Unlocking the Mary Hamilton papers

Single Letter

HAM/1/8/2/30

Copy of letter from Dorothy Blosset and commentary by Mary Hamilton

Diplomatic Text


No. 13 -- True Copy of a Note from Mrs- Bloʃsett
                                                         Saturday Night
                                                         19th. March 1808

This being sufficient
employment for the
present, the rest of the
Note shall be deferred
till another Opportunity[1]


The  ------------------ 
of  ------------------------ 
 ------  Mrs- Dickenson  ------------ 
       ------  my grattitude  ------ 
the Sigil of the Elegant Epistle
       ------------  further  ------ 
I've  ------  not  ------  it but if you
 ------  it I write so  --- ting well

      For the last four Nights Miʃs A. Clarke has read aloud to us,
with a Voice that you probably heard at Birch, tho' extremely
well -- but pronouncing the Letter R. which occur'd pretty frequently
in the Eastern Names so emphatically, that it required pretty strong
nerves to support it peaceably -- The Subject was “Reflections on
the Government of Indostan, with a Short Sketch of the History
of Bengal from 1738 to 1756, and an Account of the English
Affairs to 1758 -- by Luke Scrafton Esqr-” -- London -- printed 1763 --
reprinted by W. Strahan Jnr. -- for George Kearsley, in Ludgate Street,[2]
and T. Cadell in the Strand, 1780.” Miʃs Clarke wishes that I
should make you acquainted with some of the Names, so I have pick=
ed out the Title given to Lord Clive, as quite sufficient to break as
many Teeth as you may have to spare “Zubdut Ulmulk Nuʃseera
Dowla Sahbut Jung Bahader”.[3] -- when Mrs- Dickenson was out of the
Room this Morning, I remonstrated with Miʃs Clarke on her being so
fidgetty, and said that as Mrs- D. had lately been unwell, I thought
her manner of taking leave at Night, was very likely to make her
Nervous -- upon which she said (and pray do me credit for keeping
my Countenance) that she earnestly recommended a blister to be put --
on Mrs- D.'s Head; as she herself had received great benefit from
it, and her Friend's Nerves might probably want rousing likwise. --
Notwithstanding all these Things, she is delightfully pleasant, and
her Mind being so cultivated makes her Conversation at all Times
interesting. -- Her Spirits are surprizingly good. --


22/
Mrs- Dickenson sent to Miʃs Grant to day to request that she
would make a little pen-wiper to put in the Inkstand which Lady
Herries left to her, and this Evening Miʃs G sent her Lover with it.
and it is one of the neatest little Articles you ever saw -- The young
Man was in high feather and his Eyes glitter'd so, that it did one's
heart good to see him look so happy -- He is coming again in April or
May, and on Mrs- D. advising him not to be under the hatches,[4] he said
with a very significant smile and nod, “O no, I have no occasion to be
so now” -- He and his Sister leave Leighton next Wednesday -- Mrs- D.
asked him the Reason why they did not drink tea here the other
Day, but he said he dared not tell that, but it was no fault of his --
I had been laughing so unmercifully at poor dear A.M.'s pompous &
correct pronounciation of hard Eastern Names, which she took
Such pains to teach us, that my poor eyes could not see to trace wha-
the dear little Bandinel[5] has kindly written down for me, (as
per above) -- A.M. has been amazin̄ly good all day, & to night
lighted her wax candle in her glaʃs Lanthorn -- nodded very
significantly to Miʃs B. & stole away without giving me her
usual Kiss, or taking any other particular leave of the room ex-
cept looking twice into the Coal-sckuttle,[6] as Bandinel had
not had an opportunity of telling me of this secret convention,
I knew not what to make of it, till she explained it.
Though I at first laughed at the writing of Mrs.. Bloʃsets Note, or looking
over it, since James left me, it gives pain to my feelings for it is very
evident either her hand or eyes are failing rapidly -- the whole of
the note is an exact counterpart of the specimen I got Miʃs B
to copy -- I must rack my imagination & inventive powers before Monday Morg-
when her meʃsenger is to call for an answer -- I dare not send it
to her Sister for an explanation of its contents. I wrote all
you told me, this morng to Wing, about  ------ Whitelock,[7] & had
fortunately finished it before Mrs B. messenger arrived, who was
going to Wing. I do strongly opine that that couple are most
than dull just now -- wch. I think you might perceive from
her last note -- My time is arrived, so good night to you both.
A'propos it was my joke, (an elegant word, almost as much so as
fun & fun̄y) -- to make Miʃs Bandinel inform Louisa that she
blushed at the high colouring of Govenour Le Mesuriers Manne[r]
amiabilities, sense, accomplishments &c. &c. I meant this as
a set off[8] for poor A.M. -- as she had not gueʃsed our good friend
Mr.. R. was a married man. I beg Louisa a Million of pardon
I hope she will forgive me.

