this time; and in 1857 made a tour through Cumberland with Mr. Wilkie Collins, an account of which, from their combined pens, appeared in "Household Words." In the meantime he had realised a long cherished wish by purchasing Gadshill Place, which henceforward became his home. A considerable sum of money was spent in putting the house into a thorough state of repair, and in making such alterations and additions as were deemed necessary. When all was completed he placed on the first floor landing the following paragraph, illuminated by Owen Jones: "This House, Gadshill Place, stands on the summit of Shakespeare's Gadshill, ever memorable for its association with Sir John Falstaff in his noble fancy: 'But, my lads, my lads, to-morrow morning by four o'clock, early at Gadshill! there are pilgrims going to Canterbury with rich offerings, and traders riding to London with fat purses: I have vizards for you all; you have horses for yourselves.''

In 1858, Dickens commenced his public readings. He had occasionally before this read in public for charitable purposes; but now so many pressing offers were made to him that at length he decided to give a series of readings, though he was strongly dissuaded from it by some of his most intimate friends. In a pecuniary point of view the readings were eminently successful; but they involved a great strain upon his nature, both physical and mental; and there is little doubt but that the labour and excitement which they produced hastened his death. After visiting different parts of Great Britain and Ireland, he paid a visit to America in 1867. The coolness produced by the publication of his American Notes after his first visit twenty-five years before, had now quite disappeared. He was everywhere received with enthusiasm; and Dickens on his part was glad to observe and record a marked growth in the graces and amenities of life, and much improvement in the tone of the public press. He returned to England in the spring of 1868 after a visit of about four months.

In April 1870 appeared the first number of Edwin

Drood, which it was intended to finish in twelve numbers; but only half the story was written. On the 8th of June Dickens was busy writing all day, and at six o'clock sat down to dinner. His sister-in-law, Miss Hogarth, noticed with alarm a peculiar expression upon his face, and he then told her that for an hour he had felt very ill. Shortly afterwards he rose from the table and tried, with the assistance of Miss Hogarth, to reach the sofa, but sank heavily on the floor. Medical aid was at once summoned; but from the first his case was hopeless. He continued to breathe with difficulty until the following evening, when he expired. His death was caused by effusion on the brain. His own wish was that he might be buried in one of the quiet churchyards in the neighbourhood of Gadshill; but on inquiry it was found that they were all closed. His friends therefore accepted the offer made by Dean Stanley, and he was buried in Westminster Abbey.

Of the character of Charles Dickens as a writer little need be said. His name is familiar to every household in the kingdom; and almost every one capable of reading the English language is acquainted with his works, and can enjoy his humour and pathos, his lively fancy, and his generous sentiments. We shall therefore conclude with an extract from a letter which he addressed to his youngest son when about to join an elder brother in Australia, and which exhibits his character as a father and a Christian:

"You will remember that you have never at home been harassed about religious observances, or mere formalities. I have always been anxious not to weary my children with such things before they are old enough to form opinions respecting them. You will therefore understand the better that I now most solemnly impress upon you the truth and beauty of the Christian religion, as it came from Christ himself, and the impossibility of your going far wrong if you humbly but heartily respect it. Only one thing more on this head. The more we are in earnest as to feeling it, the less we are disposed to hold forth about it. Never abandon the wholesome practice of saying your own private prayers night and morning. I have never abandoned it myself, and I know the comfort of it."

LORD LYTTON.--1805-1873.

EDWARD GEORGE EARLE LYTTON BULWER, the most versatile and many-sided writer not only of the present century, but perhaps in the whole range of English literature, was born 25th May 1805. His father, General Bulwer, of Wood Dalling and Heydon Hall, Norfolk, was descended from an old Scandinavian family which had resided in Norfolk from the time of the Conquest. His mother was the daughter and sole heiress of Richard Warburton Lytton of Knebworth Hall, Herts. By the death of General Bulwer, when the future novelist was still an infant, the care of his education devolved upon his mother, an intellectual and accomplished lady, who, as heir to the Knebworth estates, resumed, by royal license, her maiden name of Lytton in 1811.

