are not public and verbal in Germany, and an advocate there is never an object of public interest. His biographer attributes it to a love of inquiry, and a desire of examining every side of a question, and an aversion to come to a decision. But the two former reasons apply more to a judge than an advocate. And we should rather be disposed to ascribe this dislike to that modesty which ever accompanies genius, and which might render Moeser, in such weighty matters as life and property, fearful of deciding wrong, though he only delivered the sentence of the laws. Perhaps, also, his impassioned mind required constantly to express its feelings, and he found a suitable means of doing this in defending other people. Iis clients were to him what fictitious beings are to the poet; whom he creates, that he may invest them with all the cheerfulness, melancholy, or horror, which reigns in each fitful mood of his own checquered mind.

Moser was appointed in 1757 to the very delicate situation of commissioner, to regulate with the allied army, which had entered Osnabrück, the manner in which supplies were to be obtained, and contributions levied. The inhabitants, suffering from the presence of the troops, and their exactions, were ready enough to complain; but the conduct of Moser so obviously saved them from many vexations, that he was universally praised and esteemed. He gained the friendship of Prince Ferdinand and the rest of the generals of the allied army; and won still more than before the confidence of his own government and the love of his fellow-citizens.

In 1763 he was sent to England to regulate with the English commissariat the liquidation of the debts incurred for the supplies of the allied army in Osnabrück. His residence in London raised him to still higher consideration. At that time, it was a question with his Majesty, whether he should make his son or his brother Bishop of Osnabrück. The former, as the temporalities of the see were held alternately by a prince of the houses of Hanover and Brandenburg, was considered as most advantageous for our royal family, but it was strongly opposed by the Chapter; and Moser stood forth as the defender and champion of the King's right to nominate

any one of the Princes of his house. The Duke of York, though then an infant, was accordingly made Bishop of Osnabrück. Another dispute then ensued as to the right of guardianship during the minority of the Prince, which was claimed by the Chapter, but retained by the King. The advice of Moser was found useful, and before he left London, he had gained the entire confidence of his Majesty and his Hanoverian minister. On his return to Osnabrück, after eight months residence in London, he was commissioned by the King to examine every measure of Government, and give his opinion concerning it before it was carried into execution. And during the whole minority of the Duke of York, Moeser was in fact the chief counsellor of the crown for the bishoprick. He retained his other situation of secretary to the estates; and thus the servant both of the nobility and the bishop, and, at the same time, the friend of the people, he preserved, through a long series of years, the esteem and respect of all. He had no sinister views to answer; he neither courted popularity, nor was greedy of the honours and wealth which the Sovereign could bestow. His conduct was open and upright, never stooping to flatter either party, and his high honours were purchased by no sacrifice of principles: he kept the plain way of honesty, and yet was a favourite with the powerful.

He was appointed in 1768 Secret Referendary to the Government, and received, unasked, an addition to his pension. The letter which he wrote on this occasion to the Hanoverian Minister in London, and the answer of the latter, merit that we should here transcribe them. The former shews Moser's peculiar manner of thinking and of expression, and the latter how highly he was respected.

Moser wrote, "" I have often declared, on being sounded by the Council of Government, that I had enough of every thing, and would only bring one pudding on my table, if I were ten times as rich as I am. Yet you have given me an addition to my pension, not only without my asking it, but almost in opposition to my desire. In the same manner, as I learn from M. De Busch, you had an intention to procure me a higher rank and title. But when I wrote to the minister to

thank him, I begged he would spare me with titles, which are like horns, and I never wished to exchange for them my right of creeping through a hedge."

Mr De Behr answered, "The opinion I have always entertained of your noble manner of thinking, honourable Sir, was confirmed by your letter of this month. I beg you will look on what the King, in the name of the Bishop, has given you, not as an encouragement to greater labours for the public, but as a token of the good will borne towards you. As to the title, I agree with you, that it is a matter of great indifference to a meritorious man, but as far as regards it, you will always have liberty to please yourself. At the same time, it gave me pleasure to find my knowledge of your opinions more correct than that of Mr R. R. de B. It is well for any country, when the places of distinction in it are conferred according as individuals have promoted the public welfare."

