Diplomatic Text
St. Georges Bermuda
Decr 6th. 1790
I rejoyce in your account of Mr. Ds. improvement in health -- pray acquaint him of
of that & the &era- When I reflect upon my situation, so distant from many whom
I revere, esteem, or love, the first impulse is that of regret, but I correct
this as well as poʃʃible, by recollecting that I am not entirely forgotten by
these estimable friends, that in general distance produces indifference first, and
secondly, some thing very like oblivion -- now since I derive so much pleasure
from the communication of friends, how am I to expreʃs my thankfullneʃs? In the
only way in my situation poʃʃible, that is by setting out on my journey towards
them (by letter) in such a minnikin[1]character as shews my wish to have a long talk
with them in expectation of a reply twice as long -- and indeed all things duely
considerd I have a right to that expectation -- My European friends are furnished
with a thousand topics of information, and anecdote which must be interesting to
one so remote from what is called The World, as I am -- You my dear Cousin for I
will be so unfashionable, but at the same time so vain as to use the antiquated term
which implies something nearer than common acquaintance or even friendship,
You my dear Coz (note the familiarity) have well understood how great the pleasure
must be which I derive from so chearful and pleasant a letter as you have
honord me with.
However proud you may be (as a Hamilton) I have that persuasion of your excellent
understanding that titles Wealth and all exterior loses with you when set in contrast
with honor, honest pride, veracity generosity humanity and those leʃs brilliant but
more amiable qualifications of which some of our un...common acquaintances
and friends are poʃʃeʃsd -- I thank you a thousand times for your flattery in
writing to me (and that your letter was not a short one) -- This kindneʃs was the
leʃs expected, as, when I was last in England (however my health might be) my Spirits
were by no means up to their usual level -- Under such circumstances it was but
natural that I should appear indifferent where indifference could not or ought not
to find admittance. I well recollect a coldneʃs of manner and an indifference to
the subjects of conversation which might well wear the appearance of apathy
or superciliousneʃs, neither of which were however at bottom -- When I went to Bath
at the sollicitation of M. I carryed with me from London real affection and a wish
to promote the happineʃs of loving and estimable people, but I was aware that the
incertainty of my situation joined to the embarrassment of my circumstances laid
so many pounds weight of lead upon a heart naturally light and inconsiderate, and
that a grave look and frequent absenses gave me an air of indifference which were
totally foreign to my natural diʃposition, and that habitual careleʃsneʃs which my
old friends and acquaintances know to be part of the embroidery of my constitution.
I pray you gentle Cox pardon that apparent coldneʃs and visiting manner, for
which I frequently snubbed myself, while your courteousneʃs and prevenance[2] invited
me to more frequent and leʃs constrained intercourse -- I owe to your kindneʃs this
confeʃʃion and now having bent the knee, I will teize you no longer with peccavis
Of Lady D. Vesie an able panegyrist would be posed to pronounce all her
various merits, I must content myself with telling you what I think of her.
That the man who is in poʃʃeʃsion of such a Treasure ought to endeavor by
every poʃʃible attention to let her understand, what a value he set upon so
inestimable a prize in the matrimonial lottery -- She cannot hide her
Talents in a napkin, but her diffidence constantly throws a veil over them.
with a masculine mind and understanding, she is truly femine and most
delicately so without parade or affectation -- She knows too well what
beauty is, to be blind to her own, but not a gesture escapes her that can
betray her consciousneʃs of it. I will believe that the happyneʃs of her
friends is more likely to fill her eyes with tears than any distreʃs of her
own -- you may discover a beautiful soul thro a pair of such eyes! I own
I never dared to consider the lustre of them for fear of offending -- If Women
were to be placed on seats according to the rate of their perfections she should
undoubtedly hold her place among the highest -- This Thought reminds me
of the Painters scale[3], and on that Model I would frame one for a set of
Females whom I am so happy as to have known in my life and who have
honord me with some tokens of their condescension or what other term
shall I use, goodwill, will that do? you are of the number so judge --
I detest those men who are looking out for specks on snow, I could use
the Seamans phrase, & bl-st their eyes -- so much in the way of
answer to Mr. D——s Quære[4] -- now I will turn to a subject that is very
familiar to me, that dear delightful creature myself -- I am so happy
that I think I shall go out of the World as Horace says uti conviva satir
I know you know well enough -- yet you will turn to Mr. D——n, pray
what does this man mean, is this his politeneʃs, does he take me for a
she Pedant? I can aʃʃure you my amiable Coz, that the flattering cir
cumstance of receiving letters from kind absentees makes the chief
gratification and solamen of my present situation, but I will tell you
circumstantially how my time paʃses and you shall tell me in your next
not to indulge too far the loquacity of my pen -- I cannot write long
small letters to a person I do not affectionate -- I will employ the
term that comes to hand, tho' I should paʃs for a puppy, what care I?
