"
I do not wonder at all at this, for I recollect when I was at school at
Eton, the system was to drill into the heads of the boys strong
aristocratic principles and hatred of Democracy and of the French in
particular; we were ordered to write themes against the French Revolution
and verses of triumph over their defeats, with now and then a sly theme on
the great advantage of hereditary nobility; in these verses God Almighty
was to be represented as closely allied to the British Government and a
_sleeping partner_ of the Administration. One of the fellows of Eton
College actually told the late Mr Adam Walker, the celebrated lecturer on
natural and experimental philosophy, who was accustomed to give lectures
annually to the Etonians, that his visits were no longer agreeable and
would be dispensed with in future; as "Philosophy had done a great deal of
harm and had caused the French Revolution."
With respect to my visit to Versailles, I was much struck with the vast
size and magnificence of the buildings and with the ingenuity displayed in
the arrangement of the grounds and the numerous groups of statues,
grottos, aqueducts, fountains and ruins.
Pages:
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156