Life of Lord Byron, Vol. 6: With His Letters and JournalsMoore, Thomas
General
Life of Lord Byron, Vol. 6: With His Letters and Journals
Moore, Thomas
Byron, George Gordon Byron, Baron, 1788-1824; Poets, English -- 19th century -- Biography
comment, which gives them all the right of truth to be engraved
solemnly on his tomb.
[Footnote 1: _Diary of_ 1821.--The same distrustful and, as it turned
out, just view of the chances of success were taken by him also on
that occasion:--"I shall not," he says, "fall back;--though I don't
think them in force or heart sufficient to make much of it."]
Though with so little hope of being able to serve signally the cause,
the task of at least lightening, by his interposition, some of the
manifold mischiefs that pressed upon it, might yet, he thought, be
within his reach. To convince the Government and the Chiefs of the
paralysing effect of their dissensions;--to inculcate that spirit of
union among themselves which alone could give strength against their
enemies;--to endeavour to humanise the feelings of the belligerents
on both sides, so as to take from the war that character of barbarism
which deterred the more civilised friends of freedom through Europe
from joining in it;--such were, in addition to the now essential aid
of his money, the great objects which he proposed to effect by his
interference; and to these he accordingly, with all the candour,
clear-sightedness, and courage which so pre-eminently distinguished
his great mind, applied himself.
Aware that, to judge deliberately of the state of parties, he must
keep out of their vortex, and warned, by the very impatience and
rivalry with which the different chiefs courted his presence, of the
risk he should run by connecting himself with any, he resolved to
remain, for some time longer, in his station at Cephalonia, and there
avail himself of the facilities afforded by the position for
collecting information as to the real state of affairs, and
ascertaining in what quarter his own presence and money would be most
available. During the six weeks that had elapsed since his arrival at
Cephalonia, he had been living in the most comfortless manner, pent
up with pigs and poultry, on board the vessel which brought him.
Having now come, however, to the determination of prolonging his
stay, he decided also upon fixing his abode on shore; and, for the
sake of privacy, retired to a small village, called Metaxata, about
seven miles from Argostoli, where he continued to reside during the
remainder of his stay on the island.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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