In this respectable and dignified situation, Moser passed the remainder of his life. He resided constantly at Osnabrück, but visited Pyrmont annually, for the sake of there meeting some literary friends. His occupations, either as an advocate or statesman, were at all times numerous, and he was accustomed to perform all his duties without the assistance of a deputy. The small and unimportant country over which his official influence extended, could not make him known to the world as a statesman. Osnabrück is only an appendage to Hanover, which is of itself only known from its connection with England. Mæser might have shared that neglect with which many of the ministers of the petty sovereigns of Germany, who, however, perform their parts ably, are suffered to pass to the grave, had not his talents as an author redeemed his name from obscurity. It was during this dignified and occupied period of his life that most of his works were written. But to them we shall hereafter refer, when all the particulars of his life have been stated. Moser had long been afflicted with cramps, which he supposed, according to a particular theory he had formed, were violent but benevolent exertions of nature to restore the equilibrium of the nervous system. When they

seized him, he resigned himself pa tiently, bearing the pain with as much fortitude as he could. He took no means of curing or relieving them. In the beginning of 1794 he caught a cold, which was soon followed by such cramps. He laid himself in bed, believing they would soon pass, but a death sweat came on, and he perceived his end was approaching. Then alluding to his struggles and his pa tience, he said, "I have lost my cause." He gave some directions relative to his worldly affairs, thanked his only and his affectionate daughter for her tender cares, said he was tired and desired to sleep, and so sank gently, as he had lived, into the arms of death. This event took place on the 8th of January 1794. His funeral was solemn and even splendid, from the vast concourse of people of every description who followed unbidden to his grave.

Moser was considerably above the middle stature, and his father was long afraid to send him to a University, because Frederick William, the First of Prussia, believed he had a divine right to incorporate every youth above five feet eight inches with his grenadiers. He was proportionately stout and well made, enjoying, through the greater part of his life, that free and pleasant use of all his bodily faculties which contributes so essentially to a cheerful, healthy mind. His countenance was open and dignified, inviting confidence, and strongly expressive of his unassuming merits. Seriousness was united with kindness in his whole deportment; he seldom laughed, but a cheerful smile like that which Homer has made characteristic of his gods, played for ever on his countenance. He was sincere, patriotic, hospitable, kind, and friendly, ready to promote any good work, but inflexible in his opposition to evil. In his youth he had deserted from school, and had been relieved, when at a distance from home, by the cha rity of a stranger. From this circumstance, he had adopted a resolution never to refuse alms when asked of him, and was frequently seen at Pyrmont surrounded with beggars, to each of whom he gave, like some ancient and benevolent Abbot, some trifle and a friendly salutation. In company he rather excited others to converse, than engrossed the whole

conversation himself, taking occasion to bring forth every body to the best advantage. Yet he was never reserved or unsocial, but always ready to take a part in whatever society he might be thrown. He was free from pride and vanity, and conversed therefore only for pleasure or instruction, and not to exult in a victory over an opponent, or to triumph in a display of pedantic knowledge. He was happy in his domestic circle, blessed with a partner adorned with every female virtue. Her death, in 1787, appeared only to give his daughter an opportunity of shewing her love; during the rest of his life she was devoted entirely to him. His only son died at Göttingen at the age of twenty. Thus beloved by relations, friends, and dependents, honoured by his superiors, respected by his immediate neighbours, and admired as an author by the greater part of his countrymen, Moser passed a quiet, dignified, and happy life. Amongst the Germans he is a singular instance of a literary man, with a strong, plain, unsophisticated understanding, directing his efforts to promote useful knowledge. He resembled his countrymen, however, in his kindly affec tions, and in his gentle accommodating spirit; and when they are in general accused of admiring too fondly whatever is visionary, we must here record to their honour, that they have long respected and esteemed the calm and wise Justus Moser.

We have hitherto confined our attention to Moeser as a man; we now come to speak of him as an author. His works were collected and published by his friend and biographer, Nicolai, in 1798. They consist of eight parts, bound up into four thick octavo volumes, of between 700 and 800 pages each. The first volume contains what Moser modestly called an Introduction to the History of Osnabrück. It was first published in 1765, and is considered as having made an epoch in the manner of writing history in Germany. Before then, it was only a chronicle of kings and battles. Moser wrote a History of Property, of the changes it had ́undergone, and of the corresponding alteration in the manners of his countrymen. He first noticed, so as to make it useful for the purposes of history, the great political distinction between the

earliest inhabitants of North and South Germany. Those of the south were united under military leaders; those of the north dwelt in isolated houses, were independent of every thing like rulers, and met as equal and free men when any thing was to be resolved on for the common good. The situation of Moser led him to consider the subject of property most frequently: the whole work was at first only written for his own use, and it is not, therefore, surprising, that it should have assumed a form more welcome to jurisconsults and statesmen, than to general readers. Mæser only brought the history down to the thirteenth century, and it was then undoubtedly the best work on the early inhabitants of the North of Germany. It excited a desire amongst his countrymen to pry into the subject more narrowly, and though later and more extensive researches have thrown a clearer light on the matter, and a more agreeable manner of describing it, has given modern historians a great advantage over Moser, yet his work is still much read, and will always be looked on and referred to as an admirable guide.

