Do not, dear sir, impute this declaration
to a false modesty--the meanest species of pride. Whatever
else I may be ignorant of, I think I know myself, and shall
always endeavour to mention my good qualities without vanity
and my defects without repugnance. I shall say nothing of
the most intimate acquaintance with his country and
language, so absolutely necessary to every senator; since
they may be acquired, to allege my deficiency in them would
seem only the plea of laziness. But I shall say with great
truth that I never possessed that gift of speech, the first
requisite of an orator, which use and labour may improve,
but which nature can alone bestow; that my temper, quiet,
retired, somewhat reserved, could neither acquire
popularity, bear up against opposition, nor mix with ease in
the crowds of public life; that even my genius (if you allow
me any) is better qualified for the deliberate compositions
of the closet than for the extempore discourses of
Parliament. An unexpected objection would disconcert me, and
as I am incapable of explaining to others what I do not
understand myself, I should be meditating when I ought to be
answering.
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