Gillman, writing the life of a philosopher, and
no jest-book, is under a different law of decorum. That retort,
however, which silences the jester, it may seem, must be a good one.
And we are desired to believe that, in this case, the baffled
assailant rode off in a spirit of benign candour, saying aloud to
himself, like the excellent philosopher the he evidently was, "Caught
a Tartar!"

But another story of a sporting baronet, who was besides a Member of
Parliament, is much worse, and altogether degrading to Coleridge. This
gentleman, by way of showing off before a party of ladies, is
represented as insulting Coleridge by putting questions to him on the
qualities of his horse, so as to draw the animal's miserable defects
into public notice, and then closing his display by demanding what he
would take for the horse "including the rider." The supposed reply of
Coleridge might seem good to those who understand nothing of true
dignity; for, as an _impromptu_, it was smart and even caustic. The
baronet, it seems, was reputed to have been bought by the minister;
and the reader will at once divine that the retort took advantage of
that current belief, so as to throw back the sarcasm, by proclaiming
that neither horse nor rider had a price placarded in the market at
which any man could become their purchaser. But this was not the
temper in which Coleridge either did reply, or could have replied.
Coleridge showed, in the _spirit_ of his manner a profound sensibility
to the nature of gentleman; and he felt too justly what it became a
self-respecting person to say, ever to have aped the sort of flashy
fencing which might seem fine to a theatrical blood.

Another story is self-refuted: "a hired partisan" had come to one of
Coleridge's political lectures with the express purpose of bringing
the lecturer into trouble; and most preposterously he laid himself
open to his own snare by refusing to pay for admission. Spies must be
poor artists who proceed thus. Upon which Coleridge remarked--"That,
before the gentleman kicked up a dust, surely he would down with the
dust." So far the story will not do. But what follows is possible
enough. The _same_ "hired" gentleman, by way of giving unity to the
tale, is described as having hissed. Upon this a cry arose of "turn
him out!" But Coleridge interfered to protect him; he insisted on the
man's right to hiss if he thought fit; it was legal to hiss; it was
natural to hiss; "for what is to be