Sybil, Or, The Two Nations

by Earl of Beaconsfield Benjamin Disraeli

  When Gerard and Morley quitted the Albany after their visit to Egremont,they separated, and Stephen, whom we will accompany, proceeded in thedirection of the Temple, in the vicinity of which he himself lodged, andwhere he was about to visit a brother journalist, who occupied chambersin that famous inn of court. As he passed under Temple Bar his eyecaught a portly gentleman stepping out of a public cab with a bundle ofpapers in his hand, and immediately disappearing through that well-knownarchway which Morley was on the point of reaching. The gentlemanindeed was still in sight, descending the way, when Morley entered, whoobserved him drop a letter. Morley hailed him, but in vain; and fearingthe stranger might disappear in one of the many inextricable courts, andso lose his letter, he ran forward, picked up the paper, and then pushedon to the person who dropped it, calling out so frequently that thestranger at length began to suspect that he himself might be the objectof the salute, and stopped and looked round. Morley almost mechanicallyglanced at the outside of the letter, the seal of which was broken,and which was however addressed to a name that immediately fixed hisinterest. The direction was to "Baptist Hatton, Esq., Inner Temple."

  "This letter is I believe addressed to you, Sir," said Morley, lookingvery intently upon the person to whom he spoke--a portly man and acomely; florid, gentleman-like, but with as little of the expressionwhich Morley in imagination had associated with that Hatton over whom heonce pondered, as can easily be imagined.

  "Sir, I am extremely obliged to you," said the strange gentleman; "theletter belongs to me, though it is not addressed to me. I must have thismoment dropped it. My name, Sir, is Firebrace--Sir Vavasour Firebrace,and this letter is addressed to a--a--not exactly my lawyer, buta gentleman--a professional gentleman--whom I am in the habit offrequently seeing; daily, I may say. He is employed in a great questionin which I am deeply interested. Sir, I am vastly obliged to you, and Itrust that you are satisfied."

  "Oh I perfectly, Sir Vavasour;" and Morley bowed; and going in differentdirections, they separated.

  "Do you happen to know a lawyer by name Hatton in this Inn?" inquiredMorley of his friend the journalist, when, having transacted theirbusiness, the occasion served.

  "No lawyer of that name; but the famous Hatton lives here," was thereply.

  "The famous Hatton! And what is he famous for? You forget I am aprovincial."

  "He has made more peers of the realm than our gracious Sovereign," saidthe journalist. "And since the reform of parliament the only chance ofa tory becoming a peer is the favour of Baptist Hatton though who he isno one knows, and what he is no one can describe."

  "You speak in conundrums," said Morley; "I wish I could guess them. Tryto adapt yourself to my somewhat simple capacity."

  "In a word, then," said his friend, "if you must have a definition,Hatton may rank under the genus 'antiquary,' though his species ismore difficult to describe. He is a heraldic antiquary; a discoverer,inventor, framer, arranger of pedigrees; profound in the mysteriesof genealogies; an authority I believe unrivalled in everything thatconcerns the constitution and elements of the House of Lords; consultedby lawyers, though not professing the law; and startling and alarmingthe noblest families in the country by claiming the ancient baronieswhich they have often assumed without authority, for obscure pretenders,many of whom he has succeeded in seating in the parliament of hiscountry."

  "And what part of the country did he come from: do you happen to know?"inquired Morley, evidently much interested, though he attempted toconceal his emotion.

  "He may be a veritable subject of the kingdom of Cockaigne, for aught Iknow," replied his friend. "He has been buried in this inn I believefor years; for very many before I settled here; and for a long time Iapprehend was sufficiently obscure, though doing they say a great dealin a small way; but the Mallory case made his fortune about ten yearsago. That was a barony by writ of summons which had been claimed acentury before, and failed. Hatton seated his man, and the precedentenabled three or four more gentlemen under his auspices to follow thatexample. They were Roman Catholics, which probably brought him theMallory case, for Hatton is of the old church; better than that, theywere all gentlemen of great estate, and there is no doubt their championwas well rewarded for his successful service. They say he is very rich.At present all the business of the country connected with descents flowsinto his chambers. Not a pedigree in dispute, not a peerage inabeyance, which is not submitted to his consideration. I don't know himpersonally; but you can now form some idea of his character: and if youwant to claim a peerage," the journalist added laughingly, "he is yourman."

  A strong impression was on the mind of Morley that this was his man: heresolved to inquire of Gerard, whom he should see in the evening, asto the fact of their Hatton being a Catholic, and if so, to call on theantiquary on the morrow.

