.MzAz.NDIw
[1]
9 Welfied Place – Liverpool
Sunday night 26 Janry. ‘62
Dear Ann
I have just wished them all “good
night”? next door, but am not inclined to be-
=take myself to bed just yet.
We have had a very fine day over head, but
not
the walking muddy & wet; & I have ˄ taken as
much exercise as usual. Except a little stroll
before the morning service & walking home from
church, the extent of my travels has not carried
me beyond the boundaries of Welfield Place.
A little after 5, this afternoon, I called upon
Mrs. Hagarty, & was admitted by Virginia. They
keep but one servant: & she was gone to church,
or taking holiday, until 9 p.m. And I stayed
until past the latter hour. Mrs. Hagarty has
got out of her Doctor’s hands; & her daughter
Mary left yesterday to pay some distant visit,
which had been postponed in consequence of
her mother’s indisposition. I had not seen
any of them since they drank tea at No. 11, near
-ly a fortnight ago. – No small part of the
entertainment at No. 7, this evening, consisted
of my reading to Mrs. Hagarty & Virginia the
contents of your 3 last letters, Mytton’s of 3rd Janry,
several of Walker’s effusions, & Fontaine’s note
& narrative to his Uncle Horatio: - and the rest
of the time was spent in exercising my own [underscored]
lungs in varied talk, so as to spare those of
Mrs Hagarty, as much as possible. She was
[2]
was [struckthrough] pleased to thank me for my efforts to make
my company agreeable; & was undoubtedly much
interested in your letters; & she hoped I would
soon come again, saying she had various ques
=tions to propound. –
I told her that on the evening we last met, &
for some days afterwards, I had been made
anxious & uneasy by the news of the Suspension
of specie payts.; but that in the last few days
this anxiety had in a great measure passed
now
away; as there was ^ nuo [struckthrough] ground for hope that
the depreciation of the currency at the North
would not become very serious; – that, at
the worst, it might not exceed what occur-
-red in England during the 20 years’ suspension,
instead of ending like the Assignats, & Conti
=nental Money! –
She expects a visit from her daughter Au=
=gusta before long. –
I was punctual at the appointed hour for
dinner a Mr. David Hodgson’s yesterday, &
a
had ˄very kind & hearty reception. The party
consisted of himself & wife, his aged
sister, Mary, a nephew of his, whose name
I could not make out, & who had spent 3 mos.
in the U.S. in the days when Genl. Jackson
was Prest., two young ladies, & another lady
who seemed to me to be what is called a
[3]
“companion”? of Mary Hodgson. According to Elizabeth
Bold, Mary Hodgson is now 82. She spoke of you
affectionately as an old friend, recollecting you
well from the days of your early youth. She seemed
to me very cheerful, & hearty. – I sat at table at
Mrs. Hodgson’s right hand; & accustomed as she
is to deaf people, her manner towards me was
very kind. There is something about her, both
in person & tout ensemble, that reminds me
of our late most estimable friend; the wife
of old Dr. Cumming of Savannah; and you
will agree with me that it would be difficult
to find a higher encomium. The dinner
was plain & good. Soup at one end, & fish (spar
-lings or smelts) at the other, followed by a
small piece of roast mutton opposite Mr. H-
& a beef-steak dumpling (of which I partook
& found it most tender & excellent) opposite his
wife, & some side dishes, such as boiled or
baked calve’s head & a piece of bacon. Then
came pudding & apple pie, blanc-mange
& some similar compound of darker hue. A
moderate amount of Champagne was served
round, besides Sherry; & some very good Port
wine, & some Sherry with the dessert: – all
moderate & in good taste; & I enjoyed it all.
After the ladies had retired, the 3 gentlemen
drew round facing the fire, David Hodgson
taking the privileged easy arm chair, I seated
[4]
at his right; & his nephew at my right. The
talk, which was decidedly animated, was
mostly confined to Mr. H & myself; & I had
the most to say for myself. It ran much
upon America & political affairs. Mr. H-
was not unkind in any of his remarks on
America, tho’ he is a most complete Tory of
the old school, such as the late Duke of Welling
-ton represented. He is most thoroughly in favor
of the union of Church & State, & considers the
grand defect in American to be the want of
that union, tho’ he does not deny that there
is a fair amount of religious influence in
America. He seemed to me, when speaking
of matters in England, to decry her actual
condition, rather after the fashion of old
Ulysses thousands of years ago, when inveigh
-ing against “this degenerate age.”? He talked
as tho’ England, in point of morals & religion,
had been retrograding during the last 30
years. I withstood him most decidedly in
these particulars, & maintained just the op-
-posite. – During these & other discussions my
as
voice was raised so high that ˄ I found after
-wards, the ladies in the next room, despite
of closed doors, heard most of what I had
said. – After T [underscored], David & his sister sate
in their best listening position towards me,
whilst I read your interesting narrative
[5]
of Mrs. Rickett’s adventures & captivity.
