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Biographical Memoirs of Eminent Persons. 



[Fan. 



bar. He had pretty well exhausted the pa- 

 tience of most of his acquaintance by bor- 

 rowing money from them. His finances 

 were so low at Ir.st, that there is reason to 

 believe he had often gone without a din- 

 ner. In the year 1822, he lodged in Upper 

 Baker-street ; and having got considerably 

 in debt at his lodgings, he was necessitated 

 to quit them, resigning his personal property, 

 books, and other things, in liquidation. He 

 w?s now bereft of a lodging had formed no 

 plan for the future, and had to set out in 

 life anew. It was at this time that the late 

 Ugo Foscolo stood in need of a translator 

 and corrector of English, and Graham un- 

 dertook the task. He was taken into the 

 house of an old acquaintance, until he could 

 turn round a little ; and this individual 

 promised him some additional employment. 

 Having' no money, he went on for a short 

 time very diligently. He wrote several ar- 

 ticles in the principal magazines, and got 

 more to do from the booksellers. It hap- 

 pened that one day he received a few pounds, 

 which he was bound to pay over where he 

 had been so hospitably sheltered, for ad 

 vances made to him. He received the 

 amount, and disappeared. Having been 

 tempted with it to the gambling-table, he 

 had lost it, and was ashamed to return. This 

 debt, however, he afterwards liquidated by 

 his labour. 



It was soon after this that his quarrel took 

 place with Ugo Foscolo. The residence of 

 the latter was pretty notorious for the cha- 

 racter of his two servant-girls ; one, if not 

 both, of them, was reputed to be rather too 

 intimate with her master. She, however, 

 showed unequivocal marks of not disliking 

 Graham, who, on the other hand, had no 

 antipathy to the intrigue. Foscolo charged 

 him with it face to face, in one of his fu- 

 rious manners and moods ; high language 

 ensued, and Foscolo was placed in such a 

 situation, that if he had not called out 

 Graham, he must have lost caste. The 

 parties met near Primrose-hill, attended by 

 two gentlemen of the law. The combatants 

 threw up for the first fire, which was won 

 by Graham ; he not being the challenger, 

 and having given the immediate affront, 

 now fired wide of his mark, to give 

 Foscolo satisfaction by allowing him the 

 fire. The latter refused to fire, or say 

 he was satisfied, notwithstanding the mag- 

 nanimity of his antagonist, but wanted to 

 enter into argument, which Graham re- 

 fused to hear, and demanded if he chose 

 to take the satisfaction he required ? Fos- 

 colo still would not fire. Graham and his 

 second then left the ground. Foscolo, whose 

 love of truth was never very remarkable, 

 always asserted that he would not fight his 

 antagonist, he had such a contempt for him. 

 If this were true, why did he go out at all ? 

 The seconds of both parties are still living, 

 and can answer that the above account of 

 this affair is in substance correct. 



We next find the subject of the present 



article undertaking the office of reporter to 

 the newspapers ; at which vocation, though 

 he had no previous experience, he became 

 tolerably expert. He also attended the 

 theatres, wrote literary criticisms, and trans- 

 lated foreign papers, principally Spanish, 

 realizing several hundreds a year. After 

 some time employed in this manner, he 

 undertook the editorship of the " Weekly 

 Museum," for Messrs. Whittaker. Not- 

 withstanding the time required to conduct 

 such a publication, he continued his report- 

 ing also, and translated the Spanish news- 

 papers for the " Courier," realizing at the 

 rate of GOO or 700 a year. At most places 

 of dissipation he found time occasionally to 

 be present during his moments of leisure, 

 but continued tolerably steady, until the 

 Museum was given up, after he had con- 

 ducted it about nine months. His rapi- 

 dity, acuteness, and easy style, were far 

 more conspicuous than his depth. His 

 knowledge was more varied than profound. 

 He was able to go towards every question a 

 given distance ; and, when he pleased, he 

 moved superior to any of his hebdomadal 

 contemporaries, upon most subjects of tem- 

 porary interest. 



It was as a public speaker, however, that 

 Graham most shone. Very few I have 

 ever heard surpassed him ; and I have 

 heard most in the senate and at the bar. 

 There is an institution among Templars 

 called the " Academics," where they meet 

 to oppose each other, in wordy war, on given 

 questions, and to make the " worse appear 

 the better reason." It is held in Chancery- 

 lane. Of this society Graham was a mem- 

 ber ; and there are living witnesses of his 

 powers as a speaker, who will confess he was 

 rarely outshone. These brilliant proofs of his 

 talent were little shewn during the latter year 

 or two of his life. He seemed, not long after 

 his editorship of the Museum ceased, to 

 plunge to a depth he had never before gone 

 in dissipation, and then his mental exertions 

 ceased to be voluntary ; they changed into 

 forced obligations for money, performed 

 without spirit only because they were neces- 

 sary to obtain him bread. 



While still making it his business to re- 

 port for the newspapers, another temptation 

 was flung before him, v/hich accelerated his 

 ruin. It was in his character to go to the 

 utmost excess in his sensual pursuits, not so 

 much for the objects themselves, as from 

 some collateral motives which variety or ca- 

 price might place before him. At one of 

 those scenes of infamy, at theArgyle Rooms, 

 called masquerades, and which seem got up 

 with the view of quacking off miserable 

 wine, Graham had sought an hour's (to him 

 novel) dissipation. He there saw a female, 

 accompanied by others of her class, who was 

 much admired for her personal attractions, 

 and had been once under the protection of a 

 man of fortune. He was successful in win. 

 ning her good graces, and his vanity was 

 pleased. lie did not love her, but her pos- 



