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UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

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LETTERS

RICHARD REYNOLDS

WITH A MEMOIE OF HIS LIFE.

EY
HIS GRANDAUGHTER,
HANNAH MARY RATHBONE,
I I i
AUTHOR OF
"the DIAET OF LADY WILLOUQHBY."

LOND ON:
CHARLES GILPIN, 5, BISHOPSGATE STREET 'WITHOUT.
EDINBURGH: ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK;
DUBLIN: JAMES B. GILPIN.
1852.

CONTENTS.

page.
Chapter I.  1
Chapter II  16
Chapter III  , . 29
Chapter FV. ... -  43
Chapter V. . . ...... 52
Chapter VT. ...."¦.... 64
Letters op Richard Reynolds.
To John Macappen  84 to 88
To George Harrison  89 to 98
To S. Lloyd  99
To Gteorge Harrison  102 to 108
ToS. Uoyd  109
To George Harrison .... 112 to 119
To his Daughter . . •  120
To K. Reynolds  126
To S. Lloyd . . . . ... 127
To his Daughter  131 to 134
To S. Lloyd  135
To his Daughter . . .... 136
To S. Uoyd  138
Extract of a Letter to a Eriend  140
To his Nephew  143
To the Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke ... 145 to 150
To J. Phillips  151
Letter soliciting a Contribution to a Charity . . 152
To S. Lloyd  153

CONTENTS.

Extract 
Extract of a Letter to R. D 
To D. Darby 
To Sarah Trimmer 
Extract from a Letter to the Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke
To the Bishop of Bath and Wells
To Sarah Trimmer
To the Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke
Extract of a Letter to J. Phillips
To his Son 
To P. H. Gurney ....
Extract from a Letter to one of his Sons
To M. Wright ....
To his Son 
Extract 
To the Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke
To a Boy at Ackworth School
Extract of a Letter to J. C.
To his Son 
To Sarah Allen ....
Extract from a Letter to his Daughter
To William Savery, Philadelphia
To the Rev. T. Houlbrooke
To hia Son ....
To his Daughter ....
To his Son ....
ToR. G 
To the Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke
To his Daughter ....
To the Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke
To one of his Grandaughters
ToG. H. ...
To his Grandson
ToGawenBall ....
To his Grandaughter
ToGavrenBall ...
To Priscilla H. Gurney

page. 158169
160162
164
167170173
176 178
181
182 183184
187190192 196
199

206
207208
215217
217 to 223224
225 228
230235236
239

247
249252

CONTENTS. vii
To Gawen Ball '  253 254
To George Harrison . . . ... . 255
To the Chancellor of the Exchequer .... 256
To G«orge Rose, Esq  . . 258
To Earl Gower, Lord Privy Seal, &c. ... 260
To Lord Sheffield  262, 263
To Thomas Gilbert ... ... 264
To Lord Sheffield  .265
To John Smitheman, Esq  270
To Sir Richard HUl, Bart  273
To John Kynaston, Esq.  274
To Sir Henry Bridgman, Bart. .... 275
To Lord Sheffield  276
To the Chancellor of the Exchequer .... 276
To Sir Richard HiU, Bart  278
To Earl Gower, President of the Council, &c. . 279 to 284
To WUliam Pitt, Esq  285
To Lord Sheffield  286
To John Wilkinson  289
To George Forester, Esq.  291
To Sarah Trimmer ... . . 292
To Thomas Addenbrooke  295
Appendix.
Prom the Report of " Reynolds's Commemoration Society " 298
Extract from the " Deed of Trust for Charitable Purposes " 299
Extracts from an MS. book containing reflections, &c., by
Rebecca, wife of Richard Reynolds .... 300
Written apparently on the marriage of her Son . . 301
Verses to the Memory of the late Richard Reynolds . . 302
Notes by a Grandson of Richard Reynolds . . 305

MEMOIR

LIFE OF RICHARD REYNOLDS.

CHAPTER I.

Under feelings of deep reverence and affection, I
undertake the task, which has been allotted to me, of
giving some account of the life of my grandfather,
Richard Reynolds.
It is a solemn thing, to attempt to pourtray the cha
racter of another, — to trace the footsteps of one, who
has passed away from the earthy — to collect the scattered
signs and records of his mind^s existence, — ^Icnowing,
the while, that there is, in every human being, an inner
life, which cannot be penetrated. And this is pecu
liarly to be felt, in the present instance, of one, whose
whole conduct was governed by the utmost simplicity
of truth, and a sensitive shrinking from the observa
tion of others.
There was nothing in my grandfather's station in
life, in his attainments in any branch of science or
literature, or in any circumstances connected with him
or his family, to render him a riian of public mark or
B

a memoir of
interest. It was solely through his self-denyiag bene
volence and extended beneficence that he became so
widely known in his life-time, and that he comes before
us now, after the lapse of so many years since he was
removed from this earthly scene. So greatly was he
esteemed in his native place, that shortly after his
death a meeting was held in Bristol to consider the
most appropriate mode of recording his worth and
pei*petuating his name: and a charitable society was
farmed and entitled "The Reynolds Commemoration
Society .'' And shall he who was so beloved and re
spected by his fellow-citizens, as to wiii from them this
testimony to his virtues and beneficence, be sufi"ered
to remain unremembered, and almost unknown, in the
habitations of his descendants? — shall his labours of love,
and his self-denying life, exist only in the recollection
of the few, who must soon follow him to the grave ?
He departed this life, leaving behind him children,
and grandchildren, and great grandchildren, — and
now his son, — alone in his generation, — is the beloved
grandfather, whose sons and daughters, fast ap
proaching the evening of their day, look as he did on
their children's children playing around their hearths,
— and they would not that these should, one day, ask,
and ask in vain, — Who was the Reynolds, whose name
has thus been perpetuated ?
But, the materials for a biography are very limited,
and it is a cause of surprise as well as of regret, that
so little remains to give a life-like picture of what he
was, — so endeared in all his domestic relations, so
respected by his acquaintance, and regarded by his

KICHARD REYNOLDS. 3
intimate friends with an affection and admiration
almost enthusiastic, that any endeavour to express this
in words falls coldly upon the ear, and does not satisfy
the heart of the few who knew and loved him. There
was an attraction, a fascination about my grandfather
which died with him ; and it will be difficult to give it
form and permanence even to those who knew him,
and impossible to convey any adequate impression of
it to those who knew him not. Many, however, of his
letters remain, which afford some insight into his
character and the peculiar make of his mind ; and so
retiring and uneventful was his life, that a more copious
selection is given from his correspondence to supply
the deficiency of information from other soui'ces, than
the intrinsic value and interest of some of the letters
might seem to justify. This selection has also been
the more freely made from the consideration that this
sketch is intended chiefly for a family memorial, which
it is hoped may not be without some interest to the
members of that Society, in which whilst living he held
so distinguished a place. For the public generally it
will probably possess little attraction. Any attempt to
heighten the interest of a biography by the reflections or
remarks of the editor, is not often successful ; and how
ever deficient may be the present memoir, the reader
is more favourably placed to form just conclusions, and
a correct judgment of the character, than one who
stands in the near and peculiar relation of a grandchild.
Richard Reynolds, born in Bristol, according to a
memorandum in his own handwriting, on the 1st of
November, o. s., in the year 1735, was the only son
B 2

4 MEMOIR OF
of Richard and Jane Reynolds, members of the Society
of Friends. The family probably joined this sect at
the commencement, as the marriage-certificate of
Michael, the father of the above-mentioned Richard
Reynolds, sm-named the " Honest," is dated in the year
1704, and is signed by his father Michael as a witness,
who may therefore be supposed to have been one of the
early converts to the preaching of George Fox, in the
middle of the seventeenth century. This certificate is
in the usual form (essentially) of these documents, as
required at the present time, in the Quaker mode of
conducting the ceremony of marriage in their public
assemblies ; and as so few of my grandfather's des- ^
cendants now remain in the Society, an extract from it
is here given. The name, parentage, occupation or
station in life of the parties being set forth, also thes'
fact of their having given due notice of their intentions
of marriage, and of their having been declared clear or^
all other similar engagements, and as having consent
of their parents, it thus proceeds : — " Now these are to
certify all whom it may concerne &c., this fi'oure and
twentieth day of the twelvth month, called Ffebruary,
in the yeare, according to the English account, one
thousand seven hundred and foure. They the saiii.
MichaeU Reynolds and Susanna Bromley appeared in
a pubHck assembly of the said people and others mett
together for that end in their publick meeting place att
Stratford aforesaid. He the said MichaeU Reynolds
taking the said Susanna Bromley by the hand did
solemnly and expressly declare that he did take her
(the said S. B.) to be his wife — and then and there,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 5
in the said assembly, the said Susanna Bromley in like
manner holding him (the said M. R.) by the hand, did
solemnly and expressly declare that she did take him,
the said M. R., to be her husband — and each of them
did solemnly promise to be loving and faithful to each
other in the relation of husband and wife, until it
should please the Lord to separate them by death —
and the said MichaeU Reynolds and Susanna Bromley
as a farther confirmation thereof, did then and there
to these presents set their hands, &c., &c." To this
certificate there are about twenty signatures, three of
which are expressed by a mark.
Young Richard Reynolds was sent to school, at the
early age of five years, to a Friend, named Thomas
Bennet, of Pickwick, in Wiltshire. The little boy, who
was leaving his home for the first time, to go to school,
at a considerable distance, was set forth on his journey
in a primitive style, under the care of a carrier, on
horseback ; a circumstance to which he often pleasantly
referred in later years, as contrasting with the early
habits of ease and indulgence which he saw encouraged
in many of the famUies around him. Another incident,
which he used to relate, was no less illustrative of the
simple manners of that period, when one or two pence
a week was the whole of his allowance of pocket-money,
although his father was in a lucrative business as an
iron merchant. On his first return to school, after the
hoHdays, one of his companions ran up to him, as he
entered the play-ground, saying, " Dick, thou owes me
a penny." Dick immediately paid the penny, which
was the only one that he possessed,— and he keenly felt

MEMOIR OF

his poverty, but he also felt the satisfaction of having
discharged the debt. In after life, the principle of
owing no man anything, he ever most scrupulously
maintained; and when, in managing the concerns of
others, he had to endure a temporary infringement of
this habit of punctuality, it occasioned him a degree of
distress, that would be thought by some almost a re
finement upon honesty.
The defective education existing, probably, in most
schools of the same class, at that period, may be inferred
by a proceeding of the boys at Thomas Bennet' s, which,
it is to be hoped, would not occur at the present day.
Understanding that a school in the neighbourhood,
consisted of chUdren whose parents were members of the
established Church, — and, in the ignorance of their
prejudiced minds, conceiving that a diversity of religious
profession was a just ground of hostility, they resolved
to go in a body, and valiantly fight the " Church boys."
SaUying forth accordiagly, for this especiaUy unquakerly
purpose, they encountered the other party, who, un
acquainted with their design, met them with so much
civUity, and in so courteous a manner, that their hearts
instantly relented, and they returned home secretly
convicted, and ashamed of their unworthy project.
Whilst at this school, Richard Reynolds was guilty of
the only deliberate falsehood, which, as he used to say,
he believed he had ever uttered in the course of his life.
He had been accused of some fault, of which he was, in
reality, innocent; but appearances were so much against
him, that the master, feeling no doubt on the subject,
urged the boy to confess, promising forgiveness to

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 7
induce him to do so, and threatening him with a flogging
if he continued obstinate. He persisted, however, in
maintaining his innocence, until he was ordered by the
master to go iato the adjoining room, in which was the
girls' school, and there to ask for the instrument of this
degrading punishment. The corporal pain, and even
the disgrace, he would have borne ; but he had not
strength of mind to endure this great humiliation, — and
he pleaded guUty. For years this sin weighed heavily
upon his mind, and he was not satisfied untU he had
convinced the master of his unintentional injustice and
of the injurious consequences of his severity. There
can be no doubt, however, that Thomas Bennet took a
sincere and permanent interest in the fature welfare of
his pupils, and that he gained and preserved their
esteem and affection. As characteristic of the master,
and exhibiting the mutual regard which existed between
himself and his late scholar, the foUowing letters, though
of later date, are inserted here, where they may not be
without some interest, in connection with Richard
Reynolds's school-life. To ErcHAED Reynolds.
Pickwick, Fifth Month Uth, 1753 .
Dear Richard,
I have thy pretty and sensible letter of 10th current, inti
mating thy sending the books, which are received, and I accept
them kindly. I find thou art desirous of receiving a line from
me ia answer to thiae, which I now send thee, and should have
written thee before had leisure and opportunity conveniently
offered. It appears to me a good sign, where any, that formerly

8 MEMOIR OP
were my Scholars, and had the best instructions I could give
'em, though at the time did not consider that my view in
.advising them was solely for their good, should by proper
reflections on past advice, shew a disposition of corresponding
with their friend, and seek the company of their adviser.
This seems pretty much thy present situation ; and I
could not help taking notice of thy conduct and behaviour
to me when last at Bristol : I plainly saw an alteration in
thee for the better, and had then a secret joy and pleasure
in beholding it, though I mentioned nothing of it to any one.
Since, therefore, it has pleased Infinite Wisdom to extend
his merciful visitation to thee, and thou hast been made
measurably sensible of it, let not any thing divert thy steady
perseverance in the way of thy duty to thy Maker, which,
if pursued as it ought, wUl naturally lead thee to he dutiful
to thy parents, obedient to thy master and mistress, and
respectfuU in thy carriage to all thy relations and friends ;
not suffering the flashy temper, incident to youth, to pre
dominate on the one hand, nor slothfulness in effecting thy
master's commands on the other ; it wUl be a preservative
against idleness and idle companions, and wiU be thy pro
tector and dehverer from temptations, and the evU attending
them ; it wUl also direct and guide thee into that retirement
that is essentially necessary to enlighten thy eyes, enlarge
thy understanding, and correct thy depraved wiU, so as to
give thee a knowledge of thy Maker, thyself, and the duty
incumbent on .thee to Grod and mankind. Thus wUt thou
not only he the visited, but the saved of the Lord. I ear
nestly desire that many more of our young friends of both
sexes would close in with the offers of Divine love, extended
by the merciful visitations handed forth to them at this
time, which I have been made sensible of, and I have rejoyced
to observe one here and another there embracing the oppor
tunities offered them, who are saying in their hearts, with

