Page:The life of Captain Sir Richard F. Burton (IA b21778401).pdf/12

ii it—for it is obvious that such a book could only be published after the writer's death, when he had passed beyond the reach of earthly praise or blame.

"No man can write a man down except himself." Burton recognized this truth. And with a view to writing his own life some day, he carefully kept almost every letter he received, a copy of every important letter he ever wrote, and all the papers and documents bearing directly or indirectly upon his career. He kept too his diaries and journals, not as many keep them, with all the ugly things left out, but faithfully and fully. We have the record of his early years from his own pen, and this, though it does not go far, at least does not err on the side of incompleteness. Once or twice he essayed to begin his own biography—some fragments will be found in this volume— but pressure of literary and official work and other considerations determined him to defer writing it until he had retired from the Consular Service. Six months before the date of his retirement he died, and so the book was never written. Burton's memory may have been the gainer (I do not think so), but the world was undoubtedly the loser of a great book, for he had told more than one of his intimate friends that if ever he wrote the story of his life it would be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. And he was a man of his word. He thought with St Jerome, "If an offence come out of the truth, better it is that the offence come than the truth be concealed."

After his death the whole of his books, papers and documents, together with his diaries and private journals, passed into Lady Burton's possession. He appointed her his sole literary executor, and endowed her with complete discretion as to the disposal of his papers. Lady Burton divided the whole of these into two classes: first, his unpublished MSS.; and, secondly, the materials connected with his biography. Of the first class it is not necessary to treat now; she published some during her lifetime, the remained her sister has entrusted to me to edit and prepare for publication. Of the second she selected from his private papers and diaries such material