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of his country, to encounter any danger in any clime; nobly despising ease, and willing, without any vain regrets, to part with those blessings of domestic life which, by nature, he was so warmly disposed to enjoy and impart, and which Providence had granted him to his heart's full content, at the call of duty, and under the inspiration of patriotism and honour. From boyhood he was ambitious to rise by his own merits, and all life long he sought not the "bauble,” but the jewel "reputation, even in the cannon's mouth." His conduct, on all occasions, was eminently distinguished by promptitude and decision; nor did it ever, in a single instance, border upon rashness, being ever under the control of a spirit cool in the midst of dangers, and under the guidance of a mind confident in its own resources, because thoroughly accomplished in the art of naval warfare. As a seaman, indeed, he was admitted to stand second to none; and whether in frigate or line-of-battle ship, bringing the enemy to action, or threatening offensive movements when obliged, by overwhelming superiority of force, to guard his Majesty's vessels from capture, his manœuvres were such as to baffle or confound, and sometimes, where failure would have been no disgrace, to command success. It was the scientific style in which he fought his actions that gave him so high a place in the profession, as much as his daring valour; and the vessels he commanded were perfect models for that order and discipline which were not meant to please the eye merely,

"On some calm day,

In sunshine sailing far away,"

though every thing about them was beautiful, but always in powerful preparation for the hour when the order might be given to clear for battle. Like all first-rate officers, he was a strict disciplinarian; he ruled both by fear and by love, in such service equally salutary; and the conduct of his officers and crew never failed to prove their pride and trust in their commander. He rejoiced to encourage merit in all, high and low; and few officers of his standing in the service, and pos

sessing little interest but such as appertained to their own characters, were ever more instrumental in advancing the deserving than Sir Henry Blackwood. Nothing could damp his zeal in the cause of those whom he befriended; personal inconvenience, trouble, and labour, were then to him all pleasant; and he never rested till he had put them, if possible, in the path of promotion, letting them feel, by example as well as precept, that there was then but one sure way to gain it, "to do their duty." The same virtues which shone so brightly in his profession, adorned and endeared his character in private life. High-spirited, and sensitively alive to the minutest point of honour, his good name he guarded without art or effort; always dignified in his self-respect, but never overbearing; incapable of harbouring resentment, even to those who might have injured him, and of such a forgiving disposition, that in those cases he never felt at ease till amity was restored, and all offence forgotten. Good-nature was indeed with him a virtue; and, of a cheerful and sanguine temper, he delighted to look to the future in the sunshine of hope, nor ever gave way long to despondency, even under his severest trials. There was no selfishness in his nature; and, far above jealousy and envy, he was proud to see rising in the service all who had illustrated it by their renown. Though never rich, he was most generous-too generous, indeed, ever to become rich; but, while not neglectful of the interests of his family, he seemed to believe - nor will the belief be vain—that virtue and honour are beyond all other the best means of advancement in life, and that the sons of a man who had well served his country, may hope, by emulating their father's example, one day to gain their father's rank, and perhaps even to achieve some portion of their father's fame. His manners were as delightful as his character was estimable, simple and unpretending, but elegant and graceful, such as bespoke and became his birth; and their charm was increased by a fine countenance, full of animation, and, a person singularly handsome, and, though not above the middle size, indicating that strength and activity to which,

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under Providence, he more than once owed his life. Tenderly alive to the feelings and duties of all life's relations, he sought his own happiness in that of those he loved; a good son, a good husband, a good father, and a good friend. Though unostentatious in his religious duties, it is not to be thought that he who habitually felt "in the midst of life we are in death" had not a soul solemnly alive to religion. In that he but resembled all the rest of his country's greatest heroes. Nor can we fear that we shall be blamed by any, even by those who were nearest and dearest to him, for mentioning here, that, after his death, a manuscript was found, containing extracts from the Bible,-especially suitable for the devotional exercises of one whose lot had lain among perpetual dangers, and prayers, "accompanied with heart-confessions," to the very last affectingly proving to one sad survivor how humbly and penitentially that heart was disposed towards the God whose goodness guards them "that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters."

From "Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine,” No. CCX.

152

THE RIGHT HON.

No. IX.

LORD DOVER.

GEORGE JAMES WELBORE AGAR ELLIS, BARON DOVER, OF DOVER, IN THE COUNTY OF KENT; A PRIVY COUNCILLOR; A TRUSTEE OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM, AND OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY; A COMMISSIONER OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS; PRESIDENT OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF LITERATURE; A DIRECTOR OF THE BRITISH GALLERY; M.A., F. R. S., AND F. S. A.

IF length of days were to be commensurate with personal merit, the life of Lord Dover would have been one of no ordinary duration. Amiable and exemplary in all his private relations, an upright, zealous, and intrepid supporter of his political opinions, he will long be regretted by his family and his friends. His elegant accomplishments as a man of society, and his various and extensive attainments as a man of letters, were such, that it would be difficult to find, in the whole range of English gentry and nobility, a personage who will be so severely missed. He possessed in his family, and fortune, and character, every motive which can make existence desirable; but he had discharged his various duties, both domestic and social, so conscientiously and honourably, that, short as his life has been, it has been long enough to establish a reputation which there are few men, past or present, who having lived to the greatest age, would not be proud to enjoy.

The name of Ellis was remarkably distinguished among those whom the political changes of the Revolution of 1688 brought into action; for of six sons of the Rev. John Ellis, who died November 3d, 1681, the eldest was John, a secretary to the Revenue Commissioners under James II., and afterwards Comptroller of the Mint and Under Secretary of

State to William III.; the second was Sir William Ellis, who, following the fortunes of the exiled Stuarts, was Treasurer and Secretary of State to the Prince, yet died a protestant at Rome; the third was Philip, a Jesuit of much influence at the court of James, and, finally, Romish Bishop of Segni, in Italy; the fourth, Welbore, was Protestant Bishop of Meath, and the direct founder of the present noble house; and the fifth and sixth were in the professions of medicine and the law.

The John Ellis to whom these six sons were born traced his ancestry to the Conquest; from the date of which event they had been settled at Kiddall Hall, in the county of York: he was rector of Waddesdon, Suffolk; and married to Susanna, the daughter of William Welbore, Esq., of Cambridge. Welbore, their fourth son, having received the most liberal education, and taken the degree of D.D., was, after various church preferments, ordained Bishop of Kildare, in 1705, and in 1731 translated to the see of Meath, where he died about two years afterwards. He was a member of the Privy Council; and left by his lady, Diana, daughter of Sir John Briscoe, of Amberley Castle, Sussex, and granddaughter of Nicholas Earl of Banbury, two surviving children; namely, a son, Welbore, and a daughter, Anne. Welbore rose to high consideration in the state, and filled many offices of great trust and responsibility. In 1749, he was a Lord of the Admiralty; in 1755, Vice-Treasurer of Ireland; in 1763, Secretary at War; in 1765 and 1770, again Vice-Treasurer of Ireland; and in 1782, Secretary of State. Having discharged the duties of these important stations in a manner which signally entitled him to honourable reward, he was, in 1794, created a peer, as Lord Mendip, of Mendip, in the county of Somerset, with remainder, he having no issue, to the issue male of his sister Anne, by her marriage with Henry Agar, Esq.

The family of Agar are of French extraction, and belonged to the Comté Venaissin, whence they fled to avoid the religious persecutions which wasted the country, and drove its best citizens into banishment. They had also settled in the shire of

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