RICHARD REYNOLDS. i)
good old Jacob, " If Grod wiU be with me, and will keep me
in this way that I go, and wUl give me bread to eat, and
raiment to put on, so that I come again to my father's house
in peace, then shall the Lord be my God." It has been
a signal providence of Infinite Goodness (who wUl never
suffer his truth to fall in the streets, for want of proper
instruments as standard bearers,) to raise up divers young
men and young women to bear a testimony for his truth on
earth, and lead them forth in their services to supply the
places of many of our worthy ancients caUed off the stage
to their eternal rest ; and I wish the Society was enough
sensible of this favour, that hearts fuH of gratitude, for so
great benevolence, might be united in thanksgiving for the
same, to the Author of aU mercies, who is eternally worthy
thereof world without end.
I have exceeded what I first intended ; if too prolix for
thee, attribute it to the strength of love that prevailed in me
to encourage thee to faithfulness, according to the gift thou
hast received ; and I know thou darest not make a bad use
of these hints, if thou art honest to the witness, to which
I recommend thee as the best Teacher and Instructor.
And with our united love and good wishes for thee in
every thing just and commendable, I remain and am
Thy hearty, sincere, and affectionate friend,
T. Bennet.
Pickwick, 15th Twelfth Month, 1761.
Dear Friend,
Thy favour of the 10th ult. arrived in course, and should
have replied sooner, but waited till I received thy second
kind present of pipes : the Barclay cheese came also safe
to hand, which is a very fine one, and I return my acknow
ledgments for both in the following maimer. As thou
hadst, but a little time before, been so kind to present
E.3

10 MEMOIR OF
me with a box of such fine pipes, which are not yet ex
hausted, so it was the more surprising that I should have
the favour so soon and so generously repeated ; exclusive
of the Barclay cheese, which is far more valuable than the
net-cheese I sent thee as a smaU. part of my gratitude for
thy first present of pipes. As I was incapable before of
justly retaliating thy former benefaction, not only respecting
the thing itself, but the manner of its presentment, and the
disposition of the mind then urging it, so by such reitera
tions I shall never be able to render any compositions for
the debt thou hast involved me in ; though I am sensible that
I am writing to a generous creditor, who wUl, rather than
exact the utmost farthing, forgive the whole debt.
I now quit this subject, and proceed to another of greater
weight and importance, and perhaps more intelligible and
acceptable to a virtuous and religious mind, and that is to
impart to thee some pleasing remarks I made on thy be
haviour and conduct during thy last visit, and which I in
part hinted to thy father, who was here with thee. It has
been my lot to know thee from a chUd, when thou wast
placed young under my care and tuition ; whUst thou pur
sued that good principle implanted in thee, thou acted right,
and was a pleasure to thy ffriends, and a comfort to thyself:
but the contrary, when at any time thou forsook it. Since
thy juvenile state, or when further advanced towards man
hood, that good hand that always supports his own, stiU
attended thee with his gracious visits, and attracted thy
affection and attention, not to the things of this hfe, but
unto himself; discovered to thee that true wisdom that is
from above, by which thou stiU advanced in that only saving
knowledge, and at the same time surrounded with many tem
poral blessings, which to some might have had quite a contrary.
effect, by setting them on the wing, than what I observe they
have on thee. Doth not this plainly manifest, that though
Divine Providence hath bestowed these temporal favours in

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 11
SO abundant a manner, thy chiefest treasure is elsewhere? and
that thou art for seeking first the Kingdom of God and his
righteousness, before these things that are necessary, and
already added. I could not but take notice of the meekness
of thy behaviour in aU respects, when last here, and at
other times also, and it always afforded me much satisfac
tion : and in my reflections since, I have been ready to say
to thee, as if present. Dear Richard, keep fast thy hold ;
let none take away thy crown. Thou will excuse me for
mentioning these my observations after this manner, when I
acquaint thee that 'tis the effect of true love, that wishes
thy perseverance in the right way, and thy safety in the day
of trouble. No fii-iend hke the best of firiends, who will he
with thee when all outward comforts fail, and who has pro
mised not to leave or forsake such as cleave close to him.
Let not this letter be exposed ; if any error is therein found
pass a charitable construction thereon : if any hints therein
shaU prove serviceable in confirming thy resolution in
pursuing thy peace, be thankfuU to the Author of every
good and perfect gift, and from whom we derive all our
blessings. I shall be glad to hear from thee as often as thy leisure
win admit, and to see thee here when opportunity offers ;
and with aU our joint love and respect to thy whole self and
ffi-iends, I conclude, and am
Thy affectionate and obhged friend,
T. Bennet.
To Thomas Bennet.
Ketley, Third Month 11th, 1761.
It gave me great pleasure to hear of thy welfare and of
thy family's, by thy letter of the 16th ult., which, together
with thy kind present, came safe to hand yesterday, and
for which I return thee my grateful acknowledgments.

12 MEMOIR OP
Convinced by experience of the justness of thy observa
tions, and of the wholesomeness of thy advice, I recollect
the many opportunities I have formerly had of improvhig
thereby with gratitude and complacency, I grieve it has so
little influenced the conduct of many who enjoyed the same
advantages with me ; and though I doubt not thy possessing
that serene peace of mind which results from a conscientious
discharge of duty, I persuade myself it would be an addition
to thy present happiness, were aU thy former scholars reh-
gious, virtuous men.
1 have some thoughts of seeing Bristol this summer, and
it is not the least of many inducements thereto, that I hope
then to see thee in good health ; for I never intend to go to
Bristol without visiting Pickwick, whUst thou lives there.
I hope thy son and his famUy are weU ; please to remember
me to him, and to Richard Painter, when thou sees him.
We are told there is a time to speak, and a time to be
sUent ; I do not suspect Richard of having spoke when he
should have been silent.
K it wUl not occasion thee too much trouble, I shaU be
very glad if thou will let one of thy scholars write for me
a list of the names of the boys that were.^t school with me,
and the places from whence they came, to which, if thou
will please to add, ever so concisely, where and what they
now are, it would be very obliging.
If thou cannot conveniently grant that request, refuse
not, I pray thee, to let me hear frequently of thine and thy
famUy's health, A letter directed for me at Ketley, near
WeUington, Shropshire, would be likely to come to hand.
It may, probably, be thought an uncommon return for
oue favour received, unasked for, to request two more ; but
give me leave to assure thee, thou need not dread a pro
portional increase of petitions from me, having only to
desire in future, the continuance of thy kind regard, and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 13
that thou wUl beUeve me, with great esteem and love to thy
whole self, in which my wife joins.
Thy very affectionate and obhged friend,
Richard Reynolds.
lo Thomas Bennet, at Pickwick,
near Cor sham, Wiltshire.
Richard Reynolds was removed from Thomas Bennet's
school at the age of fourteen, just as a growing
taste for classical study had taught him to value the
time and opportunity for making further progress,
especiaUy in the Latin language. History had also
become a favourite pursuit ; and it was, I believe, about
this time, that his imagination was so much excited,
by the bravery and heroism of the soldier's character,
and the glory of skilful and successful warfare, that he
had felt a strong desire hioaself to embrace a military
life. Of his conduct, or of anything which might mark
the progress of his character, during the next six
years, we unfortunately know little or nothing, beyond
what may be inferred from one of his letters, written
when be was twenty-three years of age, (and a copy of
which is here given) to John Maccappen, a young man
for whom he had formed a sincere and ardent attach
ment, — a friendship which, deserved the name, — in
which mutual pleasure in each other's society, and a
strong sympathy in each other's tastes and pursuits,
was combined reverence for religion, and an earnest
desire to be guided by its principles.

14 MEMOIR OF
To John Maccappen.
Ketley, March \%th, 1758.
My dearest Friend,
I have often thought one reason why many letters we
receive from our friends are read with indifference, compared
with others received from the same persons, is our not being
in the same disposition or frame of mind with the writer.
That this letter may not want that advantage, I wUl tell
thee, I have been reflecting on the many occurrences we
have been jointly concerned in since the time we first
became acquainted. We were both young, apprentices to
the same trade and in the same street. A simUitude of cir
cumstances and inclinations was the foundation of our inti
macy, productive of very salutary effects to me. I remember
with pleasure, one of our first evening walks together in the
rope-walk, that our conversation was serious and concluded
with joint resolutions, that, let others do as they would, we
determined to be reUgious. Happy would it have been for
US, could we have as easUy practised as resolved ! but alas !
I, too soon gave back, too soon returned to my former foUies,
and added new. I fear, I was the means of engaging thee
in the practice of many things thou wast conscious were not
right and wouldst not have done, had not my example
strengthened the temptation and increased that dispositionj
we aU naturaUy have to what is wrong ; but yet, we have
great reason to be thankful to the gracious Preserver of men,
that we were not suffered to be guUty of any gross sins.
Oh! my friend, my dearest friend, may we be grateful,
may our future conversation be influenced thereby, and
may we for the time to come, be as helpmeets and in
centives to each other in the way that is right ! I protest,
I can never reflect on the many hours we have spent
together, but I am seized with a sort of tender melan-

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 15
choly, an agreeable pensiveness. How frequent were our
excursions to Clifton and over the Downs 1 how often to
the river-side, and the Hot-weU rocks 1 but above aU, the
square was our most common resort. There, how often we
talked down the summer's sun ! Those days are gone, irre
vocably gone, and we are separated by too great a distance
ever to hope for the like again. But let me conjure thee to
come and see me, if it be but for a short time. The spring
is comiag on, and I expect thou wilt be too busy when that
is far advanced to come then. Thy affectionate friend,
Richard Reynolds.

*,* John Maccappen was an early friend of Richard Reynolds, at Bristo!,
before he went to live at Coalbrook Dale.

16 MEMOIR OF

CHAPTER II.
Scarcely was the term of his apprenticeship expired,
when a friend of his father's, Thomas Goldney, of
Clifton, who was the partner of Abraham Darby, in
the iron works at Coalbrook Dale, engaged Richard
Reynolds to transact some business for him in Shrop
shire ; — ^for which place he set out in 1756, on the
journey which, as it afterwards proved, was to have so
momentous an influence upon his future life. He
arrived at the Dale, and there was introduced to
Hannah, the only daughter of Abraham Darby, by his
first marriage. She was possessed of great personal
attractions, and her mind was one of no common order ;
— to a most amiable and generous disposition were
united a truly humble spirit, and habits of piety and
serious reflection. My grandfather, young, and enthu
siastic in his admiration of beauty, and very susceptible
to its influence, was equally so to goodness ; and it was
always understood, that his affections were first drawn
towards Hannah Darby, by his witnessing (unknown to
her) an instance of kindness and consideration to one
whose claims were overlooked by others, in sending out
of her own private allowance a liberal token of remem
brance ; — an action in its kindUness of nature, and
unobtrusive manner of performance, in perfect accord
ance with his own benevolent and shrinking disposition.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 17
In a few months after this first visit to Coalbrook Dale,
he was married to the object of his choice, on the 20th
of May, 1757 ; and having become a partner in the iron
and coal works at Ketley, about five miles from Coal
brook Dale, he went to reside there. Few young men,
at the age of twenty-one, could begin life under more
auspicious circumstances : his domestic happiness was
complete, and in the management of extensive works
and a large number of workmen, he entered on a wide
sphere of usefulness, which was calculated to call into
fuU exercise the various powers of his mind, and received
dignity and importance from his high integrity and
active benevolence, — whilst in the society and dear
companionship of his wife, he derived from her culti
vated taste, her piety, and her cheerful disposition, the
purest enjoyment.
But, in a few short years, he was called upon to resign
this happiness ; — on tbe 24th of May, 1762, his wife
died, after an Ulness of only four days. Prom a friend
who came to their house as a guest, and who there was
taken iU of the measles, she, in the exercise of her
hospitable cares and attention, herself took the infec
tion. On the fourth day of her illness, the medical
attendant considered her to be going on so satisfactorily,
that her husband, who had some important business to
attend to in Shrewsbury, set out early in the morning,
without communicating to his wife that he was going
from home. A short time after his departure, an alarm
ing alteration took place in her symptoms, which was
quickly perceived by herself, and by those about her, as
indicative of approaching dissolution. Expressing her

18 MEMOIR OF
grief, on finding that her husband was not in the house,
she endeavoured to use the little strength that remained
to her, in making such arrangement of her outward
affairs as the time admitted ; then taking a tender leave
of her two little children, a son about four years of age,
and a daughter one year and a-half old, she waited with
humble resignation and Christian fortitude the summons
of her heavenly Father. A messenger had been imme
diately dispatched to recal her husband, who arrived in
time to receive her last words and parting embrace, as
she thanked him for all his kindness to herself, and
commended their infant chUdren to his care. The
stroke of death was sudden ; as if, by a flash of Hghtning,.
the joy of his life, the light of his home was destroyed,
— ^the beloved wife of his bosom was taken away I His
sorrow was too deep for utterance; — and never, even
to the latest year of his Ufe, did he omit, secretly, to dis
tinguish the sad hour of his bereavement, by spending a
portion of the day in retirement and meditation. Some
time after his loss, he thus speaks of her in a letter to a
friend —
"How often with a devotion and humUity.of soul that
converts the ventings of sorrow into tears of joy, has she
repeated from one of Watts' s hymns :
' My God, my portion and my love.
My everlasting all !
I've none but thee in Heaven above.
Nor on this earthly ball ! '
I have her book before me with the leaf folded down at this
place. Never, I believe, was there greater sincerity of inten
tional comphance with the requirings of apprehended duty,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 19
nor often greater resignation of wUl or acquiescence of choice
with the dispensations of Providence. Such were her dispo
sitions towards her God — towards her friends, all that can
be conceived of the tenderest warmest affection ' glowed in
her faithful sympathising breast ' — all that constitutes hap
piness below, or ensures it above —
' These were all her own ; '
and she was mine, and I was — was most blest."
Richard Reynolds continued to reside at Ketley ; the
works there furnished him -with active employment, and
his fuUy occupying his time and attention assisted him
in maintaining that composure of mind which he
worthily derived from the higher sources- of reUgious
consolation, — a strong practical faith in the wisdom and
goodness of God, through which he was preserved in
¦patient submission and acquiescence to the Divine
wUI. In the year 1763, he left Ketley to reside at
Coalbrook Dale, in consequence of arrangements, ren
dered needful by the death of his father-in-law, Abraham
Darby, who by his great exertions and spirit of enter
prise, had extended the concerns of the Coalbrook
Dale Company far beyond the locaHty where those
works were situated, having established foundries in
London, Bristol and Liverpool, and agencies at New
castle and Truro, for the disposal of steam-engines, and
other machinery made of cast iron, used in the deep
mines of those districts. As the oldest son of Abraham
Darby was too young to take the place of his father,
the want of a person quaUfied to superintend this
extensive business was a cause of great anxiety to the

20 MEMOIR OF
Company, and, in this emergency, they requested the
assistance of Richard Reynolds. Influenced by affection
for the family of his late beloved wife, and regard for
his kind friend Thomas Goldney, he consented to leave
his home, and reUnquish his daUy attention to the
furnaces at Ketley and Horsehay, and to take upon
himself the care and responsibility of superintending
these works, in which he had no direct personal interest,
as the shares which formed the portion of his wife,
had been, at his own request, settled upon her children.
The necessity of so much attention to a business, which
called for incessant labour and activity, and took him
much away- from home, put it out of his power to
attend, as he desired, to the safety and education
of his children, and this source of care and anxiety
pressed heavily upon him. Under these circumstances,
although he continued, as he ever was, a siacere
mourner for the loss of her, whom he had loved with aU
the ardour and depth of a first affection, it was natural
that he should wish to provide a mother for his helpless
children, by a second marriage. He was particularly
sensible to the charms and advantages of female society;
his constitutional reserve and diffidence readUy yielded
to an influence which drew out the varied powers of
his mind, and the excellencies of his character, height
ened his enjoyment of the beautiful in nature and art,
and by sympathy in those reUgious sentiments which
exercised so large an influence upon his whole character,
was indeed, essential not only to his happiness, but,
as he believed, to his improvement and religious ad
vancement. On the 1st of December, 1763, he was

