50th. He served at Gibraltar, in Corsica, and in Elba. In 1795 he was promoted to a company, and was soon after appointed deputyjudge-advocate to the troops. From Elba he proceeded to Lisbon, and to Minorca, and was subsequently present at the battle of Alexandria, on the 21st March, 1801. His zeal and ability in command of the outposts on various occasions obtained for him this flattering encomium from General Moore-Lowe, when you're at the outposts I always feel sure of a good night's rest.' Through the recommendation of Sir John Moore, Lowe was appointed to the 7th Fusiliers, and subsequently was sent by the Government on a secret mission to Portugal, for the purpose of ascertaining the military condition and resources of that country. On the 31st December, 1803, he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Corsican Rangers, which he had raised in the Mediterranean. This regiment formed part of Sir J. Craig's expedition to Naples. Colonel Lowe was present at Capri, where he gained much distinction, and he next served under Sir John Stuart in Sicily, obtaining, on the 1st January, 1812, the rank of full Colonel, so early as January of the following year, he was directed to proceed without delay to inspect a corps of troops called the RussianGerman Legion. Having arrived at Stockholm, Colonel Lowe, pursuant to instructions from Lord Cathcart, joined that noble lord at the head quarters at Kalish. He was present at the hard-fought battle of Bautzen, on the 20th and 21st May, and it was there, for the first time, he saw his future prisoner, then in the plenitude of his power, and at the head of an immense and devoted army. In July of the same year he received instructions to inspect the whole of the levies in British pay in the north of Germany, amounting to nearly 20,000 men. In October he was attached to the allied Russian and Prussian army, under the command of Blucher, and was with him in every action in which he was engaged, from the battles of Möckern and Leipsic until the surrender of Paris; and when the capital of France was entered by the allied army, Colonel Lowe brought the first news of Napoleon's abdication to England. Mr. Forsyth has published the most honourable attestations to Sir H. Lowe's merits and services from the chief of Blucher's staff, General Count Gneisenau, and also from Blucher himself. Such was the man who was chosen to be governor of the island on which Bonaparte was to be a captive, and if imperturbable sang froid, good temper, firmness, and discretion, joined to an unimpeachable character, were requisites for the office, no man in the British army was fitter. On entering upon the onerous duty Sir H. Lowe received an assurance in Lord Liverpool's name, that if he undertook the charge of Bonaparte's person, and continued in that charge for three years, it should not stop there.' The Chief Justice of the King's Bench, Lord Ellenborough, told him in the royal presence that in the execution of the important duty to be confided to him he might rest assured the law would give him its support. He had also several interviews with the Solicitor-General, Sir Samuel Shepherd, respecting the acts of Parliament to be prepared for the safe custody of Bonaparte. Sir H. Lowe has been often blamed for placing sentries round the dwelling of Bonaparte at Longwood. It appears, however, that this idea originated not with himself, but with the solicitor-General. I had (says Sir H. Lowe) an interview with the Solicitor-General, and endeavoured to impress upon him the necessity of such stipulations in the act of Parliament as might aid me in the discharge of that part of my instructions. His reply to me was very remarkable. He said he considered the danger of any unauthorized communication would be best guarded against by means of sentries. The reply, I say, was remarkable, because I had not wished to molest Napoleon by placing sentries near his dwelling, and because it shows the lawofficers of the Crown, to whom I was referred, had ideas of much greater rigour in the discharge of the duties imposed upon me that those I had professed. This is the man to whom, according to O'Meara, Napoleon applied the epithets of Sicilian hangman, boja; of a constable, sbirro; of a gaoler, of a leader of brigands, and 1853.] What precautions were necessary at St. Helena. chief of spies, capo di spioni; a captain of vagabond Corsican deserters; a clerk, scrivano; a man who had never commanded, or been accustomed to men of honour. From the first moment of seeing Sir H. Lowe, Napoleon conceived a dislike towards him, and this soon ripened into utter aversion. It is not too much to say (remarks Mr. Forsyth) that for a long time, if not to the end of his life, he hated him with a perfect hatred.' The feeling seems to have been an almost instinctive antipathy, for it displayed itself before the newly arrived governor had introduced any change in the regulations, or done anything which could give offence. Bonaparte said, that the countenance of Sir Hudson Lowe was repulsive to him; and Mr. Forsyth admits that his manner was not prepossessing, even in the judgment of favourable friends. We had not ourselves the honour of Sir Hudson Lowe's personal acquaintance; but knowing