  In the meantime we must not forget one who is already making that visit.Sir Vavasour Firebrace is seated in a spacious library that looks uponthe Thames and the gardens of the Temple. Though piles of parchmentsand papers cover the numerous tables, and in many parts intrude upon theTurkey carpet, an air of order, of comfort, and of taste, pervades thechamber. The hangings of crimson damask silk blend with the antiquefurniture of oak; the upper panes of the windows are tinted by thebrilliant pencil of feudal Germany, while the choice volumes that linethe shelves are clothed in bindings which become their rare contents.The master of this apartment was a man of ordinary height, inclined tocorpulency, and in the wane of middle life, though his unwrinkled cheek,his undimmed blue eye, and his brown hair, very apparent, though he worea cap of black velvet, did not betray his age, or the midnight studiesby which he had in a great degree acquired that learning for which hewas celebrated. The general expression of his countenance was pleasing,though dashed with a trait of the sinister. He was seated in an easychair, before a kidney table at which he was writing. Near at hand was along tall oaken desk, on which were several folio volumes open, and somemanuscripts which denoted that he had recently been engaged with them.At present Mr Hatton, with his pen still in his hand and himself in achamber-robe of the same material as his cap, leant back in his chair,while he listened to his client, Sir Vavasour. Several most beautifulblack and tan spaniels of the breed of King Charles the Second werereposing near him on velvet cushions, with a haughty luxuriousness whichwould have become the beauties of the merry monarch; and a white Persiancat with blue eyes and a very long tail, with a visage not altogetherunlike that of its master, was resting with great gravity on thewriting-table, and assisting at the conference.

  Sir Vavasour had evidently been delivering himself of a long narrative,to which Mr Hatton had listened with that imperturbable patience whichcharacterised him, and which was unquestionably one of the elementsof his success. He never gave up anything, and he never interruptedanybody. And now in a silvery voice he replied to his visitor:

  "What you tell me, Sir Vavasour, is what I foresaw, but which, as myinfluence could not affect it, I dismissed from my thoughts. You cameto me for a specific object. I accomplished it. I undertook to ascertainthe rights and revive the claims of the baronets of England. Thatwas what you required me: I fulfilled your wish. Those rights areascertained; those claims are revived. A great majority of the Orderhave given in their adhesion to the organized movement. The nation isacquainted with your demands, accustomed to them, and the monarch oncefavourably received them. I can do no more; I do not pretend to makebaronets, still less can I confer on those already made the right towear stars and coronets, the dark green dress of Equites aurati, orwhite hats with white plumes of feathers. These distinctions, evenif their previous usage were established, must flow from the graciouspermission of the Crown, and no one could expect in an age hostile topersonal distinctions, that any ministry would recommend the sovereignto a step which with vulgar minds would be odious, and by malignant onesmight be rendered ridiculous."

  "Ridiculous!" said Sir Vavasour.

  "All the world," said Mr Hatton, "do not take upon these questions thesame e
nlightened view as ourselves, Sir Vavasour. I never could fora moment believe that the Sovereign would consent to invest such anumerous body of men with such privileges."

  "But you never expressed this opinion," said Sir Vavasour.

  "You never asked for my opinion," said Mr Hatton "and if I had givenit, you and your friends would not have been influenced by it. The pointwas one on which you might with reason hold yourselves as competentjudges as I am. All you asked of me was to make out your case, andI made it out. I will venture to say a better case never left thesechambers; I do not believe there is a person in the kingdom who couldanswer it except myself. They have refused the Order their honours, SirVavasour, but it is some consolation that they have never answered theircase."

  "I think it only aggravates the oppression," said Sir Vavasour, shakinghis head; "but cannot you advise any new step, Mr Hatton? After so manyyears of suspense, after so much anxiety and such a vast expenditure, itreally is too bad that I and Lady Firebrace should be announced at courtin the same style as our fishmonger, if he happens to be a sheriff."

  "I can make a Peer," said Mr Hatton, leaning back in his chair andplaying with his seals, "but I do not pretend to make Baronets. I canplace a coronet with four balls on a man's brow; but a coronet with twoballs is an exercise of the prerogative with which I do not presume tointerfere."

  "I mention it in the utmost confidence," said Sir Vavasour in a whisper;"but Lady Firebrace has a sort of promise that in the event of a changeof government, we shall be in the first batch of peers."

  Mr Hatton shook his head with a slight smile of contemptuousincredulity.

  "Sir Robert," he said, "will make no peers; take my word for that. Thewhigs and I have so deluged the House of Lords, that you may rely uponit as a secret of state, that if the tories come in, there will be nopeers made. I know the Queen is sensitively alive to the cheapening ofall honours of late years. If the whigs go out to-morrow, mark me, theywill disappoint all their friends. Their underlings have promised somany, that treachery is inevitable, and if they deceive some they mayas well deceive all. Perhaps they may distribute a coronet or two amongthemselves: and I shall this year make three: and those are the onlyadditions to the peerage which will occur for many years. You may relyon that. For the tories will make none, and I have some thoughts ofretiring from business."

  It is difficult to express the astonishment, the perplexity, theagitation, that pervaded the countenance of Sir Vavasour while hiscompanion thus coolly delivered himself. High hopes extinguished andexcited at the same moment; cherished promises vanishing, mysteriousexpectations rising up; revelations of astounding state secrets; chiefministers voluntarily renouncing their highest means of influence, andan obscure private individual distributing those distinctions whichsovereigns were obliged to hoard, and to obtain which the first men inthe country were ready to injure their estates and to sacrifice theirhonour! At length Sir Vavasour said, "You amaze me Mr Hatton. I couldmention to you twenty members of Boodle's, at least, who believe theywill be made peers the moment the tories come in."