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 21
united to Rebecca Gulson, daughter of WUliam Gulson
of Coventry, (the intimate and dear friend of his late
wife) ; who, by her kindness of heart, her tranquU dis
position, and her regard for the memory of their
mother, was peculiarly qualified to take the charge of
her two children, WiUiam and Hannah Mary. She was
a woman of exemplary piety, most simple-hearted and
truthful in her practice of the Christian virtues, and
was possessed of much practical sound sense and un
derstanding. For many years she contributed largely
to the happiness of her husband, uniting with him in
his works of charity, taking an earnest part with him
in his study of the Scriptures, strengthening his reU
gious hopes, and sharing in his daily meditations and
prayers. She was an eminently consistent member of
the Society of Friends, and conscientiously observant of
plainness and simplicity in dress and domestic accommo
dations, not only as more consistent with her appre
hension of the Christian character, but as affording
additional means of reUeving the wants of others, — thus,
by self-denial, giving to benevolence the only distinctive
quaUty which makes it a virtue.
The following two letters to his wife are interesting
records of his affection, and are not without some bio
graphical value. London, Eleventh Month l^th, 1772.
My dear Wife,
It is true my letters have been short to thee, but it has
not proceeded from a decrease in my affection, or a want
of inclination to please thee. I have been pretty much
hurried and disappointed. Barclay was to have met us

22 MEMOIR OF
with his accounts last night, but did iiot, nor do I yet
know when he wUl. I am rather poorly with a sore
throat and cold in my head, which renders nursing neces
sary, though my present situation does not admit of it.
I wish for the time when I shaU retmn to my dearest
Becky, but fear it wiU be some time before it comes. If
Richard PhiUips has issued a bUl to Humphrey Felton, it
wiU not be amiss for him to advise Smith, Wright and Gray,
of it, and any others, in about a week after it is drawn. I
write to thee now because I have a few minutes leisure, but
whether it is owing to my cold, or to having been attempting
without success to adjust a long and perplexed account, — I
do not know that I was ever less capable of writing to my
own satisfaction, or, I think, to thine ; and therefore I wUl
suspend the conclusion tiU nearer the time of the post going
out, in hopes of an alteration for the better, though I love
thee dearly, notwithstanding my present inabUity to express
it. I am cold, and duU, and low, but yet I hope for better
times in every respect. FareweU my Becky. Remember me,
as I do thee, frequently, and affectionately. As I am so near
the bottom of the paper I wiU endeavour to fiU it, that I
may not, by writing in company with the address at the top
of the paper, discover to whom I am writing so awkwardly.
I dreamed last night of thee and Joe,* and awakened with
sorrow, to find myself so far from those I love so well, and
so likely to be for such a length of time.
The IQth. — I am at this time waiting at the counting-
house for Barclay, who promised to be here long before
this time. I am, through mercy, better than I was yes
terday. I then began to think of my distance from the object
of my affections, and the wilhng nurse of my infirmities, in
case I should be as UI as I once was. I was then in a private
• Hie youngest son.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 23
house, and my father was with me ; but I hope I shaU be
favoured with health, whUe absent from my Becky. And,
indeed, if consistent with Divine appointment, health is very
desirable at all times, and in all places ; and yet I confess it
is my duty, and I wish and hope it would be my endeavour,
to he resigned to the dispensations of an aU-wise and aU-
merciful Providence, whether in health or in sickness, in
riches or poverty.
I have just received, and I rejoice to receive, thy kind
letter, of the 16th and 17th instant. Every token of thy
remembrance is deUghtful to me; and if that part of my
letter which was written yesterday, was not in some measure
an answer to it, I should assure thee, that the shortness of
my letters is never occasioned by the want of my being in
good humour with my Becky. Of the dead and the absent
people generaUy think well, even where thfere is no particular
esteem or regard; but as I love thee with the tenderest
affection, it is not possible I should here be out of humour
with thee; indeed, it grieves me thou should admit such a
thought. When I go to Bristol, and which I hope wiU be
some time in the next week, I shall inform thee of Hannah's
situation, as weU as some other things. I advised brother
Oowles of my comiag to London, but I have received no
letter from him. I presume he had nothing particular to
communicate, and we do not correspond as friends merely.
I can bear the slights of every body else, supposing they
should shght me, better than the appearance of neglect in my
Becky ; and I rejoice that thy letters so effectually remove
every apprehension of that kind. Do me equal justice, and
be assured it is much my desire, in the words of our marriage
covenant, to be unto thee a faithful and loving husband,
untU it shall please God by death to separate us.
Rd. Reynolds.

24 MEMOIR OF
London, Twelfth Month 1st, 1777.
I am come down stairs before other lodgers, and avail
myself of the opportunity to begin a letter to my beloved
Becky. I did not write yesterday, because nothing was
done. The reason assigned now, is the multiplicity of busi
ness the lawyer has in hand, requiring immediate dispatch.
WeU acquainted as thou art with the impetuosity of my
temper, and sensible, as I hope thou art, of the ardour of my
affection for my best beloved on earth, thou may perhaps form
some judgment of the disagreeableness of my situation ; but
it received some aUeviation by the receipt of thy most affec
tionate letter of the 28th ult., last night. Does it not occur
to thee, my Becky, that on this day nine years, I first called
thee mine — my own wife — and O that I could this day,
repeat in thy hearing, the endearing, the endeared epithet —
which I now repeat to myself, with complacency and satis
faction, undiminished by time, and unimpaired by absence ;
nay, if I know my own heart, I can adopt the language of
the poet, and am happy in the belief, not lessened by thy
last most acceptable letter, that my Becky can unite with me
in acknowledging, with heart-felt satisfaction, that we are,
" Enamoured more, as more remembrance swells,
" With many a proof of recollected love." —
I am caUed away by the taUor, who has brought me some
clothes. I hope to add to this, by informing thee certainly
this evening when we shall leave this place ; for I design to
leave it soon, whether the agreement is signed or not.
FareweU, my dearest Becky, my nine years' wedded wife. —
Love me nine times more than ever. I resume my pen whUe
breakfast is bringing into the room, for I gladly snatch every
spare minute to repeat my fond declarations, and true as

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 25
fond, of continued affection to my Becky. Thou wished to
hear particularly of cousin Kelsal. I drank tea with her
yesterday, when she consulted me about a project she had
formed, for I can caU it no other, of taking a house by
Westminster Bridge, the rent upwards of £70 per annum ;
£150 good-wUl, and a lease for only three years. She says,
the rent wiU be made by letting lodgings, and her son was
to occupy the shop, as an ironmonger, — without money
to purchase a stock, — without interest to dispose of it, —
imknown in that or any part of the town, and equaUy
unknowing. I told her I thought it was a risk, that if they
had ever so much money, prudence would not justify, and,
as she had asked my opinion, I must say, I thought it abso
lutely unsafe, and improper, but referred her to persons of
more knowledge and experience, Her son had a place, but
it not being so advantageous as he thought he merited, he
has left it before he knows of another. I should not, my
dearest Becky, occupy any part of this paper on any other
subject but that of my regard for my wife, did I not hope
thou would receive the preceding, written at thy request, as
the effect of the desire I have to give my best beloved every
satisfaction in my power. My brother Darby is come into
the box, so I must conclude, and once more, my Becky,
fareweU. I again resume my pen, but it wiU be only to conclude a
letter which I am glad is already so nearly finished, as weU as
so amply fiUed ; for, if I had not written before this time,
though I do not love thee less, it would not have been in
my power by this post to have sent so long a letter. Barclay
said he would dine in town, and the rough draft of the agree
ment was then to be settled ; but when we came to the ap
pointed place, we were told he was gone out of town, poorly
m health, but intended to return to-morrow. I am unwiUing
c

36 MEMOIR OF
to leave unfinished what appears so nearly accomplished,
after so long attendance ; but if it is not done this week,
I intend to leave it undone. Thou wUt sympathize on the
vexatious occasion, with, my dearest Becky,
Thy affectionate, faithfnl
Richard Reynolds.
Love to Joe, Cousin Sukey, &c.
Richard Reynolds's engagement with the Coalbrook
Dale Company was terminated by the sons of the late
Abraham Darby assuming the direction of their own
affairs ; and in 1768, he left Coalbrook Dale, and returned'
to Ketley, with the satisfaction of having left the Dale
works in a prosperous state. It was whilst they were
under his management, that an important change was
accompUshed in the mode of converting cast or crude
iron into maUeable or bar iron. This process was pre
viously carried on in a fire called a finery, somewhat
Uke that of a smith's forge, and wood-charcoal was the
only fuel made use of. In this fire the iron was exposed
to the blast of powerful bellows, and was in constant
contact with the fuel. The quantity of charcoal thus
used was rapidly consuming the woods of the country,
and many efforts had been made to substitute pit-coal,
when coked, for wood-charcoal; in the first process,
fusing the iron ore or iron stone, it had answered, and
had been used at Coalbrook Dale for many years with
continued and increasing success, but it was then
suggested by two of the workmen, that the coal
might also be used in the second or refining stage,
the process being performed in a reverbatory furnace.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 27
in which the iron would not mix with the coal, but be
heated solely by the flame. My grandfather was struck
with the ingenuity and feasibility of the scheme, — and
the end to be obtained was of such great importance, that
he caused an immediate trial to be made ; the result was
so successful, that he communicated the discovery to
the owners of the works, doing justice to the workmen,
by giving them the credit which they deserved, and
earnestly recommending that the invention should be
secured by a patent, in the name of the "Cranages," with
whom it originated. This process is now technically
caUed "puddling;" and it has been the means of
enabling Great Britain to make iron in vast quantities
at a smaU cost. At the present time, when iron railways
are intersecting the earth in every direction, it may
not be uninteresting to his descendants to know, that
to their ancestor, Richard Reynolds, is due the credit
of first employing iron instead of wood in the construc
tion of railways. For the conveyance of coal and iron
to difi'erent parts of the works, and to the river Severn,
wooden raUs had been in use, which, from the great
weights carried upon them, were not only soon worn
out, but were Uable to give way and break, occasioning
loss of time, and interruption to business, and great
expense in repairing them. It occurred to him that the
inconveniences would be obviated by the use of cast-iron.
He tried it at first with great caution, but found it to
answer so well, that very soon aU their railways were
made of iron. He did not attempt to secure by patent the
advantage of this invention, and the use of cast-iron in
the construction of raUways was afterwards generally
c2

28 MEMOIR OF
adopted. WhUst speaking of him at this period, when
he was acting for others, it should be mentioned that,
through his representation to the principals, a large and
profitable Government order for " cannon" was declined,
it appearing to him inconsistent with the avowed prin
ciples of Friends, to manufacture weapons of war.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 29

CHAPTER III.
At the time when Richard Reynolds returned to his
former residence, caUed the Bank, about one mila from
the works at Ketley, his family consisted of WiUiam
and Hannah Mary, the children of his first, and two
Httle boys, Michael and Richard, the chUdren of
his second marriage : and shortly after, on the 31st
of July, 1768, was born his youngest son, Joseph.
Here he Uved many years, carrying on an extensive
business, in an enlightened and comprehensive spirit,
with undeviating integrity and industry. His principle,
in all cases of bargain and sale, was, according'to the old
adage, " Live and let Uve ;" and, as an instance of the
consistency with which he acted up to his motto, it may
be adduced that, at the breaking out of the American
war, when bar-iron rose to an extravagant price, and
the makers of pig-iron could obtain their own terms,
instead of taking an unreasonable advantage of the
opportunity, he proposed to his customers that it should
be left to one of themselves to name a fair price for pig-
iron in the then state of the trade, and to determine the
scale of proportionate reduction which should take
place when the price of bar-iron should faU, as he fore
saw that it would foUow the then great and unsatisfied
demand. The proposal was accepted, and by the scale
which was then fixed his conduct was governed, so long
as he remained in the iron trade.

30 MEMOIR OF
He early interested himself in the condition of the
work-people whom he employed, establishing schools,
building for them convenient cottages, and attending
to their comfort. In all these objects he possessed
the active sympathy of his wife, who, in her par
ticular sphere of benevolence, was a most kind friend
to her poorer neighbours, ever ready to help them
with food and clothing in their time of need, and with
advice and medicine in their times of sickness.
Denial of self was a ruling principle of her conduct,
and that she took an enlarged view of this duty was
evident on one occasion, when she thought it right to
remonstrate with one of her sons, upon his wearing so
fine a broad cloth for his coat, as an expensive luxury.
When he explained to her that, for weaving, it was
necessary" to separate the long wool from the shorter
staple, and that, in consequence of rich people buying
the fine cloth, the coarser fabric could be sold at a price
within the reach of the poorer classes, she at once
acknowledged its reasonableness, and said she no longer
objected to all those persons wearing fine cloth who
could properly afford so to do.
In 1769, Richard Reynolds lost his father, and in
February, 1770, his son Michael. The death of his
Uttle chUd affected him deeply, and he makes touching
mention of the event in one of his letters :
 We buried poor little Michael this day week. I never
saw a person die before, and the scene affected me extremely.
He breathed with such difficulty, that it was manifestly a
labour to Uve, but yet discovered not the least frowardness
or impatience. There is nothing so affecting as to see

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 31
patient innocence in extreme suffering, what then must
a parent feel when it is borne by of one of his infant off
spring : but the struggle is now over, the conflict is ended,
and he now is, must be happy. . . . My judgment is recon-
cUed to the event ; but it wiU require more time to obliterate
the many Uttle engaging actions and expressions, the recol
lection of which moves and wUl continue to move the affec
tions : and if thou should happen to recollect the innocency
of his countenance, and the simphcity of his inquiries con
cerning his little brother, as he sat on thy knee by the fire
side, however unavailing, however useless to thyself or him,
thy judgment may convince thee any emotion wUl be, yet I
believe thou wUt not be able to recoUect those circumstances,
trivial as they are, without being also moved.
The state of the iron trade, in 1774, fully justified
gloomy anticipations, and it is evident from my grand
father's letters, that his expectations respecting it were
unfavourable; yet, as he knew the worst that could
occur, and had made preparation for the worst, by
keeping a balance at the credit of his stock account,
to meet it, his peace and comfort do not appear to have
been materially affected by anxiety on the subject.
Rendered independent by the resources of his own
mind, and his simple and rational tastes, his happi
ness was less affected by those changes and fluctuations
in property, which are in general felt as so grievous an
evil. At the outset of his Ufe, the horror of debt, which
never deserted him till its close, determined him never
to exceed his means ; and he commenced house-keeping,
and made all his household arrangements, upon a
system of strict economy, which enabled him unfailingly

