第61章 BENTHAM'S LIFE(5)

A more bitter attack upon Blackstone，chiefly，as Bowring says，upon his defence of the Jewish law，was suppressed for fear of the law of libel.(28)The Fragment was published anonymously，but Bentham had confided the secret to his father by way of suggesting some slight set-off against his apparent unwillingness to emerge from obscurity.The book was at first attributed to Lord Mansfield，Lord Camden，and to Dunning.It was pirated in Dublin；and most of the five hundred copies printed appear to have been sold，though without profit to the author.The father's indiscretion let out the secret；and the sale，when the book was known to be written by a nobody，fell off at once，or so Bentham believed.The anonymous writer，however，was denounced and accused of being the author of much ribaldry，and among other accusations was said to be not only the translator but the writer of the White Bull.(29)Bentham had fancied that all manner of 'torches from the highest regions'would come to light themselves at his 'farthing candle.'None of them came，and he was left for some years in obscurity，though still labouring at the great work which was one day to enlighten the world.At last，however，partial recognition came to him in a shape which greatly influenced his career.Lord Shelburne，afterwards marquis of Lansdowne，had been impressed by the Fragment，and in 1781sought out Bentham at his chambers.Shelburne's career was to culminate in the following year with his brief tenure of the premiership (3rd July 1782to 24th February 1783).Rightly or wrongly his contemporaries felt the distrust indicated by his nickname 'Malagrida'，which appears to have been partly suggested by a habit of overstrained compliment.He incurred the dislike not unfrequently excited by men who claim superiority of intellect without possessing the force of character which gives a corresponding weight in political affairs.Although his education had been bad，he had something of that cosmopolitan training which enabled many members of the aristocracy to look beyond the narrow middle-class prejudices and share in some degree the wider philosophical movements of the day.He had enjoyed the friendship of Franklin，and had been the patron of Priestley，who made some of his chemical discoveries at Bowood，and to whom he allowed an annuity.He belonged to that section of the Whigs which had most sympathy with the revolutionary movement.His chief political lieutenants were Dunning and Barréwho at the time sat for his borough Calne.He now rapidly formed an intimacy with Bentham，who went to stay at Bowood in the autumn of 1781.Bentham now and then in later years made some rather disparaging remarks upon Shelburne，whom he apparently considered to be rather an amateur than a serious philosopher，and who in the House of Lords talked 'vague generalities'--the sacred phrase by which the Utilitarians denounced all preaching but their own --in a way to impose upon the thoughtless.He respected Shelburne.however，as one who trusted the people，and was distrusted by the Whig aristocracy.He felt，too，a real affection and gratitude for the patron to whom he owed so much.

Shelburne had done him a great service.(30)'He raised me from the bottomless pit of humiliation.He made me feel I was something.'The elder Bentham was impressed by his son's acquaintance with a man in so eminent a position，and hoped that it might lead by a different path to the success which had been missed at the bar.At Bowood Bentham stayed over a month upon his first visit，and was treated in the manner appropriate to a philosopher.The men showed him friendliness，dashed with occasional contempt，and the ladies petted him.He met Lord Camden and Dunning and young William Pitt，and some minor adherents of the great man.Pitt was 'very good-natured and a little raw.'I was monstrously 'frightened at him，'but，when I came to talk with him，he seemed 'frightened at me.'(31)Bentham，however，did not see what ideas they were likely to have in common.In fact there was the usual gulf between the speculative thinker and the practical man.'All the statesmen，'so thought the philosopher，'were wanting in the great elements of statesmanship'：they were always talking about 'what was'and seldom or never about 'what ought to be.'(32)Occasionally，it would seem，they descended lower，and made a little fun of the shy and over-sensitive intruder.(33)The ladies，however，made it up to him.Shelburne made him read his 'dry metaphysics'to them，(34)and they received it with feminine docility.Lord Shelburne had lately (1779)married his second wife，Louisa，daughter of the first earl of Upper Ossory.Her sister，Lady Mary Fitz-Patrick，married in 1766to Stephen Fox，afterwards Lord Holland，was the mother of the Lord Holland of later days and of Miss Caroline Fox，who survived till 1845，and was at this time a pleasant girl of thirteen or fourteen.Lady Shelburne had also two half sisters，daughters of her mother's second marriage to Richard Vernon.

Lady Shelburne took a fancy to Bentham，and gave him the 'prodigious privilege'of admission to her dressing-room.Though haughty in manner，she was mild in reality，and after a time she and her sister indulged in 'innocent gambols.'