Reference
Z699/23
Title
Eliza Beck to Priscilla May 2 Feb 1825
Hitchin 2nd Month 2nd 1825
My dear Friend,
I received thy truly acceptable letter last 7th day for which accept my sincere thanks and it is with sincere great pleasure that I now sit down to answer it. Thy description of the school is so pleasant that I assure thee it made me quite long to be with thee there this however I feel fully persuaded will never be the case as I believe my right place is at home and though I am certain that I do not fill up my station there in the manner I should do I know it is my duty to try to improve and not look abroad for more happiness than falls now to my lot; indeed when we look around there is no place like home and though the prospect of going to Newington would be very pleasant I should most likely find some difference when I got there.
Respecting our Latin I am not qualified to give thee much information on the subject. We are now in Selecta e Profanis and the grammar and find it vastly difficult while we were on the testament and Historic Sacrae I enjoyed it exceedingly but now I must acknowledge I am not so much enamour'd with it. but there is one thing which renders it more unlikely for us to get on fast and that is we are by no means an orderly class but are much given to talking & laughing and how is it to be expected that we should be otherwise? when our master is only 18 and so many young men amongst us who knowing the language well come merely for the pleasure and have therefore plenty of time to make odd speeches and make us laugh. yet do not think by this description that we are always on the titter for we are often very grave and our master sets us so good an example that our behaviour is {really} at times quite un irreproachable.
Wilt thou tell me in thy next how you manage to get over those indelicate passages which are not infrequently met with in the Gospel of St John and Historic Sacrae we found it difficult often to know what to do though we mostly skip'd them.
Last 2nd day was Monthly Meeting here thy Father & Mother attended it they were both well. Jeffrey Lucas was also here who was bound apprentice to thy Father after meeting.
Last 7th day we were had the unexpected pleasure of seeing Cousins J. & M.Morris with the two eldest of Cousin H May's children. they din'd here and then proceeded to Hertford intending to return to M.M. but we were surprised not to find them at meeting on 2nd and were kept in suspense as to what might be the cause of their absence till dinner time when J Morris came & inform'd us of their having met with an alarming accident about 11 miles from Hitchin for as they were going down a hill the blind mare stumbled and struggling hard to recover herself broke the shaft which let her down and threw both Maria & Joseph out M was much shook by the fall though she did not appear to have received any outward injury and Joseph did was not the least hurt. after this accident they found it very difficult to get a conveyance to Hitchin however being very near {some} village they left their own chaise there and borrowed another leading the poor mare whose shoulder was sadly cut. When they arrived in Hitchin Maria went to Ann Brown's where O.Foster saw her she was bled and appear'd nicely considering and return'd home in M A Morris's carriage.
3rd day I am very sorry to hear of thy having been poorly with the face-ache but I hope it has now taken its departure. The complaint of which I was poorly when thou heard of me has now quite left me and but I am now staying from meeting with a slight of sore throat attended with fever though I hope but it is now passing off. I quite hope to pay a visit in London in the beginning of the 5th Month and stay over the Y M so that I think I shall most likely have the pleasure of seeing thee. Thou hast most likely seen Sister Lucy since thou wrote to me as she is I believe now at Newington, and by all accounts appears improving fast by country air.
Give my dear love to Isabella Taylor & all I know and believe me my dear girl
Thy truly affectionate Friend Eliza Beck
Debby unites with me in love. do not let it be long before I hear again from thee.
Susannah Corder
P.May Stoke Newington
Date free text
2 Feb 1825
Production date
From: 1825 To: 1825
Exent
No. of pieces: 1
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paper
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item