32 MEMOIR OF
to adhere to this invaluable resolution. The advantage
which he derived from acting on this principle, and his
observation of the loss which others sustained from the
neglect of it, induced him, as a rule, to Hquidate every
demand to which he was liable, previous to the annual
settlement of his accounts.
He thus, at a later period, advised his eldest son,
then lately married : —
 May I without offence on the present occasion,

mention the -^otA. frugality, as including an avoidance of all
unnecessary expense, tUl either of thy own or the Company's
there is a deposit of a few thousands for such emergencies.
1 am aware, thy late engagements, the company thou had to
entertain at Bristol, &c., as weU as the length of time, must
have occasioned a considerable expenditure, and if it would
not savour too much of the prudence, or rather parsimony of
old age, I would recommend an attention to smaU expenses,
which, occurring so frequently, amount in the year to a sum
incredible to those who have taken no account of them;
but the independency which is purchased by early economy,
was a sufficient inducement to me to begin life and continue
it too, as long as it was necessary, upon a smaU scale, and I
now thankfuUy taste the fruits of it in the enjoyment of the
conveniences of life myself, and at times in assisting some
others to procure them : the same conduct for a much
shorter time wUl probably put it in thy power to retire in
the manner thou wishes to do, and approves in thy father.
The care which he took, in the education of his
children, was commensurate with the estimate which
he had formed of its importance to their present and
future well-being. He engaged for his eldest son when

RICHARD HEYNOLDS. 33
he was but eight years of age, a tutor who proved a
valuable acquisition to his family and to himself per
sonally, as he was a man of exemplary integrity, of
refined manners, and possessed of considerable literary
and scientific attainments. He preferred, so far as it
was practicable, an education at home, — as being less
liable to the influence of bad example than at a pubUc
school, and as affording them more rational amuse
ments, and more frequent opportunities of observation
and improvement. He was earnestly desirous, and un
remitting in his endeavours to train them in " a reli
gious life and conversation," and consistently in every
respect with the opinions and precepts of the Society
of Friends. He paid great attention to their instruc
tion in the Holy Scriptures, particularly in the New
Testament ; the " Sermon on the Mount," he regarded
as the compendium of all Christian duty, and he
required each of his chUdren, as soon as they were
capable of understanding it, to commit it to memory,
and to repeat it aloud every Sunday evening, without
missing a single word.
As a book of entertainment, Robinson Crusoe was his
chosen gift to his own and other children. He had
great pleasure in reading it himself, and we may sup
pose he was acquainted with eome other of De Foe's
writings, as among his papers was found a complete
Hst, in his own hand-writing, of De Foe's works. He
had great consideration for the young,, liked to see
them cheerful and happy, took an interest in their
pleasures, and in various ways promoted their enjoy
ment; and although his occasionaUy stern manner
c 3

34 MEMOIR OF
and his undeviating punctuaUty kept them in some
awe of him, yet was he beloved and respected by them
in no common degree. In the fruit season, he would
send them into the garden, with free leave to gather
the fruit; and upon one day of the year, which was
called " gooseberry-day," be coUected a number of
boys in his neighbourhood, and gave them the like per
mission. With his servants, he was very strict; but
on the other hand he was remarkably attentive to their
comfort and welfare in every respect, and was indeed
their true friend, both spirituaUy and temporaUy. His
temper was by nature hasty ; and if, in moments of
irritation, he spoke to them more strongly than the
occasion justified, or with a severity which, upon reflec
tion, appeared to himself inconsistent with the meek
ness and forbearance of a disciple of Jesus, he hesitated
not frankly to acknowledge, and to apologize to them
for his error. And in the same spirit of humUity, he
has been known even to foUow a poor woman to her
house, and ask her excuse for having either spoken
hastily, or sent a sharp message to her, when she had
applied to him for help at an unseasonable [time.
It would be difficult to express how deeply he
lamented this infirmity : we know that in private,
he prayed earnestly for the Divine forgiveness, and
for grace to assist him in overcoming this and every
other temptation to evil. He was most charitable in
his judgments of others, and always discouraged, not
only evil-speaking of the absent, but the trifling gossip
about other persons and their concerns, which was
then, and is now, so much too common ; and the same

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 35
charitable feeling made him slow to beHeve reports,
injurious to the reputation of those who, not being
present, were unable to explain or to justify their
conduct. My grandfather was an early riser (in the winter
mornings Ughting his own fire), regular and methodical
in aU his habits, punctual in the extreme, and very
determinately exacting from others the same punctu
ality. Order and neatness pervaded the character of
aU his household arrangements; and over the fire
place in his kitchen, he had a board placed, upon
which was painted in large letters, these words, " A
place for everything, and everything in its place."
He remarked that the adoption of this maxim of the
famous De Witt's, proved often helpful to him, — " to do
one thing at a time — to think, to speak of, or attend to
nothing else tiU the one thing was fairly done with;
this with appHcation wiU enable a man to do much
business, and have sufficient leisure to write to his
friends and to enjoy their company."
He was fond of animals, horses, dogs, cats, birds, —
indeed his fine tortoise-sheU cat, " Myrtle," generally sat
by his side at meal-times. He was in the habit of feeding
the birds from the windows of his study, and, one day,
upon his return from a journey, taking out of his
pocket a paper parcel containing small caraway com
fits, and being asked, " what they were for," he said,
" I brought them for the robins, I could not think of
anything else to bring them." He rarely came home,
after an absence, or entered a house where there were
chUdren, empty-handed; and comfits he used often to

36 MEMOIR OF
bring for the young grand-children, as weU as for the
robins. When he was traveUing with post-horses, he was
careful that they should be driven slowly up long steep
hills, and he invariably insisted upon their being
driven with reins, as being less oppressive than by
a postUion; this, it may be remarked, was then
very seldom aUowed by traveUers. My grandfather's
journeys, however, until the latter period of his hfe,
were generally performed, as was the custom formerly,
on horseback ; and when at home, the long distances
which separated the various branches of the iron
works obliged him to ride almost daily, and his horses
were to him, as they are with most men, objects of
great personal interest ; and he estimated highly their
different qualities, their strength, dociUty and swiftness.
He rode remarkably well, and, being a tall handsome
man^_^£jiie»true S>axpn race, his light-brown hair, worn
jrf-long floating curls,' fiK^yes bide, his complexion
fair and ruddy, he ,^as when mounted, a very striking
looking figure. One of his grandsons, in his notes
of a few of his/fecollections, thus writes: — "He had
great amusement in telUng us of one of his equestrian
adventurgSpd«*en he was riding, I beHeve, on Black-
heath, -where the king (George the Third) was at that
time reviewing some troops. My grandfather's horse,
which had formerly belonged to the cavalry, aU at
once started off at such speed, directly towards a circle
of officers, that our grandfather, before he could rein in
his martial steed, found himself, to his inexpressible
confusion, within a few yards of the king."  Another

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 37
anecdote, which he was fond of relating, used to divert
us very much, but seems almost too ludicrous to put into
a book, — that he once rode a race, with another young
man, each of them having a young lady, seated upon a
pUlion behind him. Our grandfather fairly won the
race ; but when, on reaching the goal, he looked back,
he found, to his astonishment, that he had lost his fair
companion, she having faUen off, at the commencement
of the race, without his having perceived it. — I recol
lect his telling us, that once, when he was staying at
Minehead, he went to see some poor women who were in
an Almshouse there, and enquiring, from one of them,
what were their ..x^ircumstances, how they were treated,
and the like ; she repHed, " that they were better off
than they used to be, because now they were allowed
'liberty of conscience.'" This aroused my grand
father, who was always very indignant at the least inter
ference with the rights of conscience, and he hastUy
asked the woman, what she meant by " liberty of con
science ?" when he was much relieved by her replying
that, " they were now aUowed to go in and out when
thby pleased."
His enjoyment and admiration of the beauties of
nature, was extreme, especiaUy of extensive prospects
over well-wooded and richly-cultivated lands. It was
with intense delight that he looked upon such scenery,
when it was bathed in the glorious hues of sunset ;
the elevated situation of his first residence afforded
him this pleasure, and fi'equently on a fine evening, he
would take his pipe, and retire to a spot, from whence
he had a full view of the Wrekin, the Ercall Woods,

38 MEMOIR OF
and in the distance, Cader-Idris, and the mountains of
Montgomery and Flintshire. There he would contem
plate in silence, the setting sun, slowly-descending tUl
it touched the distant hUls, and, apparently expanding,
increase in grandeur and splendour, tiU it sunk clear
and unclouded below the horizon. He did not, however,
whUe indulging in the soothing influence of his pipe,
allow himself to faU into a state of dreamy uncon
sciousness; but, under feelings of admiration and
devotion, such times were to him, seasons of elevated
thought and serious reflection.
In a letter to his daughter, telling her of a new
arbour which he had then lately made, he says, " from
thence I have seen three or four as fine sunsets as
I at any time have seen — and if the gradual going
down, and last, last twinkle of the once radiant orb,
the instant when it was, and was not, to be seen — made
me think of that awful moment when the last sigh con
signs the departing soul to different, if not distant
scenes; 4he glorious effulgence gilding the western
horizon with inimitable magnificence, naturaUy sug
gested the idea of celestial splendour, and inspired the
wish that (through the assistance of His grace) a faithful
obedience to the requirings of our great Maker and
Master, may in that solemn season justify the hope of
my being admitted into that city, which hath no need
of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it, for the
glory of God lightens it and the Lamb is the Hght
thereof." Led by his keen appreciation of the beauties of natural
scenery, it was his practice, on his return from London,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 39
Bristol, and elsewhere, to take in his way home places
remarkable for their picturesque beauty, or which were
in any respect of interest to a traveller, such as Cheddar
Cliffs in Somersetshire, Stowe, Hagley Park, the Lea-
sowes and Enville ; he made frequent excursions in his
own neighbourhood, to Hawkstone, and Apley Terrace ;
and, once in every year, he was accustomed to assemble
a large party to spend a day upon the Wrekin. This
hiU is remarkable from its rising up alone so abruptly
from the plain that it commands a most extensive view.
Looking to the north may be seen Hawkstone, (the
obeUsk clearly visible,) and beyond, in the distance, the
Cheshire, and to the left of these the Welsh hills, the
Moel-Vama range and Dinas Bran. Still further to the
west, in the distance, are Cader-Idris and PlinUmmon ;
and nearer, the Shropshire hills, the Long Mountain,
Stiper Stones, the Long Mynt, and those of Church
Stretton. Approaching the south may be seen, the most
distant of any point, the Brecon beacon ; in the south,
the Cleehills, which are the highest in Shropshire, and
Malvern in the extreme distance. From the south,
turning towards the east, come into view the hills of
Gloucestershire, Warwickshire, and Oxfordshire, and the
Bar-beacon in Staffordshire ; due east, a hill in Leicester
shire ; and coming round again to the north, the Derby
shire Peak and hUls in Cheshire. Such is the extreme
boundary Hne ; whUst nearer to the foot of the Wrekin,
in the vast surrounding plain, lie Shrewsbury and other
towns and villages, richly ciUtivated fields of different
shades and colours, spread out Hke an immense map,
interspersed with gentlemen's seats and farm-houses, —

AG MEMOIR OF
and here and there in the other direction, the smoke
hanging like a mist, marks the situation of various
iron-works and colUeries and, to complete the scene,
the Severn, — Shropshire's beautiful Severn, — ^winding
its way like a silver thread through the lovely land
scape ; between Coalbrook Dale and Shrewsbury could
be counted nineteen turns where the .river was lost
and returned to sight. The Wrekin is now much
changed in its external character, and to those who
knew it forty years ago, is not improved, by having been
planted almost to the very top. The easiest ascent is from
the Wellington approach, where, at the commencement
of the carriage-road, is a pretty cottage, buUt by Mr.
Cludde, the proprietor of that side of the hUl. To spend
a day on the .Wrekin, at least once a year, was the
general custom of the neighbourhood, and one which
my grandfather entered into with aU his heart. The
party usually consisted of himself and his famUy, his
relations from Coalbrook Dale, and the principal clerks
in their employment, with their families ; and, in short,
almost the whole of the members of their smaU con
gregation were invited. On the top of the hill, where
are some large pieces of rock jutting out of the smooth
short grass, and affording some shelter from the hot
rays of the sun, the party seated themselves to partake
of a bountiful supply of provisions : and a cheerful,
merry, busy party they were. After the meal was over,
surrounded by his relations and friends, their kind host
endeavoured to promote the happiness of aU those whom
he had thus brought together. Sometimes, his counte
nance beaming with enjoyment and genial feeling, he

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 41
watched with interest the games and sportive exercises
of the young people; at others, he would join in cheer
ful conversation with the elders of the party, when the
justness of his remarks, his playful wit, his expressions
of deUght, and his admiration of the extensive prospect
before him, charmed aU who Hstened. The season
which he preferred for these excursions was the time of
harvest, when the richly-laden corn-fields were spread
below, and he never failed reverently to praise that
Being, from whose bounteous hand flowed aU these
blessings. On such occasions, and in his walks through
the woods, he would read or repeat passages from
"Thompson's Seasons," (which was frequently his pocket
companion,) from "Addison's Hymns," which were fami-
Har to him in the " Spectator," and from other authors.
The grander scenery of Wales, — rivers, lakes, waterfaUs,
— all were the objects of his enthusiastic admiration.
" But the ocean, (bis son says, speaking of his father,)
— ^the ocean, in its calm, or when stirred by the Hght
breeze, or when the mighty winds drove the rolHng
bUlows, breaking into foam on the rocky shore at his
feet, — I can flnd no words to describe the intensity of
his emotions of wonder and deUght."
His friendships were ardent and sincere, and were a
source of enjoyment which engaged a large portion of
his thoughts and affections. Reverence for goodness,
which was a marked feature in his character, and his
lowly estimate of his own religious attainments, led
him to believe himself far behind those whom he
esteemed for their piety and virtue, and he looked to
such, not only for their sympathy, but for their counsel
and guidance in the Christian path.