When I retired, which was about 9 ¾ p.m.
Mr. & Mrs. Hodgson each urged me to perse-
-vere in the use of their pew, & he came
out of the parlour (Homeric fashion) to see
me to the door. – I could not have recd.
more marked attention, had I been one of
the nobles of the land, instead of plain Mr.
Rutson Maury. What impression I left be-
-hind me, I cannot pretend to say. – But
I made no ceremony in going to their pew
this morning, tho’ it was already filled as it
was last Sunday. – Altogether I think I am
very fortunate in having been placed upon this
kind & intimate footing with these good people.
Yesterday, just after I had left the office after
closing my letters for the America, & was
walking to the Omnibus stand, I was met by
young Mr. Birkett, who told me that they
had just heard of the sudden death of Henry
Myers. His brother John Myers, having heard he
was most alarmingly ill on Thursday, left at
once to go & see him (I believe at Leamington)
but Henry was already dead before he arrived!
This was all that Mr. Birkett knew. Eliza
-beth Bold tells me that, since his marriage,
he had grown very stout &”?puffy.”? Hence I
suppose he had become affected as Jaques
was, & has died of a fit of apoplexy. He has
[6]
not left any family. – His friend Ned
Littledale is still flourishing here: for I saw
him in the street yesterday morning. –
I observed Dr. or Mr. (I know no which is
his title) Howson was in his pew today.
as Park
Yesterday ˄I walked up the ˄ Road hill, on my
way to town, I met his wife attended by 4 of
her children. I shook hands with her & re
-marked that she need “not fear to meet her
enemy at the gate!”? – at which she laughed.
I shall call tomorrow at the Aldelphi for
the chance of finding Mr. & Mrs. Davis there;
tho’ I know not yet whether the Asia has ar-
-rived even at Queenstown. – What I am to
do for Mytton’s friend, Mr. Riley, I cannot tell.
I do not see how I can anywise aid him.
Mary Bold is going to s New Brighton
to-morrow. - I suppose it is to arrange
with Margt as to a projected visit, of some
days, with the Addisons on the part of Eliza
-beth, Mary, Laura & myself, after Willie’s
holidays are over. It think they are to end
early this week. – Tomorrow night he is
going to hear Mr. Dickens’ readings at St.
Georges Hall Concert Room.
I am glad to hear of your intended second [underscored]
holiday at Highwood, both for your own
sake & that Mrs. King.
[7]
You sometimes call my attention to the kind
of writing paper you are using for the time
I bought
being. That which I am now using ˄ at Mr.
Groom’s, & I like it well. Would you wish to
have a supply of it when I return?
I am glad our cousin Chas. Fontaine made
his way to 4th St. at last, & that you were plea
-sed with him. –
Monday night – 27 Janry – I started for town
this morng. carrying with me an empty [underscored] tin box
for Everton Toffee, which I exchanged for a full one
containing 1 lb at the shop in Renshaw St.; & I had
also the packet of photographic portraits for Dr.
Neville which I found exactly fitted the deal
box at Cains’, & I left them there & a little bit of
a packet for Walker contg. 2 setts of shirt studs
from Mrs. Jas Bold as a present to him from her.
(I trust he will duly acknowledge her kindness)
But before going to Cains’ I called at the
Adelphi, & was glad to find Mr. & Mrs. Davis
there. – I sat a few minutes with them in
their private parlour, & found Mr. Davis looking
surprisingly well. He had some little cough,
however; whereupon I presented Frederica
with the Lb of Everton Toffee for their mutual
comfort & solace. – He was called out of the
room for a few moments, during which I gave
her my card with “care of Cropper Hodgson & Co.,
Liverpool”? written under my name (in ink) in
case she might for any cause whatever find
it convenient to call my services into play.
