THE BEL VOIR CIRCLE 



what incongruous figure, among the fashionable folk. That 

 Crabbe did not find himself out of place may be attributed 

 to the fact that the " barbarians " of that day did not cut 

 themselves off from books with the same resolution as their 

 successors of to-day, and it was still thought the right thing 

 to mingle a little flavour of classical culture and literary 

 taste with your sport and your wine. It was part of the 

 education of a gentleman to know Horace and Virgil and 

 even to quote them at times. Men still wrote books and 

 read them, and there were libraries in the great houses which 

 were valued and even used. A successful author was some- 

 thing of a personage in the early part of the century, and 

 Crabbe was acknowledged to hold a very high place in 

 English poetry, though Byron, Shelley, Coleridge and Words- 

 worth were still unknown to fame. It is, however, a curious 

 illustration of a trait in the poet's character that, as he had 

 been drawn to Robert Thoroton, so he liked Brummell, 

 whom he has distinguished among the guests by favourable 

 notice, and of whom his son and biographer has recorded 

 that "my father was particularly pleased and amused with 

 the conversation of the celebrated Beau Brummell," ^ 



This may be taken not so much as a testimony in Brum- 

 mell's favour as an indication that Brummell knew how to 

 flatter, and that Crabbe snuffed the fragrant incense with 

 approval. At once parson and poet, how could he do other- 

 wise ? 



The link that connected all the various elements of this 

 society was the hunt, since after all, hunting is an impulse 

 of human nature of longer descent than any other, and 

 belongs to a stage in our evolution when society and literature 

 were represented by tribal dances and hieroglyphics. Many 

 and various were the groups of distinguished men who 

 succeeded each other in lordly procession through the stately 

 rooms of the Castle, but most of them visited the kennel, 

 attended the meet, and joined in the after-dinner talk on the 

 events and incidents of the hunting field. 



^ The Life of George Brummell, by Captain Jesse, vol. i., p. 239. 



123 



