Diplomatic Text
At the Honble J: Peachey's
Newsells. Royston
Deceb. 20th- 1801
▼ [1]
Alth'o I cannot get a Frank for this Letter -- yet
as Mr Peachy leaves us tomorrow for London -- I could
not resist the desire I feel to remind my dear Mrs
Dickenson of her late Solitary friend. I think you will be
Glad to know that alth'o I was in a Carriage for 8 by
the day till past six in the Evening. I arrived here safely
that I was most cordially & kindly received by my Host. &
Hosteʃs. ------ also by my dear friend Mrs Jalabert & a
very pleasant Emigrant of distinction a Count Abi. I came
here a miserable object. having been terrified almost to
Anihilation by the Virgins[2] & their daughter. whose
disappointment of their Pleas made them so outrageous
that I actually fear'd they wd seize their Prey -- & not
suffer her or me to depart. I kept the day of my departure
a secret til the Sunday -- when I troubled you with a Note.
Which I put into the Westminster Magazine Parcel
stating on the outside that the dates are in the inside
I therin begg'd you would be so good to suffer my Letters
& my Servants Letters to be delivered at your House & that
you cd be so good to forward them to me giving the
direction as above -- I likewise stated that I had sent
an order to them to prevent his sending any letters
to Wing. but to deliver them at your House -- & that
I had left orders with Baily to pay for them --
I am sure you will excuse this trouble. & grant me my
Petition you are so good to me --
I cannot describe to you the real pleasure. comfort, &
I may add Luxury of this Place. here is a little Library
furnish'd with a Choice Collection of Books -- & some of
the most Illustrious finely engraved Prints that are to
be seen in any Collection & remarkably interesting. for ------
are not very illustrious People of Antient, times. but all
those of our own times & many of them in our remembrances,
Buonaparté, Washington. &c &c these give ------ in to pleasant
discourse. I insist upon it. that Buonaparté is not what ought
to be call'd a great Man. because he is inconsistent. I think
upon the Whole. I have the Majority on my side. Washington
was certainly good & Great. Count Abi. was not only happy in
meeting with a lady whose namesakes he iswas so well Acquainted
with in France. but with one who certainly agrees with him, that
Buonaparté will in the End restore the Monarchy, he is per
suaded of it, the Powers in Europe will Laʃser lui faire --
he is the most agreeable French Man I ever saw in my
Life for he is quiet -- he spends his time in drawing. I don't
think him a great Artist -- he last Night drew his own
Chateau. at Abi. & he would describe it in English. zeres
ze Bed. [zere]s. ze shiminé -- we were all in perspiration
but we did not let him perceive it -- to tell you I always
wish for your company. is I hope not strange to you. but
I this morning told Mrs Peachey that I would give a great
deal for your company. I have been Walking over the very pretiest
kitchen Garden I ever saw in my Life -- Great part of it is surrounded
by a rich Bank finely planted, & is entirely Picturesque
The Plots for common garden stuff. are array'd like Parterres
& the same for Pot herbs. Sallading[3] &c. and has all compart
ment. a lovely green House. well stoc'd. & also a beautiful
Grape House. Peach House. & a Hot House. in their difer
ent appartments. I there saw several curiosity, the Cotton tree
Inc. the Sugar Cane. these were new to my ignorant Eyes -- tho
What wd I give for dear Mrs Dickenson -- all this managed into
the greatest order. & at an Expence which appears to me to be Trifling
in comparison of what I sld have suppos'd. Mrs Peachy had heard
the day of my arrival here. what Mr Vernon has done for his daug
ters[4] Lady Warwick has £300 per annum. his 2 other daughters the
same it being the Moiety of a real Estate. he has left his other
▼
daughters a very few thousand pounds. no one knows what he had left
but the Chere Amie[5] has all the rest.[6] it is now quite decided that
Lady H——n is not to be received at Court. yr Uncle was Invited to
dine at Lord Grenvilles -- he was so absurd as to send to desire that
he might bring his Wife -- as he found there were to be some ------
Itallian Ladies, who she knew -- Lord G: sent word that as it was not
Convenient for Sir W: to come that day -- he wd take some opportunity of
sending to him when he had a Man
dinner -- some people have sent
excuses when they hear they are to
meet her. but I am like Mr P
I sd never ask these people to
my House again -- Adieu my dear Mrs Dickenson. my kind Love to you
all. & best wishes concludes me most truly & affecly yrs DBloʃset[7]
I go to Audley End on fridy -- but not til the
Post arrives here -- if you have no Letters to send
me. before they may be received here -- direct to the
Right Hoble Lord Braybrooke, Audley End. Saffron
Walden Eʃsex.[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
Single Sheet --
Mrs Dickenson
[12]Leighton House[13]
Leighton Buzzard
(hover over blue text or annotations for clarification;
red text is normalised and/or unformatted in other panel)
red text is normalised and/or unformatted in other panel)
Notes
1. After the dateline was written at top right, 7 lines were squeezed in to its left and then running underneath it, here transcribed on p.3 at the end of the letter. The addition is separated from the dateline by a right-angled line, and from the body of the letter by a horizontal line across the page.
2. See also HAM/1/8/2/23 p.2 col.1.
3. ‘Herbs and vegetables used for salad’ (OED s.v. salading n. Accessed 24-11-2020).
4. Richard Vernon had died on 16 September 1801.
5. ‘A mistress’ (OED s.v. chère amie n. Accessed 23-11-2020).
6. Richard Vernon's will, in which he leaves the majority of his estate to Mary Binfield, is available in the National Archives (PROB 11/1350/13). Vernon names his three daughters as executrixes.