his person well, we can aver that it was the very reverse of prepossessing. He was, emphatically, a downlooking man, with a slouching air and shuffling gait, much more like an attorney's clerk than a military officer. Colonel Jackson, who knew him well, however, says he was a man possessing little of what is called manner; but he was full of kindness, liberality, and consideration for the feelings of others. The real truth was told by Montholon to this officer, when he visited him at his Château of Frémigny, near Arpajon in France:- Mon cher ami,' said the Frenchman, 'an angel from heaven could not have pleased us as Governor of St. Helena.' No doubt, it was irksome to Bonaparte to show himself twice aday, morning and evening, and equally so that any stranger should be prevented from seeing him, except with the Governor's previous authority. But the question is, whether these precautions were necessary, were indispensable? In the month of May, 1816, when Lady Loudoun, the wife of the Marquis of Hastings, was on her return home from India, the Governor invited Bonaparte to dinner; but this civility, however well meant, was unavailing, as Napoleon clung te 151 naciously to the title of Emperor, and this could not be given him by Sir Hudson Lowe. The precautions for Napoleon's security were precisely the same under Sir Hudson Lowe as under Sir G. Cockburn; so that his indignation against the former was either simulated or unjust. Napoleon, as Las Casas admits in his journal, allows that his conduct to the Governor was unjustifiable: I behaved very ill to him, no doubt (said he), and nothing but my present situation could excuse me, but I was out of humour and could not help it. Had such a scene taken place at the Tuileries I should have felt myself bound to make some atonement. Never, during the period of my power, did I speak harshly to any one without afterwards saying something to make amends. This is, unquestionably, a great stretch of Bonaparte's imagination. His language and demeanour were often brutal and ungentlemanlike, not merely to his own generals and ministers, but to foreign ambassadors. His rudeness to Lord Whitworth was interrupted by the latter placing his hand on his sword; and his incivility to Metternich, and other of the foreign ambassadors, is also matter of record. Under the date of the 27th June, we find allusion made to a letter written by O'Meara to Major Gorrequer, in which this low-lived man jests at the expense of his patient, that patient being a lady. In June, 1816, Colonel (afterwards Lieut.General Sir Henry) Keating, who was on his way from the Mauritius, had an interview with Bonaparte. He told Colonel Keating that England would soon have need of him, and would remove him from St. Helena : It was impossible (he said) that the Bourbons could retain power in France, and that recourse must be had to himself or his son, in either of which cases he He would be summoned to Europe. said that if his brother Joseph had not been a fool (benet) he would have enlightened Spain as he (Napoleon) had enlightened France, and then the Bourbons would have had no hold there. But, he continued, I speak not of my brother-the question is about my son; it is he who is necessary to France, and France will have him, because she cannot do without him. People do not want your nonsense about legitimacy. All the monarchs of Europe are fools, with their legitimacy. That is not common sense the people want no more of that. I must speak to your Prince Regent. He has sense and spirit, and would understand what I have to say to him. Europe, and especially France, are too enlightened to be caught by the stupid nonsense which the old Monarchs and their courts talk about legitimacy, divine right, the throne, and the altar. The less they wish to grant liberty to their subjects, the more they must speak to them about it. I do not wish it any more than they, you may be sure. I know well that now-a-days, it requires a rod of iron to rule men, but it must be gilded, and we must make them believe, when we strike them, that they direct the blow themselves. It is necessary always to talk of liberty, equality, justice, and disinterestedness, and never grant any liberty whatever. No change of system is required, but only a change of language, and provided we talk to the people of liberty and equality, I answer for it that they may be easily oppressed and made to pay down to their last farthing, without being tempted to rise in insurrection, or feeling really any dis content. These are remarkable admissions, and will by-and-bye do more to destroy the prestige of Bonapartism in France than even the sway of the Emperor Louis Napoleon. In July, 1816, Sir H. Lowe discovered that letters were brought to the island contrary to the provi. sions of the act of Parliament, by the servants of persons arriving in an official capacity. Some of the letters in question were brought by the valet de chambre of Baron Sturmer, who had been fourteen years in the French service, and accompanied Joseph Bonaparte to Spain. The danger that might arise from communications of this kind will be obvious to the meanest capacity. But the governor, while informing Lord Bathurst, resorted to no extraordinary