However before I come to that part of my scribble, I will congratulate
you both on that delightfull independance you so exultingly describe
may you long enjoy it in perfection, and take my sacred word for it, I will
be eyewitneʃs of your happyneʃs if Lady Fortune ever indulges my wish
to see England again where so many of my dear dear friends are to be found --
The kind terms of your letter engage me to the most unreserved communication
has Mrs: Stratfords sister, alias her Mothers daughter profited by the private
Theatricals[5] which were so public -- is her father yet disgusted with his new
house or his old ... lady -- This is so venemously cruel that if I could be afraid
of you I would not suffer such a sentence to appear against me, but it is a
proof that I can entrust you with the black part of my own character -- I once
at Oxford met a little starched Cousin, late a fellow of C.C. now Dean of Tuam[6]
in Ireland, after dinner pour m'egayer I ridiculed some of my old card playing
everlasting Aunts, and the University man with a very grave face & monitory
tone of Voice cried oh Couzen! we should never laugh at our Relations,
whereof I think our relations are as fair game as heart can wish, my
friend is my relation and I bleʃs my stars there are a number in the world
whom I love pretty intensely -- indeed I have some relations who are the
best of friends, tried ones, refined in that unerring crucible, the test of all
profeʃʃions and promises, I mean the parting with their money -- I require of
you to tell me what alterations you have made in house garden or farm, if
the elder Mr. D. has been with you since your setting up for yourselves --
have your Neighbours a de V. among them? rejoyce with me on the marriage
of Mrs: Villiers, I am glad at heart for it, there is sterling merit on the side of
the Woman, all I desire of the Man is that he should be a match for her --
You must know my clever Cousin that I am an Irish Patriot, that is, I am
delighted to hear of improvement in commerce, science, manners, that wild
is becoming tame, that vanity is becoming pride, ostentation hospitallity, and
hospitallity improved from making folk deadly drunk, into making them
sociably reasonably happy -- But England is my Foster Country, to it I
owe so much that if during my remainder of life rebellion took place in
Shamrockshire, I should coot paddy's troat to larn him better
manners[7] -- Lord de V. making love puts me in mind of the Boar in
silence creeping[8] -- He is very ill of the Gout, but he will certainly recover --
young M: writes me long letters, how I should love the man whom I could
approve for her help mate, what do you think of her? if I was a young
Catholic, I would kiʃs the Pope's for a dispensation, so well I think of her --
In a conversation where the personae dramatis were Lydia Whyte Colol. Phipps
Mary Preston Junior and your humble, it seemed to me that Spinster Mary
had more solidity with connaiʃsance de cause than we other three -- it is
withal a loving Soul, and far from selfish, that is the sort of thing
which ought to have a husband and children, and some of those personals
which give a zest to existence, and make us more devout than Hell and
the Devil, pitch for his pasture Worms despair & darkneʃs &c &c
A beautiful Woman, a rose or any sweet, the Ocean, sky, the Moon, a
Cathedral, an Organ and Psalm, Mrs: Jordan in Viola, Mrs: Milnes tho in
full dreʃs, an Orchard in full bearing, forgiveness with tears, the glorious Sun,
these are sparks from the Powerful king whose light we dare not look up to.
These are emanations which our senses qualify us to admire, & thro' which we
communicate adoration without a direct addreʃs -- What think you --
Our Parson here, is a stupid fellow, prays for rain -- I might just as well
pray for L. de V. or Mrs: P. or any other of my adorables who are actually
in poʃʃeʃʃion of the rightful owners -- This is fine language from a Greybeard.
but as the Clock chinks, or some such saw built on experiance -- you ------
postage for all this -- I wish I could transfer you some of my roses and
July flowers and sweetpeas all a blowse[9] of sweets, not such northerly
puling things, fosterd like spoiled children as you Derbyshire folk will just
have a peep at about July, and part with in September -- We Mudians[10]
are in a confusion of Flowers and Verdure all the year thro', almost and
if I may judge of myself, tho' I am losing my hair & have the gout &
am more wrinkled than the most scientific side of the Witch of Endor,
I am as bold as Kicksy and putting off the appearance of dread as much
as I can, swagger from time to time and cry out like him who's afraid.
[11]
Taxal
Chapel le Frith
Derbyshire
England
[12]
[13]
[14]
red text is normalised and/or unformatted in other panel)
Notes
1. ‘A small or insignificant person. Also in extended use’ (OED s.v. minikin n.1 3. Accessed 18-09-2022).
