A recent biography, that of Cardinal Manning, has revived a question which can never be absolutely settled, for it is a question of degree. What is the precise duty of a Biographer? When Lockhart's Life of Scott was published, in 1837–38, a storm of abuse arose against both the historian and his hero. Lockhart was accused of blackening Scott's character. He had shown that Sir Walter was a bad man of business, in a business where he had no right to be. Everyone knew that before. He had shown that Scott associated more than need be with the Ballantynes, hardly the right mates for him. He had told the story of how the sheriff sat on the treasured wine-glass of George IV. He had given one instance of deliberate rudeness to Lord Holland, arising out of a private grudge, and one of terribly severe judgment on another's fault. He had admitted, and explained, what many thought Sir Walter's extreme deference to rank. There, in a page of letter-paper, are the examples of blackening Scott's character. More were not given, there were, practically, no more to give. In a course of study recently imposed on me, I have detected just one instance of a foible of Scott's, which Lockhart generalised; he did not reproduce the details, which were extremely unimportant.

The truth, and the whole of it, was told in this biography, and the wise world howled, as we may still read in Mr. Carlyle's essay. Mr. Carlyle, on the other side, praised a courageous blow dealt at a common form of cant. A biographer must be truthful or hold his hand altogether. I am informed that Mr. Carlyle insisted on the publication, by Mr. Froude, of some unhappy details about his own married life; they were published, and most of us remember, perhaps helped to swell, the hubbub. A very disagreeable theory of Mr. Carlyle became current; now, probably, that theory is fading away. He had chosen to do a sort of public penance, like Dr. Johnson at Lichfield. He had chosen it, but, if he had not, would it have been Mr. Froude's duty, as a biographer, to give such a large exhibition of blots? Did truth demand all these domestic janglings?