CONCLUSION As Dampier steps over the ship's side the reader is prepared to learn that no more is heard of him. He is a shadow amongst a congregation of shades, and when he quits his comrades his first stride carries him into absolute obscurity, and he vanishes like a puff of tobacco smoke. One would be glad to be able to do more than give a mere handshake of farewell to such an English sailor as this. It would be pleasant to be able to follow him, to learn what sort of life he led, what new adventures, if any, he met with, what his health was, and what his means, the pleasures he took ashore, and the esteem in which he was held by those with whom he conversed before that dark old soldier Death quietly beckoned him out. I think we may take it that he never married whilst he pursued his sea-life; but when he came ashore for good he was tolerably advanced in years, and it would not be safe to conjecture what he did then. He had never known the comforts of a home, and the old seaman might find a kind of excuse for marrying in that reflection. Captain Cooke says that the net profits of Rogers's voyage (see previous page) were fairly divided amongst the officers and He was fifty-nine years old when he returned from his last voyage. Even assuming that his health was good enough to suffer him to go on using the sea, it is more than probable that at the age of sixty he would exhibit no further taste for the hard, perilous, and unremunerative calling. Considering the eminence he had achieved, it is strange that there are no discoverable contemporary references to this portion of his life; none, at all events, that I have been able to meet with or hear of, though I have not spared inquiry. This silence might sanction the conjecture that on his return he went into the country, perhaps to his little Dorsetshire estate, if it be There is a tradition that he was known to Defoe, which Sir Walter Scott traces to a passage in the Review. Whether Defoe knew Dampier in the flesh or not, his literary obligations to him appear considerable. Captain Singleton, published in 1720; the nautical passages in Colonel Jack, published in 1722; A New Voyage Round the World, published in 1725; together with a variety of ocean incidents to be met with in Roxana, Moll Flanders, and in others of the voluminous publications of this master, seem to me directly inspired by Dampier's writings. There were indeed Cowley, Wafer, Ringrose, Cooke, and the contemporary buccaneering authors to consult; but it is only necessary to contrast Defoe's tales of the sea, the marine passages in his shore stories, and his accounts of foreign countries, with the descriptions of Dampier, and more particularly the reflections with which he interpolates his narratives, to perceive the true source of some of the finest of the imaginations of the author of Captain Singleton and Robinson Crusoe. Defoe exhibited his gratitude in an odd form. Here are some opening passages in his New Voyage Round the World: “It has for some ages been thought so wonderful a thing to sail the tour or circle of the globe, that when a man has done this mighty feat he presently thinks it Language of this sort does not sound very graciously in the mouth of a man whose best work is owing to the hints he obtains from the people whose labours and publications he ridicules. I hope I shall not be deemed heterodox if I say that, in my humble judgment, great as is my veneration for Defoe, in point of interest neither his New Voyage nor his Captain Singleton is to be compared with the narratives of Dampier, Cooke, Rogers, and Shelvocke; whilst there is a quaintness and freshness about their plain, manly, sailorly style which I instantly miss on turning to Defoe's later books. It is quite true indeed that when the New Voyage Round the World was written the circumnavigation of the globe was no longer considered an extraordinary feat; but then forty-two years had elapsed since Dampier had sailed with the buccaneers from Virginia on his first tour, and in that interval the experiences of the journey—deemed remarkable at the time—had been often enough repeated by his own and the voyages of others, to rob the accomplishment of all its wonder. Dampier's And perhaps those who respect his memory most will be best pleased to think he was a failure as a buccaneer. I have already quoted a passage from his preface in which he does not dissemble the repugnance with which he recurs to his life of piracy. Nothing could be more intelligible than the disgust and loathing that possessed him when he sat in silence writing his book, and thinking of the character of the persons whom it was necessary he should refer to as his intimates. They were sailors indeed, but they were also brutes; no man knew that better than Dampier; no man was better acquainted than he with the vices, the profligacy, the horrors of the every-day speech of the men whose company he had kept for months and years. THE END Printed by R. & R. Clark, Edinburgh. FOOTNOTES: English Men of Action. With Portraits. Crown 8vo, Cloth. 2s. 6d. each. GENERAL GORDON. By Colonel Sir William Butler. SPECTATOR.—“This is beyond all question the best of the narratives of the career of General Gordon that have yet been published.” HENRY THE FIFTH. By the Rev. A. J. Church. SCOTSMAN.—“No page lacks interest; and whether the book is regarded as a biographical sketch or as a chapter in English military history it is equally attractive.” LIVINGSTONE. By Mr. Thomas Hughes. SPECTATOR.