2. ‘Courteous anticipation of the desires or needs of others; an instance of this; [...] courtesy, complaisance, or obligingness of manner’ (OED s.v. †prevenance n. Accessed 18-09-2022). This instance antedates OED by 33 years.
3. Art critic Roger de Piles, in Cours de peinture par principes [The Course of Painting by Principles] (1708) constructed a 'balance des peintres' [painters' scale] in which he scores 56 painters on a scale of 0-20 according to four criteria: composition, drawing, colour and expression. De Piles was highly influential in eighteenth-century art criticism. (See Ginsburgh and Weyers, 'De Piles: Drawing and Colour', Artibus et Historiae 23:5 (2002), 191-203.) The term 'painters' scale' also appears in the dedication (in Book 1 Ch. ix) of Sterne's Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (1759), as parodic comment of the way in which the novel is valued as artistic work.
4. ‘A question, a query’ (OED s.v. quaere int. and n. B. Accessed 18-09-22).
5. See HAM/1/4/3/11 p.2 n.1 regarding private theatricals.
6. The Dean of Tuam from 1782-1807 was Joshua Berkley (1743-1807). He matriculated to Christ Church College in 1760.
7. Henry Hamilton affects a cod Irish dialect representation.
8. Pope's less-than-serious ‘Love Song’ refers here to Adonis: ‘Him the boar, in silence creeping, | Gor'd with unrelenting tooth’.
9. Possibly blowze ‘A state of heat, which brings high colour to the face; esp. in phr. all of a blowze, red in the face and untidy from exertion and heat’ (EDD s.v. blowze sb.2 1. Accessed 18-09-2022).
10. ‘A native or inhabitant of Bermuda’ (OED s.v. Mudian n. and adj, 2. Accessed 18-09-2022). This instance antedates OED by 33 years.
11. The envelope is stamped ‘PORTSMOUTH SHIP-LRE’.
12. The address is crossed to indicate postage due.
13. Remains of a Bishop mark, which appears to read ‘JU 29’, which would normally indicate the date the letter went through the post, but in this case that does not match up with the dateline on p.1.
14. Remains of a seal, in red wax, broken.
Normalised Text
St. Georges Bermuda
December 6th. 1790
I rejoice in your account of Mr. Dickenson's improvement in health -- pray acquaint him of
that & the &era- When I reflect upon my situation, so distant from many whom
I revere, esteem, or love, the first impulse is that of regret, but I correct
this as well as possible, by recollecting that I am not entirely forgotten by
these estimable friends, that in general distance produces indifference first, and
secondly, some thing very like oblivion -- now since I derive so much pleasure
from the communication of friends, how am I to express my thankfulness? In the
only way in my situation possible, that is by setting out on my journey towards
them (by letter) in such a minikincharacter as shows my wish to have a long talk
with them in expectation of a reply twice as long -- and indeed all things duly
considered I have a right to that expectation -- My European friends are furnished
with a thousand topics of information, and anecdote which must be interesting to
one so remote from what is called The World, as I am -- You my dear Cousin for I
will be so unfashionable, but at the same time so vain as to use the antiquated term
which implies something nearer than common acquaintance or even friendship,
You my dear Coz (note the familiarity) have well understood how great the pleasure
must be which I derive from so cheerful and pleasant a letter as you have
honoured me with.
However proud you may be (as a Hamilton) I have that persuasion of your excellent
understanding that titles Wealth and all exterior loses with you when set in contrast
with honour, honest pride, veracity generosity humanity and those less brilliant but
more amiable qualifications of which some of our un...common acquaintances
and friends are possessed -- I thank you a thousand times for your flattery in
writing to me (and that your letter was not a short one) -- This kindness was the
less expected, as, when I was last in England (however my health might be) my Spirits
were by no means up to their usual level -- Under such circumstances it was but
natural that I should appear indifferent where indifference could not or ought not
to find admittance. I well recollect a coldness of manner and an indifference to
the subjects of conversation which might well wear the appearance of apathy
or superciliousness, neither of which were however at bottom -- When I went to Bath
at the solicitation of M. I carried with me from London real affection and a wish
to promote the happiness of loving and estimable people, but I was aware that the
uncertainty of my situation joined to the embarrassment of my circumstances laid
so many pounds weight of lead upon a heart naturally light and inconsiderate, and
that a grave look and frequent absences gave me an air of indifference which were
totally foreign to my natural disposition, and that habitual carelessness which my
old friends and acquaintances know to be part of the embroidery of my constitution.
