128 LBTTERS TO GILBERT WHITE 



Comfort to ye Father, & a Sign that You played me no Tricks 

 when You were indulged in being at her Bedside. She desires 

 her Love to You, tho' You are a Viper, & is willing that You 

 should have this opportunity of wishing us Joy, because it must 

 extort a Letter from You. 



Have You been yet at your Living ? But do not put that upon 

 us as an Excuse, because it is two Months & upwards : & there are 

 Pens and Ink at Inns, & a great deal of Liezure Time, between 

 the Visits to Mouse. As to my Horse I have sold him about 3 

 weeks ago at Chertsea Fair for six Guineas, after having kept 

 him without once mounting him the whole Winter. Mouse is 

 the last Horse that I was upon, & I am in no Hurry to buy 

 another at present. 



I am going down to Salisbury very soon to take my Place in 

 the Stall of Alton Australe, a small Prebend under £20 pr an : 

 but wth a fine upon a Life of £300, which if it falls in soon, 

 would heal some present Wounds. I shall go staring down, not 

 knowing whither : and shall spend a Year & a half's Income par 

 avance. But I hope this is but ye omen of greater Things, for I 

 am quite ready for all those Things where Something is to be got 

 & Nothing to be done. Mr Horton still curatizes for Me ; I have 

 done nothing yet but preach on the Fast Day, & read Prayers 

 once or twice m an afternoon, & assist once at the Sacrament, 

 besides Xnings & Burials. So that You see I shall wth great 

 Nature fall in wth the Indulgence & Indolence of stall'd Theology. 

 Tho* would God grant my abilities of Mind & Body to be equal 

 to my Will to serve him in my Vocation, not even a Methodist 

 should have an Opportunity to reproach me wth the Love of 

 Ease. 



We desire our afTte Eegards to your Father, Sister, &c : &c : 

 Ac : I am sure they will do us the Favour to rejoyce wth us, 

 for the accomplishment of those good wishes which they liberally 

 & sincerely bestowed upon Us when we had the Pleasure of their 

 Companies. 



Captn James Young & Mrs Young are gone to Bath wth 

 Mrs Leece for Health, they have all been very ill indeed, & the 

 Burford was forced to be given up to another Captn to go wth 

 Boscawen, Jack Young is made Fort Major of Sheerness in ye 

 Room of his Uncle Walker deceased. 



I know You will share in ye comfortable News of this Lr, as I 

 am sure I do in every thing that turns out to your Satisfaction. 

 Let me have a long Letter from You, & that soon or I shall be 

 gone off to Salisbury. 



I am, Dear Gil, Afftely Your's, 



J. Mulso. 