42 MEMOIR OF
To one whom he thus regarded, he gave as a symbol
of the durabUity of his affection, a small, beautifuUy,
white pebble, on which was engraved these words : —
" As firm my friendship, and as pure my love."
Possibly the idea was suggested by an ancient custom
in the East, where, on the parting of friends, a white
stone, on which the name of each was engraved, was
broken, and divided between the two, each having his
half, so that, wherever and whensoever these friends
might hereafter meet, these would be the answering
pledge of their fidelity and if need were, a proof of
their identity.
My grandfather had great respect and regard for a
very amiable and excellent minister of the Gospel, who
lived in his neighbourhood, the Rev. Joshua Gilpin; and
it was mainly through his exertions and personal interest
that Mr. GUpin was presented to the living of Wrock-
wardine. He also enjoyed the acquaintance of many
scientific and well-informed men. His manners, as
a host, were courteous and dignified, and his conver
sation, when he was perfectly at ease, animated, and
often diversified with a quaint wit and humorous^
satire. His fine countenance beamed with inteUigence
and kindUness ; his eyes were piercing, and were remark
able for the brightness which seenied HteraUy to flash
from them under strong emotion. It was something
almost fearful to meet their glance in anger or indig
nation, whilst equally striking was their beautiftil|
expression under the excitement of admiration or
affection.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 43

CHAPTER IV.
We are nearly without any famiUar details of my
grandfather's daily life : he does not appear to have been
communicative to any one on personal or trifling inci
dents and occurrences. Letter-writing was considered
by him as a substitute for conversation, and chiefly as
conveying an interchange of thought or sentiment, ex
pressed in his own case, in a didactic and a somewhat
formal manner, and rarely descending to domestic or
trifling subjects. His extensive correspondence, and his
habit of copying every letter that he wrote, must have
occupied no small portion of his time ; and the invention
of the copying machine was an important one to him.
Having made considerable purchases of land in
Somersetshire, besides buying the Manor of Madely, in
which Coalbrook Dale was situated, he had great enjoy
ment in planting and improving these estates, and
laying out walks through the woods. Those upon Lincoln
HiU, which were of some extent, were made expressly for
the workmen, and seats were put up at different points,
where they commanded beautiful views; they were
called " The Workmen's Walks," and were a source of
much innocent enjoyment, especiaUy on a Sunday, when
the men, accompanied by their wives and children,
were induced to spend the afternoon or evening there,
instead of at the public-house. In this wood he built

44 MEMOIR OF
a very pretty rustic cottage for his daughter, containing
sufficient accommodation for the persons who inhabited
it, whUst three upper rooms were set apart for his
daughter's use, and were by her furnished in exceUent
taste, with the plainness and simpUcity of a real
cottage; and in this quiet retreat, she at times
resided for days together. The cottage, which was
beautifully situated, stUI remains.
So much aUve as was Richard Reynolds to every caU
of duty, he was not likely to be either negUgent or
oppressive as a landlord.
Archdeacon Plymley, in his " Survey of Shrop
shire," thus alludes to him : — " The population of
the parish of Madely, in which Coalbrook Dale is
situated, has increased very much. In January, 1782,
it contained 440 houses, 560 famUies, 2690 persons;
in March, 1793, it contained 754 houses, 851 famUies,
3677 persons. In viewing this increase, it is pleasant
to observe that the houses are increased in a greater
proportion than either the famiUes or persons, which
bespeaks greater prosperity and comfort than here
tofore, and has arisen, as weU from the benevolence
of the lord of the manor, as from the works. He
has built many comfortable houses for old and dis
tressed persons, and granted a great number of leases
of waste land, in the proportion, if I recollect right,;
of about one-eighth of an acre to each person, to buQd
on, they paying a fine of five guineas for a lease of
ninety-nine years, and five shillings a year ground
rent." In 1772, my grandfather exerted hunself to obtain an
Act of Parliament for making a towing-path for horses

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 45
to tow the vessels up the River Severn, considering
the employment of men for this purpose as not only
degrading and unseemly, but as the means of harbouring
and collecting persons of bad character, and facUitating
a system of plunder injurious to the trade and destruc
tive of the morals of the people engaged in it. Some
years later he became a member of an association for
the purpose of improving the navigation of the Severn ;
but the efforts made were unsuccessful, the measure
being opposed in ParUament by the inhabitants of
some of the towns, who mistook their own interest,
whUst others neglected to give it that support which
the great and obvious advantages that such an im
provement would have conferred upon them entitled
the projectors to expect. In 1788 an act was obtained
for making a canal from the principal iron works in
Shropshire to the Severn — ^this was the last work of
a pubUc nature in which he took a part.
The great improvements in the steam engine, in-
j'ented by James Watt, which were adopted at Ketley
in 1778, gave a new impulse to the iron trade. The
greater degree of knowledge and ingenuity required in
the construction of these engines, and of the machinery
which the use of them introduced, led to a rapid im
provement in the minds and condition of the working
classes, through the habits of reflection and the desire
for the acquisition of knowledge, excited by the wonder
ful results of the genius of this great man. Richard
Reynolds, took a warm interest in the introduction
and success of his steam-engine. For no one did
he entertain sentiments of more affectionate esteem
than for James Watt, and he admired and revered

46 MEMOIR OF
to the end of his Hfe, the talents, the varied acquire
ments and the virtues, of this peculiarly-accompHshed
man. From his correspondence with Mrs. Trimmer, and
some of his letters to Earl Gower and others, we learn
how deeply he was interested in the education of the
work-people. It has been already mentioned that
he built a school-house, near his own residence,
at Ketley ; but, at that time, such was the ignorance
of the population by which he was surrounded, that
not only were the children unmanageable and most
unwiUing to learn, but the parents would only
send them on condition of being paid for their
attendance. His exertions at Coalbrook Dale were
more successful. The ministry of the exceUent Mr. '
Fletcher, of Madely, had produced a beneficial and
lasting effect on the people in that part of the
country ; and, so far from being indifferent to the
value of a good education for their children, they
eagerly avaUed themselves of the efforts made in their
behalf. In addition to a large week-day school, two
Sunday-schools were estabUshed and weU supported.
Nor was his interest confined to his own neighbour
hood ; he contributed liberaUy to the Friends' school at
Ackworth, and to the buUding of schools in various
parts of England and Wales.
Although, by the attention of his son, my grandfather
was reUeved ia some degree from the arduous duties of his
position, as managing partner of a large and increasing
iron-work, other circumstances of a more pubUc natm-e
called for his exertions. The distress consequent upon
the deficient harvest of 1782, induced him to unite with

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 47
the gentlemen of the neighbourhood in raising a sub
scription for the purchase of food, and in framing the
rules and regulations of an association for relieving the
" industrious, and truly indigent," by which the at
tention of the magistrates and landed proprietors was
turned to other objects intimately connected with the
happiness of the labouring classes. The number of
pubUc-houses was diminished, the provisions of the
laws against drunkenness were enforced, the prac
tice of paying workmen at pubUc-houses was severely
censured, and great pains were taken to aboHsh a
custom so demoralizing in its effects, not only on the
men, the employers, and their agents, — ^but also en
tailing, in this time of scarcity, starvation on their
famiUes. From these judicious measures, more effectual
reUef and more permanent advantages were derived by
the poor people, than from the distribution of food at
low prices : which yet appeared absolutely necessary
under the circumstances. Flour or rice was, for this
purpose, bought at Liverpool; and such was the state
of excitement in the country, that a guard of men
on horseback was required to protect the canal boat,
and prevent its being stopped, and the flour taken
possession of by other parties equaUy in want. The
recurrence of a scarcity of food in 1796, again called
forth his feeUngs of deep commiseration for the starv
ing and distressed state of the poor ; and, as on the
former occasion, he united with the neighbouring gen
tlemen and landholders to adopt some efficient mode to
save them from absolute starvation. Meetings were
called, and a committee appointed to pujchase rice, each
subscriber to have the disposal of a certain quantity, in

48 MEMOIR OF
proportion to the amount of his subscription. The
urgency of the case may be inferred, from the libe-
raUty of the subscriptions attached to the names of some
of the gentlemen who attended the county meeting,
. — namely,Messrs. Bishton & Co. . . . £1,500
Mr. Botfield, for the Old Park Co. . 1,500
Mr. Jos. Reynglds, for the Ketley Co. 2,000
Mr. R. Dearmah, for Coalbrook Dale Co. 1,500
Mr. WiUiam Reynolds, for the Madely Co. 1,000
Several of £100 by private gentlemen ; and £500 as the
individual subscription of R. R.
Early in the year 1783, the horrors of the slave-trade
became generally ^ known, and petitions to Parliament'
were presented for its ameUoration, and ultimate abo-
Htion. This appears to have been the first occasion
on which Richard Reynolds felt himself caUed upon to
come forward on any national question. His letter to
G. Forrester, Esq., M. P. for Much Wenloch, and the
draft of a petition from that borough, indicate the
earnestness with which he co-operated with the early :
opponents of that trade in human blood; and other :
letters in this collection wUl show that his interest in this
work of benevolence was never weakened, but continued
in aU its warmth to the close of his valuable life.
Another effort being made in the year 1788, on behalf
of the much injured Africans, he again soHcited the
aid of his friends, both in and out of ParUament ; and
among others, he addressed a letter to Mrs. Trimmer,
though personally unknown to her, hoping that he might,
through her means, influence the female sex in the
cause, and also if possible, interest the Queen herself.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 49
Those who knew the writer may imagine how warm
must have been the zeal which could so overcome his
natural shyness and reserve, as to induce him thus to
address a perfect stranger.
On the occasion of the biU for the aboHtion of the
slave-trade being carried in 1807, he thus writes to a
friend : —
I should have been glad to hear that some public mani
festation of Christian rejoicing had been exhibited, or at
least recommended. Thou wUt not suppose I mean illumi
nations or ringing of beUs. I recoUected, and was not
without a thought of reminding the public, by a paragraph
in the newspaper, of the practice of the Jews, who manifested
their joy on an especial deliverance, not only by feasting and
sending portions one to another, but by gifts to tlie poor.
And I think it would not be amiss, if those who consider
themselves, or are considered by others, as pastors, would, by
example and precept, excite their flocks to discover their joy
for the abolition of the slave-trade, by commiserating the
sufferings of the poor in their neighbourhood, and adminis
tering to their wants, of clothing, food, and fuel, which the
present severity of the cold, though less felt than common, in
the course of the winter, must increase. Such, I trust, has
been the case with some individuals, but I wish to have it
more general.
His strong feeUng on the subject, also induced him,
in the year 1790, to write to Lord Sheffield, declining
to vote for him, at the approaching election for Bristol,
on the ground of his being opposed to the abolition of
the slave-trade.
The next question of a pubHc nature in which he took

50 MEMOIR OF
an active part, was in 1784, when it was proposed by
the ministry to lay a tax on pit-coal. His letter to Lord
Gower, afterwards Marquis of Stafford, shews the im
policy of this tax, and the earnestness with which he
opposed it : and that to Sir Richard HiU, the repre
sentative of the county, as clearly points out the un
equal pressure of others. He proposed, in Hen of these,
taxes on some articles of luxury; and some of his sug
gestions were adopted at the time, by Mr. Pitt — and
others, by succeeding Chancellors of the Exchequer.
In the year 1785, the commercial arrangements with
Ireland, then under the consideration of Parliament,
excited an unusual degree of alarm amongst tbe manu
facturers of Great Britain. The interests of the iron
trade were considered to be peculiarly endangered; and
my grandfather united, though reluctantly, in an active
and effective opposition to the measures proposed.
He joined some others, interested in manufactures, in
forming an association for the protection of that portion
of the national interest, under the title of " The United
Chamber of Manufacturers of Great Britain ;" and his
name, on this occasion, was associated with the names
of James Watt, Matthew Boulton, Josiah Wedgewood,
and many others, to whose talent and exertions the
progress of manufactures in this country is chiefly
owing.* His letters to Earl Gower and Mr. Rose, and
his examination taken by the Privy Council, shew the

• Had these intelligent and right-meaning men lived at the present time,
we may well believe their views on these questions would have been very
different.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 51
value of the information conveyed by him, and those
with whom he acted, on this important occasion.
He was soon again caUed upon, on the occasion of a
commercial treaty being entered into with France, to
give information to the Lords of the Treasury, in order
to protect the interests of the iron trade. His opinions
on this subject are fuUy given in his correspondence
with Lord Sheffield, as well as his hopes that a com
mercial intercourse, beneficial to both parties, would
tend to prevent the breaking out of wars between the
two countries, and ultimately promote the pacification
of the whole world.

i> 2

52 MEMOIR OP

CHAPTER V.
Richard Reynolds's habits and mode of life were
marked by great plainness and simplicity; the fur
niture of his house, his table, and his establishment
throughout were strictly regulated by a desire to
avoid all ornament or expensive luxury. In viewing
this part of his character, however, it must be borne
in mind that among Friends, domestic Hfe and man
ners are so influenced and restricted by the rules
and customs of the Society, that it is often diffi
cult to determine to what extent the habits of indi
viduals may be formed by those regulations to which
they feel it right to show a deference, although in their
private judgment they may not fuUy coincide with
them. So it probably was with the subject of this
memoir, whose natural disposition and tastes were
unquestionably opposed in some respects to the require
ments of the Society, by which not only are plainness
and simplicity strongly enforced in dress and language,
in the furniture of their houses and domestic economy ; i
but a strict Hmitation is placed on amusements, the
cultivation of music, and to a certain degree on the
indulgence of a taste for paintings and the fine arts in
general. Parents, too, are repeatedly warned of the
duty of bringing up their chUdren in accordance with
these principles. In order that this discipline may be

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 53
strictly maintained, meetings of each congregation are
periodicaUy held for this especial purpose, a series of
printed questions being read, to which written answers
have to be drawn up stating how far the several mem
bers of the congregation have been carefiU to act up to
the principles of the Society, regarding attendance at
meeting, dress, language, the refusal to take oaths, or
to engage in war, the non-payment of tithes and
church-rates, &c. Should it be needful to notice
a departure from the rules of the Society in any of
these points, two or more of the most influential mem
bers are deputed to visit the individual or family, and
endeavour to influeuce their conduct by exhortation or
friendly reproof. By many this system would be regarded
as a most unpleasant speOies of interference; but by
those brought up in the Society, it is not often felt to
be burthensome or inquisitorial, and it is indeed rarely
exercised otherwise than with gentleness and discretion.
These meetiags for maintaining the discipHne of the
Society were viewed by Richard Reynolds as highly
important, and he considered it his duty to attend
them regularly, and so far as his diffident disposition
would permit, he took an active part in the conduct of
the business. During forty years he was never once
absent from the general annual meeting held in London.
He thus writes to a friend on this subject : —
"Thy sentiments respecting our meetings for dis
cipHne, and the necessity that a degree of the same
spirit under which they were estabUshed should in
fluence those who are active in them, are perfectly just,
and under that impression there is Uttle danger of thy