I pray you gentle Coz pardon that apparent coldness and visiting manner, for
which I frequently snubbed myself, while your courteousness and prevenance invited
me to more frequent and less constrained intercourse -- I owe to your kindness this
confession and now having bent the knee, I will tease you no longer with peccavis
Of Lady De Vesie an able panegyrist would be posed to pronounce all her
various merits, I must content myself with telling you what I think of her.
That the man who is in possession of such a Treasure ought to endeavour by
every possible attention to let her understand, what a value he set upon so
inestimable a prize in the matrimonial lottery -- She cannot hide her
Talents in a napkin, but her diffidence constantly throws a veil over them.
with a masculine mind and understanding, she is truly feminine and most
delicately so without parade or affectation -- She knows too well what
beauty is, to be blind to her own, but not a gesture escapes her that can
betray her consciousness of it. I will believe that the happiness of her
friends is more likely to fill her eyes with tears than any distress of her
own -- you may discover a beautiful soul through a pair of such eyes! I own
I never dared to consider the lustre of them for fear of offending -- If Women
were to be placed on seats according to the rate of their perfections she should
undoubtedly hold her place among the highest -- This Thought reminds me
of the Painters scale, and on that Model I would frame one for a set of
Females whom I am so happy as to have known in my life and who have
honoured me with some tokens of their condescension or what other term
shall I use, goodwill, will that do? you are of the number so judge --
I detest those men who are looking out for specks on snow, I could use
the Seamans phrase, & blast their eyes -- so much in the way of
answer to Mr. Dickensons Quære -- now I will turn to a subject that is very
familiar to me, that dear delightful creature myself -- I am so happy
that I think I shall go out of the World as Horace says uti conviva satir
I know you know well enough -- yet you will turn to Mr. Dickenson, pray
what does this man mean, is this his politeness, does he take me for a
she Pedant? I can assure you my amiable Coz, that the flattering circumstance
of receiving letters from kind absentees makes the chief
gratification and solamen of my present situation, but I will tell you
circumstantially how my time passes and you shall tell me in your next
not to indulge too far the loquacity of my pen -- I cannot write long
small letters to a person I do not affectionate -- I will employ the
term that comes to hand, though I should pass for a puppy, what care I?
However before I come to that part of my scribble, I will congratulate
you both on that delightful independence you so exultingly describe
may you long enjoy it in perfection, and take my sacred word for it, I will
be eyewitness of your happiness if Lady Fortune ever indulges my wish
to see England again where so many of my dear dear friends are to be found --
The kind terms of your letter engage me to the most unreserved communication
has Mrs: Stratfords sister, alias her Mothers daughter profited by the private
Theatricals which were so public -- is her father yet disgusted with his new
house or his old ... lady -- This is so venomously cruel that if I could be afraid
of you I would not suffer such a sentence to appear against me, but it is a
proof that I can entrust you with the black part of my own character -- I once
at Oxford met a little starched Cousin, late a fellow of ChristChurch now Dean of Tuam
in Ireland, after dinner pour m'egayer I ridiculed some of my old card playing
everlasting Aunts, and the University man with a very grave face & monitory
tone of Voice cried oh Cousin! we should never laugh at our Relations,
whereof I think our relations are as fair game as heart can wish, my
friend is my relation and I bless my stars there are a number in the world
whom I love pretty intensely -- indeed I have some relations who are the
best of friends, tried ones, refined in that unerring crucible, the test of all
professions and promises, I mean the parting with their money -- I require of
you to tell me what alterations you have made in house garden or farm, if
the elder Mr. D. has been with you since your setting up for yourselves --
have your Neighbours a de Vesci among them? rejoice with me on the marriage
of Mrs: Villiers, I am glad at heart for it, there is sterling merit on the side of
the Woman, all I desire of the Man is that he should be a match for her --
You must know my clever Cousin that I am an Irish Patriot, that is, I am
delighted to hear of improvement in commerce, science, manners, that wild
is becoming tame, that vanity is becoming pride, ostentation hospitality, and
hospitality improved from making folk deadly drunk, into making them
sociably reasonably happy -- But England is my Foster Country, to it I
owe so much that if during my remainder of life rebellion took place in
Shamrockshire, I should coot paddy's troat to larn him better
manners -- Lord de Vesci making love puts me in mind of the Boar in
silence creeping -- He is very ill of the Gout, but he will certainly recover --
young M: writes me long letters, how I should love the man whom I could
approve for her help mate, what do you think of her? if I was a young
Catholic, I would kiss the Pope's for a dispensation, so well I think of her --
In a conversation where the personae dramatis were Lydia Whyte Colonel Phipps
Mary Preston Junior and your humble, it seemed to me that Spinster Mary
had more solidity with connaissance de cause than we other three -- it is
withal a loving Soul, and far from selfish, that is the sort of thing
which ought to have a husband and children, and some of those personals
which give a zest to existence, and make us more devout than Hell and
the Devil, pitch for his pasture Worms despair & darkness &c &c
A beautiful Woman, a rose or any sweet, the Ocean, sky, the Moon, a
Cathedral, an Organ and Psalm, Mrs: Jordan in Viola, Mrs: Milnes though in
full dress, an Orchard in full bearing, forgiveness with tears, the glorious Sun,
these are sparks from the Powerful king whose light we dare not look up to.
