convinced that, fully impressed with the sense and substance of the
subject, he was hurried on to expressions and colourings more striking
than what his pen had expressed."

"My qualities," says Byron, in one of his note-books (quoted by Moore,
'Life', p. 20), "were much more oratorical and martial than poetical;
and Dr. Drury, my grand patron (our head-master), had a great notion
that I should turn out an orator, from my fluency, my turbulence, my
voice, my copiousness of declamation, and my action. I remember that
my first declamation astonished him into some unwonted (for he was
economical of such) and sudden compliments before the declaimers at
our first rehearsal."

For his subjects Byron chose passages expressive of vehement passion,
such as Lear's address to the storm, or the speech of Zanga over the
body of Alonzo, from Young's tragedy 'The Revenge'. Zanga's character
and speech are famous in history from their application to Benjamin
Franklin, in Wedderburn's speech before the Privy Council (January,
1774) on the Whately Letters (Stanhope's 'History of England', vol. v.
p. 327, ed. 1853):--

"I forg'd the letter, and dispos'd the picture,
I hated, I despis'd, and I destroy."]


[Sub-Footnote A: Note, in Dr. G. Butler's writing, in the bound volume of
Speech-Bills presented by him to the Harrow School Library.]