And yet, let
the name and dignity of De Vere stand so long as it pleases God."
And alas! we can now ask, Where is De Vere? This great Earldom of
Oxford was created in 1142, and has disappeared long ago in the limbo
of peerages said to be in abeyance.
In these days, Antony, when peerages are bought by men successful in
trade and sold by men successful in intrigue, such elevations in rank
have ceased to be regarded as the necessary concomitants of "great
honour" and "high and noble dignity"; so that it has long been more
reputable in the House of Lords to be a descendant than an ancestor.
But among the older great families there still remains a pride that has
descended unsullied through many generations, which serves as a fine
deterrent from evil deeds, and a constant incentive to honour--and in
England the history of great names can never be totally ignored, even
though the country may be ruled by persons who do not know who
were their own grandfathers.
Nothing is more ridiculous and cheap than to sneer at honourable
descent from famous ancestors; it divertingly illustrates the fable of the
sour grapes.
Your loving old
G.P.
7
MY DEAR ANTONY,
You will have seen from the extracts I have already quoted to you of
the writers of the Elizabethan age that the style of all of them
possesses something large and resonant, something that may be said
to constitute the "grand style" in prose; and this quite naturally without
effort, and without the slightest touch of affectation.
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