Hampden Sydney College - Kaleidoscope Yearbook (Hampden Sydney, VA)

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. A Bundle of Letters lllfl eorresilondenee ol' a l'resident' of Hampden-Sidney Uollege in the olden time, when his animal trip to the General Assembly in ,Phila- delphia was made on horsehaek, and all eommunieation with ,Europe was hy sail ships, is not the most likely place to look for news of The great Napoleon, especially when ,Europe was ent oll' from America hy a lirilish lmloekadel Some extraets from the letters of ,lic-v. .lohn lilair .Hoge tio his 'l'at'her, liz-v. llr. Moses Hoge, then l'resi4lent' ol' llampden-Sidney, have there- l'ore more than a personal and passing interest. John lilaii' ,lloge was the mostz hrilliant' ol: Dr. .llogc-'s sons. When pastor ol' the fll1lll't'll on Shoekoe llillf' now the Grace Stireeti cllllll'Cll ol' lliehmond, his ministry was attended lrv the most' prominent' men of the day. lle was always ol' delieate health, and died at thirliv-six. lt was on. aeeonnt' ol his health that he made in his early manhood this remarkahle voyage. ll0llllICAlTX, Ileeemlier 5111, 1914. Ill-:an l'lA'l'lll'IRZ-hll'. Morton having undertaken to send my letters by the Iirst convey- anee. I avail myself with no little pleasure of the opportunity of informing you that after as eomfortahle a voyage as eould reasonahly have been expel-teal. I am now in lfranee .... We left New York on the 2.-lth ol' tletoher. in the afternoon, and were on that aeeonnt enahled to pass the hloekamling stpnulron unobserved, under m-over of the night .... Un the Sth day we fell in with the Ilritish seventy-four gun ship llellerophon, t'apt. llawker. We were, of course. hrought to and hoarded hy some of the otlieers. 'l'he Iirst question was: Have our people got possession of Long Island? They seemed literally liungry for news, having heen outa 1-ruising for some time without hearing anything. They examined our papers and endorsed them, we heing under Swedish eolors. 'I'he.v enquired if there were any Amerieans on hoard. llad they asked me I should not have hesitated to say, Yes.', but the Uaptain, of whom the enquiry was made. answered in the negative. We were therefore sutlcred to prom-eed. llad it been known that our whole establishment was an imposition. that the vessel was American, and had heen eaptnreal from the llritish. and that there were six .vlnn-rieans on board. perhaps we niight not have eseaped with so muvh facility. The deception was not then generally known to the passengers .... On the 28th day from New York. we heard the glad ery, l,and! landll' descending from the topmast. and soon we were ,gratitietl with the sight of 'l'e1'ra l+'irma from the deek. We were near the month ot' the tlaroime, hut the wind being' adverse, we were unable t.o enter. We were compelled t.o lie otl' and heat up some distant-e to the North, and on the tllst day. the wind heing still unfavorable to our course. we came to anehor opposite the Isle de Ile .... As to the politic-al state of the eountry, I know hut little. lt is, perhaps, as well estahlisln-d as it eould he after so sudden and important a revolution. A numher of persons are dissatistied. it is true. hut il' my information is 1-orreet. that dissatis- faetion does not prevail sutlieientl-v to produee any vivil vonunotion. I dist-over a very general hatred of the Idnglisli here. and a jealousy lest the measures of the new government should harmonize too mueh with Ilritish policy. 23

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3ION'I'l'ICLIICIt, Jamiary 221141. 1815. . ..... . I have found the French pronunciation far more ditlieult than I expected. While l eould read well enough when I landed, I could seareely lnulerstand anything that I heard or make myself understood. I have gradually eseaped from that ditlieulty, and new can understand a sermon or conversation pretty well, and express anything that I wish, though I suppose not without making blunders. 'l'hc French, however, instead of laughing at the blunders of ai foreigner. will generally try to help him out. 'I hope to be able to make some proficiency in the Italian language also. which I have just conuneneed. In a few days I. propose to leave this place for Marseilles. and to go to Toulon, Nice, Genoa, Leghorn, Florence, and, if the circumstances be favorable. perhaps to Home .... 'l'he news of the peace with I'l11,Ll'I11I1tI, which you have no doubt heard. I hope will facilitate eonnnunieations from our count rv ....... ' 'I'he writer onee saw a newspaper ot the same date as this letter, published in XYI11C'llt1SI't'1', Virginia, that spoke ot General .Iacl:son's plans for meeting the I3ritish at New Orleans, when the battle had actually been fought on the Sth ot the same month, and that battle was tougghti in ignorance that the articles ot peaee had been already sig.rned. I t is hardly likely, therefore, that lloetor Iloge had heard ot' the peace at this date, though he probably had, when the letter was received. lint it is altogether likely that his tirst informattion ol' the stirring events that follow was received in this letter. Think of hearing news of Napoleon by private lcfter! 'llhe reference to the Iiellerophon, in which Napoleon was afterwards carried to St. llelena, prepares ns to think ot' Napoleong new he 'flashes like a meteor upon our vision. hIAKSI'III.T.I'IS, March 4th, 1815. . . . . . . . I believe I have felt: more of what usually goes under the name of patriot- ism, and what. would not perhaps be misnamed if called pride of country, sinee I have been in Europe, than I ever did before. I have fretpiently found that my estimated importance has risen several degrees upon the discovery of my Amerieanship. The fact. is glaring that Iinglislunen sometimes 4-ondeseend to pass for Americans .... In this place I have met a few Americans who have displayed toward me all the eordiality of countrymen. The description ot' Marseilles is short. It is the finest and the most abandoned city I have seen in Europe. In this latter respect. even Paris does not probably surpass it. . . I have resolved to make a hasty tour through Italy. 'I'o facilitate my progress, I go directly from this place by water to Naples .... News! !! I have just heard. and there is no doubt, I believe, of the faet. that Bonaparte has landed in France with a small army. 'I'he general opinion is that he has made some arrangement in his retirement, for rm-conquering the Empire. and that he has now 001110 to attempt to earry it out. lie the issue what it may. it is altogether improbable that I. if I am prudent. eau have any ground of apprehension. lt. may, however, induce some variation in my arrangements. At this moment I am uncertain whether I go to Italy or not .... . . ' ll'IA1!SICIT.LIf1H, April 18th, 1815. 111-:AR I'lA'l'1II'IIt:-Il is now a month since I have written last. the state of affairs being so unsettled that the eommunieation between many plaees in this,e0u11t1'y has been entirely stopped, and no opportunity has presented of sending' anything by way of the Mediterranean. 24