—“The volume is an excellent instance of miniature biography.” LORD LAWRENCE. By Sir Richard Temple. LEEDS MERCURY.—“A lucid, temperate, and impressive summary.” WELLINGTON. By Mr. George Hooper. SCOTSMAN.—“The story of the great Duke's life is admirably told by Mr. Hooper.” DAMPIER. By Mr. W. Clark Russell. ATHENÆUM.—“Mr. Clark Russell's practical knowledge of the sea enables him to discuss the seafaring life of two centuries ago with intelligence and vigour. As a commentary on Dampier's voyages this little book is among the best.” MONK. By Mr. Julian Corbett. SATURDAY REVIEW.—“Mr. Corbett indeed gives you the real man.” STRAFFORD. By Mr. H. D. Traill. ATHENÆUM.—“A clear and accurate summary of Strafford's life, especially as regards his Irish government.” WARREN HASTINGS. By Sir Alfred Lyall. DAILY NEWS.—“May be pronounced without hesitation as the final and decisive verdict of history on the conduct and career of Hastings.” PETERBOROUGH. By Mr. W. Stebbing. SATURDAY REVIEW.—“An excellent piece of work.” CAPTAIN COOK. By Mr. Walter Besant. SCOTTISH LEADER.—“It is simply the best and most readable account of the great navigator yet published.” SIR HENRY HAVELOCK. By Mr. Archibald Forbes. SPEAKER.—“There is no lack of good writing in this book, and the narrative is sympathetic as well as spirited.” CLIVE. By Colonel Sir Charles Wilson. TIMES.—“Sir Charles Wilson, whose literary skill is unquestionable, does ample justice to a great and congenial theme.” SIR CHARLES NAPIER. By Colonel Sir William Butler. DAILY NEWS.—“The 'English Men of Action' series contains no volume more fascinating, both in matter and in style.” WARWICK, THE KING-MAKER. By Mr. C. W. Oman. GLASGOW HERALD.—“One of the best and most discerning word-pictures of the Wars of the Two Roses to be found in the whole range of English literature.” DRAKE. By Mr. Julian Corbett. SCOTTISH LEADER.—“Perhaps the most fascinating of all the fifteen that have so far appeared.... Written really with excellent judgment, in a breezy and buoyant style.” RODNEY. By Mr. David G. Hannay. TIMES.—“A vivid sketch of one of our great naval heroes.” SPECTATOR.—“An admirable contribution to an admirable series.” MONTROSE. By Mr. Mowbray Morris. TIMES.—“A singularly vivid and careful picture of one of the most romantic figures in Scottish history.” Twelve English Statesmen. Edited by JOHN MORLEY. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. each. WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. By Edward A. Freeman, D.C.L., LL.D. TIMES.—“Gives with great picturesqueness ... the dramatic incidents of a memorable career far removed from our times and our manner of thinking.” HENRY II. By Mrs. J. R. Green. TIMES.—“It is delightfully real and readable, and in spite of severe compression has the charm of a mediÆval romance.” EDWARD I. By T. F. Tout, M.A., Professor of History, the Owens College, Manchester. SPEAKER.—“A truer or more life-like picture of the king, the conqueror, the overlord, the duke, has never yet been drawn.” HENRY VII. By James Gairdner. ATHENÆUM.—“The best account of Henry VII. that has yet appeared.” CARDINAL WOLSEY. By Bishop Creighton, D.D. SATURDAY REVIEW.—“Is exactly what one of a series of short biographies of English Statesmen ought to be.” ELIZABETH. By E. S. Beesly, M.A. MANCHESTER GUARDIAN.—“It may be recommended as the best and briefest and most trustworthy of the many books that in this generation have dealt with the life and deeds of that 'bright Occidental Star, Queen Elizabeth of happy memory.'” OLIVER CROMWELL. By Frederic Harrison. TIMES.—“Gives a wonderfully vivid picture of events.” WILLIAM III. By H. D. Traill. SPECTATOR.—“Mr. Traill has done his work well in the limited space at his command. The narrative portion is clear and vivacious, and his criticisms, although sometimes trenchant, are substantially just.” WALPOLE. By John Morley. ST. JAMES'S GAZETTE.—“It deserves to be read, not only as the work of one of the most prominent politicians of the day, but for its intrinsic merits. It is a clever, thoughtful, and interesting biography.” PITT. By Lord Rosebery. TIMES.—“Brilliant and fascinating.... The style is terse, masculine, nervous, articulate, and clear; the grasp of circumstance and character is firm, penetrating, luminous, and unprejudiced; the judgment is broad, generous, humane, and scrupulously candid.... It is not only a luminous estimate of Pitt's character and policy, it is also a brilliant gallery of portraits. The portrait of Fox, for example, is a masterpiece.” PEEL. By J. R. Thursfield, M.A. DAILY NEWS.—“A model of what such a book should be. We can give it no higher praise than to say that it is worthy to rank with Mr. John Morley's Walpole in the same series.” CHATHAM. By John Morley. [In Preparation.] English Men of Letters. Edited by JOHN MORLEY. In Paper Covers, 1s.; Cloth, 1s. 6d. ADDISON. The Globe Library. Globe 8vo. 3s. 6d. each.
MACMILLAN AND CO., LONDON. ******* This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will be renamed. 1.F. 1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem. 1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. 1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact For additional contact information: The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate. While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate. International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: www.gutenberg.org |