(hover over blue text or annotations for clarification;
red text is normalised and/or unformatted in other panel)


Notes


 1. This comment by the writer was not part of the original text by Dorothy Blosset, and is thus marked-up as an annotation for this item. It is currently unknown if the remainder of Blosset's writing was copied at a later point or not.
 2. Now Ludgate Hill, London.
 3. Zubdut-Ulmulk, Nuſseera-Dowla and Sabut-Jung-Bahader were titles given to Colonel Clive after the war in Hindustan, and are considered to mean ‘the perfection of the empire’, ‘the sword of victory’ and ‘the experienced warrior’ (see W. Belsham, Memoirs of the Reign of George III, Vol. 1 (3rd ed.), 1796, p.107).
 4. Meaning ‘concealed from public knowledge’.
 5. It is unclear who this is. Based on the reference to the governor John Le Mesurier further down the page, it is likely that they are related to the Bandinel family of Bulkeley Bandinel (1781-1861), who was librarian at the Bodleian in Oxford, as some of them had married into the Le Mesurier family: Bulkeley's sister Margaret (1777-1823) (to the Rev. Thomas Le Mesurier) and Bulkeley's nephew the Rev. James Bandinel (1814-1892) (to his first cousin Julia Le Mesurier, daughter of his aunt Margaret). Since Mary Hamilton refers to Miss Bandinel as 'the dear little Bandinel', it seems unlikely that it refers to either Margaret or Harriet Anne Bandinel (sisters of Bulkeley), as they were 31 and 30 years old respectively at the time of writing. In addition, Bulkeley did not seem to have had any children himself, and his younger brother James Bandinel (1783-1849) only had one son, the aforementioned Rev. James Bandinel (1814-1892).
 6. ‘A bucket, usually with a sloping lip, for holding, carrying, and pouring coal for a domestic fire; a coal box’ (OED s.v. coal scuttle n. Accessed 25-02-2021).
 7. The word 'Whitelock' seems to have been added at a later moment, as the ink does not match the ink of the rest of this section of the text.
 8. ‘A taking into account of something as a counterbalance to a partial compensation for something else; a counterbalancing or compensating circumstance or consideration’ (OED s.v. set-off n. sense 3b. Accessed 14-02-2022).

Normalised Text



                                                         Saturday Night
                                                        





      For the last four Nights Miss Anna Clarke has read aloud to us,
with a Voice that you probably heard at Birch, though extremely
well -- but pronouncing the Letter R. which occurred pretty frequently
in the Eastern Names so emphatically, that it required pretty strong
nerves to support it peaceably -- The Subject was “Reflections on
the Government of Indostan, with a Short Sketch of the History
of Bengal from 1738 to 1756, and an Account of the English
Affairs to 1758 -- by Luke Scrafton Esqr-” -- London -- printed 1763 --
reprinted by W. Strahan Junior -- for George Kearsley, in Ludgate Street,
and T. Cadell in the Strand, 1780.” Miss Clarke wishes that I
should make you acquainted with some of the Names, so I have Picked
 out the Title given to Lord Clive, as quite sufficient to break as
many Teeth as you may have to spare “Zubdut Ulmulk Nusseera
Dowla Sahbut Jung Bahader”. -- when Mrs- Dickenson was out of the
Room this Morning, I remonstrated with Miss Clarke on her being so
fidgety, and said that as Mrs- Dickenson had lately been unwell, I thought
her manner of taking leave at Night, was very likely to make her
Nervous -- upon which she said (and pray do me credit for keeping
my Countenance) that she earnestly recommended a blister to be put --
on Mrs- Dickenson's Head; as she herself had received great benefit from
it, and her Friend's Nerves might probably want rousing likewise. --
Notwithstanding all these Things, she is delightfully pleasant, and
her Mind being so cultivated makes her Conversation at all Times
interesting. -- Her Spirits are surprisingly good. --



Mrs- Dickenson sent to Miss Grant to day to request that she
would make a little pen-wiper to put in the Inkstand which Lady
Herries left to her, and this Evening Miss Grant sent her Lover with it.
and it is one of the neatest little Articles you ever saw -- The young
Man was in high feather and his Eyes glittered so, that it did one's
heart good to see him look so happy -- He is coming again in April or
May, and on Mrs- Dickenson advising him not to be under the hatches, he said
with a very significant smile and nod, “O no, I have no occasion to be
so now” -- He and his Sister leave Leighton next Wednesday -- Mrs- Dickenson
asked him the Reason why they did not drink tea here the other
Day, he said he dared not tell that, but it was no fault of his --