precautions. At the time that Napoleon and his suite were thus illegally receiv ing letters, the ex-emperor himself admitted that the British Government could not remedy the continual privation in the island of objects of primary necessity. While the ex-emperor and the governor were at open war, it is not to be supposed that the suite of Na poleon agreed amongst themselves. There can be no doubt as to the unhappy terms on which the French lived with each other at Longwood. Lieutenant, now Lieutenant-Colonel Jackson, who resided some time there with the orderly officer, says, the court of Longwood, like the entourage of more powerful sovereigns, was not free from jealousies, envy, and much uncharitableness. Bertrand and Montholon were never on friendly terms, while Montholon and Gourgaud were at openly avowed enmity. The two ladies, Mdmes. Bertrand and de Montholon only interchanged formal calls once or twice a year. On July the 10th, 1816, we find a letter of O'Meara to Sir Thomas Reade, in which are these passages: They (meaning Montholon and Co.) are sufficiently malignant to impute all these things (enumerating complaints about the supply of meat, wine, &c.) to the Governor, instead of setting them down as being owing to the neglect of Balcombe's people. Every little circumstance is carried directly to Bonaparte, with every aggravation that malignity and falsehood can suggest to evil disposed and cankered minds.' Contrast this with the published Voice from St. Helena. In August, 1816, Sir H. Lowe had one of his five interviews with Napoleon, principally with a view of making known to him the rude and unruly conduct of General Bertrand. Bonaparte of course took the part of Bertrand, when Sir Hudson, with great dignity said, 'I am a subject of a free government. Every kind of despotism and tyranny I hold in abhorrence, and I will repel every accusation of my conduct in this respect as a calumny.' In September, 1816, Sir Hudson Lowe forwarded to Earl Bathurst a letter of O'Meara's, which stated that Bonaparte made him an offer of 6000f. yearly, in addition to his allowance from the British Government, whereupon the doctor asked to be allowed a similar sum to that offered him by Bonaparte. In observing upon this letter to Lord Bathurst, Sir H. Lowe said that, having had experience of O'Meara's zeal and useful information he felt induced to solicit consideration to his claim. 1853.] Petty complaints of Napoleon and his suite. A great outcry was made in O'Meara's book, and in the volumes of Gourgaud, Montholon, &c., because Napoleon sold some of his plate to be broken up, ostensibly to provide a larger supply of what Lord Coke quaintly calls 'victual ;' but this after all was but a pretence, for Sir H. Lowe had fixed the expenses of Longwood at 12,000l. a year, which sum was 4000l. a year more than his Government had authorized him to allow. The obvious way to have had more 'provend' at command would have been to dismiss some of the large retinue of fifty-five persons, all of whom insisted upon luxuries. But in thus acting they would have deprived themselves of a grievance, and this was not their cue. On the 8th July, 1816, Sir Charles Stuart, the British ambassador at Paris, informed Lord Castlereagh that he had received intelligence that one Carpenter, an American citizen, was equipping a fast-sailing vessel in the Hudson river, for the purpose of facilitating the escape of Bonaparte from St. Helena. In consequence of this, M. de Richelieu induced Sir C. Stuart to recommend that apparent security should not lead to a relaxation of a vigilant system. And it is in the teeth of these suggestions and recommendations that people complain of the vigilance of Sir H. Lowe. To read O'Meara's Voice, one would suppose that the suite of the ex-Emperor were all martyrs and injured innocents. In his private correspondence with Finlaison, however, O'Meara states the whole party, with the exception of one or two, to be the greatest gluttons and epicures he ever saw. Under date of November 5, 1816, O'Meara says, in his Voice, that Sir Hudson desired him to write an opinion on the health of Bonaparte, cautioning him, that in writing it he must bear in mind that the life of one man was not to be put in competition with the mischief he might cause were he to get loose-that Bonaparte had been a curse to the world, and had caused the loss of many thousands of lives. No hint or trace of this appears in O'Meara's private letters, or in any of the papers of Sir H. Lowe, and it rests 153 entirely on the unsupported assertion of O'Meara, in a work written many years afterwards, when his object was to vilify as much as possible the character of the Governor. In the middle of November, 1816, Sir H. Lowe discovered a clandestine correspondence, which led to the arrest of Las Casas and his ultimate removal from the island. Previous to his leaving, Las Casas admitted that the state of Bonaparte's mind was one of great irritation, that he must be looked on as a sick man, and great allowances made for him. Having made this admission, he went on to say, that the suite of the ex-emperor were all more irritable and more ready to believe evil than he was himself. In truth, every effort made by the Governor for