“I hasten, before our departure for Germany, to enclose, according to your wishes, several extracts from the letters which my poor friend Eugene Robin wrote to me on the subject of the article published by him in the ‘Revue des Deux Mondes.’
“In 1844, Eugene
Robin, who had left Brussels, where he had been educated, and
had, at a very early age, distinguished himself, both as a poet and a critic,
spent a few days with us in London; and, as he was
| 402 | MEMOIR OF THE REV. SYDNEY SMITH. |
“‘Vous vous souvenez peut-être de m’avoir parlé de la collection des écrits de Jeffrey et de Sydney Smith sur lesquels il y avait de bons articles à faire pour la ‘Revue des Deux Mondes.’ Le ‘Jeffrey’ a été traité par M. Forcade, dans la dernière livraison; mais le ‘Sydney Smith’ vient de m’échoir en partage. J’ai demandé le livre à Londres: mais je voudrais bien, comme vous connaissez intimement l’auteur, que vous eussiez la bonté, si vos loisirs vous le permettent, de me dire si ce sont là réellement tous ses ouvrages; de me donner (c’est bien indiscret de vous demander ces choses-là) sur l’homme et sur l’écrivain de ces détails qu’avec votre esprit d’observation, vous seul pouvez bien connaître. Ils ajouteraient singulièrement de prix à un travail fait avec conscience. J’ai le pain de mon article; j’attends de vous le sel. Pourquoi m’avezvous encouragé à ne voir en vous que l’homme de lettres bienveillant pour ses jeunes confrères? Je ne vous importunerais pas de la sorte.’
“I immediately answered that I very much regretted not
to be able to comply with his request, my very intimacy with Mr. Sydney Smith preventing me, without his
consent, from sending for a Review any biographical anecdotes or critical
observations on his life and wri-
| MEMOIR OF THE REV. SYDNEY SMITH. | 403 |
“More than two months elapsed before Eugène Robin acknowledged the receipt of this letter to me in the following words:—
“‘Vous avez bien voulu m’envoyer la lettre amicale et toujours spirituelle de votre ami le Révérend Sydney Smith. Elle m’a grandement encouragé à faire l’article dont je vous avais parlé; maintenant, ce travail est fini depuis plus de quinze jours; il n’y manque plus que quelques petits détails biographiques, qui, transmis par vous, selon le désir exprimé par M. Sydney Smith, relèveraient singulièrement mon récit et ma critique. Si vous vouliez faire un effort en faveur de l’aimable Chanoine de Saint-Paul, que ne vous devrais-je pas?’
“I have not kept a copy of my answer to him, the substance of which was communicated to Mr. Sydney Smith. The article appeared soon after, and Mr. Sydney Smith was informed of its publication by M.
* The letter, having been already published, is not given here. |
| 404 | MEMOIR OF THE REV. SYDNEY SMITH. |
“‘You may remember I wrote through you to Eugene Robin, giving, at his request, some account of myself. I have received a letter from him, stating that the Review is published, and that he has quoted a part of my letter. I confess this rather alarms me. Will it be putting you to an inconvenience if I beg the loan of the Review for two or three hours? I will deviate from my usual custom, and return it punctually.’
“‘I have received the Review by post, so I will not trouble you for yours.
“‘Eugene has said more about me than I deserve. He is of himself a little long; but I am very much pleased and flattered by the approbation of so clever a man.
“‘He had better not have quoted my letter; but there is no great harm. Yours,
“We leave tomorrow. Believe me, my dear Mrs. Sydney Smith,
