Mercy “Cleora” Doddridge, Enfield, to Mary “Roselinda” Doddridge, Northampton, 2 November 1750.  

Endfield November ye 2 1750

My Dearest Roselinda             

  I am much more consernd & greaved ^then I can posibly express^ to hear by Pappas letter that you have the misfourtain to sprain your arm I am consernd in the first pleace on your own account as I am afraid it will be bouth troublesome & painfull to you & secondly on my acount as I am afraid it ^will^ make it long before I shall have the pleasure of hearing from you as Pappa tells me tis your right arm but to show you my Dear that I should think my self very happy if it lay in my power to doe any thing that might give you the lest pleasure or entertainment I now take up my pen & should with the greatest pleasure fill my papper if I thought either of the forementiond Ends might be answerd by it but how ever that be as it will, I’ll goe on & tho neither should I know my Roselindas goodness will take a good intention kindly or acording to the old saing the will for the deed, now my Dear after this long prefest permit me to thank ^you for^ your last epistle which now as my Roselindas allways are very agreeable tho had it been longer it would have been more so, I should now goe on to give you a discreption of the view of the prospect which I have of the Country out of the window of my apartment if I did not imagine I ^had^ given you a serfit [survey?] of my Descriptions in my other letter but I think I will defer it til I see whather or not I shall ^have^ room enough in my papper tho by the length of it thair seems no probability but what I shall but as I have never wrote to my Roselinda yet but have been obligd to omit sevral things that I intended to have said I determind to take a larger sheet tho I am afraid you will have no reason to thank me for it & may be very sirtain of it if I goe on much longer in this dull maner & now my Dear without any more prefest I shall tell you I have heard or read Filisha to Charlott & like it very much. I think the second vollum much more entertaining then the first – Luciouses Character is indeed Charming & alltogether tho I can scarce forgive his being twice Guilty of the same fault & that so great as I must think that afair with Mrs Prudila & when I came to that worthy Ladys Confesson I could scarce persuade my self to bleive any thing so much to Luciouses dishonour but I thought it a trick of hers to endevour to leson Filishas regaurd to Lucious but when I was convenced of the truth I must own that I thought I could have excusd the author if he1 had omited that part tho at the same time [I] know it was right to insert it ^as it^ made the Character more natural then it would otherwise have been had I been Filisha I would have to have acted as she did & indeed it would have been a little part so much genorosity & so many other excelinces could not in (our opinon), have excusd one fault tho that indeed was a very great one what makes me say that I think the authour did right not to omit that part was that we dont find that Lucious with all his virtues was any more than a moral man (suposing this Character true how much may ^it^ shame some who call them selvs Christans and want morality) yet as Lucious wanted that greatest ornament true religion I think the author did mighty well to alow him this fault which religion would not have alowd had this part of Luciouses Char[acter]] been omited even religion it self could scarch have add[ed] Charms & I think it would have been wrong to have drawn a Character with out one faulty action in the Person when the substanteoul foundation of religion was wanting,

  but I must leave of[f] moraliseing to tell you my Dear that tho I intended when I began to have wrote you a very long letter that my time will not now alow me to indulge my inclenation in this respect as I have a peice of work to doe for Mrs Clayton tho it wont last me very long yet prevents my writing ^you a^ long letter you will prehaps it is a trimming for a Capashine which ^is^ to be done by sabarth day & this is Friday night & it was began but yesterday but this is not the only reason why I must be obligd to shorten for another reason is that I shall have an oportunity of sending it with out your being at the expence of the post if I send it tomorrow morning which when the letter it self is so very trifling I think is a considration of some importance but as I know not but what I may be cald away evry minute I will make sure of the present to beg of you my Dear to give my Duty to my Dear Pappa & Mamma & to let pappa know I think my self much obligd to him for his Letter & will answer it as soon as I convenintly can,2 I am very sorry to hear my Dear Mamma has got a Could (as pappa told me she had in his letter) but hope long before now she has got rid of so trublesome a companion my love to my brother & sister Celia I should be very glad if my Dear Celia would favour me with a line to let me know ^how^ you my Dear & my Dr Mamma does if you are not well enough before this reaches you to write your self which by the way I most hartaly wish you may [paper torn] be an inesepressible pleasure to your Cleora to [paper torn] Dear Roselinda is well enough to [paper torn] again by her pen but my Dear it is as I expected I must now bid you an unwing[ing] adue with my most ^sincere^ & ardont wish is for you[r] perfect recovry health & Happiness I am my Dearest Roselinda

Your Most Affectionate

Cleora

Don’t forget my compliments to Doctr Stonehouse I have not heard from Mrs Elliston a long while the last time I heard she told me she had a bad Could [sic]

My Dear Roselinda I now again take up my Pen to tell you that my letter has only had a needless Jonr [journey] to London & back again for when I left off in such great hast on friday night I thought that my letter would have been with you before mon [Monday] but have the mortification of sending it when I think it seems to be quite out of date but I know you my Dear will excuse it, I beg you will be so good as to let my Mamma know that I should be very glad of my Capashine as soon as is convenient as the wather is now very coald plain silks for Capashine are most wore – Adue My Dear Roselinda I am in great haste 

November ye 2

I charge you write to me as soon as you [can]

Address: To | Miss Doddridge at | The Revd Doctr Doddridges | in | Northampton          

Postmark: none

Note on address page: No. 9 | Nov ye 2 1750 [Mercy Doddridge’s hand]

Text: Crew MS 50, fol. 61, Wren Library, Trinity College, Cambridge.  Felicia to Charlotte was published anonymously, and even though the Doddridges had many friends among London's Dissenting community of printers and booksellers, the these two teenagers were still unaware that the novel was written by a woman (Mary Collyer), not a man. No letters by Philip Doddridge to Mercy Doddridge, his daughter, were recorded in Nuttall's Calendar for this time period.