the comfort of his prisoner was misconstrued. In November, 1817, Sir Hudson sent some excellent coffee to Longwood, thinking it would be acceptable. So it was considered by Bonaparte himself, but Montholon calls it an inexplicable idea of performing an act of politeness, and he intimates that Cipriani, the maitre-d'hotel, suspected that the coffee might be poisoned, and would not use it until it had been submitted to a variety of tests. Cipriani, he says, thought me mad when I put the case into his charge to be used by the chief cook. This incident shows how perverted were the minds of the French at St. Helena, and how difficult it was to please persons so disposed to misconstrue the commonest act of polite ness. Many have doubted, though we have never been of the number, whether Napoleon ever had really an intention of invading England; but in January, 1817, he stated to O'Meara, who records the circumstance in a letter to Sir H. Lowe, that it was his firm intention to invade England. and to head the expedition himself. To the same person he boasted of the exact information he obtained from England. He stated that the emigrants were on all occasions his best informers, and that he paid at times as large a sum as 20007. and 30007. per month to a lady of high rank, who sent him regular accounts of all he desired to know. Speaking of Pel tier, he said, he was a polisson, a briccone, a man who would write anything for money and for anybody. He offered me a hundred times to change his style and write for me. Several of the editors of the English newspapers made similar offers, but I did not then attach sufficient importance to it. Not so the Bourbons. In 1814 the editor of the Times wrote for them, and was paid about 30007. annually, besides taking a great number of copies.' The pamphlet of a man named Santini, a porter of Bonaparte's closet at St. Helena, produced a considerable impression in London in 1817. We now learn that this was written by Colonel Maceroni, an officer who had served under Murat. Lord Amherst, our ambassador to China, arrived at St. Helena on the 27th June. Sir Hudson was glad to avail himself of his presence to introduce any amelioration into the situation of Bonaparte, which, on conversation, it might appear advisable to allow. Lord Amherst did not obtain an interview with him until the evening before his departure, when he entered most fully into every subject, past and present, respecting his situation on the island. Lord Amherst told Sir Hudson Lowe that Napoleon had made bitter complaints, and he asked him whether he ought to make them known to the Prince Regent and Ministers. Sir Hudson said that he wished him to make known all that Bonaparte had mentioned, upon which Lord Amherst replied, In such case, sir, I shall think it my duty, as an honest man, to say at the same time I consider them unfounded.' Soon after the Voice from St. Helena appeared, in 1822, Sir Hudson Lowe wrote to Lord Amherst, and called his attention to certain misrepresentations in the book, upon which Lord Amherst, who was then at Montreal, replied that he did not use the expression, nor anything like the expression, attributed to him. Before Las Casas had left, Napoleon obtained an order for all that he had left in England, without giving him any real security, or even parting with a single article of those valuable personals of which it was known that the ex-emperor was possessed. In August, 1817, Bonaparte quarrelled with Gourgaud, and they did not speak for more than a fortnight. Gourgaud at this time expressed himself strongly to Count Balmain, the Russian commissioner, in disapprobation of the mode in which Bonaparte had conducted himself towards Sir H. Lowe personally, and observed that had he been in the Governor's situation he would have confined them more closely. He (i.e. Sir H. Lowe) has good right to complain. O'Meara observes in his Voice, that there was not enough to keep a good table,' yet he also states that they used thirty pounds of beef in soup every day, which was boiled down to rags. It has been said that Napoleon could not take exercise. If he did not take exercise it was his own fault, as he had twelve miles of range in which he might ride or drive. We must say, having conscientiously gone through the volumes, that the Governor exhibited a nervous anxiety to furnish everything on a liberal scale, and in every mode and manner so to perform his strict duty as not unnecessarily to give annoyance or pain. Many of the little complaints which the ex-emperor made might have been put right in a moment if Napoleon had not resolutely determined to hold no personal intercourse with the Governor. It is no doubt a painful and a humiliating thing to see The queller of the Nations Now daily squabbling o'er disputed rations; but the fault was not Sir Hudson Lowe's, but Bonaparte's, and we may well say with Byron Weep to perceive him mourning as he dines, O'er curtailed dishes, and o'er stinted wines; O'er petty quarrels, upon petty things; Is this the man who scourged or feasted kings? Behold the scales on which his fortune hangs A surgeon's statement, and an earl's harangues. A bust delayed, a book refused, can shake The sleep of him who kept the world awake. |