Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 11.djvu/390

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382


NOTES AND QUERIES. [9* s. XL MAY IB, MOB.


living characters for Phillips; and all his friends make wry faces, peeping out of the pillory of his advertisemental notes."

In a foot-note to this passage Mr. E. H. Coleridge mentions Dyer's

" gossiping account of the early history and writings of * Mr. Robert Southey ' which appeared in ' Public Characters' for 1799-1800, a humble forerunner of 'Men of the Time,' published by Richard Phillips, the founder of the Monthly Magazine, and after- wards knighted as a sheriff of the City of London. Possibly Coleridge was displeased at the mention of his name in connection with Pantisocracy, and still more by the following sentence : ' The three young poetical friends, Lovel, Southey, and Cole- ridge, married three sisters. Southey is attached to domestic life, and fortunately was very happy in his matrimonial connection.' "

In another letter to Southey (early in 1800) Coleridge writes :

"Phillips would be very glad to engage you to write a school book for him, the History of Poetry in all nations, about 400 pages ; but this, too, must have your name. He would give sixty pounds."

In another letter to Southey, dated 18 Feb- ruary, 1800, Coleridge says :

"Phillips is a good-for-nothing fellow, but what of that ? He will give you sixty pounds, and advance half the money now, for a book you can do in a fortnight, or three weeks at farthest. 1 would advise you not to give it up so hastily. Phillips eats no flesh. I observe, wittily enough, that whatever might be thought of innate ideas, there could be no doubt to a man who had seen Phillips of the existence of innate beef." 'Letters of S. T. Coleridge,' edited by E. H. Coleridge, 1895, vol. i. pp. 317, 325, 327.

This is an allusion to the corpulence of the vegetarian knight.

There is an unexplained reference to Phillips in Campbell's ' Life of Coleridge,' 1894, p. 119: "Another book on which he [Coleridge] had received an advance from [Sir] Richard Phillips was also abandoned, and the money refunded."

In quoting the unfavourable expressions referring to Sir Richard Phillips I by no means endorse them. George Borrow's sketch is evidently a caricature ; some gibes were due to political animosity, and others to the dislike that is generally felt for persons who hold views differing from those commonly received, and who have the courage to lay down and steadfastly adhere to a rule of life of their own.*

The reference to the articles in the Cam- bridge Intelligencer suggests the possibility that some of Coleridge's gold dust may still be lying perdu in the dusty files of that paper.

  • A biographical notice and estimate of Phillips

will be found in my ' Stray Chapters ' (p. 237) and in Howard Williams's 'Ethics of Diet' (second edition, p. 414).


It is remarkable that the man who in 1794 was indebted to his "ingenious friend " Cole- ridge for permission to give to the world the poet's fine monody on Chatterton should in 1809 have thought it fitting to indulge in an attack so violent and so unjust as that which appeared in the Satirist.

WILLIAM E. A. AXON.

Manchester.

ARCHBISHOP TEMPLE. (See ante, p. 261.)

MY notes relating to Archbishop Temple's family were supplied by his relations, chiefly by his sister Netta, who was merely positive that her ancestors the Stows were highly connected.

Boswell, writing to congratulate his friend William Johnston Temple, 31 May, 1779, concerning his monetary affairs, advises him: " Do not delay turning your land into money as soon as you can," and adds : " You and I and the worthy Johnson will walk in the King's Park," &c.

With permission I will supplement my paper. Launcelot Turnbull, in 1709, sold the capital messuage called Allerden, alias Rough Chester (with the hamlet called Unthank), to Alexander Johnston, of Newcastle, gent., from whom it descended to his great-grand- son William Johnston Temple, clerk, of Mam- head, co. Devon, and afterwards of Penryn (Gluvias), Cornwall, upon whose death it was purchased by Adam Sibbit (Raine, ' Hist. N. Durham,' p. 220). It appears that Bos well's advice was unheeded, and that W. J. Temple's father, William, Mayor of Berwick, or grand- father, George Temple, married the heiress of Alexander Johnston. The register of Berwick or Newcastle might determine.

Wilmot Vaughan, third Viscount Fethers and Baron Lisburne (died 19 January, 1766), married Elizabeth, the eldest daughter of Thomas Watson, Mayor of Berwick ; and Fen wick Stow, Mayor of Berwick, married her sister, Margaret Watson.

Wilmot, fourth viscount, created Earl of Lisburne, 18 July, 1776, was M.P. for Berwick. He married Elizabeth, sole daughter and heiress of John Gascoyne Nightingale, of Mamhead, co. Devon, and died 6 Januar} r , 1800.

William, son of Fenwick Stow, married Anne, sister of Sir Francis Blake, of Twisell Castle, Durham. Lord Frederick Henry Howard, son of Henry, sixth Duke of Norfolk, married Anne's aunt, Catherine Blake ; and John Trevanion, of Cornwall, married Anne Blake, another aunt.

The motto of ' N. & Q.' suggests a digres-