Presently Mr. James Brown of N. York, accom-
[8]
-panied by a lady (his wife I suppose) called
to pay their respects. – I also shook hands with
him (mistaking him for his brother William,)
& then I took my leave. Frederica, at parting told
me she had a packet from you for me, but said
it was inside of her trunk, which she had not
yet unpacked. – It was agreed I should call again
on my way to dinner; & I did so at 5 p.m. & got
the article for Mrs. Clunas, & again sat about ¼
of an hour talking with them, having in the
interim recd. your letter of 14/15th. inst. I got Mr.
Davis’ address (Clarendon Hotel) in London &
(care of Holtenguer & Co.) in Paris, so that I might
send him some letter of introduction to folks in
London – as they are to leave for London tomorrow
morning. – I bespoke from Mr. E Hodgson a
from his father
letter for Mr. Davis to Mr. Robt Benson, & another ˄ to
Mr. Greg; a relation of Mr. Robt Hyde Greg, & the
writer of the articles about America in the "Econo-
-mist." – Since dinner I have been spending the
evening with Mr. & Mrs Cropper & Miss Maggie, &
I am promised a letter from him to Sir Charles
Trevelyan. Mr. C__ suggested that I should get a
letter for Mr. D__ that might be still more useful,
from his son John to his brother in law, Mr.
Forster M.P. for Bradford, & who espouses the
cause of the North [underscored], & is a leading man. Mrs. F.
is one of the late Dr. Arnold’s daughters. So I shall
ask for this letter tomorrow. – I would gladly do
anything more for Mr. & Mrs. Davis, if I only knew
how. – He told me in my 2nd call that he did not
want any letter for mere social entertainment; it
was only to enable him to spread more light about
American affairs, just as he had said to Dr. King in
your presence. – He said that in his talk with
[9]
Mr. Jos. Brown for an hour today (Mr. Brown hav
=ing been 12 mos. absent from N. York) he posted
him up on many essential points, “telling him
fifty facts, of an important nature, that he had
not known before. –
I told Frederica of Mrs. Hagarty’s condition & present
abode. – I had formed a scheme on my way to
dinner to volunteer to take Mrs. H__ & Virginia in
a carriage this eveng. to call on Frederica. But
the Bolds told me I had better not hold out any
such temptation, as her Dr. had forbidden her
to go out of doors for the present; so I abandoned
this project, which otherwise would, I am sure,
have been mutually agreeable. –
Mary Bold had most ample exercise today.
She walked (with Willie) in 35 minutes (she said)
from No. 11 so as to catch the 11 o’clock boat for New
Brighton: & returning by the 4½ p.m. boat she,
walked all the way back from the pier-head
hither, & in time for joining ‘ere we sat down
to dinner at 5¾. –
I told Frederica about the Myers’ condition now
with this sudden death of Henry. – She had already
read the notice of his death in the morning’s paper.
His age is there given as 45. – She asked me about
Wm. Myers, & was not aware of his death, until I told
her, & of the melancholy circumstances attending it.
On my second call I gave Mr. Davis the first news
of the important intelligence telegraphed hither this
afternoon from Paris, that L Napn. in his speech
before the Chambers today had come out plainly for
non[underscored]-intervention in American affairs. –
Before I went to Cropper’s office today, I called
at Rathbone’s, & sat some time with Mr. Gair,
talking Cotton. My object, however, was to tell him
of Mr. & Mrs. Davis’ being here, that he might go
[10]
& see them, but [struckthrough] for I thought he might perchance
have known them in N. York: but I found he
had not. – In the course of our talk he told
me of the fracas between Mr. Duer & Mr. Phelps,
about the close of last year, in the Chamber
of Commerce. – It was all news to me, and
I need not add, very unpleasant [underscored] news.
Before I began this evening’s addition to this
letter, I have made a copy of your account
of old Mrs. Irving to give to Elizabeth Bold, that
she may transmit it to Mrs. Tom Islam.
On ‘Change this afternoon I had some talk
with Mr. Tom Byrne of N.O. as to No. & So. He
shewed me 2 small photographs of Genl.
