RECOLLECTIONS BY A LADY. 353 



Thackeray's Lectures on the Georges, which he had just 

 given in Edinburgh. Hugh Miller had not heard them. 

 Thought Thackeray too like Swift in his estimate of 

 human nature. Spoke of the admirable imitation of the 

 style of the writers of Queen Anne's time in Esmond. 

 A propos of Thackeray's comments on the " First Gentle- 

 man of Europe," he referred to the complete change in 

 the use of the word "genteel" formerly used by the 

 well-bred to signify good-breeding and now only vulgar 

 or ironical in its use. 



' He showed us some newspapers sent to him from 

 America, with an attack on him, in the American 

 fashion, for an Article on " Dred " which had appeared 

 in the Witness. He had not written the article (which 

 was a laudatory one), and said he would not have so ex- 

 pressed himself. I said I had been sure that article was 

 not written by him, but that I had been much struck 

 by one on the immoral doctrines brought forward by 

 American divines on behalf of slavery. It was written 

 by him. He said it was most remarkable how these old 

 doctrines, striking at the root of all morals, were brought 

 up again in a new dress to serve a new cause. The 

 conversation then turned on the chances of the continu- 

 ance of the White supremacy in the Southern States. He 

 thought the chances all in favour of the Whites from the 

 superiority of race. From all he could learn there was 

 no man of mark among the Blacks or Half-castes. 

 Frederick Douglas was their most remarkable man. He 

 had met him, and thought but little of him. He com- 

 pared the supremacy of the Whites to that of the Eng- 

 lish over the Irish in Cromwell's time and afterwards 

 with this difference, that Cromwell's despotic supremacy 

 was exercised with a good conscience, however sternly, 

 while the immoral doctrines to which he had referred 



VOL. ii. 23 