  "Not a man of them," said Hatton peremptorily. "Tell me one of theirnames, and I will tell you whether they will be made peers."

  "Well then there is Mr Tubbe Sweete, a county member, and his son inparliament too--I know he has a promise."

  "I repeat to you, Sir Vavasour, the tories will not make a single peer;the candidates must come to me; and I ask you what can I do for a TubbeSweete, the son of a Jamaica cooper? Are there any old families amongyour twenty members of Brookes'?"

  "Why I can hardly say," said Sir Vavasour; "there is Sir CharlesFeatherly, an old baronet."

  "The founder a lord mayor in James the First's reign. That is not thesort of old family that I mean," said Mr Hatton.

  "Well there is Colonel Cockawhoop," said Sir Vavasour. "The Cockawhoopsare a very good family I have always heard."

  "Contractors of Queen Anne: partners with Marlborough and SolomonMedina; a very good family indeed: but I do not make peers out of goodfamilies, Sir Vavasour; old families are the blocks out of which I cutmy Mercurys."

  "But what do you call an old family?" said Sir Vavasour.

  "Yours," said Mr Hatton, and he threw a full glance on the countenanceon which the light rested.

  "We were in the first batch of baronets," said Sir Vavasour.

  "Forget the baronets for a while," said Hatton. "Tell me, what was yourfamily before James the First?"

  "They always lived on their lands," said Sir Vavasour. "I have a roomfull of papers that would perhaps tell us something about them. Wouldyou like to see them?"

  "By all means: bring them all here. Not that I want them to inform meof your rights: I am fully acquainted with them. You would like to be apeer, sir. Well, you are really Lord Vavasour, but there is a difficultyin establishing your undoubted right from the single writ of summonsdifficulty. I will not trouble you with technicalities, Sir Vavasour:sufficient that the difficulty is great though perhaps not unmanageable.But we have no need of management. Your claim on the barony of Lovelis very good: I could recommend your pursuing it, did not anothermore inviting still present itself. In a word, if you wish to be LordBardolf, I will undertake to make you so, before, in all probability,Sir Robert Peel obtains office; and that I should think would gratifyLady Firebrace."

  "Indeed it would," said Sir Vavasour, "for if it had not been for thissort of a promise of a peerage made--I speak in great confidence MrHatton--made by Mr Taper, my tenants would have voted for the whigs theother day at the ----shire election, and the conservative candidate wouldhave been beaten. Lord Masque had almost arranged it, but Lady Firebracewould have a written promise from a high quarter, and so it fell to theground."

  "Well we are independent of all these petty arrangements now," said MrHatton.

  "It is very wonderful," said Sir Vavasour, rising from his chair andspeaking as it were to himself. "And what do you think our expenses willbe in this claim?" he inquired.

  "Bagatelle!" said Mr Hatton. "Why a dozen years ago I have known menlay out nearly half a million in land and not get two per cent for theirmoney, in order to obtain a borough influence which might ultimatelyobtain them a spick and span coronet; and now you are going to put oneon your head, which will give you precedence over every peer on theroll, except three (and I made those), and it will not cost you a paltrytwenty or thirty thousand pounds. Why I know men who would give that forthe precedence alone.--Here!" and he rose and took up some papers froma table: "Here is a case; a man you know, I dare say; an earl, and of adecent date as earls go: George the First. The first baron was a Dutchvalet of William the Third. Well I am to terminate an abeyance in hisfavour through his mother, and give him one of the baronies of theHerberts. He buys off the other claimant who is already ennobled witha larger sum than you will expend on your ancient coronet. Nor is thatall. The other claimant is of French descent and name; came over atthe revocation of the Edict of Nantes. Well, besides the hush money,my client is to defray all the expense of attempting to transformthe descendant of the silkweaver of Lyons into the heir of a Normanconqueror. So you see, Sir Vavasour, I am not unreasonable. Pah! I wouldsooner gain five thousand pounds by restoring you to your rights, thanfifty thousand in establishing any of these pretenders in their baseassumptions. I must work in my craft, Sir Vavasour, but I love the oldEnglish blood, and have it in my veins."

  "I am satisfied, Mr Hatton." said Sir Vavasour: "let no time be lost.All I regret is, that you did not mention all this to me before; andthen we might have saved a great deal of trouble and expence."

  "You never consulted me," said Mr Hatton. "You gave me yourinstructions, and I obeyed them. I was sorry to see you in that mind,for to speak frankly, and I am sure now you will not be offended, mylord, for such is your real dignity, there is no title in the world forwhich I have such a contempt as that of a baronet."

  Sir Vavasour winced, but the future was full of glory and the present ofexcitement; and he wished Mr Hatton good morning, wi
th a promise that hewould himself bring the papers on the morrow.

  Mr Hatton was buried for a few moments in a reverie, during which heplayed with the tail of the Persian cat.