specimen of the noble warrior's graceful talents in this way: "Only tell her that I love, Leave the rest to her and fate; Some kind planet from above May perhaps her pity move; Lovers on their stars must wait ; Only tell her that I love. "Why, oh, why should I despair? She's too good to let me die; He particularly distinguished himself at the attack on the Castle of Namur in 1695, and the siege of Venloo in 1702. He was afterwards appointed commander-in-chief of the forces in Ireland, and one of the lords-justices, it was thought with the view of keeping him out of action, which is said to have broken his heart. His besetting infirmity was vanity; and Swift, in a M.S. note on Mackay, a topographical writer of the period by whom he was mentioned, says, with characteristic curt severity, "The vainest old fool alive." He died in Dublin, January 26, 1707, and was interred in Christ's Church Cathedral. If Steele was now in the way of promotion, he was also in the way of temptation, to which his soft and easy disposition made him but too yielding a victim. The charms of his conversation and the poignancy of his wit were unfortunately the cause of his being led by his brother officers into a course of the most reckless levity and dissipation, *See Nichols's Select Collection. which neither the strength of his resolution, nor the force of the religious impressions with which his mind was strongly imbued, enabled him to resist. The conflict in his mind, however, when free from the solicitations of his gay companions, was very sharp and bitter; but, unhappily, the still small voice that whispered to him his folly and weakness, and told him of the misapplication of talents given for higher and nobler purposes, was drowned in the roar of the next convivial meeting, of which his wit was the chief attraction. In this way did he go on for some time, sinning and repenting, and at war with his own better nature. The result of such a struggle, we may well conceive, must have been great unhappiness of mind. "His, in fact," it has been well remarked by Miss Aikin, was one of those characters which often inspire the stronger interest from their very infirmities, through the alternate hopes and fears, praises and reproofs, which they call forth, as now the good, now the evil, genius seems about to gain the ascendancy."* *Life of Addison, vol. i., p. 19. CHAPTER II. THE MORALIST AND DRAMATIC WRITER-1701-1704. Steele writes "The Christian Hero," a moral essay, to fix him in his good resolves-Finds it ineffectual-Resolves to publish it-Dedicates it to Lord Cutts, the colonel of his regiment-Account of the work-Note on Professor Schlosser's criticism-Steele, forced into a duel, seriously wounds his antagonist, though unintentionally— His sufferings on that account-Becomes a decided opponent of the practice-Ridicule suffered by Steele for his efforts at selfreformation-Turns his attention to dramatic literature-Notice of the drama and dramatic predecessors of Steele: Wycherley, Vanbrugh, Farquhar, and Congreve-Jeremy Collier's attack on the stage-His comedy of "The Funeral; or, Grief à-la-Mode "—Its success-Scene from the play-Produces "The Tender Husband" -The prologue written by Addison-Specimen scene-"The Lying Lovers," his next comedy, not equally successful, though one of his best productions-Its unmerited fate induces him for some years to relinquish dramatic pursuits-Specimen scene-Produces "The Conscious Lovers" after a considerable interval-Remark of Horace Walpole on the writing of comedy-Thackeray's remarks on Steele's plays. UNDER the circumstances referred to at the close of the preceding chapter, Steele bethought himself of drawing up a little treatise intended as a homily for his own private perusal and edification solely. Of his original design in writing this curious and interesting little treatise, he states, at a subsequent period, "When he was an ensign in the Guards, being thoroughly convinced of many things of which he often repented, and as often repeated, he wrote, for his own private use, a little book called 'The Christian Hero,' with a design principally to fix upon his mind a strong impression of virtue and religion, in opposition to a stronger propensity to unwarrantable pleasures." This he still found of little avail, so long as its perusal was merely confined to the privacy of his own closet, and his gay companions unaware of his good resolutions and the painful struggle going on in his mind. With the despair of a man conscious of the weakness of his own resolves, and as a testimony against himself that would be certain to expose him to the ridicule of inconsistency if he yielded to the solicitations of his companions, or his own inclinations, to a course which his own better judgment disapproved, he resolved to publish the Essay, and so commit himself before the world to the principles it inculcated. Accordingly, in 1701, the work appeared under the title of "The Christian Hero," with a dedication to Lord Cutts. The leading aim of the book was to prove that "no principles but those of religion are sufficient to make a great man." The publication produced all the mortifying part of the effect he had anticipated, with little or none of the good results. His gay and thoughtless companions, who had none of his compunctious visitings after their scenes of midnight revelry, saw only the glaring contradiction between the precepts of the writer and the practice of the man, which became a source of much mirth and raillery. They were little disposed to allow of any place of repentance, quite as much in a selfish point of view as from any want of charitable feeling; and the taunt and sneer were not wanting to recall the delightful companion from the prospect of making himself a disagreeable fellow. Thus it * His "Apology for Himself and Writings." VOL. I. B ever will be with the man of right principle, but of too easy a disposition, when he attempts to beat a retreat from the dangerous ground of indulgence, to which a lively and social disposition, and a too ready compliance, may have led. The attempt to reason himself into the right with his pen had been found equally futile against the attractions of gambling by the poet Denham, because his reason did not want convincing-his error arose from too great facility of disposition and weakness of the will. It is obviously very simple, removed from temptation and in the cool retirement of the closet, to lay down rules for ourselves or others, in accordance with the dictates of the better judgment; and the very attempt voluntarily to do so is proof of the vitality of right in any one; but just as the compass, that all-important guide of the mariner through the trackless deep, led him astray until he learned to make allowance for its deviations; or as the same mariner, should he make his calculations only for fair weather and smooth seas, without taking into account the action of storms and currents; so the man of easy disposition and deficient power of will, who lays his account to be guided by the abstract rules of right, by the mere force of reasoning alone, without considering the active operation of the passions and of circumstances, will often find himself drifted far wide of his mark. The true wisdom is not either in ignoring the passions, or calculating vainly on our own strength to oppose them, but in directing and employing them, as they were designed to be, at least innocently, if not usefully. Steele's excesses arose from abuse of the social feelings, joined to weakness of self-control. These social feelings. |