pause and think ; for, without thought, that healthy digestment of things worthy to be known, conversation must soon lose its freshness and originality, and degenerate into mere news-telling and literary gossip.

Among the admired women of that circle ranks Mrs.

Elizabeth Montagu, who acquired much celebrity as the 3

ZU II A N N A H M O R E.

author of an "Essay on the Genius of Shakspeare," published in 1769, of which Cowper says, "The learning, the good sense, the sound judgment, and the wit displayed in it, fully justify, not only my compliment, but all compliments, either that have already been paid to her talents, or shall be paid hereafter :" but while the Essay which made her conspicuous to her contemporaries has passed away, she became better known in this country by a volume of her delightful letters, which charmed the reading world fifty years ago. Beautiful in youth, and left in possession of an ample fortune at the death of her husband, she retained, until the latest period of life, a grace of person and manner, which made her splendid mansion at Berkeley Square a centre of the most polished society in the metropolis. By her side, behold Elizabeth Carter, accounted one of the most learned ladies of her time, the long-loved and intimate companion of Mrs. Montagu. At twenty-nine, Dr. Johnson, whom no one would venture to call an indiscriminate admirer of the sex, in a fit of unusual gal'antry, composed a Greek epigram to her praise ; and she was almost the only lady, through long years of intercourse, whom he treated with uniform attention and civility. For the encouragement of the young, who are more ready to question their abilities than to exercise

them, and for the benefit of teachers who are impatient of progress which they are not faithful enough to secure, let it be added, that Mr. Carter, in early days Elizabeth's instructor, became so wearied and disheartened by the dulness and apparent stupidity of his daughter, that he abandoned the task of teaching her, while she, with a resolution which nothing could quench, continued her studies until she became a thorough master of the learned languages. Dr. Johnson, in speaking of a celebrated Greek scholar, said he understood Greek better than anybody else, except Elizabeth Carter: the Bible, her choicest book, she was accustomed to read in Hebrew : the fishermen of Deal, her place of residence except during her long absences at London, respectfully regarded her as the almanac maker, that being the highest conception they could form of the abilities and power of their distinguished townswoman. Her biography may be found in some of outolder libraries, together with " Mrs. Chapone's Letters to Young Ladies," a famous book in its day, upon which the dust of years has already gathered. Xo lady could afford to be without its wise counsel and judicious guidance : anxious and careful mothers gave it to their young daughters ; and so popular was the aid which it rendered to parents, that it became the maternal ancestor of a long

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line of " Letters to the Young," it being through no want of advisers or lack of advice, if the young of our generation are not vastly wiser and better than their elders were. Here is Mrs. Chapone, one of the Blue Stocking coterie, with another, no less distinguished in her day, Hon. Frances Boscawen, widow of Admiral Boscawen, the warm and appreciating friend of literary worth and rising genius. With her comes Mrs. Vesey, to whom, in pleasing remembrance of the delightful gatherings so often enjoyed at her house, Miss More dedicated her Bas Bleu poem,

"Vesey! of sense the judge and friend, Awhile my idle strains attend."

Brilliant as these circles were, enriched by the learning of Johnson, the wit of Garrick, the taste of Reynolds, the elegance of Mrs. Montagu, and the moral worth of Elizabeth Carter, they were yet to receive a delightful accession in the gifted woman, who, in company with her sister Sarah, left Bristol on a visit to London, in the winter of 1773, and began, as she says, for the first time, to " know something of the hurry, bustle, dissipation, and nonsensical flutter of town life."

Her reputation had already preceded her, and Hannah More is soon a guest at the table of Sir Joshua Reynolds,

Introduction To London Society. 29

whose handsome establishment in Leicester-fields was the resort of the gay and learned. Hosts of friends surrounded his hospitable board, drawn thither quite as much by the genial warmth of his spirit as by the world-wide reputation of his genius, and the monuments of his industry and art. His sister Frances presided over his house, with whom Hannah was speedily on an intimate footing. Miss Reynolds, if we may credit a contemporary critic, seems not to have been a very skilful housewife, or to have served her brother's table with an especial reference to order or arrangement, there often being a deficiency of knives, forks, plates, and glasses ; yet their friends long loved the memory of those social hours, which, after the sun had set that gave them warmth, no one ever attempted to revive or imitate.