These are emanations which our senses qualify us to admire, & through which we
communicate adoration without a direct address -- What think you --
Our Parson here, is a stupid fellow, prays for rain -- I might just as well
pray for Lady de Vesci or Mrs: P. or any other of my adorables who are actually
in possession of the rightful owners -- This is fine language from a Greybeard.
but as the Clock chinks, or some such saw built on experience -- you ------
postage for all this -- I wish I could transfer you some of my roses and
July flowers and sweetpeas all a blowse of sweets, not such northerly
puling things, fostered like spoiled children as you Derbyshire folk will just
have a peep at about July, and part with in September -- We Mudians
are in a confusion of Flowers and Verdure all the year through, almost and
if I may judge of myself, though I am losing my hair & have the gout &
am more wrinkled than the most scientific side of the Witch of Endor,
I am as bold as Kicksy and putting off the appearance of dread as much
as I can, swagger from time to time and cry out like him who's afraid.
Taxal
Chapel le Frith
Derbyshire
England
quotations, spellings, uncorrected forms, split words, abbreviations, formatting)
Notes
Metadata
Library References
Repository: John Rylands Research Institute and Library, University of Manchester
Archive: Mary Hamilton Papers
Item title: Letter from Henry Hamilton to Mary Hamilton
Shelfmark: HAM/1/4/6/2
Correspondence Details
Sender: Henry Hamilton
Place sent: Bermuda
Addressee: Mary Hamilton
Place received: Taxal, near Chapel-en-le-Frith
Date sent: 6 December 1790
Letter Description
Summary: Letter from Henry Hamilton to Mary Hamilton. He is happy to hear that John Dickenson's health is improving. When he reflects that he is so far away from those he loves his 'first impulse is that of regret' but then he remembers that he is not entirely forgotten and he had much pleasure in receiving letters and finds that his 'European friends' have much news and information to part and hence are able to write long letters which must be interesting to one so isolated.
Hamilton writes of when he was at University in Oxford with one of his Cousins who was to become a Dean in Tuan? Ireland [Frederick Hamilton?] and of ridiculing his card playing aunts. His cousin 'with a long grave face [...] [said] we should never laugh at our relations'. Hamilton noted that he believed his relations to be 'fair game'. [Hamilton repeats the same story in HAM/1/4/6/4]. Hamilton describes himself as an Irish Patriot, with England as 'his Foster Country'.
The letter continues with news on acquaintances and on the subject of flowers and plants that he has grown in Bermuda. He then notes that he will turn to a subject that is very familiar to him, 'that dear delightful creature myself' and continues to write on his thoughts and that he wishes to see England again where so many of his friends are.
Dated at St Georges [Bermuda].
Length: 2 sheets, 1896 words
Transliteration Information
Editorial declaration: First edited in the project 'Unlocking the Mary Hamilton Papers' (Hannah Barker, Sophie Coulombeau, David Denison, Tino Oudesluijs, Cassandra Ulph, Christine Wallis & Nuria Yáñez-Bouza, 2019-2023).
All quotation marks are retained in the text and are represented by appropriate Unicode characters. Words split across two lines may have a hyphen on the first, the second or both fragments (reco-|ver, imperfect|-ly, satisfacti-|-on); or a double hyphen (pur=|port, dan|=ger, qua=|=litys); or none (respect|ing). Any point in abbreviations with superscripted letter(s) is placed last, regardless of relative left-right orientation in the original. Thus, Mrs. or Mrs may occur, but M.rs or Mr.s do not.
Acknowledgements: Transcription and XML version created as part of project 'Unlocking the Mary Hamilton Papers', funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council under grant AH/S007121/1.
Transliterator: Cassandra Ulph, editorial team (completed 4 August 2020)
Cataloguer: Lisa Crawley, Archivist, The John Rylands Library
Cataloguer: John Hodgson, Head of Special Collections, John Rylands Research Institute and Library
Copyright: Transcriptions, notes and TEI/XML © the editors
Revision date: 18 September 2022