Social Life in England from the Restoration to the Revolution,
1660-90. By W. C. Sydney. (Ward and Downey.)—It is diffi- cult to understand some phases of that extraordinary carnival of morals and manners that followed the Restoration of Charles IL, and almost impossible to avoid exaggeration in attempting to de- pict the actual life of that day. There are some graphic pages in Mr. Sydney's volume, pages that bring striking scenes before us, with much of the colour that distinguished dress and manners at that period. Yet when we remember that only the more splendid items, the more extravagant follies, and the darker sides of social life are ever preserved for the wonder of future generations, it may be said with justice, this can only be one side of the picture. In painting the prevailing vices and want of refinement of a period, the historian has to stop and make a large reserva- tion. Such-and-such a folly was universal, and yet not universal, because there is always a strong leaven of sob or- minded persons leading the quiet family life that is proof against whole floods of reckless living and insane folly. Mr. Sydney finds it necessary, after describing, as it were, the universality of showy vices and of spendthrift recklessness of a period, to qualify his remarks by some such observation as "all could not have lived like this," or words to that effect. Country life does not appear to have reached beyond the high-water mark of sport, and the most characteristic feature handed down to us is its coarseness ; yet a great deal of good-fellowship existed among all classes, and refinement was not an unknown quantity. Manu- facturing towns, as we now know them, did not exist. Travelling from one part of the country to another was only for the adven- turous, yet the literature of the country clergy, and those interested in archeology and contemporary manners, circulated knowledge and the graces of life. What we have preserved most carefully for us is the London life of fashion and of the City, and, indeed, it is what most of us can best realise, for the routine is ever much the same. This furnishes some of the most interesting and suggestive chapters in a book remarkable for interesting matter and its clear arrangement.
Previous page
