1823.] 



[ 49 ] 



STEPHENSIANA. 



No. XVI. 



The late Alexander Stephens, Esq. (/ Park House, Chelsfa, devoted an active and 

 well-spint life in the collection of Anecdotes of his contemporaries, and generally entered in a 

 book the collections of the passing day ; — these collections tee hare purchased, and propose to 

 present a selection from them to our readers. As Editor of the Annual Obituary, and many 

 other biographical wo'ks, the Author may probably have incorporated some of these scraps; 

 but the greater part are unpublished, and all stand alone as cabinet-pictures of men anA 

 manners, worthy of a place in a literary misct llany. 



EDMONSON, MOWBRAY-HERALD. 



OF this person it is related, that 

 having^, in his genealogy of a cer- 

 tain peer, related that he suffered in 

 an action for aim. con. he was sent for 

 by the representative of tlie family 

 alluded to, and threatened to be pro- 

 secuted for contempt of the House of 

 Peers, if he gave not up his authority 

 for such an apparently cruel as- 

 sertion. Edmonson endeavoured to 

 remember M'here, or how, he had 

 gained this information; but to no pur- 

 pose: he waited upon the peer, and, 

 deprecating his forbearance, solicited 

 forgiveness. This was for the present 

 refused, but a longer time granted, 

 when formal proceedings would be 

 commenced against him, could he not 

 find whence he had borrowed this 

 charge. Heavily proceeded home- 

 ward the herald ; when in the course of 

 a week light dawned upon him, and he 

 found, in a printed document among 

 his literary lumber, not only the case 

 stated in the manner which he had put 

 it, but, coupled with it, other circum- 

 stances, which he thought too horrible 

 to print ; for, in this authenticatt^d ac- 

 count, the father was represented as 

 the seducer of his son's wife. This 

 altered the case ; and, when he prompt- 

 ly tendered the book to his lordship 

 which had caused all his uneasiness, 

 instead of a threat of criminal prose- 

 cution, he received the most grateful 

 thanks from the peer for his editorial 

 forbearance. — Poor Edmonson had, 

 soon after, the greater misfortune than 

 this, — a son dying by his own hand. 



THE GRANDMOTHER OF QUEENS 

 MAIIY AND ANNE. 



About the year 1G25 there came to 

 London a poor country-wench, to get 

 em|)loynicnt ; and, notliing bfctter of- 

 fering, .she engaged lieiself to convey 

 beer by the gallon, on her head, from 

 a brewhousc. Jieing lively and hand- 

 some, her master fancied her, and 

 ina<le her his wife, — soon after leaving 

 Ikt a widow, with considerable pro- 

 perty. Unable to read <>r write, she 



.Monthly Mag. No. :378, 



called in the aid of one Hyde, an 

 attorney, who, liking her fortune, made 

 her his wife. By her Hyde had chil- 

 dren ; and afterwards, being returned 

 to Parliament, was made Chancellor, 

 and created Earl of Clarendon. James 

 Duke of York having debauched one 

 of his daughters, the Earl compelled 

 him to marry her ; and the fruits were 

 the Queens Mary and Anne, whose 

 grandmother was, of course, the very 

 country-wench of sixty years pre- 

 ceding. 



SIR GEORGE BEAUMONT. 



His fortune was originally very 

 small; but he ased to pay a visit once 

 a-year to an old uncle, who resided iii 

 Essex, and T7ho had been in trade : 

 with him he sank the polite arts, and 

 became a mere cit, and entered into 

 his greatest deliRlits, — smoking, and 

 drinking ale. With his nncle he would 

 thus murder a week. When 'he citi- 

 zen died, he left Sir George more than 

 100,000?. The artist laid out about 

 2,000/. on his house at the corner of 

 Grosvenor-square ; but afterwards be- 

 came very parsimonious. 



VOLNEY. 



Volney, one of the greatest French 

 literary characters, had to his preno- 

 men Constantin Frangois Crassehoeufi 

 During his youth, which was spent in 

 the Colleges of Ancients and Angers, 

 he was known by the name of Boisgi- 

 rais, which his father had given him, 

 as burlesque reflections were made on 

 a name so singular as Crasseboeuf. 

 Tlie eminent abilities he w as endowed 

 with, no strong bent had turned into 

 one channel, till they were displayed 

 and illustrated, on occasion of a small 

 property (about fjOOO francs,) which 

 fell to him. This gave weight to the 

 sentiments and quick feelings that 

 nature had implanted, — developing, 

 also, the magic intluenee that philoso- 

 ))hy had on his mind. Hence the 

 transition from still life to the higher 

 and more interesting sphere of a 

 voyager was agreeable and nattiral. 

 Egypt and Syria were then but little 

 H known, 