54 MEMOIR OF
too hastUy interfering in the conducting of them ; but
let not a consciousness that there still remains some
thing to be done in thy own vineyard, prevent thee
from doing what may be in thy power for promoting
the good of others, whether of the Society at large, or
of individuals, assured that a faithful discharge of
duty in the ability given, wiU increase thy own strength
as weU as thy own peace : for if we defer endeavouring
to serve others till there is no room for improvement at
home, we shall attempt but little and effect less ; nor,
when we shall give an account of the talents com
mitted to us, can we expect to receive a reward but in
proportion to our improvement of them."
Although, then, his natural disposition and tastes
would probably have led him, under the ordinary
influences of society, to follow a variety of pursuits,
which in themselves he could not condemn, yet he had
grown up under the belief that it was his duty to yield
his private opinions to those held by others, whom he
esteemed more highly than himself; and as through Ufe
it was his earnest and sincere desire to be a consistent
Friend, his conduct was always irreproachable, even in
the smaU as in the more important points inculcated
in the rules and precepts of the Society. There can
be little doubt that his regard for these had a ten
dency to produce something like a perpetual warfare
between his sectarian scruples and the more enlarged
views suggested by his own sound sense and wise
judgment ; and in one so keenly alive to the slightest
whisper of conscience, this raising up of artificial diffi
culties and conventional distinctions of right and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 55
wrong, operated upon him in a way much to be
deprecated. There was a sensitiveness in his temper
ament, and an inequality of spirits, which predis.
posed him to melancholy, which gave something
like a morbid colouring to his estimate of faUure, or
imperfection in his practice of the higher Christian
virtues, and led to his taking depressing views of his
own religious state. Thus he, who particularly needed
encouragement and freedom to rise above the shackles
of human authority, was thrown upon a close self-
inspection concerning matters of mere opinion and
comparative minor importance, which told unfavourably
upon his own happiness, and, indirectly affected that
of others whom he loved most. He possessed a decided
taste for pictures and engravings, and made a small
collection of valuable prints. But here, his scrupulous
spirit thought it right to deny self, and in consistence
with his high ideas of duty, as steward of the talents
intrusted to him, he spent very little money upon these
or any similar gratifications. Books he bought more
freely, yet still under much limitation. He was fond —
passionately fond — of music ; and here again the asce
ticism which so largely mingles in the opinions enter
tained by " Friends," interfered with the full develop
ment of his mental powers ; those intellectual tastes
which were given to him by his Creator, and which
would have harmonized the other parts of his character,
by counteracting, on tbe one hand, his tendency to
depression, and affording, on the other, an outlet for
the vivacity of disposition which was often a cause of
distress to him,— subjected to these rigid rules, were

56 MEMOIR OF
made occasions /or the mortification of self, instead of
being cultivated and encouraged as sources of innocent
pleasure and social enjoyment.
In 1776 he had a severe and dangerous attack of
fever, and now when his religious faith was called upon
to meet the possible approach of death, he experienced
its sustaining power ; this faith, and the remembrance
not of any works of righteousness, but of the integrity,
as he expresses himself in one of his letters, with which
he had desired to be made conformable to the wUl of
his Maker, enabled him to attain a degree of hope,
which could and did support him in the hour of trial.
He was very conscious of the effects of his physical
temperament upon his mental powers and inward peace,
from which he suffered so much, and he submitted to it
as a discipline wisely and mercifully appointed for the
trial of his faith, and the more complete purification of
his spirit. The nature and degree of this suffering are
so well described in the poem entitled " The Doubting
Christian," a copy of which was found in his own hand
writing, that it is here inserted, at the suggestion of one
who knew him intimately, and who had heard him read
it as the expression of his own feelings.
THE DOUBTING CHRISTIAN.
A SOLILOQUY.
What shaU I do to know my state.
And read my sins forgiven ?
What will be my eternal fate ? —
How shaU I get to Heaven ?

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 57
I look within and look without.
And both quite dim appear ;
My firmest hopes admit of doubt.
And faith is mixed with fear.
I drudge along the tiresome road.
Few beams of comfort shine ;
But seldom can I say " My God,"
Or caU the Saviour mine.
Others of holy pleasures talk.
Which faith and duty bring,
WhUe I with gloomy sadness walk.
Nor taste the cheering spring.
They saU beneath a cheerful sky ;
Their peace is seldom lost ;
WhUe on the boisterous biUows, I
Of hope and fear am tost.
Fain would my soul their bliss obtain,
And join the happy few ;
Why may not I such pleasures gain.
And be as happy too ?
What is the requisite, my soul !
Is it perfection here ?
Can this alone my fears control,
And make thy title clear ?
I may pronounce that were it so.
Assurance is a dream ;
Since none are perfect here below,
However good they seem.
d3

58 MEMOIR OF
I'll search the sacred records then,
Nor thus conclude in haste.
To find descriptions of the men
Who shall salvation taste.
I'll pass by lesser marks for one
That soon will end the strife,
" He that hath God's eternal Son
Hath everlasting life."
From condemnation he is freed.
And glory shall obtain ;
But he who hath not this to plead.
His hopes are aU in vain..
This is the weight that turns the scale ;
Whatever else we boast
Are comforters that then wiU fail,
When we shaU need them most.
My soul thine evidences prove
Nor longer boasting, stay ;
Hast thou embrac'd the source of love
In His appointed way ?
If a suspicion stiU remain.
And fears still keep their place.
Renew thy solemn acts again
And plead His promis'd grace.
That grace which leads thee to His throne
Thy ruin wUl prevent —
He never did or wiU disown
An humble penitent.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 59
Come then, my soul, surmount thy fears.
Let thy despondings cease !
My weeping eyes forbear your tears,
My rising joys increase !
I bid farewell to every doubt
Now .Tesus is in view,
He stands engag'd to bear me out
And bring me safely through.
By no one could the commandment, "Remember
the Sabbath-day to keep it holy," be more conscien
tiously and literally observed. It was his custom to
consider the evening of the preceding day, as a time of
preparation, and when the clock struck eight, all work
and employment of himself and the household, of
merely secular interest, were suspended. At the most
active period of his Hfe, when he was so closely engaged
in business, that to save time, even his dinner was
sent down to him at his office, he never transacted any
business after eight on Saturday night. In this con
nexion, the foUowing recollections of Richard Reynolds,
by one nearly related to him, wiU not be out of place ;
and, though not containing any important incident,
and although some of the anecdotes are of a very trifling
description, they are to some extent, characteristic*
" Our uncle Reynolds's strict observance of the
Sabbath, was very striking, and evidently arose from
a genuine love for heavenly employment, and not from
Jewish ideas of the duty. Regularly every Saturday
evening, it was his custom to remove such books as
• These recollections refer to the latter period of Richard Reynolds' life.

60 MEMOIR OF
were lying about, which were not of a decidedly reli
gious tendency. He wished all his household to finish
their work as early in the day as possible, and at eight
o'clock he Uked to see us put by our work or whatever
employment we might be engaged in. On Sunday,
every servant in the house attended both the morning
and evening meeting, no one staying at home to pre
pare dinner, which he used to say, ^is always better
cooked the day it does itself, than on any other.' After
dinner, when he had taken a short rest, the domestics
were called into the parlour, each having a Bible, and
seldom appearing unaccompanied by one or more of
their friends, whom they had permission to inrite on
these occasions; and I have often seen a large company.
When all were seated, the servants, after a short pause,
proceeded to read aloud a chapter selected by my uncle,
the oldest servant beginning, and the rest following,
each taking a verse successively. My uncle then read
a chapter himself, generally making a few apposite
remarks upon it ; then foUowed another short silence,
and the little meeting was concluded. After tea, the
whole famUy went again to meeting. When we re
turned, we had supper, which was a very pleasant meal
— my uncle, by his own lively manners and cheerful con
versation, encouraging those around him to converse
freely. A short reading in the Bible closed the day.
His consideration for the comfort and weU-being of
his servants was most exemplary, and he never received
anything from them without thanking them cour
teously. On leaving home he always shook hands with
each. He rose very early in the morning, and his

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 61
study-fire was always left over-night prepared for his
lighting it himself; his time was chiefly passed in read
ing and devotion. After breakfast, it was his habit to
retire to his study, where he remained untU noon — ^he
then generally went out alone on some errand of mercy,
or to attend one or another of the numerous commit
tees on which he acted. Two mornings in the week he
attended the Friends' Meeting, and on these occasions,
as weU as on the Sundays, no weather was ever known to
keep him at home. After dinner, Sai'ah Allen, or some
friend, who might be staying at the house, read aloud
to him, to soothe him to sleep. He was a poor
sleeper at night, and found it necessary to take a long
rest in the afternoon, even if unable to sleep. Six
o'clock was the hour for tea, and afterwards, when the
season admitted, he walked out into the country.
In the evening of every day, as in the .morning, a portion
of the Scriptures was read ; when the clock struck ten,
candles were brought in ready lighted, and every one
was expected to retire for the night. A young relation
(not a member of the Society of Friends) arriving, on
a visit one evening at tea-time, my uncle said to him,
' I shall be glad of thy company as long as thou Hkest
to stay ; but remember, ten o'clock is the hour at which
I choose all who are in my house to go to bed ! What
wilt thou do this evening ? ' 'I think I shall go to
the play,' was the answer. 'WeU, remember — ten
o'clock.' The young man returned at ten; and the
next morning, whilst at breakfast, my uncle was highly
amused at the description of the performance, in which
a Quaker had been introduced. The young man, how-

62 MEMOIR OF
ever, found the time pass so pleasantly under the roof
of his aged relative, that he did not again go to the play
during his visit.
"My uncle was occasionally severe in his manner
of administering rebuke, and forwardness or imperti
nence, especially in the young towards the old, was not
often allowed to pass unnoticed. A young Quaker of
very forward and self-confident manners, one day entered
the room; my uncle looked upon him with a scruti
nizing glance, and said ' I do not know thee, young man,
— who art thou ? ' He repHed, ' I am  ' My uncle,
quietly, but with an emphasis that could not be mis
taken, said, ' Whose son art thou ? ' "
"It was painful to him to witness any species of
waste, and I remember few things of a smaU kind that
hurt him more than the fashion of ladies wearing long
trains — ' I cannot bear to see sweeping on the ground
what would clothe a poor shivering child.' A love of
order was natural to him, and he made it a principle!
that whatever was worth doing at aU, was worth doing:
well. "^Of his extensive charitable acts so much is knowm;
that it is almost needless to advert to them ; yet those
that were hidden were particularly indicative of the
quickness and deUcacy of his benevolent sympathies.
One of these was the pleasure he took in enabling those
who were themselves in limited circumstances to assist
the poor and distressed, by placing money in their hands
for that purpose. I have myself been thus favoured by
him, and well remember his very words on one occa
sion and the spot where he stood, as he said, ' My dear,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 63
I wish thee to take this, (giving me what appeared to
me a large sum), thou canst not always relieve the
distressed as thou would' st wish — but I charge thee
tell no one — the injunction is not enough obeyed, " let
not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth." '
His generosity was not confined to merely benevolent
objects. Once when I was greatly disappointed in not
being in time to meet a young friend who had returned
home a distance of twelve mUes, he very kindly
ordered a chaise, saying, "Is there not some one
whom thou would Hke to accompany thee ? — by all
means send a note to her, and I hope you will enjoy
yourselves." As an instance of his readiness to serve others, and
of the great good often resulting from a small action,
the foUowing anecdote related to one of the family by
Dr. Jephson, of Leamington, may be mentioned.
Richard Reynolds, who was traveUing through Notting
ham, met with some slight accident, and sent for a sur
geon, whose assistant, a mere lad, came in his place. My
grandfather entered into conversation with him, and in
the course of it young Jephson alluded to the desire he
had to attend a course of lectures on chemistry, which
were at that time being deUvered in the town, which
would be of essential service to him, but said he had
not the means of paying for them. The patient lis
tened attentively, and with his usual kindness, interested
himself in this young man, and for the purpose of en
couraging him in the pursuit of knowledge, gave him
five guineas. We might speculate on the possibUity
that, but for this timely aid. Dr. Jephson might not have
risen to his future eminence.

64 MEMOIR OF

CHAPTER VI.
By the marriage of his only daughter to William Rath-
bone of Liverpool, in'1786, my grandfather was deprived
of one, the loveliness of whose character, superior mental
endowments, cultivated mind, and devoted attachment to
this beloved parent, constituted her most emphaticaUy
the joy of his life; he was to her the guardian and'
counsellor to whom she looked up with admiring
reverence, as she was to him the intimate friend and
dear companion, upon whose unfaiUng sympathy he
could at aU times, and in all circumstances, confidently
rely ; and the loss to himself and to his family, which
was occasioned by her removal to a distance, was felt
to be irreparable.
It was not long after this event occurred, that he
determined to retire from the business, which for many
years he had so ably conducted. He had ever regg,rdedi
the possession of wealth as entaUing very grave respon
sibilities upon the possessor ; and he felt that the accumu
lation of property was therefore more to be deprecated
than desired. He earnestly wished for more leisure
for reading and refiection, and also beUeving that a life
free from the engrossment of time and mind, which the
management of so large a concern involved, would be

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 65
more conducive to his own religious advancement, he
gave up his shares in the iron-works at Ketley to his
sons WiUiam and Joseph.
His son William was well known as an eminently
scientific and intelUgent man ; his taste for mechanics,
his eagerness in the pursuit of knowledge, his energy
and activity, particularly qualified him to render
valuable assistance to his father, — and he had for
some time taken an active part in the management
of the works. He carried out great improvements in
the manner in which the colUeries and iron mines
were worked, introducing new machinery, and availing
himself with much ingenuity of the discoveries in
chemistry and the practical experience of other coun
tries in the manufacture of fron.
He was the first to bring into successful and perma
nent operation the transit of canal boats by means of
inclined planes, where great inequalities of surface and
a deficiency of water were unfavourable to the ordinary
system of locks. The first work of this kind which he
executed was completed in 1788, and is thus described
by Mr. Thomas Telford in Plymley's Agricultural
Report for Shropshire, page 291 : —
"These difficulties, theinequaUty of the ground, and
want of sufficient water, seemed insuperable, and most
probably might have proved so for ages to come, had
not Mr. WilUam Reynolds of Ketley, whose character
is too weU -known to need any eulogium, discovered
the means of effecting this desired object.
"Having occasion to improve the method of conveying
ironstone and coals, from the neighbourhood of the

66 MEMOIR OF
Oaken-gates to the iron-works at Ketley, these mate
rials lying generally at the distance of about a mile
and a-half from the iron-works, and at seventy-three
feet above their level ; he made a navigable canal, and
instead of descending in the usual way, by locks, con
tinued to bring the canal forward to an abrupt part of'
the bank, the skirts of which terminated on a level
with the iron-works. At the top of this bank, he built
a smaU lock, and from the bottom of the lock, and down
the face of the bank, he constructed an inclined plane,
with a double iron raUway. He then erected an
upright frame of timber, in which, across the locks, was
fixed a large wooden barrel ; round this barrel a rope
was passed, and was fixed to a moveable frame, — this
last frame was formed of a size sufficient to receive a
canal boat, — the bottom, upon which the boat rested,.
was preserved in nearly an horizontal position, by
having two large wheels before, and two small ones
behind, varying as much in the diameters, as the
incUned plane varied from an horizontal plane. This
fr-ame was placed in the lock, the loaded boat was also
brought from the upper canal into the lock, the lock-
gates- were shut, and on the water being drawn from
the lock into a side-pond, the boat settled upon the
horizontal wooden frame, and as the bottom of the lock
was formed with nearly the same decHvity as the in
cUned plane, upon the lower gates being opened the
frame with the boat passed down the iron railway, on
the inclined plane, into the lower canal, which had
been formed on a level with the Ketley Iron- Works,
being a fall of seventy-three feet. Very little water