A second volume contains his miscellaneous works, in which he has treated in a happy, sometimes serious, sometimes comic manner, a great variety of subjects. Among them we shall only particularise his tale of the Poor Freeman, and his Essay on the German Language and Literature. The former was written to ridicule the indecent haste with which the French began to abolish all their ancient institutions, and appears quite equal to the novels of Voltaire, but written with a greater respect for truth. The latter was an answer to the celebrated letter of Frederick the Great, on the literature of Germany, and was considered as the best of the numerous productions to which that gave rise. We shall quote a passage or two of this, because Moser appears to have judged very correctly, both the growing literature and language of his country.

"Sublime feelings," he says, "which are the parents of every noble expression, can only be produced by great events. Danger makes heroes, and the ocean makes bold men of those who would have been cowards on land. The mind demands difficulties to conquer before it evinces its own

8

extraordinary powers, where there are no difficulties, revenge, love, and honour, and other noble emotions, do not deviate from their ordinary sphere, and man remains that common animal which in every day life we wish him to be. Such occasions, in which great difficulties are to be conquered, do not occur to us Germans. The state, under the protection of a standing army, pursues its steady march with a machinelike pace. We seek honour in service or in learning, and know nothing of the higher aims to which service and learning ought to be subservient. Our fair ones are rather attached to common than heroic feelings. The custom of duelling, which is fortunately yet preserved, reconciles enemies, and prevents the lust to murder which revenge inspires. Or if an occur rence important to mankind happens, it does not interest us so powerfully as it would other nations. The history of the miller Arnold would have set all the parliaments of France and all the parties of England in commotion. But in Germany it has only been spoken of as an agreeable novelty. No man has sounded the alarm of danger to be apprehended to the state, from the cabinet deciding the processes which arise among subjects; and no flatterer has ventured to say the King has once hurled his thunder in his wrath, and in altering the administration of justice, shattered a rock, and laid bare a mine of gold."

Moser is a steady advocate for the Germans following their own modes of thinking, and avoiding a servile imitation of the French, or Italian, or classical authors. He liked English better than French literature, but above every thing recommended the Germans not to fetter themselves with any system. In the few observations already quoted, he seems to us to have selected the chief cause of the want of national energy in German literature. In the few which follow he has remarked a conspicuous difference between the German and English languages, which, at present, owing to the very rapid cultivation of the German, and the extension of education, is much less than when he

wrote.

"Now, a few words on our language which the king regards as so inferior to the French, reproaching it both as poor and harsh. Although much improved since the days of Gottsched, it is, I admit, yet poor, but this is a fault of all written languages, and above all of the French; which is so polished and purified, that you cannot express a masculine idea in it, without offending its propriety. The English lan

guage is the only one which, like the people, shuns nothing, but grasps at every thing, and will not, out of excessive chas tity, become consumptive. It is the only language of Europe which is spoken by the people at the same time that it is writ ten. It stands fast in its own nourishing soil; while our written language is gather ed as it were from its native spot, and now withers and dries. Written languages are merely conventional signs of courts or of learned men, and the German which we use is as little the dialect of Meissen as of Frankfort. It is a selection of expressions necessary for our books. As new truths are inserted in them it extends itself, and that it is richer now than it was in the time of Gottsched, is a certain proof that more truths have entered into the common circulation of the learned."

There can be no doubt that many of the defects of German literature arose from the written and spoken languages being different. Since then, however, so many of the words of conversation have been taken into writing, and the written language has, in its turn, become so generally adopted in conversation, except amongst the lower classes, that this cause is fast disappearing. There are many excellent papers in Moser's miscellaneous writings which we pass over, because want of space does not allow us to do justice to them.