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 1. This comment by the writer was not part of the original text by Dorothy Blosset, and is thus marked-up as an annotation for this item. It is currently unknown if the remainder of Blosset's writing was copied at a later point or not.
 2. Now Ludgate Hill, London.
 3. Zubdut-Ulmulk, Nuſseera-Dowla and Sabut-Jung-Bahader were titles given to Colonel Clive after the war in Hindustan, and are considered to mean ‘the perfection of the empire’, ‘the sword of victory’ and ‘the experienced warrior’ (see W. Belsham, Memoirs of the Reign of George III, Vol. 1 (3rd ed.), 1796, p.107).
 4. Meaning ‘concealed from public knowledge’.
 5. It is unclear who this is. Based on the reference to the governor John Le Mesurier further down the page, it is likely that they are related to the Bandinel family of Bulkeley Bandinel (1781-1861), who was librarian at the Bodleian in Oxford, as some of them had married into the Le Mesurier family: Bulkeley's sister Margaret (1777-1823) (to the Rev. Thomas Le Mesurier) and Bulkeley's nephew the Rev. James Bandinel (1814-1892) (to his first cousin Julia Le Mesurier, daughter of his aunt Margaret). Since Mary Hamilton refers to Miss Bandinel as 'the dear little Bandinel', it seems unlikely that it refers to either Margaret or Harriet Anne Bandinel (sisters of Bulkeley), as they were 31 and 30 years old respectively at the time of writing. In addition, Bulkeley did not seem to have had any children himself, and his younger brother James Bandinel (1783-1849) only had one son, the aforementioned Rev. James Bandinel (1814-1892).
 6. ‘A bucket, usually with a sloping lip, for holding, carrying, and pouring coal for a domestic fire; a coal box’ (OED s.v. coal scuttle n. Accessed 25-02-2021).
 7. The word 'Whitelock' seems to have been added at a later moment, as the ink does not match the ink of the rest of this section of the text.
 8. ‘A taking into account of something as a counterbalance to a partial compensation for something else; a counterbalancing or compensating circumstance or consideration’ (OED s.v. set-off n. sense 3b. Accessed 14-02-2022).

Metadata

Library References

Repository: John Rylands Research Institute and Library, University of Manchester

Archive: Mary Hamilton Papers

Item title: Copy of letter from Dorothy Blosset and commentary by Mary Hamilton

Shelfmark: HAM/1/8/2/30

Correspondence Details

Sender: Dorothy Blosset

Place sent: unknown

Addressee:

Place received: unknown

Date sent: 19 March 1808

Letter Description

Summary: Copy of letter from Dorothy Blosset written by an unidentified writer, probably Miss Bandinel, with a commentary relating to the events described in the copy by Mary Hamilton. At the top of the sheet it is written that this is a ‘copy of a note from Mrs Blosset’. It is unclear to whom the original letter was addressed, but they were staying at Birch when it was written. The letter is written in the format of a journal-letter.
    The letter relates to literature, reading, Hamilton’s health and general news of friends. Blosset writes that Miss Clarke has been reading aloud to them for the last four nights. ‘The subject was “Reflections on the Government of Indostan, with a Sketch of the History of Bengal from 1738 to 1756, and an Account of the English Affairs to 1758 by Luke Johnston Esq” – London printed in 1763’ and reprinted in 1780. Miss Clarke asked Blosset to inform Hamilton of some of the ‘Eastern names’ mentioned in the work and she provides the name given to Lord Clegg which she declares sufficient enough ‘to break as many Teeth as you may have to speak’.
    Blosset writes that when Hamilton left the room that morning she seemed nervous and Miss Clarke suggested that a blister should be applied as she herself had undergone this treatment and benefited from it greatly.
    At the top of page 1 Miss Bandinel has added a few lines, and Mary Hamilton later wrote down her thoughts on the copy below it (p.2). Given the mention of 'you' on several occasions, it seems that Hamilton herself was also writing to someone, possibly her husband John Dickenson based on the manner she refers to her daughter Louisa at the end of p.2. The number 22 at the top of p.2 could be an indication that the sheet was once part of a journal-letter (cf. HAM/2/15/2, which is a collection of journal letters), but at present this remains speculation.
   

Length: 1 sheet, 368 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: Tino Oudesluijs, editorial team (completed 29 October 2021)

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: 29 March 2024

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