in parliament; the former by laying too great a stress
on every part of his diffusive knowledge, and the latter by the
sterility of his intelligence.

An intelligent Note, however, vindicates the reputation of Dunning. It
is observed, that Dunning's having been counsel for Wilkes, and the
intimate of Lord Shelburne, it could not be expected that he should
take a prominent part in any of the debates which were so largely
occupied with Wilkes' misdemeanours. Lord North, too, was hostile to
Dunning. Under such conditions it was impossible that any man should
exhibit his powers to advantage; but at a later period, when he had
got rid of those trammels, his singular abilities vindicated
themselves. He became one of the leaders of the opposition, even when
that honour was to be shared with Burke. We have heard, that such was
the pungency of Dunning's expressions, and the happy dexterity of his
conceptions, that when he spoke, (his voice being feeble, and unable
to make itself heard at any great distance,) the members used to
throng around the bench on which he spoke. Wraxall panegyrizes him,
and yet with a tautology of terms, which must have been the very
reverse of Dunning's style. Thus, he tells us that when Dunning spoke,
"every murmur was hushed, and every ear attentive," two sentences
which amount to the same thing. Hannah More is also introduced as one
of the panegyrists; for poor Hannah seems to have been one of the most
bustling persons possible; to have run every where, and to have given
_her_ opinion of every body, however much above her comprehension. She
was one of the spectators on the Duchess of Kingston's trial, (a most
extraordinary scene for the choice of such a purist;) but Hannah was
not at that time quite so sublime as she became afterwards. Hannah
describes Dunning's manner as "insufferably bad, coughing and spitting
at every word; but his sense and expression pointed to the last
degree." But the character which the annotator gives as a model of
panegyric, pleases us least of all. It is by Sir William Jones, and
consists of one long antithesis. It is a studied toil of language,
expressing ideas, a commonplace succession, substituting words for
thoughts, and at once leaving the ear palled, and the understanding
dissatisfied. What, for instance, could be made of such a passage as
this? Sir William is speaking of Dunning's wit. "This," says he,
"relieved the weary, calmed the resentful, and animated the dro