Beauregard & Genl Lee – both good looking
men enough. – He is very bitter against the
North, & gave vent to sentiments against the
probability of Re-Union quite as strong as those
in the short letter I had today of 25th. inst. from
Mr. Fredk Rodewald. –
Altogether I have had my time very actively
employed today. – I saw Mr. Clunas, &
he is to call on me for the Diary for his
wife tomorrow. – He says he intends going back
in a day or two to spend about a fortnight with
his family, & then he may probably return
hither & embark for N. York, so as to be upon the
spot & judge for himself as to expediency of selling
out his Stock in B. of Commerce & B. of America,
Reading Bonds &c. –
I am glad to see by Asia today the 1% decline
in Sterling & that Gold had fallen to 3% from [in]
& that U.S. Stocks had advanced.
[Vertical Writing, Left Margin, Page 10]
29th: Mr. Cropper has given me today a letter for Mr D_ to Sir Chas. Trevelyan, who is now in town &
[Vertical Writing, Right Margin, Page 10]
I shall send it to Mr. D_ by tonight’s post – as well as my letter to
Joe Ewart, & any others I may get. – I shall ask Tom Bold, whether lodgings in Sackville St
Piccadily (near Burlington Arcade) are now vacant, & available for Mr. & Mrs. Davis, & if so I
[11]
Cotton took a favorable turn today, & the
sales were 12,000 bales at 1/8 c ¼ d higher, be=
=for we had the extract of L. Napoleon’s speech
today. – Mr. Gair seems to expect an advance
to 16d:, before 3 mos. have ilapsed, in Amn. Cotton.
I think the letter you had from Major Morde
-cai’s daughter Laura, conveys the impression
of her being a very amiable girl. – It reminds
me of that very sad journey of mine home=
=ward from Virginia in Nov: ’38. – the bitterness
of which however has so long passed-away; but
if ever a man was broken-hearted & completely
good for nothing, such was indeed my condition
on that occasion. –
I have still no answer to my letter written some
17 days ago to “Mrs. Frances Edgeworth, Edgeworths-
=town, Ireland.”? –
I agree with you that Miss Mary Gilpen’s
over-stock of energy has at last come into
play with great effect; & I am glad of it for
the sake of all parties.
yours affectionately
Rutson Maury
P.S. 28th
I have had another very busy day.
First I shipped the box by Etna; & I refer you
to Walker for its contents. After that my whole
time was spent in the cause of Mr. J. Ban
=croft Davis. – Mr. J.W. Cropper cheerfully
gave me a letter to Mr. Forster; & likewise wrote
to him another letter entering into Mr. Davis’s
views or wishes. – I have sent the former
& a letter to R. Benson & Co. from C H. & Co. invoking
[Vertical Writing, Right Margin, Page 11]
shall urge them to go there, as they would thus
I think both save much money, & be far more comfortable.
[12]
introductions by them to MP[unscored]’s &c:, & one to Mr.
W. Rathbone Greg form Mr. Adam Hodgson
to Mr. Davis with 2 pages from myself,
by tonight’s post, directed to the Clarendon Hotel.
I urge him to stay at least 2 or 3 weeks in
London, as that will be just the time when he
can do the most good.
I tell him all about these 3 parties: - that R
Benson & Co. can get him introductions of the kind
he wants: - that Mr. Foster is pro-Northern &
his wife a daughter of the late Dr. Arnold: - that
W. R. Greg (tho’ he does not wish it known) is
the writer of the articles on America in the
Economist, & is one of H. M. Commissioners of
Customs, & brother of Robt. Hyde Greg of Manches
-ter, one of the largest Cotton-spinners in G.B.
I saw Joe: Ewart today, & he cheerfully assents
to my giving Mr. Davis a letter to him, saying
he will be glad to see him. Joe goes up to London
on 5th proxo: –
I called on Tom Bold, & as he was out, I wrote
him a long note about Mr. Davis & Mrs. D.
__ his & her history & his present aims; &
I ask Tom to give me a letter to Mr. Horsfall
M.P., & if he can [underscored], one to Lord Derby [underscored]!
I made press copy of my note to Tom, & enclo=
=sed it to-night to Mr. Hamilton.
Mr. E. Hodgson thinks his Mother (who is
a cousin of his Lordship) will give me a letter
for Mr. D__ to Lord Derby, perhaps, if Tom
Bold declines. – This you see I done my
very utmost to forward Mr. Davis’s views.
[Vertical Writing, Left Margin, Page 12]
29th Willie returns to school today. On parting I slipped a Sovereign into his hand.
