i81<-5.J 

 Lc--;:iiie name of her last luisbaiid, for 

 s.'it; Las 1i;kI liiire. Martiyi was her sc- 

 canu ; fuui, as sliu had most of her chil- 

 rfrnii by i\[arli;i, and liveil loiijjcst with 

 hiin, she has boeii more commonly call- 

 ed by liis iiaiat'. I l!a>o also had the 

 jileasiuc of seeing and con\ersing with 

 this hilly ; she docs not cxaclly approve 

 of ail hit: War:ier says of lur; he has 

 not (Icsci ihed iialf what she has snllered ! 

 I have ieanit, however, that the facts of 

 licr lite, as related by Mr. Warner, are 

 too iiiueh huddled together: it is not 

 correct that she was a widow with 

 joung children when she built her 

 house; her chddren Here all grown up, 

 and pertcclly able to take care of them- 

 selves, befere that period of her tile, 

 ]Mr. W. migiit not be to blame in this, 

 Lilt the fauit lay most probably in Joan- 

 nah's rapidity of grouping. Joannali 

 did not tell Mr. W. that she was a 

 }>octcss: it is a fact that she once com- 

 posed a song, had it piintcd and circu- 

 lated, and sang it about the neighbour- 

 liood. A\'ere 1 to give you a copy of it, 

 or even a stanza or two, you migiit think 

 perhaps that poor C. G. was returned 

 again; I must however do iicr the jus- 

 tice to say, that it is conceived with 

 more spirit tliaii tiie productions of 

 C. G. appear to possess. I am inform- 

 ed that iloannah, even now, in some of 

 her evening moods, will not hesitate to 

 gratify the curious with the song in the 

 same stjle in which she formerly sang 

 it ; and, to those fond of rustic origi- 

 nality, it is no mean treat. Slic has 

 amassed property, in all probability, to 

 the amount of many hundred pounds. 



It is now, I think, more than twenty 

 years ago tliat I passed through this 

 place, and I cannot avoid remarking 

 the great diflercnce in the appearance of 

 the houses, and the increase in the po- 

 pulation ; it sfill continues a country 

 village; but I think that I can discern 

 symptoms of an approach to what, it 

 seems, it once was — a market-town, 

 'i'hccounlry here is a complete l!at, but 

 il is tolerably well wooded, and, per- 

 haps fur a fetV summer-months, is by no 

 means unjileasant for an occasional resi- 

 ilcnce ; but who of any taste could like 

 a compl(;te flat country ? Give me the 

 mountain brow — the dashing cataract — 

 the wild wood dell. However, so it is, 

 that many persons seem to have prefer- 

 €d Huiitspill for a country residence. 

 The convenience of many stage-coaches 

 passing through il daily, is, of course, 

 great ; and u post, now established here 

 three tjuits a-w«ck, coatrihv»lcs t» briujj 



Joannah Martin. — G, Burnett. 3 1 1 



the metropolis, and other large cities, 

 somewhat nearer; and one is not dis- 

 pleased to lind, even in this odd cor- 

 ner of the w Olid, that any degree of men- 

 tal culture linds advocates. 



Before I close my letter, and my ac- 

 count of lluntsi)ill, I must bring yon 

 acquainted with one character more, of 

 whom 1 have gleaned a few particulars 

 during the day or two which I hava 

 pas'cd here. 



1 know not whether you have read aa 

 Account of Poland, published a few 

 years ago, by Mr. George Burnett. 

 'I'his gentleman was a native of this 

 place, and has relations still residing- 

 here. His father was a respectable 

 farmer, and his son George, cviin.-ing ra- 

 ther more intellect than the rest of his 

 family, was destined for a university 

 education; and ultimately, after a suita- 

 ble introduction to classical literature, 

 under the care of a clergynum in the 

 neighbourhood, was sent to ]Jaliol-col- 

 Icge, Oxford, in order to become a cler- 

 gyman of the established church. 



'Perhaps there is no error more inju- 

 rious than that which a country fainier 

 often makes when he picks out, what he 

 supposes, the best and most valuable 

 branch of his family to become a cler- 

 gyman ; for an error, and a great one 

 too, must it be, if, after such education, 

 the father has no means of providing a 

 portion for his son iu that way of life iu 

 which he has taught him to move. 

 However, two or three years' residenco 

 at the university brought the yoinig stu- 

 dent acqiiaiiiled with some minds of su- 

 perior endowments to his own; and, daz- 

 zled, in all jdobability, by the sjilendor 

 of the talents of his associates, he fondly 

 imagined that, as his society was courted 

 by them, his talents must be equal, if 

 not superior, to theirs. A lamentablft 

 and dangerous delusion this ! It must, 

 and does, frequently hapi)en, that jncii 

 of genius associate with minds of a 

 much lower gradation than their own; 

 one reason no tloubt is, that they feel 

 themselves more at ease in such persons* 

 company; they feel no sense of compe- 

 tition ; and hence perhaps their society 

 is more often sought lh;-.n one who has 

 more independauce and originality of 

 his own. Unfortunately for Mr. Bur- 

 nett, he could not distinguish here. 

 About the same time loo, that great 

 moral convulsion, the I'rcnch revolution, 

 had shaken the senlimentsand unmoored 

 the opinions of almost half the people 

 of Kngland ; and no w onder if younj 

 mar, iiijj^ciiuouti unci lull of ardour, 

 adu^ilud 



