Wilberforce, Barbara Spooner
Hannah More to William Wilberforce
Allow me to anticipate the pleasant intelligence which I shall soon hope to receive, and to be beforehand in my cordial, affectionate and warm congratulations on an event which involves your own happiness and that of your amiable bride. I earnestly pray that this union while it will, I trust, partly tend to soften the cares and alleviate the solicitudes of your very anxious and laborious life, may also multiply your spiritual blessings. The piety of your fair companion you have chosen gives me a comfortable hope that marriage in your case, so far from dangerously entangling you more and more in the cares of this fashionable world, may, on the contrary, help to speed you in the race of glory and honour and immortality. As I conceive you both to have warm and affectionate tempers, your difficulty and danger may probably arise from those very qualities which will at the same time so essentially contribute to your hap/piness/ if wisely used. I conceive of your both therefore as being, in turn, called upon to act the part of Swift’s Flapper, and of occasionally reminding each other that this is not your rest. But on the other hand what a delightful consideration is it for two married persons, who are true Christians to be able to say even in their happiest days, “this is not our happiest state, but thro the tender mercies of Our God, and the merits of our Redeemer, we have a future blessedness to look to, with which the highest pleasures of this imperfect and transitory World are not worthy to be compared. What a joy to reflect that the smallest Act of self-denial for God’s sake, the smallest renunciation of our pleasure for his glory shall not lose its reward!”
Hannah More to William Wilberforce
But I must not indulge myself with thus running on, but proceed to remind You of your kind promise to set out with an Act of humility and bring your bride to visit my Cottage and my poor. The Plan I wou’d chalk out for you is to be here on Saturday either at dinner or tea, the former I shall like best, and then you may have your quiet evening walk. We can contrive to lodge an humble footman, tho not a fine Valet de Chambre and then he will be ready to dress you, and you shall have one of the Parlours for your Dressing Room. As to the Lady, I will be handmaid myself to her, “I’ll weave her Garlands & I’ll pleat her hair On Sunday Morn You shall sally forth at half past eight and I attending you in another Chaise – we go first to Shipham, then to Axbridge – then get to Cheddar, about Eleven Miles you know there to cut your cold Meat, a good seasonable penance for your I trow. The Church, School, and evening devotions will keep us there till about seven; then we call in on another little Society at Axbridge and get home after Nine. Cheddar is eight Miles from Wells; but it will not do for you to sleep at Wells on the Saturday and meet us at Cheddar on Sunday as you once thought; because in that case you can go but to one School, as they lie in a contrary direction. But if your time runs short so that you cannot indulge us by coming back hither on the Sunday Night you might in that case go from Cheddar to Wells to sleep if you find you can’t /do/ any thing /more for us./ It is very generous in me to suggest this as I hope you will not adopt it, as I shoud greatly wish to have you both here on the Sunday Night. has one great trouble, half Cheddar is under inoculation and her troops for about three Sundays will be very thin. Be so good as give me a line au plutot with your plan as we shall probably perform our pilgrimage towards another point of the Compass next Sunday if we are disappointed of your Company.
Hannah More to William Wilberforce
My affectionate congratulations to your
fair friend. Heartily commending
you both to the eternal favour of God. I remain my dear Sir
here and your very affectionate & faithful
H More
Hannah More to William Wilberforce
Mrs. W and all of you must have thought me if not “rather a kind of imposter”, yet rather a kind of a brute not to have written a word since we parted, so kind as you all were to me! But I know how you are overdone with writing and I spare you every unnecessary line. To speak the truth I have been a little worked myself and for the few last days have been confined to my bed by one of my feverish colds; I am sitting up a little to day but not in very good writing plight having a blister on my back as broad as face. I wonder if I shall ever see that said little William? – To thank you over-warmly for your feeling and affectionate letter would be to imply that it was possible I coud have suspected your large liberality and considerate kindness. I shall obey you by dedicating kind legacy to the purchase of a post Chaise, and her Annuity to the maintaining it. I hope I shall keep within the limits of your allowance. Any two periods of the year it will be the same to me to receive it. Christmas and Midsummer are my usual grand seasons, but if a Month or two or three later will suit you better, I can manage as I shall have some money of my own to take.