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 67
was required to perform this operation, because the
lock was formed of no greater depth than the upper
canal, except the addition of such a declivity as was
sufficient for the loaded boat to move out of the lock ;
and, in dry seasons, by the assistance of a small steam-
engine, the whole of the water drawn off from the lock
was returned into the upper canal, by means of a short
pump. A double railway having been laid upon the
inclined plane, the loaded boat, in passing down,
brought up another boat, containing a load nearly
equal to one-third part of that which passed down.
The velocities of the boats were regulated by a break
acting upon a large wheel, placed upon the axis, on
which the ropes connected with the carriage were
coiled." In 1789, a copper token, or half -penny, having a
representation of this plane on one side, and of the
cast-iron bridge, executed by Abraham Darby, at Coal
brook Dale, on the other, was struck, and issued
by the Coalbrook Dale Company. Since the practi
cability of incUned planes has been established by the
success of the Ketley plane, but few Acts have been
passed for new canals, without a clause authorizing the
Company to erect inclined planes instead of locks, if
they should be found most advisable.
Other instances of WUHam Reynolds' mechanical skiU
are mentioned , by Mr. Telford, in connexion with the
canals and improvements in this part of Shropshire :
and he also notices the mistake of Fulton in claiming
the invention of the inclined plane.
Leaving the Ketley Iron-works then, in such good

68 MEMOIR OF !
hands, in the year 1789, on the 19th February, Richard
Reynolds went to reside in the house which .he had
formerly occupied at Coalbrook Dale. In the same year
his son William married, and his son Joseph about four
years afterwards. In the happiness and weU-being of j
his children he ever manifested a deep and affectionate
interest, and as years went by, surrounding him with
many grand-children, he showed a constant desire to
promote their enjoyment and improvement, and as they
grew up, evinced an unceasing solicitude for their
progress in virtue and the highest wisdom. He Uked,
even when they were quite young, frequently to have
them to stay with. him at his own house; and some
of them can well remember his indulgence to their
childish faults, and his attention to their childish plea-';
sures, one of the greatest of which was when he would
take them with him in his walks, talking kindly to them,
in a pleasant and Hvely manner, and leading them to
observe and admire, as they took their way through his
favourite woods, the various objects of beauty in their
path, — the delicate spring-fiowers, the mossy bank, and
the various foUage of the tiees, — whUe the Httle grand- 1
chUd, holding by his hand, would skip along by his tall
and commanding figure, proud and happy to be his
companion. In later years he showed great kindness, and an
attention to his grand-children not \eij common, in
encouraging them to correspond with him. A few
of these letters have a place in this selection, with
others of a merely personal or private character, to
fill up in some measure the want of domestic incident,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 69
and the deficiency of such details as interest the
affections, and give pleasure in the perusal of faithful
biographies. The year 1803 was marked by severe domestic afflic
tion. In April, he had an attack of influenza, which
had nearly proved fatal, and whilst confined to his bed,
his wife was taken iU with the same disease, and, not
having strength to resist it, she rapidly sank, and after
a week's illness, peacefuUy breathed her last, closing
her benevolent and exemplary life with unaffected
piety and resignation.
On the 3rd of June, his eldest son, after a long and
painful Ulness, was released from a Hfe which had latterly
been one of much suffering ; and on the 12th of July,
the wife of his youngest son, Joseph, was caUed from
the oversight of a large famUy of young chUdren, at a
time when, humanly speaking, a continuance of her care
was as important to their welfare, as her affection was
essential to the happiness of their father ; but He, whose
very self is love, in wisdom inscrutable, removed her
hence. Thus, in the short space of three months, he
was bereaved of three beloved members of his famUy.
In the course of this year he made preparations for
leaving Shropshire ; many of the ties, which bound him
to his residence there, were broken, and as he no
longer considered that he was required by any claims of
duty to remain at Coalbrook Dale, in April, 1804, he
removed to Bristol, having taken a house in St. James's
Square. His cousin, Sarah AUen, who was attached to
her aged relative by no common sentiments of affection
and regard, took up her abode with him, and remained
with him to the last, in every way ministering as a

70 MEMOIR OP
daughter to his comfort and enjoyment, by her un
wearied kindness, whilst her intelUgent and weU-
informed mind, and energetic character, pecuUarly fitted
her to be his friend and companion.
In this large city my grandfather soon found ample:
scope for the exercise of his benevolent desire to pro-!
mote the happiness and lessen the sufferings of his'
feUow-creatures. He took a Hvely interest in the
various public charities, being the founder of the
Samaritan Society, and giving his warm and liberal
support to others, particularly the Strangers' Friend,
Misericordia, the Orphan Asylum, the Infirmary and
the Aims-Houses. The increase of the population, and
the diminished value of money, pressed so heavily on
some of these institutions, that the intentions and 0x7
pectations of their founders and original promoters could
not be fulfilled without further support. He soHcited
personally and by letter, subscriptions on a large
scale for augmenting the fund for the payment of a
weekly sum to the inhabitants of the alms-houses, going
from house to house, — by his own zeal kindling that of
others, — and by the authority which his own HberaUty
gave him, exercising a degree of infiuence which he
would not otherwise have possessed over those whom he
knew could afford to contribute largely. One gentle
man to whom he appUed, of acknowledged wealth and
importance in the city, had given him a cheque for £500,
and he left the room, but returning instantly, said
he would give him back the cheque, as such a sum
from him would do the cause more harm than good,
The gentleman immediately wrote another for a
thousand pounds, and gave it to him. He himself

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 71
gave £2,000 (one of his friends says four) to this fund,
and £4,000 to the Trinity Alms-houses.
The knowledge of his desire to avoid even the ap
pearance of ostentation would make his family wish to
be guided by the same spirit in speaking of him ; yet,
as he is now beyond tbe reach of human opinion, a few
instances of that benevolence, for which he was in his
Hfe -time so widely known and so gratefully regarded,
could not properly be left unrecorded ; and it seems
right to give some insight into the practical effects
upon his own conduct, of the high estimate he had
formed of what is required from those who are rich in
this world's possessions, although no attempt will be
made to give any complete statement. In another
point of view, also, this testimony to the undeviating
consistency with which he acted up to the principles
he adopted and enforced, is desirable. He strongly
disapproved of making charitable bequests by wiU,
and left no legacies of this nature in his own ; and
it is therefore only doing him justice to state some of
the cases in which he bestowed considerable amounts
of money, during his life-time.
The numerous committees on which he acted brought
under his notice and consideration the fluctuation to
which institutions entirely dependent upon annual
subscriptions were Uable; with him, to become aware
of an evil, was to excite the wish and the endeavour
to remove it, and in 1808 he placed in the hands
of trustees the sum of £10,500 pounds, which was
by them invested in lands in Monmouthshire, the
income arising from the rents of these estates, after
contingent expenses were paid, to be distributed between

72 MEMOIR OF
seven of the charitable institutions in Bristol, named
in the deed of trust, in such manner and proportion,
either to one alone, or between any, as should at the
time appear expedient to the trustees — ^this, under cer4
tain conditions, specifled in the trust deed.* An addi-
tion to the Inflrmary being greatly wanted, he devote^
much of his time to that object, also subscribing £26i
It was on this occasion that the Committee received a;
anonymous donation of a thousand pounds, entertaininj
no doubt who was the giver ; and on the . folio winj
day one of their number happening to meet Richard
Reynolds, thanked him, in the name of the Committee,;
for his acceptable donation. He did not deny it, but said,
" Thou hast no authority for saying I sent the money ;"
and on the gentleman repeating, in strong terms, the
acknowledgment of the Committee, and refusing to be
thus satisfied, my grandfather quietly said, " WeU, I see
thou art determined that I should give you a thousand
pounds ;" and the next day they received a donation of
that sum with his name, thus doubUng his first contribu
tion. To these gifts may be added (beside his annual sub
scription) donations of £1260 to the Strangers' Friend,
£900 to the Misericordia, £500 to the Refuge, the same
to the Orphan Asylum, and to the Bible Societyl
£900. Of several other smaller amounts one only
from its purpose, need be mentioned — that of £300 to
Temple Parish, towards providing a better supply of
water for the poor.
Many of his letters refer to the interest he took in
various benevolent institutions and projects in other
places besides Bristol, and his desire to relieve distress
* See Appendix.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 73
wherever it existed, and of whatever description. In
several instances he paid the debts of persons confined
for debt in prison; one case, in 1798, was that of two
men, who, with their wives and twenty-two children,
were imprisoned in a small room in the King's Bench.
Their distressing situation was made known to him,
and he procured their release. Unwilling to be known
as the giver of large sums, he frequently gave his
name with his subscription, and forwarded a further
and larger contribution anonymously, as in the instance
of the distress in Germany, when he privately added
£500 to the sum given with his name. It was, for
many years, his habit to employ others to act for him
in London an(J elsewhere, in dispensing such sums as
he wished to devote to charitable purposes, in every
case, with a scrupulous care that his name should not
be known. To one party in London he remitted
£20,000, durmg the distress in 1795.
He had four almoners constantly employed in Bristol,
who brought their accounts to him every week, which
contained the names of each person or family who had
been relieved, the sum given, and the circumstances.
He was very particular in requiring them, when appHed
to by beggars, to go at the instant to their house or
lodgings, as this promptitude prevented the parties
having time to prepare for the visit of inspection.
Whenever he found that any person was receiving
assistance from more than one of his agents, their
name was struck off the list. It would be tedious, and
in no wise profitable to go further into these detaUs, or
to attempt to enumerate the various societies and insti-
E

74 MEMOIR OF
tutions, to which he was either a subscriber or donor.
He was equaUy generous in all his private tiansactions,
and he paid over large sums rather than aUow the most
remote possibility of error in the settlement of an
account. In one instance, where he held shares in
an undertaking, by which the contracting party for its
construction was a loser, he did not choose to be the
possessor of a property for which he considered he had
not paid the cost, — and he paid to the contractor the
proportion of the excess which attached not only to the
shares which he originally held, but to those which he
subsequently purchased.
Not the least to be appreciated was the considera
tion and delicacy with which he assisted many persons i
who were not ostensibly objects of charity, (to use this
word in its common sense) and many who, through rela
tionship, or other ties of personal interest, or estimable
conduct, were felt by him to have claims upon his
kindness and generosity. He kept a minute and ac
curate account of this portion, as of every other of his
expenditure, but he contrived so to enter the sums
which he gave away, that no one could learn their
precise destination.
Possessed of an annual income of many thousands,
his style of Hving remained perfectly simple; there was
every needful and substantial comfort, and an open-
handed readiness to provide for the pleasure as weU as
the convenience of those who shared his unlimited hos
pitality, yet without display, or indulgence in luxuries—
hence but a small proportion of his income was spent upon
himself,— the remainder flowed in the continuous and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 75
bountiful stream of a weU-regulated and cathoHc bene
volence. While receiving the heartfelt expressions of
gratitude of those who had the opportunity of person-
aUy thanking him, he always directed such feelings to the
Source of all Good. " My talent," he said to a friend,
"is the meanest of all talents, a Httle sordid dust : but
as the man in the parable who had but one talent was
accountable, I am also accountable for the talent that I
possess, humble as it'is — to the great Lord of all."
In 1810, he had a painful and dangerous illness, from
which he never recovered his wonted strength — though
in the summer of that year, he went into Devonshire,
in hopes that the carriage exercise and the pleasureable
excitement he had ever been accustomed to derive
from the beauties of the scenery, would be of service.
In these hopes however, he was disappointed. He thus
writes to a friend, — " I feel with increased consciousness
the effects of old age — the decrease of mental strength
with lessened bodily powers, — of firmness of nerve and
energy of mind. I find too, and I consider it wisely
ordained in the constitution of mankind in their pre
sent state of existence, that with the power of enjoy
ment, the inclination decHnes also. I believe, few men
with means so limited from education, so contracted a
sphere of action, and that so occupied by the duties
attached to my station in life as not to admit of much
intellectual cultivation, have had a higher reUsh for the
gay or the grand, the beautiful or the subUme, or the
wonderful works of the Almighty in the outward crea
tion; and I remember with gratitude, the admiration,
the deUghtful astonishment, the rapture which scenes
e2

76 MEMOIR OP
like those at present before me — the boundless ocean
in its various states of awful agitation or placid expan-^
sion, excited the first time I beheld them, and frequent!
since. But I do not regret that the things which ar
seen, which are temporal and which I must so so
leave, now affect me so Httle ; my principal, my frequei
wish is, that those things which are not seen, but whic
are eternal, may be the objects of my soHcitude in pre |
portion to their incomparable importance, and my swiEli>
approaching, my almost instant interest in them." An
to another friend he says, "My disposition indeed, to see
or expect happiness in or from outward things, seems to:
have decreased as fast as my powers have diminished.;!
I am sometimes thankful, that my desires for an in
crease of spiritual-mindedness bear some proportion 'to
the importance of it in the hour so swiftly approaching,
when I shall have done with all the objects of sense, and
when time shall be lost in eternity. * * * * The
broken slumbers in which my nights are frequeni|i
passed, have the advantage of favouring the immediate
application of heart to the Lord, which he mercifuU|i
inspires and regards; and if I cannot say much of
" songs in the night," I may to thee thankfuUy acknow
ledge that, through Divine favour, a degree of the
spirit of grace and of supplication has been experien^l
more frequently at those times, and with nearer access
to the footstool of the mercy-seat, than at some more
appropriate seasons."
Although his bodily strength graduaUy decreased,
and his memory was now less obedient to his caU, yet
he stUl retained a clearness of intellect, an earnest

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 77
desire to seek after the truth, and an uncompromising
fidelity to its dictates. Calm and serene in his undevia
ting reUance on the wisdom and benignity of the Divine
government, fuU of reUgious hope, of faith and charity,
and his heart glowing with warm affection for his friends,
he continued to the last, more and more the object of
the love and veneration of his children and famUy ; and
when the time came that he was removed from them, the
sense of their exceeding loss and deprivation filled their
hearts with irrepressible sorrow. They could rejoice
for him, that in him mortality was exchanged for ever
lasting life and happiness, in the presence of his Creator
and Redeemer and the spirits of just men made perfect;
but they wept that the beloved father of the family, to
whom they looked up as their head for so many years,
was gone from amongst them.
On the 24th of June, 1816, he set out on the journey
which he had been in the habit of taking once every
year, to visit his children in Shropshire and at Liverpool.
He arrived first at his son Joseph's house at Ketley,
when his increased feebleness was very apparent, and a
subdued feeling of mingled concern and pleasure was
felt by my father and his family, as they welcomed him
for what they aU feared would prove the last time. He
remained there but two days. I rememljer it was a beau
tiful bright summer morning on which he was to leave us,
and we children were summoned into the parlour after
breakfast, and the whole family gathered around him.
His son read a chapter in the New Testament, and when
the book was closed, there was silence and perfect still
ness for some minutes. Presently my grandfather raised

78 MEMOIR OF
his head and looked round upon us, and we Hstened
breathlessly, as he began to speak, saying this was
the last time he should ever see us in this world—
solemnly and sweetly he addressed us — then he spoke ^i
few words of affection and hope to our father, and afterj
wards to his other relations ; again there was silenc
and we all felt that his spirit was engaged in supplies!!
tion, shared in some degree by the hearts of aU presen
Then he arose, kissed us affectionately, and bade us fare
well. We foUowed him into the hall, where some o
the servants were waiting to see him pass. He kindl
noticed them ; and, accompanied by his friend Saral
AUen, was assisted to his carriage, and drove away. We
had indeed seen our beloved grandfather for the last
time.* He reached Liverpool by short stages; wlulst
at Greenbank, the residence of his daughter, he
gained no strength, but rather the contrary, and
did not remain there long, returning to Bristol on
the 19th July. Shortly after his return, his medical
attendants advised his removal to Cheltenham, in the
hope of relief from the biliary obstruction, which was
the most obvious symptom of the decay of the bodily
frame ; and, although convinced in his own mind that
no human means could restore the powers which a long
life of more than eighty years had nearly exhausted, he
* On our return to the room where he had taken leave of us, some lilies
of the valley were found lying on the table. He had worn them, as he often
did fiowers, in the button-hole of his coat, and as they were faded had taken
them out and left them there. They were carefully preserved, and are now
before me, folded in a paper, yellow with time, thus inscribed, " Lilies of the
viilley, worn by my grandfather, at Ketley, 1st July, 1816."

