44 LETTERS TO GILBERT WHITE 



Barker, & may manage to her own Content and his Advantage 

 that extreme Abstractedness & Speculativeness to which I hear that 

 He is natm-ally prone. I am half angry at Tom Mander for 

 deferring the Pleasure I should have (I speak by Experience) in 

 hearing from Him, 'till the doubtfuU Crisis of my Life, 

 Matrimony : I do not mention the other, because it is hardly 

 an alternative, being closely connected with this ; since any 

 Increase of Preferment would bring me into that State. From 

 our old Friendship & the Knowledge I have of Tom's Genius, I 

 should think He would not want such a Subject to inspire his 

 Pen, or to afford the formal Propriety & Pertinence of a renew'd 

 Correspondence. 



There was a Circumstance in ye Case of the two watchmen 

 of the Eddistone which I beleive has happen'd since you saw 

 Ld Edgecombe, & which I have from good authority : That 

 one of the Fellows sick'ned & died, & that the weather's being 

 tempestuous or other accidents occasioned that no Boat went oft" 

 to Them for some weeks ; and as their Quarrel was known, the 

 Survivor was afraid of the Suspicion of Murder & did not dare 

 to throw the Body into the Sea, so that He was obliged to suffer 

 a dreadfuU Inconvenience from an Enemy's Carcase, & to be 

 punished for his Quarrelsomeness by a sort of height' ned 

 Mazentian Torture. 



This Account I had from Mr "Weston who has a large Sliare 

 in that Scheme : He lives wth a Mr Burgh who is the Duke of 

 Beaufort's Steward, and lives, in the Duke's absence, wth his 

 Lady & an agreable young Girl at Charlton. Mr Burgh is a 

 "Wiccamist, & a hearty worthy Man ; He is quite friendly to me, 

 & keeps me with Him at Charlton, so that I am rather a Visitor 

 than an Inhabitant at Sunbury. We perfectly know one another's 

 Principles, which tho' point blanc opposite, yet do not interfere 

 in our friendly Commerce, because we expect nothing of one 

 another in that way, & therefore do not deceive or disappoint. 

 It is no bad thing to have a Man so near the Duke's Confidence, 

 to certify that tho' I am no Friend to their Cause, I am no ill- 

 meaning Man in general. Miss Young has been there wth me 

 for the last Fortnight, & I came to Town to escort Her back 

 to her own Home. But I have not been well since I have been 

 here, one of my violent Headaches has made me incapable of 

 much Pleasure : & I write to You wth one arm tied up and still 

 sore from yesterday's Bleeding. I am condemned as a Man of 

 too much Bile ; I hope it will not infect my Mind & spoil me for 

 a Friend. 



Dec. 14. 



I was prevented the writing farther yesterday by the Coming 

 of my Surgeon & of Mr Bichardson. If You do not know whom 

 I mean by that Name, You will recollect Him by his Title of 