7. Moved section (7 lines) here from the top of p.1.
8. This postscript is written vertically in the right-hand margin of the page.
9. Seal in red wax.
10. Delivery stamp in red ink, dated noon, 22 December 1800.
11. Bishop mark in black ink, dated 22 December 1800.
12. A large number 6 is written across the address in black ink, denoting postage due.
13. Stamp ‘Penny Poſt Not Paid’ in red ink. Possible remains of a triangular or oval stamp in black ink above.
Normalised Text
At the Honourable John Peachey's
Newsells. Royston
December 20th-
▼
Although I cannot get a Frank for this Letter -- yet
as Mr Peachy leaves us tomorrow for London -- I could
not resist the desire I feel to remind my dear Mrs
Dickenson of her late Solitary friend. I think you will be
Glad to know that although I was in a Carriage for 8 by
the day till past six in the Evening. I arrived here safely
that I was most cordially & kindly received by my Host. &
Hostess. also by my dear friend Mrs Jalabert & a
very pleasant Emigrant of distinction a Count Abi. I came
here a miserable object. having been terrified almost to
Annihilation by the Virgins & their daughter. whose
disappointment of their Pleas made them so outrageous
that I actually feared they would seize their Prey -- & not
suffer her or me to depart. I kept the day of my departure
a secret til the Sunday -- when I troubled you with a Note.
Which I put into the Westminster Magazine Parcel
stating on the outside that the dates are in the inside
I therin begged you would be so good to suffer my Letters
& my Servants Letters to be delivered at your House & that
you could be so good to forward them to me giving the
direction as above -- I likewise stated that I had sent
an order to them to prevent his sending any letters
to Wing. but to deliver them at your House -- & that
I had left orders with Baily to pay for them --
I am sure you will excuse this trouble. & grant me my
Petition you are so good to me --
I cannot describe to you the real pleasure. comfort, &
I may add Luxury of this Place. here is a little Library
furnished with a Choice Collection of Books -- & some of
the most finely engraved Prints that are to
be seen in any Collection & remarkably interesting. for
are not very illustrious People of Ancient, times. but all
those of our own times & many of them in our remembrances,
Buonaparté, Washington. &c &c these give ------ in to pleasant
discourse. I insist upon it. that Buonaparté is not what ought
to be called a great Man. because he is inconsistent. I think
upon the Whole. I have the Majority on my side. Washington
was certainly good & Great. Count Abi. was not only happy in
meeting with a lady whose namesakes he was so well Acquainted
with in France. but with one who certainly agrees with him, that
Buonaparté will in the End restore the Monarchy, he is persuaded
of it, the Powers in Europe will Lasser lui faire --
he is the most agreeable French Man I ever saw in my
Life for he is quiet -- he spends his time in drawing. I don't
think him a great Artist -- he last Night drew his own
Chateau. at Abi. & he would describe it in English. zeres
ze Bed. zeres. ze shiminé -- we were all in perspiration
but we did not let him perceive it -- to tell you I always
wish for your company. is I hope not strange to you. but
I this morning told Mrs Peachey that I would give a great
deal for your company. I have been Walking over the very prettiest
kitchen Garden I ever saw in my Life -- Great part of it is surrounded
by a rich Bank finely planted, & is entirely Picturesque
The Plots for common garden stuff. are arrayed like Parterres
& the same for Pot herbs. Salading &c. and has all compartment
. a lovely green House. well stocked. & also a beautiful
Grape House. Peach House. & a Hot House. in their different
apartments. I there saw several curiosity, the Cotton tree
Inc. the Sugar Cane. these were new to my ignorant Eyes -- though
What would I give for dear Mrs Dickenson -- all this managed into
the greatest order. & at an Expense which appears to me to be Trifling
in comparison of what I should have supposed. Mrs Peachy had heard
the day of my arrival here. what Mr Vernon has done for his daughters
Lady Warwick has £300 per annum. his 2 other daughters the
same it being the Moiety of a real Estate. he has left his other
▼
daughters a very few thousand pounds. no one knows what he had left
but the Chere Amie has all the rest. it is now quite decided that
Lady Hamilton is not to be received at Court. your Uncle was Invited to
dine at Lord Grenvilles -- he was so absurd as to send to desire that
he might bring his Wife -- as he found there were to be some
Italian Ladies, who she knew -- Lord Grenville sent word that as it was not
Convenient for Sir William to come that day -- he would take some opportunity of
sending to him when he had a Man
dinner -- some people have sent
excuses when they hear they are to
meet her. but I am like Mr Peachey
I should never ask these people to
my House again -- Adieu my dear Mrs Dickenson. my kind Love to you
all. & best wishes concludes me most truly & affectionately yours Dorothy Blosset
I go to Audley End on friday -- but not til the
Post arrives here -- if you have no Letters to send
me. before they may be received here -- direct to the
Right Honourable Lord Braybrooke, Audley End. Saffron
Walden Essex.
Single Sheet --
Mrs Dickenson
Leighton House
Leighton Buzzard
(consult diplomatic text or XML for annotations, deletions, clarifications, persons,
quotations, spellings, uncorrected forms, split words, abbreviations, formatting)
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Notes
Metadata
Library References
Repository: John Rylands Research Institute and Library, University of Manchester
Archive: Mary Hamilton Papers
Item title: Letter from Dorothy Blosset to Mary Hamilton
Shelfmark: HAM/1/8/2/27
Correspondence Details
Sender: Dorothy Blosset
Place sent: Royston
Addressee: Mary Hamilton
Place received: Leighton Buzzard
Date sent: 20 December 1801
Letter Description
Summary: Letter from Dorothy Blosset to Mary Hamilton, containing general news of
family and acquaintances.
Length: 1 sheet, 930 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: Christine Wallis, editorial team (completed 11 November 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: 2 November 2021