Hannah More to William Wilberforce
sent me some time ago a petition for a charitable case to be sent to you, who he understood had a large sum bequeathed you for that purpose. An old hawks! he is ten times richer than you are. That is, he does not spend a tenth of his income I dare say. I cut the matter short, told him I shou’d not so much as name it to you – that the Legacy was pledged to specific Objects – That your charity greatly exceeded your ability; and that depending on you myself for large supplies for my own schemes, I made it a rule to apply to you for no other – So much for – I hope you intend to get your Money of him at x times. I grudge that he is now making ten per Cent of it perhaps. Good old has written to me to write to the in favour of a who was Curate to and who is Candidate for the Lectureship of St. Giles. Now I do not care to do it, as I never heard so much as the name of Mr. . Do you know any thing of him and is he the sort of man you cou’d recommend to the Bishop? speaks of him as an upright moderate Man of good character, a good and diligent preacher poor, unprovided for, has a wife and children &c Mrs. W. will I dare say send me a line with your view of this Subject – It strikes me that you shou’d tell the Bp what a mischievous Man that is. it is right the Bishops shou’d know that you disapprove of such mad fellows as much as they do, whereas they think if there is but methodism and certainty that alone disposes all in their favour.
Hannah More to Marianne Sykes Thornton, April 5th 1809
and &c tell me they never see or hear of Mrs. W – I am disgusted at her want of decency, to say the least, in not concealing her satisfaction at quitting a place, so pleasant so advantageous /so congenial/ to .7 The change must be an immense expence. and I have had a good deal of intercourse a few weeks ago about health – We agreed in thinking, that more relaxaxation [sic] from business without travelling about, and renouncing the comforts and accommodations of his pleasant home, was the best thing for him at this time of year. I hope he does relax and that you will soon if the Spring shoud ever begin, get to Battersea for your sake especially. – Shoud You see will you tell tell her that I will write to her on her kind proposal soon, and that we are soon looking out for the Barrister the Circuit being nearly over.8 I agree with you in wondering that your coud overlook that agreeable girl and chuse one so inferior both in mind and person.9 How can you read by way of learning to do good? An avow’d Atheist? An acquaintance of mine, woud have married him she said had he been only an Infidel, but he denied a first course.10 To me his writings are the blackness of darkness. Hume by his elegance, and Voltaire by his wit and the charms of his style are seducing. But tell Mr. T. if he reads it, not to let others read it, for I remember at Xt Church and were frightened at his reading Hume’s Essays to them11 They were not then so strong in Religion as they are since become. Seriously I think Plays and Novels safe reading compared with books of subtel sophistry and promiscuous reasoning – I dont mean that you may not pack /up/ up good things in them. I have not yet read the C. O.12 but have run over Ingram13 which is very good, the second part I thought leaned a little more to Calvinism than I do, that is I thought it woud give the C. O. a rather more Calvinistic Air than it has lately assumed I am glad the C. O. takes up the Plan14 – I have been in constant correspondence (when able) [wi]th [tear] this good Bp on the Subject ever [s]ince [tear] he planned it. It is to raise the character morals, learning & piety of the Welch Clergy. I hardly know so pressing a cause. There will unavoidably, to save his credit be mixd with it a little too much High Church but we must be glad to do something if we cannot do all that is wanted. I subscribe and propose leaving a legacy to the St. David’s Plan. The building a sort of Welch College was partly my Suggestion. –
To Lady Olivia Sparrow, 23 April [1816]
I am very uneasy about Mr. Wilberforce /he is ill/ . Much as he has done, he has not compleated his work, and I am base enough to fear his being called to his rest and his reward, from a world which still wants him.* I think I never was so delighted as at his present call of Providence. the first of Hayti, late Christolphe, has sent to him to send him out teachers in Natural and Experimental Philosophy, a Surgeon, School Masters &&c Is it not marvellous? But what most delights me in said King Henry is, that as he has shaken off the French /Tyranny/ he wishes also to abolish the French language. Accordingly W– has obtained of the Bible Society to send him out 5000 Testaments printed in French and English in Columns!! Is not this delightful. The new King wants to make an improved population, Wilbe. to make a Christianized one.* He writes to me about books Teachers &c. The latter it will be rather difficult to procure as they should know something of French.* I am charmed with the energy of poor infirm , who says if he were not so old he would go himself.* I wish we could see more of this Missionary Spirit in our young Church Ministers. By the way the Missry. Meeting lately held in Bristol raised, in these distressing times above £800 besides Jewels to a considerable amount.*
To Lady Olivia Sparrow, [March 1820]
at K. Gore* wrote on ’s marriage desiring me to invite them both to Barley Wood, as he said he and his wife had come hither immediately after their wedding 22 years ago.* I could refuse nothing to such a petitioner So they came from Bath and staid a day and night. He is gentlemanly and agreeable in his manners, mais, voila tout. She is handsome but I thought her vapid and uninteresting. It is /all/ very well now that they are visiting about, and the days are all halcyon; but what is to become of them I cannot guess, nor can their dear father. Il faut manger dans ce pauvre Monde. And how that father is to provide a separate Establishment for one, /who/ neither can, nor probably will do nothing I cannot guess.* It goes to my heart as I know he has nothing to spare, and even the youth’s education is not finished. I shall be agreeably disappointed if he ever takes to business. When he returns to town too he will meet with his old associates, Alas!!