scretion in the matter. Froude replied at first with
temper and judgment. But when Mrs. Carlyle persisted in her
insinuations, and implied a doubt of his veracity, he gave way to a
very natural resentment, and made a rash offer. He had, he said,
brought out the memoir by Carlyle's own desire. He should do the
same with Mrs. Carlyle's letters, for the same reason. "The
remaining letters," he went on to say, "which I was directed to
return to Mrs. Carlyle so soon as I had done with them, I will
restore at once to any responsible person whom she will empower to
receive them from me. I have reason to complain of the position in
which I have been placed with respect to these MSS. They were sent
to me at intervals without inventory or even a memorial list. I was
told that the more I burnt of them the better, and they were for
several years in my possession before I was aware that they were not
my own. Happily I have destroyed none of them, and Mrs. Carlyle may
have them all when she pleases." Froude can hardly have reflected
upon the full significance of what he was saying. He had at this
time been long engaged upon the biography of Carlyle, and a
considerable part of it was finished. If he had then given back his
materials, his labour would have been wasted, and Carlyle's own
personal injunction would have been disobeyed. Carlyle's memory
would also have suffered parable injury. It is said, and it squares
with the facts, that Mary Carlyle and her friends, whose literary
judgment was not quite equal to Carlyle's own, desired to substitute
as his biographer some learned professor in Scotland.* If that were
their object, they are to be congratulated upon their failure. For
the offer was not carried out. As a bare promise without
consideration it was not of course valid in law, and since no one
had acted upon it, its withdrawal did no one any harm. There were
also legal difficulties which made its fulfilment impossible.
According to counsel's opinion, dated the 13th of May, 1881,
Carlyle's request that the papers should be restored was "an
attempted verbal testamentary disposition, which had no legal
authority." The documents belonged not to Froude personally, but to
himself and Fitz-james Stephen, as joint executors, and Stephen has
left it on record that he would not have consented to their return
until Froude's task was accomplished.

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* David Masson, the editor of Milton, I have been told, but I do not know.
--

Mrs.