became of him I know not. The family (if any left) live now at Clonmel, in the south of Ireland; at which town I was born, November 24, 1713, a few days after my mother arrived from Dunkirk.-My birthday was ominous to my poor father, who was, the day of our arrival, with many other brave officers, broke, and following genealogy is extracted from Thoresby's "Ducatus Leodinensis," p. 215.

3

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Richard. ROGER. Jaques, LL.D., Mary. Elizabeth. Frances.

Richard.

ob. 1759.

LAURENCE STERNE.

The arms of the family, says Guillim, in his "Book of Heraldry," p. 77, are, Or, a chevron between three crosses flory, sable. The crest, on a wreath of his colours: a starling proper.

Trifling circumstances are worthy of notice, when connected with distinguished characters. The arms of Mr. Sterne's family are not otherwise important than on account of the crest having afforded a hint for one of the finest stories in "The Sentimental Journey."

sent adrift into the wide world, with a wife and two children; the elder of which was Mary. She was born at Lisle, in French Flanders, July 10, 1712, new style. This child was the most unfortunate: she married one Wemans, in Dublin,-who used her most unmercifully; spent his substance, became a bankrupt, and left my poor sister to shift for herself; which she was able to do but for a few months, for she went to a friend's house in the country, and died of a broken heart. She was a most beautiful woman,—of a fine figure, and deserved a better fate. The regiment in which my father served being broke, he left Ireland as soon as I was able to be carried, with the rest of his family, and came to the family seat at Elvington, near York, where his mother lived. She was daughter to Sir Roger Jaques, and an heiress. There we sojourned for about ten months, when the regiment was established, and our household decamped with bag and baggage for Dublin. Within a month of our arrival, my father left us, being ordered to Exeter; where, in a sad winter, my mother and her two children followed him, travelling from Liverpool, by land, to Plymouth.-(Melancholy description of this

journey, not necessary to be transmitted here.) -In twelve months we were all sent back to Dublin. My mother, with three of us (for she lay in at Plymouth of a boy, Joram), took ship at Bristol for Ireland, and had a narrow escape from being cast away, by a leak springing up in the vessel. At length, after many perils and struggles, we got to Dublin. There my father took a large house, furnished it, and in a year and a half's time spent a great deal of money. In the year one thousand seven hundred and nineteen, all unhinged again; the regiment was ordered, with many others, to the Isle of Wight, in order to embark for Spain in the Vigo expedition. We accompanied the regiment, and were driven into Milford Haven, but landed at Bristol; thence by land to Plymouth again, and to the Isle of Wight ;—where, I remember, we stayed encamped some time before the embarkation of the troops (in this expedition, from Bristol to Hampshire, we lost poor Joram, a pretty boy, four years old, of the small-pox): my mother, sister, and myself, remained at the Isle of Wight during the Vigo expedition, and until the regiment had got back to Wicklow, in Ireland; whence my father sent

for us. We had poor Joram's loss supplied, during our stay in the Isle of Wight, by the birth of a girl, Anne, born September the twenty-third, one thousand seven hundred and nineteen. This pretty blossom fell, at the age of three years, in the barracks of Dublin: she was, as I well remember, of a fine delicate frame, not made to last long,—as were most of my father's babes. We embarked for Dublin, and had all been cast away by a most violent storm; but, through the intercessions of my mother, the captain was prevailed upon to turn back into Wales, where we stayed a month, and at length got into Dublin, and travelled by land to Wicklow, where my father had for some weeks given us over for lost.-We lived in the barracks at Wicklow one year (one thousand seven hundred and twenty), when Devijeher (so called after Colonel Devijeher) was born; thence we decamped to stay half a year with Mr. Fetherston, a clergyman, about seven miles from Wicklow; who, being a relation of my mother's, invited us to his parsonage at Animo.—It was in this parish, during our stay, that I had that wonderful escape in falling through a mill-race whilst the mill was going, and of being taken

up unhurt: the story is incredible, but known for truth in all that part of Ireland, where hundreds of the common people flocked to see me. Hence we followed the regiment to Dublin, where we lay in the barracks a year. In this year (one thousand seven hundred and twentyone) I learnt to write, &c. The regiment was ordered in twenty-two to Carrickfergus, in the north of Ireland. We all decamped, but got no further than Drogheda ;— thence ordered to Mullingar, forty miles west, where, by Providence, we stumbled upon a kind relation, a collateral descendant from Archbishop Sterne, who took us all to his castle, and kindly entertained us for a year, and sent us to the regiment at Carrickfergus, loaded with kindnesses, &c. A most rueful and tedious journey had we all (in March) to Carrickfergus, where we arrived in six or seven days. Little Devijeher here died; he was three years old: he had been left behind at nurse at a farm-house near Wicklow, but was fetched to us by my father the summer after: another child sent to fill his place, Susan. This babe too left us behind in this weary journey. The autumn of that year, or the spring afterwards (I forget which), my father got leave of