no longer linger on the lips of men; while every household boasts its
'Rasselas,' and the civilized world holds sacred the memory of the
illustrious 'Rambler.'

John Campbell was born in 1781, and was the son of an obscure Scotch
clergyman. His father destined him for the clergy; in consequence of
which he was sent to the University of St. Andrews, where he met the
great Dr. Chalmers, then a student like himself. But young Campbell
became averse to the profession which had been chosen for him, and soon
turned his attention to the law. Soon after graduation, he betook
himself to London, where he studied with great zeal, meanwhile supplying
his wants by acting as the theatrical critic of the '_Morning
Chronicle_.' There, seated in an obscure corner of the pit or upper
gallery, we may imagine the Chancellor in embryo, jotting down the petty
excellences and failings of the players, to pamper the taste of the
frivolous on the morrow; while below him, in the decorated boxes and
circles, lolled the vain crowd of coroneted simpletons and courtly
beauties, now long forgotten, while he is honored as the benefactor of
his country's laws. He was called to the bar by the Society of Lincoln's
Inn, and then commenced a long life, replete with arduous study, with
untiring interest in duty, and stubborn perseverance. He early espoused
the liberal doctrines of Fox and Grey; and inasmuch as for many years
after the Tories monopolized the power, his politics were an effectual
bar to his professional preferment. He remained, however, through his
whole life, an earnest and consistent advocate of his early convictions.
Owing to the prejudice which Lord Chancellor Eldon entertained against
the Whigs, he did not obtain the silk gown of King's Counsel till the
venerable Jacobite gave place, in 1827, to the more courteous and
liberal Lyndhurst.