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to see some friends, and have a little fresh air while the 
summer still lasts. I have read the two Pieces with great 
pleasure, in which Mrs. C. your old acquaintance also shares : 
we find the Narrative full of rough veracity ; clear, whole- 
some, description of what you meant it to describe, — 
namely, of an authentic phasis of Human Life ; — in which 
accordingly all human creatures may take a real interest. 
Withal there is a certain breezy freshness in the delinea- 
tion, — as indeed in former delineations by the same hand : 
a rustic honesty, a healthy manful turn of mind is nowhere 
wanting, and that is a pleasant neighbour everywhere, and 
to all readers and all men. On the whole, if you continue 
this Work in the way you have begun, I think there is 
every reason to expect a lasting favour for it, and all man- 
ner of good fruit that you and your friends could have 
anticipated. There are only two precepts I will bid you, 
once more, always keep in mind : the first is to be brief ; 
not to dwell on an object one instant after you have made 
it clear to the reader, and on the whole to be select in your 
objects taken for description, dwelling on each in proportion 
to its likelihood to interest, omitting many in which such 
likelihood is doubtful, and only bringing out the more im- 
portant into prominence and detail. The second, which 
indeed is still more essential, but which I need not insist 
upon since I see you scrupulously observe it, is, to be exact 
to the truth in all points ; never to hope to mend a fact by 
polishing any corner of it off into fiction, or adding any 
ornament which it had not , but to give it us always as God 
gave it, — that, I suppose, will turn out to be best state it 
could be in ! These two principles, I think, are the whole 
law of the matter : and in fact they are the epitome of what 
a sound, strong and healthy mind will, by Nature, be led to 
achieve in such an enterprize ; wherefore perhaps my best 
“ precept” of all were, to recommend Samuel Bamford to his 
