ROMILLY. 



ment," fays this excellent writer, " is much more efficacious 

 than any feverily of example for the prevention of crimes. 

 So evident is the truth of this maxim, that if it v.'ere pof- 

 fible that punifhment, as the confequence of guilt, could be 

 reduced to an abfolute certainty, a very (light penalty 

 would be fufficient to prevent almoft every fpecies of crime, 

 except thofe which arife from fudden gufts of ungoveiTiable 

 paffion. If the reftoration of the property ftolen, and only 

 a few weeks', or even a few days' imprifonment, were the 

 unavoidable confequence of theft, no theft would ever be 

 committed." 



Sir Samuel, having aftively concurred in the abolition 

 of the fiave-trade, could not forbear exprefling his mdig- 

 nation, when the houfe of commons, in the year 1814, 

 took into confideration that article in the treaty of peace 

 which allowed of the profecution of the flave-trade for a 

 period of five years, and when he found that the minif- 

 ters of this country had acceded to any convention, in 

 which this was a prominent ftipulation. " If," fays the 

 biographer whofe article we are citing, " the king of 

 France has relaxed on his part, and declared the trade in 

 human beings to be annihilated, fo far as concerns his own 

 dominions, it is to fir Samuel Romilly, and thofe who fup- 

 ported him on this occafion, that we are to attribute the 

 change." 



The fubjeft of this memoir foon afterwards diftinguifhed 

 himfelf by his oppofition to the appointment of a new judge 

 and tribunal for facilitating public bufinefs and alleviat- 

 ing the labours of the lord-chancellor. This he confidered 

 and reprefented as an innovation, from which neither the 

 chancellor, nor the fuitors of his court, nor the pubHc in 

 general, would eventually derive any advantage. In a pam- 

 phlet under the title of " Objections to the Projed; of 

 creating a Vice-chancellor of England," he announced to 

 the public his opinions on this fubjetl, " the general refult 

 of which was, that the new divifion of chancery into two 

 courts, and the creation of an intermediate court of appeal 

 between it and the houfe of lords, would tend greatly 

 to enhance the expence of fuits ' already grievoufly and 

 oppreffively high,' to multiply the bufinefs of the court, 

 and to protract the "final decifion of caufes." " The 

 remedy," he adds, " mj- lord, which I have to propofe, is 

 a very fimple one, but I am much afraid, confidering the 

 force of feveral expreflions which I find fcattered in your 

 lordfhip's pamphlet, chat you will think me difrefpedful 

 even in mentioning it. You have, however, really left me 

 no choice. You have impofed upon me the neceflity of 

 being deficient in what you will think due refpeft, in order 

 to avoid the reproach of being deficient in what you have 

 made my duty. The remedy, then, my lord, feems to be. 

 That the houj'i of lords, like all inferior tribunals, Jhould, 

 ixiben they are prejfed with an unujual quantity of bujinefs. 

 Jit on a greater number of days and at unufual hours, in order 

 to difpatch it." His laft, and as fome have thought his beft 

 fpeech, was delivered, at the clofe of the lall parliament, 

 againil the " Alien-bill ;" and fo powerful were his argu- 

 ments, that, on his fuggeftion, the amendments introduced 

 by the lords were thrown out. In this fpeech, the elo- 

 quent fenator details and reprobates the meafures adopted 

 and purfued by the parliament juft expiring, and he clofes 

 with the following reflection : " who our fuccelTors may 

 be I know not ; but God grant that this country may 

 never fee another parhament fo regardlefs of the liberties 

 and rights of the people, and of the principles of general 

 juftice, as this parliament has been!" However the 

 pohtical opinions of perfons may differ, they mull concur 

 in admiring the integrity and ardour of the fpeaker ; and 



confidering it as the laft fpeech which he ever delivered in 

 the national fenate, the perufal of it cannot be otherwife 

 than awful and impreflive. 



No man ever devoted his time and talents to important and 

 ufeful purpofes with gi-eater affiduity and zeal than fir Samuel 

 Romilly. His profeffional praftice, which was very extenfive, 

 demanded a great portion of his time and attention ; and 

 yet whenever the public intereft required his attendance in 

 the houfe, he never abfented himfelf on account of any 

 perfonal engagements. His praftice and his parliamentary 

 duties occupied the whole of the day from the morning 

 davi-n frequently till midnight ; and his publications were 

 the produftions of thofe hours that ought to have been de- 

 voted to reft and fleep. It is not at all furprifing that 

 talents like his, and fo employed, (hould command general 

 notice and refpeCl. In a former parliament many enlightened 

 and refpeftable members of the city of Briftol direfted 

 their views to him, and wifhed for fuch a reprefentative ; 

 but other interefts prevailed againft his abilities and charac- 

 ter, and the influence of his friends. At the laft general 

 election, he was propofed as a fit reprefentative for Weft- 

 minfter, his native city ; and he was chofen in the moft 

 honourable manner, without trouble, expence, and fohcit- 

 ation, by a decided majority, and amidft the applaufes of an 

 immcnfe body of eleclors. But a circumftance occurred 

 which rendered the clofing period of his life gloomy and 

 diftreftlng, and which difappointed the expeftations of his 

 conftituents. Lady Romilly, to whom he was affectionately 

 attaclied, and with whom he had enjoyed a high degree of 

 connubial felicity, had been for fome time in a ftate of 

 declining health, and his mind was agitated by very dif- 

 quieting and depreifing apprehenfions on her account. 

 During their refidence at their country -houfe at Tanhurft, 

 in Surry, in Auguft 18 18, her complaint feems to have 

 abated, and with the flattering hope that her convalefcence 

 would be confirmed by the mild air of the Ifle of Wight, 

 they accepted an invitation from Mr. and Mrs. Nafh, to 

 fpend the remainder of the vacation at their hofpitable 

 caftle at Eaft Cowes, whither they removed in the month 

 of September. Here lady Romilly's diforder recurred with 

 circumftances of peculiar aggravation ; and Dr. Roget, 

 the nephew of fir Samuel, was fummoned to her relief. 

 Her complaint, however, was irremecfiable ; and after 

 various fluctuations, which excited alternate hope and alarm, 

 file died of a di-opfy in the cheft, in the night of the 29th 

 of Odlober. During the progrefs of her diforder to its 

 fatal termination, fir Samuel's mind was kept in a ftate of 

 conftant fufpenfe and anxiety, until at length his fympathy 

 with the amiable fufferer and an apprehenfion of the uncer- 

 tain iffue of her complaint, difordered his whole frame, 

 deprived him of fleep or feared him with frightful dreams ; 

 and it is laid, that on one occafion, after having been in a ftate 

 of great diilrefs, he intimated to a friend, that lie felt a burn- 

 ing fenfation in his head ; and this feems to have been the 

 only occafion on which he made a complaint of this kind. 

 Alarmed about himfelf, he fought reUef, and tried a variety 

 of medicines without any permanent effeft. " He frequently 

 exprefled his furprife, that his want of fleep did not inter- 

 fere with his bodil) health, that his appetite and digeftion 

 continued iu full vigour, that no indication of fever exiiled, 

 and that he felt no uneafy fenfation in his head. In con- 

 verfing with Dr. Roget and Mr. Dumont he dwelt much 

 on this apparent anomaly, and drew from it the moll omin- 

 ous prefage, as to the probability of its ending in infanity 

 — an apprehenfion which unfortunately look deep root in 

 his mind. Ahhough in all other refpecls he was perfedly 

 in polTeffion of his faculties, yet on this fubjed his imagina- 

 tion 