Edward at a very early age developed a taste for poetry, and "Percy's Reliques" was a favourite book with him. When only six years of age he wrote verses, and in his sixteenth year he composed an Oriental tale in verse, called Ismael. It was printed for private circulation but not published. After a careful training under private tutors the young poet was sent to Cambridge. He entered Trinity College, but at the end of a term migrated to Trinity Hall, where he took his degree in 1822. Poetry and general reading engrossed more of his time than the regular curriculum of the college, and he did not therefore take high honours. He took an active part, however, in the debates at the Union Club, and was elected its president. Among his contemporaries at the Union, were the poet Praed and Alexander Cockburn, now Lord Chief Justice of England. His college vacations were spent in rambles through England and Scotland, on foot, his only companion being a dog.

In 1826, Mr. Bulwer published a small volume of poems entitled Weeds and Wild Flowers. The book issued from the press in Paris, where the poet was staying at the time, but has never been published since.

In the following year he published a novel, entitled Falkland, a work of considerable promise, but tinged with morbid sentiment and full of errors of taste. The tale was published anonymously, and has since been suppressed. Pelham, which appeared in 1828, is therefore generally looked upon as the author's first novel. It is said that the manuscript, after being rejected by the publisher's reader, was read by the publisher himself, who immediately sent it to the press, and despatched a cheque for £500 to the young writer. The book made a great impression, and in a short time proved a great success. It displayed wonderful knowledge of society, abundant wit, and brilliant epigram. It was quickly followed by The Disowned, Devereux, and Paul Clifford.

Mr. Bulwer entered public life as a member of Parliament for St. Ives in 1831. It was at the time of the Reform Bill agitation, and Bulwer identified himself with the Liberal party. In the election which followed upon the passing of the Reform Bill, in the following year, he was returned for the city of Lincoln, which seat he continued to hold until 1841. He was an active and prominent member of the House of Commons. He spoke frequently and with effect upon liberal measures, especially such subjects as the Newspaper Stamp, the Laws affecting the Drama, and the condition of the Negroes. His greatest parliamentary success was his speech urging the immediate emancipation of the West Indian slaves, which government had intended to postpone for two years. He carried this question by two votes; and he was afterwards assured by three members, who had intended to vote on the other side of the question, that their intention had been changed by his arguments. Such a triumph is very rare in parliamentary annals. Bulwer had selected to represent Lincoln rather than any other constituency, chiefly because the Liberal electors of Lincoln were opposed, like himself, to the repeal of the Corn Laws. On this question his opinions were always very decided; on the other hand, the Liberal portion of his constituency

The

gradually adopted the principles of Free Trade. consequence was that he lost his seat in 1841, and he did not again enter Parliament until eleven years later.

In the meantime his literary labours were not neglected. The same year in which he entered Parliament, as member for Lincoln, was marked by the appearance of his powerful romance of Eugene Aram. The hero of the story had taught in his grandfather's family, and his tragical history had therefore a peculiar interest for the novelist. In the following year he published a political treatise entitled England and the English, which has recently been republished. About this time also he succeeded Campbell as editor of the "New Monthly," and to this magazine he contributed a series of papers which were afterwards collected and published under the name of The Student. But the strain upon his health which his labours, literary and political, entailed, was too great, and surrendering the editorship he sought relaxation in a visit to the Continent. But even here his pen was not idle: a tour in Germany suggested The Pilgrims of the Rhine, and a visit to Italy resulted in the publication of the Last Days of Pompeii, and Rienzi.

Returning to England in 1835, Bulwer found the nation in a state of political ferment arising from the king's abrupt dismissal of the Whigs from office, and the recall of the Tories to power. Towards the close of the year Bulwer published a political pamphlet called the Crisis, which produced an immediate effect upon the public mind. The first edition was exhausted on the day of its publication, and fourteen other editions were sold within a fortnight. The general election which followed shortly afterwards gave the Whigs a decided majority, and so sensible was Lord Melbourne of his obligations to the young pamphleteer that he offered him a place in the ministry. The office was, however, gratefully declined, chiefly from a disinclination to suspend the literary labours in which he was then engaged. Three years later, upon the occasion of the coronation of the queen, Lord Melbourne advised Her