be making arrangements for going over to Dublin so far ahead as
the 22d of May, for by that time Dublin may have been swallowed up by
Young Ireland.

Your theory of my reading elegant extracts from Shakespeare is very
pretty, but absolutely nothing to the purpose for my purpose.... All
that is _merely_ especially beautiful is sedulously cut out in my
reading version, in order to preserve the skeleton of the story; because
the audiences that I shall address are not familiar with the plays, and
what they want is as much as possible of the excitement of a dramatic
entertainment to be obtained without entering the doors of a theatre....

You forget to what a number of people Lambs and Bullocks give their
names; Hog, which, by the bye, is spelt Hogge, has by no means the
pre-eminence in that honor.

I saw Lady Lansdowne the other day, who said the ministers were
extremely anxious about Ireland, and that the demonstrations with regard
to St. Patrick's day kept them in a state of great alarm. Lord
Lansdowne is tolerably well just now, but has been quite ill; and Lord
John Russell is so ill and worn out that they say he will be obliged to
resign: in which case I suppose Lord Lansdowne would be premier. The
position of people at the head of governments in this year of grace is
certainly not enviable. D'Israeli said, last night, he couldn't see why
Dublin should not be burnt to the ground; that he could understand the
use of London, or even of Paris, but that the _use_ of Dublin was a
mystery. I suggested its being the spring and source and fountain-head
of Guinness's stout, but I don't think he considered even that a
sufficient _raison d'etre_ for your troublesome capital, or porter an
equivalent for the ten righteous men who might save a city.

Thackeray tells a comical story of having received a letter from his
father-in-law in Paris, urging him by all means to send over his
daughter there, and indeed go over himself, for that the frightful riots
in England, especially those in London, Trafalgar Square, Kennington,
etc., must of course make it a most undesirable residence; and that they
would find Paris a much safer and quieter one: which reminds me of the
equally earnest entreaties of my dear American friends that I should
hasten to remove my poor pennies from the perilous guardianship of the
Bank of England and convert them with all despatch to the safe-keeping
of American securities!

I have been going out a good deal