Diplomatic Text
As you so strongly recommend diʃsipation
I desire to know you will please to tell me
in wht.[2] line I am to adopt, or whose bright
------ example I am to follow in ye. train of
fashion & folly I am to persue -- I think
this highly neceʃsary, for if by chance my
name should rise high in ye. Ton[3] -- you
can then take the credit of ye. applause I
gain, & may expect my grateful acknowl-
ledgements -- if by contamination I
lose not the sense of that virtue
-- -- so --
You see my frd. I am worthy of yr-
friendship & confidences -- when that
ceases -- you will hear no more of me
& we shall be then separated for Ever --
red text is normalised and/or unformatted in other panel)
Notes
1. On the order of letters around this date in November 1779, see GEO/ADD/3/82/65 p.1 n.1.
2. Emended by author from wh. 'which' to wht. 'what'.
3. ‘People of fashion; fashionable society; the fashionable world’ (OED s.v. ton n. 3. Accessed 22-05-2020).
Normalised Text
As you so strongly recommend dissipation
I desire you will please to tell me
what line I am to adopt, or whose bright
------ example in the train of
fashion & folly I am to pursue -- I think
this highly necessary, for if by chance my
name should rise high in the Ton -- you
can then take the credit of the applause I
gain, & may expect my grateful acknowledgements
-- if by contamination I
lose not the sense of that virtue
-- -- so --
You see my friend I am worthy of your
friendship & confidences -- when that
ceases -- you will hear no more of me
& we shall be then separated for Ever --
quotations, spellings, uncorrected forms, split words, abbreviations, formatting)
Notes
Metadata
Library References
Repository: Windsor Castle, The Royal Archives
Archive: GEO/ADD/3 Additional papers of George IV, as Prince, Regent, and King
Item title: Letter from Mary Hamilton to George, Prince of Wales
Shelfmark: GEO/ADD/3/83/59
Correspondence Details
Sender: Mary Hamilton
Place sent: unknown
Addressee: George, Prince of Wales (later George IV)
Place received: unknown
Date sent: between 19 and 22 November 1779
notBefore 19 November 1779 (precision: medium)
notAfter 22 November 1779 (precision: medium)
Letter Description
Summary: Letter from Mary Hamilton to George, Prince of Wales, on the Prince's recommendation of dissipation and her becoming part of the 'Ton'; and the end this would mean for their friendship.
[Draft.]
Length: 1 sheet, 111 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 January 2020)
Copyright: Transcriptions, notes and TEI/XML © the editors
Revision date: 10 December 2021