My Dearest Nanny
I have this moment rec^d your letter, & this moment
am sate down to answer it, as I cannot bear {^^bear} your
agreeable epistles should Lie a moment unanswer’d
when I have a moments time to answer them,
& so much for moments, how rejoic’d am I my Dear
to hear you have had so much pleasure! What en=
=tertainment did I receive from the account of
your Balls visets Feasts &c. I sure you have the
most pleasing way of relateing things that
ever any Little Girl had. I am grieved that
in return I cannot recite some of the delightful
schemes &c: that I have had since I dispatch’d
my last scroll to you. But I now take so little
pleasure in thinking of them that the manner
in which I should related them was I to atempt
it, would prevent your receiving the least
amusement, & rather tire than divert you,
you’l wonder what has given me this distaste for
pleasures &c: But will think it I dare say

[f.62v]

a sufficient reason when I inform you that my
Dear my Excellent Friend M^rs Johnson was about
a fortnight ago, or rather more, taken very ill of
an inflamation in her Bowels of which disorder
she expired in less than a week, The excessive
Grief she left her family in, together with the
sense I had of having lost a very valuable friend
renderd me for a few days compleatly miserable
but I have now got the better of that, tho’ I
must ever lament her, w:^h I acknowledge to be
wrong, as I should rather rejoice that she is now
- I think I may say – {^^about} the happiest of Angels;
never could woman more resemble an angel
than she did in every action, While upon Earth
&: she is now no doubt rejoicing with them in
heaven, a place much more proper for so
heavenly a woman than this is: only her Eldest
son & daughter were at home at the dreadfull
time (the 2 youngest sons at school not old enough
to be sensible of their great loss) a very dread=
full time to them indeed! We was here by ourselves
for three days, & then some of their relations
came, but they all left us this week, & M^r John:
is gone to Cambridge again, so that Miss Johnson & I
are quite alone

[f.63]

at present. I cant leave her thus by Her self, so
intend staying till one of her relations come again
which will not be these 3 weeks, & then I shall
return to Wolford, so shall soon I hope have the
pleasure of convening with my dear Nanny in
person, w^h believe me I most sincerely long to
do, in the mean time you have made as happy
as I can be, by giving me this opportunity of
writing to you. My sweet girl let me hear
from you once more before I come home, indeed
I think I have {^^a} right to Claim it having
answer’d yours so soon, & I think you will
not deny me when I say your letters are one
of the greatest pleasures I can receive in
my present, or indeed in any other, situation,
give my kind love to my Dear M^rs Craven
& tell her I should {^^not} omit writing to her
now, but that I think, considering the state
of my mind, my letters w^d be rather troublesome
or else if I had xxx the most distant hope
that my letters would give her the least enter=
=tainment, it would be too great a satisfaction
to deny myself

[f.63v]

I shall take the liberty of inclosing a Line to
Meek not having once wrote to her since I
came, am vastly glad she likes school, your
being there is what makes her I fancy, there
are very few other charms in it, in my opin=
=ion, I am very sorry you leave Stratford
for my own sake, not for yours, x the thoughts
of your being more agreeably situated, will
help to make me resign'd But you xxx
{^^may} come to see us my Dear though you xxx {^^more} a thousand
miles off, & I hope you will or I shall be very unhappy
& write to us also, don’t forget me my Dear
Sister where ever you are, who love you
beyond expression, & who am with the utmost
sincerity your ever affectionate & faithfull
Hen: Ing:

My Comp^ts to all the
folks – love to Miss Smyths.
Witham Le Hill, Feb: y^e 24^th 1759
Direct now at George Johnsons Esq^r &c.

My Dearest Nanny
I have this moment rec^d your letter, & this moment
am sate down to answer it, as I cannot bear {^^bear} your
agreeable epistles should Lie a moment unanswered
when I have a moments time to answer them,
& so much for moments, how rejoiced am I my Dear
to hear you have had so much pleasure! What en=
=tertainment did I receive from the account of
your Balls visits Feasts &c. I sure you have the
most pleasing way of relating things that
ever any Little Girl had. I am grieved that
in return I cannot recite some of the delightful
schemes &c: that I have had since I dispatched
my last scroll to you. But I now take so little
pleasure in thinking of them that the manner
in which I should related them was I to attempt
it, would prevent your receiving the least
amusement, & rather tire than divert you,
you'll wonder what has given me this distaste for
pleasures &c: But will think it I dare say

[f.62v]

a sufficient reason when I inform you that my
Dear my Excellent Friend M^rs Johnson was about
a fortnight ago, or rather more, taken very ill of
an inflammation in her Bowels of which disorder
she expired in less than a week, The excessive
Grief she left her family in, together with the
sense I had of having lost a very valuable friend
rendered me for a few days completely miserable
but I have now got the better of that, though I
must ever lament her, w:^h I acknowledge to be
wrong, as I should rather rejoice that she is now
- I think I may say – {^^about} the happiest of Angels;
never could woman more resemble an angel
than she did in every action, While upon Earth
&: she is now no doubt rejoicing with them in
heaven, a place much more proper for so
heavenly a woman than this is: only her Eldest
son & daughter were at home at the dreadful
time (the 2 youngest sons at school not old enough
to be sensible of their great loss) a very dread=
full time to them indeed! We was here by ourselves
for three days, & then some of their relations
came, but they all left us this week, & M^r John:
is gone to Cambridge again, so that Miss Johnson & I
are quite alone

[f.63]

at present. I cant leave her thus by Her self, so
intend staying till one of her relations come again
which will not be these 3 weeks, & then I shall
return to Wolford, so shall soon I hope have the
pleasure of convening with my dear Nanny in
person, w^h believe me I most sincerely long to
do, in the mean time you have made as happy
as I can be, by giving me this opportunity of
writing to you. My sweet girl let me hear
from you once more before I come home, indeed
I think I have {^^a} right to Claim it having
answered yours so soon, & I think you will
not deny me when I say your letters are one
of the greatest pleasures I can receive in
my present, or indeed in any other, situation,
give my kind love to my Dear M^rs Craven
& tell her I should {^^not} omit writing to her
now, but that I think, considering the state
of my mind, my letters w^d be rather troublesome
or else if I had xxx the most distant hope
that my letters would give her the least enter=
=tainment, it would be too great a satisfaction
to deny myself

[f.63v]

I shall take the liberty of inclosing a Line to
Meek not having once wrote to her since I
came, am vastly glad she likes school, your
being there is what makes her I fancy, there
are very few other charms in it, in my opin=
=ion, I am very sorry you leave Stratford
for my own sake, not for yours, x the thoughts
of your being more agreeably situated, will
help to make me resigned But you xxx
{^^may} come to see us my Dear though you xxx {^^more} a thousand
miles off, & I hope you will or I shall be very unhappy
& write to us also, don’t forget me my Dear
Sister where ever you are, who love you
beyond expression, & who am with the utmost
sincerity your ever affectionate & faithful
Hen: Ing:

My Comp^ts to all the
folks – love to Miss Smyths.
Witham Le Hill, Feb: y^e 24^th 1759
Direct now at George Johnsons Esq^r &c.