The two other volumes contain the most celebrated work of Moser. It is called Patriotische Phantasieen, (Patriotical Fancies,) and is a collection of papers which were published somewhat in imitation of the British Essayists, weekly at Osnabrück. For sixteen years, from 1766 to 1782, Mœser was editor of the Osnabrückischen Intelligenzblatter, and in this journal he published an article weekly on a great variety of subjects. His principal object was to make his countrymen acquainted with the constitution and laws of their country, and to procure a readier acceptance for acknowledged truths, by clothing them in a pleasant garment. He had it further in view to promote frugality, and a better taste among all classes. The best of these papers were afterwards selected by his daughter, and presented to the world in their present form. The range of subjects which Moser embraced was much more comprehensive than that of the British Essayists. As early as 1773 he was the enlight ened advocate of a free trade in corn.

His observations on the causes of the decay of the commerce of Germany, particularly of the Hanse Towns, are still referred to as good authority. No man more closely examined than he did the origin of the personal servitude of the peasantry, and the consequences to which it led. But these and many other papers on similar weighty subjects, are not those which are read with most pleasure. There are a thousand little tales, and histories, and observations, all tending to a moral end, which are told in a manner that would not disgrace Addison. We shall quote two of the shortest specimens we have met with, but are quite unable to give them the naivété they have in the original.

"Rules are always valuable. "At the end of a certain village in Westphalia, a high post stretching out an iron hand had pointed out for many years the best road to the city. A rope-dancer once met the village bailiff near this post, and asked him what had persuaded him to direct all travellers the same road?-if every person was not at liberty to choose his own?-and if he could affirm that there were any such thing as right roads? He (the rope-dancer) could not only reach the city quicker by jumping over hedges and ditches, but every body would gape at him with wonder. Our post, said the bailiff, only points out the most common, the safest, and the most level road, and but for it, nobody would know how much shorter another might be found.

"In the mean time, a young man came gallopping up on a fiery horse, and, leaping over every obstacle, pursued a straight course to the city. See,' said the bailiff, this youth will make shorter work of it than you, and will cause as much astonishment. What would you think if we were to place the finger-post so as to direct every body to follow him?'

"You are a simpleton,' answered the rope-dancer; you would break a good many necks if you did. Even so,' said the bailiff; and we therefore point out a safe and sure road to travellers, without troubling ourselves about that which may be taken by rope-dancers and fearless horsemen. A philosopher, who had listened to the conversation, observed, that' roads or rules are always necessary, though men of genius do not follow them.'"

common

"John could not live,-an every-day

occurrence.

"Did you tell the toll-clerk at the gate, John, that he must open his eyes bet

VOL. VII,

ter, and not regard the lying invoices of the carriers, as if they were pure truth?' "Yes, Sir; but people must live ;— and, according to the proverb'

"No but, if you please, friend, and, above all, no proverbs, even if they are taken from this year's calendar. I hate them know, from experience, they are of no vaworse than attornies' quibbles, and you lue in paying tolls.'

"Just as you please, Sir. I only say, if he opens his eyes, the carriers close their purses, and the man cannot live on his hundred thalers a-year.'

"What, again? I am afraid you do not know what living is, John. It is not to live which is difficult, but to live The prince com

after a certain manner.

plains he cannot live-the field-marshal cannot live-the minister, the toll-clerk, cannot live-and perhaps you cannot live on the ten thalers I give you yearly. Every man concludes, that, because he cannot live after a certain manner, he must be a cheat. If I were to promote you to be toll-clerk, you also would not be able to live.'

"Perhaps not, Sir; but I should then have a better opportunity of exercising my senses than at present. If I should only close my eyes once a-day, I should be better off than I am in your honour's service, though I keep them open night and day. To be sure, one must live like others; if the superintendent's wife has a silk gown, my beloved must have a lustre.'

"I should think, friend John, though Mrs Superintendent lights the candle at both ends, your wife may still be reasonable enough to cut her coat according to her cloth. But, if you are wise, you will not marry yet. The women bring the men to Bridewell, and you may easily go there, should you close your eyes too often.' "When the King, your honour, gives a man a place, he gives him also a salary that enables him to live. Justice and the King's own interest demand this; for whoever does not pay well is ill served.'

"Enough, enough. Your brother is sexton, and rings the bell three times aweek. This is an office, and I suppose he also must live by his salary. It is right that servants who devote all the hours of the day, and many of the night, to their masters, should be supported according to their condition; but it would be intolerable if the shoemaker who makes a dozen pairs of shoes yearly for one person should expect to live by them. However, you may go to the toll-clerk, and tell him the King is pleased to dispense with his services, and to appoint you in his place."

"Who was now happier than John? He was toll-clerk, but soon found he could not live. He married his lady's maid, but he was now less able to live. He shut his eyes twice a-day, and still could not pay

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