:o Mtr.:oirs of the late lii^ht lion. C/'iarks James Fox. [Oc(. I , 



Jcnts ; a Shciidiin, ti'.e luflrc of ^^■!).J(■e 

 public character luis tlirovva all the ir- 

 regularities anfl fcceiilncities of private 

 lilie into (hade; and \vho, by a rare union 

 of wit, arj;uii)Cr.t, and eloquence, has by 

 tiUTis ridiculed, confuted, and .difniaycu, 

 the cnenues of tlio public vVea!. 



This, wliich n>ay be termed th.e Thehan 

 ln»d, aifo numbered iu its ranks a Coke, 

 a Plumor, and a liyng, and withftood tor 

 R long fcr'.cs of yenrs ail the arts of cor- 

 Kiiption 1111(1 ail the allurements of oiiicc 

 on one baud, vvhiie it braved ail the ter- 

 rors of ];ower on tiie otlici-. 



No priviite mar., iiucc t'nc time of Crom- 

 ivell, has ai'(cd fo coulpiciious a part in 

 F,ni;laud as diaries Fox. But the fornier 

 I'.caded armies, commanded fleets, ex- 

 liriufted a tresifury, and overlm-ned tlie 

 flatc ; ivhilc the hitter, by means of the 

 vienx divinior — by talents alone, attained 

 a high dc_:2;rcc of authority, and fccmed 

 l)orii exprefsly to ferve and to favc his 

 coinitry. • 



It was aQuredly fomethina; out of the 

 ordinary courfe of events to behold the 

 junior branch of a new family furrounded 

 by the liulVels, the Howards, and the 

 Cavendiflie.-, dire6tin|j! all that was vene- 

 rable among our patricians ; and althouq,h 

 tleflitutc of the oifts of fortune bimfcif, 

 commanding; the fervices of the mod 

 T^ealtby (J the ariilocracy. By the na- 

 tion in general he was belove(l ; by tlic 

 inhabitants of Wcflniinfier he « as adored 

 as '■' the man of the people ;" f(;r every 

 one confidercd hiin in the light cither of 

 a benefactor or a jirotcctor, while tlie 

 frowns of royalty, which would ha\e ai> 

 palled and viihercd an ordinary man, 

 fcived only to rtndcr liiin more conip!* 

 cuous, who, in tlie energetic languacre of 

 Dr. Jdhnfon, "had divided the nation 

 with the king." 



Amidlt our forrows for the lofs of an 

 individual, let ns iliil glory in the iiiicrties 

 of our country. Wlicre del'potilhi reisns, 

 kingdoms arc <:eiicridiy governed by tiie 

 bitfe arl.s of courtiers, or the iutcrefied 

 Ci'.priccs of miltrcffes ; but in a free Ibite, 

 genius, united with eloquence, is capab'H 

 of producing the moil bcneiicial, as well 

 as the molt wonderful, eifo^'lp. 



Modern lliiiory has been too prodiijal 

 of its praife ;om«n of the fwoid; and he 

 v>ho has contjuored in one or two battles, 

 lias been fondly cro" ned with victorious 

 l:iarcls, and gi-ected with applauding 

 I'lpanw. The ancients, with tlidr ultial 

 difcernraent, voted civic crowns to thofe 

 who luid faved the lives of their fellow 

 citizens. — How many crowns arc due 



then to the man, w ho lius always wifhefl 

 to cconomixe the blood and trealure cf 

 the nation; who llieltercd us from the- 

 iiorrors of t\-io unneccli'ary wars ; and 

 who iias contributed iiot a little to Ihoricii 

 the duration of tliree otiiers, which v.oiild 

 never have taken place coiiid his warning 

 voice have been lieard, or his prophecy- 

 ing fpirit been Idlened to ! 



So far as concerns bis own elory, Fox 

 has lived fufiicieritly long ; but his exiii- 

 etice lias been far too iliort for tiiC sjood 

 not only of Ins own countrv, but of Eu- 

 rope. It is to be lamented that he v.as 

 overtaken by a mjrtal difeai'c, at a nio- 

 mcnt when he had laid the foundation- 

 ftone of ci Temple dcdicat<:d to Peace. 

 Had be been fpared but a year, perhaps 

 but a few months, longer, he mipiilt have 

 completed his brilliant career, by reltoi- 

 ing tlie eonftitulion to its ancient fplen- 

 dour; by an annihilation of the disgrace- 

 ful tralilc iu the reprefentaiion of the 

 people; and by expunging from the fta*- 

 tute-books tbofc new-fangled atts which 

 disfigure and difgrace it.* 



The clofc of his lite was to the full as 

 radiant as its meridian fplendor. The 

 three laft public acts were worthy of the 

 man — of the hero. By one, he laboured 

 to repair the outrages of war; to obtain 

 a breatliing-lime to our allies ; and by an 

 cxtenlioii of our commerce, to alTord, if 

 necefl'iry, to his native country all tlie 

 advantages of a renovated conteft, v^'itli- 

 ont the danger of drying up the fourccs 

 of licr wenlth. By another, he attempted 

 to remove -all legal difabilivies ariling ont 

 of religion, to unite more clofely theinte- 

 refts of Ireland with thofe of England; 

 ar.il thu.<, by an extenlion of conunou 

 rights, and ii participation of c(jmmon 

 beneiits, wifely to render tluit wb.ich lias 

 always beeii conlidered as the vieakeft, 

 the lirongcf; portion of the empire. 



By a third and hill, he obtained a fo- 

 Icmn declaration from both lioufes of 

 Parhament, for the abolition of the Ilave- 

 trade ; and thus clofed his life with a mca- 

 fure, which while it refcues humanity froni' 

 reproach, Ihall teach thoufands yet un- 

 born to venerate the name of tlieir De- 

 LivniKP. ! ' 



In his perfon and manner, iiVIr. Fox 

 fomewhat rclcmbled the fage of Ithac.i : 

 lie was ihort and corpulent, his cheft vvas 

 capacious, his llioulders broad, liis hair 



* Thefe atts of puMic duty noiv rerr.aia 

 to be performed by his collc.iijucs and fucccf- 

 fur3 ; and it may be expeifted that they v/iU 

 not difappoint the expedt&tions of the country.' 



(lurk 



