Benjamin Flower at Harlow to Eliza Flower at Mr. Creak’s, 69 Cornhill, London, Wednesday, 6 November 1805.

Harlow, Nov 6.  1805

My dear Love

   Respecting letters & parcels I have such negligent people to deal with that I know not who I am to blame.  Yesterday morning I sent you a packet containing a letter of my own and one of Mary’s from Dodbrook; I directed it to you at Miss Fullers, Lombard Street, & supposing you to have received it about the time you did former parcels you must have had it between 5 & 6 oclock; but you do not in your letter received this morning give the most distant hint of receiving it.  I have frequently charged you with not acknowledging receipt of letters, by which means I have been ignorant whether they arrived.  In the present instance, whether the fault lies with you, the Hertford coachman, or the book keeper I know not.

   Altho’ I knew the Lindsey’s had a sincere friendship for me, I could scarcely have thought they would have felt such a warm interest in our affairs as by your letter they appear to have done.  I will certainly call on them on my next visit to London.  On the other hand I thought I knew MrsCounsellor G– pretty well from the time I first visited her with you, just before our marriage.  Every time I have since seen her confirmed my opinion; but I own I could scarcely have thought she could have behaved so coldly, and so pitifully as she did to you on Monday.  What a contrast not only to the feelings of the Lindseys but to those of all the world beside of our acquaintance.  One might have thought meer  curiosity would have led her to say something.  It is however plain to me that our prosperity affords her rather pain than pleasure.  Well, if ever she by accident for I hope you did not ask her, visits Harlow we will treat her as Robinson says he did his “pretended dear friends”—make a great fire, have all our best things, be even luxurious for once, in order if possible to make her sigh with the reflection—“They now live as well as I do!”   I hope you gave her no Intelligence, or next to none, about your brother’s matters; let her find out things as she can.

   Altho’ I have read that part of your letter which relates to the servants, there was no occasion for scarcely any of your messages; the Plants had been attended to in all respects as you directed; the children in a similar manner; Hannah is cleaning the house, & Bet is extraordinarily attentive.  She gave me an account of every finery she had laid out during our absence, which in Household matters did not amount to 2/6 saving one joint of meat, not paid for (as the Butcher had no change).  When I dined yesterday at Mr Cowells, just before I went out, a clean cravat was brought me; she is very attentive to both the children, both of whom are as well and look as well as ever they did in their life.  I have indeed indulged more than usual in the time I have spent with them.

   Eliza I assure you I keep in excellent order, making a point of turning her out of the room the moment she begins to fret, & I was to day on the point of following her expulsion with a whipping, because she continued crying in the kitchen; however she soon grew good & has behaved since very well.  Bain dined at Cowells with me yesterday; nothing passed worth relating.  Mr Finch of Sible Hedingham called & drank tea with me this afternoon; joined his congratulations with those of all our friends. He led to conversation about the Claytons & I told him how matters had been between us; like every body else he was much shocked, & seemed to think I had hardly done myself justice: he gives a poor account of Hall, who he told me stopped his congregation last Sabbath after the usual service was finished, to tell them a strange story about the Millenium having already commenced; Mr F– mentioned some pranks Hall had been performing within then 3 or 4 days (such as riding hard on horseback, getting up in the middle of the night & praying &c.) as are feared by his friends to be the forerunners of a relapse.

   While writing this, Mumford & Dobson have come in to tell me News is brought by the Stortford coach of the capture or destruction of almost the whole of the combined fleet in Cadiz harbour, & of the death of Lord Nelson. Altho’ I suppose there is some exaggeration, yet as there is to be an extraordinary Gazette, the news is in some degree true.  I am afraid the early effect such an event will have will be to prolong the war, altho’ it may secure us, for a length of time from invasion.

   If I were in London to morrow (Thursday) I should be tempted to peep in at Leigh & Sotheby’s York Street Covent Garden, where at 12 precise are to be sold 20 new Piano forte’s the stock of a Bankrupt; if you choose to go I dare say you might get one for half price, I should not like to give more than 10 Guineas for one which would cost at first hand 20.  Use your own judgment: only if you do buy, have a good loud toned one.

   If you stay till Saturday, I dare say Mr Cowell would be glad to take you down; he always comes in the middle of the day: you may hear of him at any time at Mr Wesley’s Cullum Street.

   Well Madam!  you will please to recollect & to inform your friends that by next Saturday, you will have forestalled nearly a fortnight of the months holidays you meant to have at ’Xmas.  Write me by return—Is the Young Conraad condemned?—I have been looking over Brother Wms Cash books, but there does not appear by them to be any property but what we are already acquainted with. 

   Altho Bet had been twice before I came home, and I went Yesterday to remind Mrs D–  yr Ware was not sent home till to day.  The fact is they had company Yesterday.  All is right & no damage—Dobson intends buying a Whiskey, came to offer to sell me his Cart, wch you may suppose I did not purchase.  Cowell & Chaplin [are] engaged in a New School; I have agreed to be at the expence of 4 boys.   Farewell

                                                         B F

Text: Timothy Whelan, ed., Politics, Religion, and Romance: The Letters of Benjamin Flower and Eliza Gould, 1794-1808 (Aberystwyth: National Library of Wales, 2008), pp. 310-14 (a more annotated text than that which appears on this site). 

References above include Theophilus Lindsey and his wife, Hannah; Maria Hawes Gurney, wife of John Gurney and daughter of William Hawes; John Cowell was at that time a member of the Particular Baptist congregation at Potter Street, Harlow. Flower may have known Cowell previously, for Cowell was originally from London, having joined the Baptist church at Carter Lane in 1774 (Horsley-down and Carter Lane f.41); James Finch, Esq., was most likely a relation of Flower’s Cambridge friend, Charles Finch.   This would explain the former’s close association with Flower’s Cambridge acquaintances, as well as his inside knowledge of Hall’s situation at St. Andrew’s Street.

Besides the difficulties Flower endured with the Claytons after the death of his mother and brother in 1805, Flower also experienced an ugly encounter with his nephew, William Clayton, Jr., who was already preaching at the Independent chapel in Green Street, Cambridge, where some of Flower’s friends attended.  During his visit, Clayton stated publicly that Flower was  “a criminal who had committed forgery, and that had the laws of [England] been duly executed [Flower’s] life would have long since been forfeited!” (Statement xxvii).  Flower would eventually sue the Claytons in 1808 for making similar accusations against his character (see Flower-Clayton Controversy, 1808). 

Robert Hall resumed his ministerial duties in Cambridge in April 1805; however, he suffered a second breakdown in November 1805, shortly after the date of the above letter; James Mumford (d. 1827), a carpenter (UBD 3.359), and his wife, Elizabeth, who were both members of the Baptist congregation at Fore Street in Harlow; Horatio Nelson (1758-1805), the most famous naval admiral of his day, died on board the Victory during the English defeat of the French fleet at the battle of Cadiz, just off Cape Trafalgar, on 21 October 1805.  The news of his death reached London on 6 November (the same date as the above letter), creating a time of great national mourning; Leigh and Sotheby, booksellers, were located at 9 York Street, Covent Garden (Kent’s [1800]: 115); Robert Westley was a taylor at 17 Cullum Street, Fenchurch Street, London (Holden’s [1799]: 786), and like so many of Flower’s London acquaintances, was a Baptist, joining John Rippon’s congregation at Carter Lane on 16 December 1773 (Horsley-down and Carter Lane f.37); Thomas Chaplin (1767-1823) was a maltster in Harlow and a prominent member of the Baptist congregation at Fore Street.