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 79
was unwUling to leave any thing undone which he con
sidered was his duty, and consented to leave his own
house, to which he expected never to return.
He arrived at Cheltenham on the 7th of August.
From his daughter's letters to her family, we learn
that he tried every measure prescribed by his medical
attendants, with exemplary patience, and throughout
his illness exhibited a marked gentleness of manner to
all around him. He was tranquil, often cheerful, and
always most affectionate and kind.
But Httle remains to be said of the last days of
his earthly pUgrimage, and this account is chiefly
derived from a memorandum, drawn up by his valued
friend, Thomas Sanders.* It appears that no decided
change was observable tUl the 6th of September, up
to which time he had taken his usual exercise, even
driving the carriage himself, accompanied by his cousin
or daughter only. On the sixth he walked out before
breakfast, but soon afterwards became much weaker,
and towards evening declined rapidly. On Sunday
he partiaUy revived, but sank again in the course of
that night, never to revive. His son arrived on that
day from Shropshire, and two of his grandchildren from
Liverpool the day foUowing. For many years he had
not been confined to his bed a whole day, and during
the whole of this illness he had joined the family at
their usual meals ; but on Monday the 9th, he was
persuaded to remain in bed till the afternoon, when
* Published in a small work entitled, Verses to the memory of the late
Richard Eeynolds of Bristol. By James Montgomery. Longman, Hurst,
Hees and Co. 1816.

80 MEMOIR OF
he rose and drank tea with them, and did not retire
for the night till his usual time. At five o'clock the
next morning an alteration for the worse took place in
his breathing. Some of his relatives who had left the
room were called, but none of them thought his end sol
near. He inquired if his servant whom he had sent toi
Bristol for his wiU had returned with it, and on being i
told that he had, seemed satisfied. He had made it
his earnest request to his daughter that she would be
with him at his close, and now, about six o'clock, raising
himself a little, his eye sought hers, and he signified
that she should go to the other side of the bed ; when
turning on his side and taking her hand in his and
pressing it, he quietly and almost imperceptibly expired,
on the 10th of September, 1816.
At his funeral, which took place on Monday, the
18th of September, the most marked, profound, and
general testimonies of respect were spontaneously offered
to his memory. Soon after eight in the morning, about
500 boys from the schools of St. James' and St. Paul's
formed in two columns, extending from each side to the
good man's dwelling across St. James's Square. On
the appearance of the coffin, the boys stood uncovered.
The streets were thronged with the poor. The resident
clergy, and dissenting ministers of different persuasions,
the gentlemen of the committees of various charitable
societies, and other of the leading citizens of Bristol and
a, numerous body of the Society of Friends, foUowed
the procession of the family and relatives from the
house. " So great was the public curiosity excited on this occasion,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 81
and such the eagerness manifested by the poor, who had lost
their best friend, to pay the last respect to his remains, that
not only the spacious burial-ground was filled with spectators
and mourners, but the very walls and tops of houses sur
rounding the area were covered in a remarkable manner.
And it is but justice to add, that the behaviour of this vast
concourse of people was in the highest degree decent,
orderly, and respectful; the poor at the same time consi
dered it a favour to be permitted in their turn, to approach
the grave of their departed friend, and to drop the sUent tear,
as a mark of their regard for a man whose life had been spent
in doing good." — Bristol paper.
In the report for this year of one of the Charitable
Societies, occurs the foUowing just and warm tribute
to the memory of my grandfather, by one who knew
him weU; and with it I conclude this very imperfect
memorial of Richard Reynolds, grieved and disap
pointed that his character should be so feebly depicted
by the hand of a grandaughter, who had looked up
to him from earUest chUdhood with reverential and
grateful affection, and in his death first knew the sorrow
of bereavement.

E 3

82 MEMOIR OF
" But at a time, when the exertions of benevolence are
barely sufficient to keep famine from the houses of the
poor, it is impossible to prevent the mind from continu
ally recurring to the loss which this society, in commorS
with every distressed individual and every associatioja
for the good of others within what he considered as h'|
sphere of action, have sustained, in our venerable anil
respected vice-president, Richard Reynolds. The view
of this truly great man, in the science of politica
economy, were as enlightened as his benevolence wa
extensive. To teach the idle the thoughtless and th<
improvident, the value of industry, prudence an'd
economy, were in his opinion of the first importance in
the attainment of the object of the labours of his longi
life — the happiness of his fellow-creatures ; and though
he never turned from suffering, whether the conse
quence of imprudence or the result of misfortune, he
knew that important as is the duty of relieving distress,
there is one still higher — that oi preventing it. As the
friend of the prudent man, therefore, this society
might be called his adopted child, for without his appro
bation of the plan, the original promoters of it would
hardly have ventured to make it pubUc. From the
first meeting which was held with a view to its esta
blishment, to the day on which it received the sanction
of the citizens of Bristol and inhabitants of Clifton, in
the Guildhall, his attention to its interests was unre
mitted; he was amongst the most bountiful of the annual
subscribers to its support ; he endowed the Loan Fund
with the noble donation of one hundred guineas, and his
venerated name — seldom pronounced by the poor man

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 83
without a blessing — gave to the Bank of Savings a
stabUity in the eyes of those for whose benefit it was
intended, which the wealth of the city would not have
imparted. Where the name of Reynolds appeared,
there, had experience taught the labouring man there
was good in store for him. Your committee with pride
and pleasure remind you, that he, who gave medicine
to the sick, was eyes to the blind, fed the himgry,
clothed the naked, bade the prisoners and the slave
be free, supported the rising fabric of your society on
his own shoulders tUl its completion. Our central stay
is gone, another single pillar of equal strength and
equal beauty, we cannot hope to raise; but let our
united efforts, Hke a clustered column, continue to
support the building, which may prove a shelter from
the storms of adversity to generations yet unborn."

LETTERS OF RICHARD REYNOLDS.

To John Maccappen.
12th of Seventh Month, 1762.
 If I had not an opportunity of sending this by

who dines at my house to-day, I think I shoidd not write
now, being quite without incUnation to write ; but as thou
might perhaps think it inconsistent with my professions of
friendship to omit acknowledging the receipt of thy favour of
the 14th, I send this, languid as it is, to prevent it, — indeed
I am now in a disposition of mind, of late pretty common to
me — an indifference to every thing ; my late loss* has ren
dered all the enjoyments of Ufe tasteless, and I am very
much surprised at the difference I find in myself at different
times. In general I am employed all the day long in the
unavoidable avocations of business, which, though they divert
my mind from reflecting on scenes that never wUl return,
exhaust the spirits, and when I return from the works to
my once cheerful habitation, my unhappiness appears the
more formidable, through that appHcation to business which
prevented my reflecting on scenes which every surrounding
object now brings to my remembrance, with heightened
anguish. No words can express what I feel in these bitter
* The decease of hi» first wife.

LETTERS OF RICHARD REYNOLDS. 85
hours, and couldst thou conceive it, thou wouldst likewise
be much surprised at the difference there is in me at dif
ferent times ; whether it is because I seldom see any company,
or something else be the reason, I know not ; but when I
have been favoured with that of my friends, who are very
few, and which is very seldom, I have at times such a flow
of spirits, such an unaccountable vivacity, that though I
cannot forget the unhappiness of my situation, and have,
if I may use the expression, the arrow of affliction deep fixed
in my soul, I beUeve as though it were with me as in times
that are passed ; which, notwithstanding it is an involuntary
effusion of cheerfulness, I cannot afterwards help considering
with a kind of remorse. What wUl become of me I know
not ; my afflictions are at times very great, the conflict of
soul I suffer excessive. I sometimes think my heart is
more corrupted and my temper more depressed than any
other person's, but I hope I shaU not utterly faU — rather
than I may, — that the time of my probation may be
shortened, and that I may soon go down to the chambers of
the grave — is my prayer, and I hope wUl also be thine for
Thy very affectionate friend.

Extract of a letter to John Maocafpen,
Jamuary VltJi, 1763.
After informing his friend that he had sent him a copy
of " Locke on St. Paul's Epistles," and of " Law's Letters,"
he adds : — " It is some time since I read the latter, but I
remember that (a few passages excepted,) I approved it
much, as it strongly inculcates the necessity of a change
being wrought in the heart — a renovation — a being born
again, as the Scriptures express it, and that without this
being experienced, aU outward performances, the use of out
ward means, and aU religious ceremonies avaU nothing."

86 LETTERS OP
To John Maccappen.
Coalbrookdale, 2nd of Sixth Month, 1766.
Mt dear Friend,
Although I am not in a humour for writing a long letter,
yet having half-an-hour to spare, I thought I would just
inform thee of my return from London, whither I went from
Bristol, and that I shaU be very glad if this finds thee in
health, disposed and at leisure to pay us a visit at the Dale.
I hope this wet weather wiU not continue much longer, and
yet if it does, I fancy if we were together, we could find means
to make staying within doors agreeable; however, I wish
thou would come and try, not that it can be reasonably sup
posed there wUl not be some intervals proper for walking at
this time of the year. I spent an hour or two with 
at Bristol. He complained of thy letting him have but Uttle
of thy company. I recoUected then, and have since reflected
on the many agreeable hours we have passed together, but
on none with more pleasure than those which are distin
guished by their having been devoted to mutual excitements
to religion and virtue. It is trtie there were few such, and
yet I rejoice with a degree of humble thankfulness, there
were a few — those with the rest are fled, are gone for ever !
May the consideration that the present now is instantly on the
wing to join them, strongly engage us to be instant in prayer
to Him, without whom we can do nothing, for assistance to
devote it to his service in the way of his requirings, how
much soever in the cross to our natural wiUs — then shall we
look backward with pleasure, and forward with hope, which
is the greatest happiness this state of probation admits of.
Thy truly affectionate friend.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 87
To John Maccappen.
2drd of Seventh Month, 1767.
My dear Friend,
I lately had an opportunity of spending a few hours

in the late Shenstone's walks at a place called the Leasowes,
near Hales Owen, and not many mUes from Hagley. * * *
It would give me great pleasure to spend a couple of days
at both places with thee, and if it wUl also be agreeable to
thee, I wiU endeavour to meet thee any day thou wilt
appoint after the first week in the next month. I think it
not only lawful but expedient to cultivate a disposition to
be pleased with the beauties of nature, by frequent indul
gences for that purpose. The mind, by being continuaUy
applied to the consideration of ways and means to gain
money, contracts an indifferency or at least an insensibiUty
to the profusion of beauties which the benevolent Creator
has impressed upon every part of the material creation. A
sordid love of gold, or what the possession of gold can pur
chase, the reputation of being rich, has so depraved the finer
feelings of some men, that they pass through the most
delightful grove, filled with the united melody of the winged
inhabitants, and the various murmurings of the brook in the
vaUey, with as little pleasure, with no more of the vernal
delight which MUton mentions, than they feel in passing
through some obscure aUey in the town. Nobody, I believe
thinks me too indifferent about getting mOv 3y, but 1 believe
too, very few endeavour more to make the most advantageous
use of those means of happiness which are independent of
riches. Few are better pleased with a beautiful prospect,
few contemplate the delicate or the bold, the gay or the
awful of nature with more complacency, or a higher reUsh^
It is true I have not the taste which some men have, but I
endeavour to be as happy as I can, and I think anything

88 LETTERS OF
which increases the number of the means of procuring happi
ness, is worth endeavouring after.
Coalbrook Dale, 20th of the First Month, 1768.
I find myself a Uttle under the infiuence of that dejec-li
tion of mind to which I am at times subject, but I willl
endeavour to rouse myself therefrom by a reeoUection of the]
many blessings I enjoy, and though thy apparent neglect has
a Uttle affected me, I wUl not doubt the continuance of thyl
regard, but account it a principal cause of thankfulness that
I am blessed with a friend that wiU pity a casual imbecUity
of mind, which I beUeve is constitutional, and the effect of
a particular temperament of body ; sensible too that I have^
in general a disposition to enjoy those pleasures which are
adapted to, or resulting from, my rank in the animal or intel
lectual world, —that the beauties of Nature are not wholly
lost upon me, nor the powers of reflection and contemplation
entirely withheld. Though I raise not the dust by the rapid
whirl of the wheels of a chariot, nor am ever the object of
popular applause, I repeat with thankfulness to the Giver of
aU things good — " Mine are retirements ; silent joys.
And all the soft engaging ties
Of still domestic life."
I have teen, and how many rww are, confined to the bed of
sickness or of pain ? How many feel the immediate want
of food and raiment, or the equaUy dreadful certain appre
hension of it, not confined to their own persons only, but
involving the wife of their bosom — the chUdren of their love.
These are far removed from me. I have all things and
abound, and, for this I desire to be thankful to Him who
alone worketh in us, both to wUl and to do, every thing that
is good. I also am blessed with the incUnation, and the

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 89
means in some measure, to alleviate the distresses of others,
— this is a source of pleasure unpossessed by many. My
dear friend wUl excuse my inserting a verse I just now
recoUect from an hymn to benevolence —
" Hail source of transport ! ever new,
Whilst pleased thy dictates I pursue —
I taste a joy sincere :
Too great for little minds to know,
Who on themselves alone bestow
Their wishes and their care."
Thou probably wiU remark the same quickness of transition,
not to say incoherent rambling, in this letter, which thou
may have observed in some others of mine, but I need not
trouble myself about order in writing to thee. I think I
find the beneficial effects of my attempt already. I wUl men
tion one more cause of thankfulness. Some perhaps are
sunk in despair — it is possible some may have sinned out
their day, that the visitation of a gracious God so frequently
slighted, wUl never be repeated to them. I shudder at the
thought. I too have sinned, have frequently and grievously
offended, and yet I hope. May a just sense of long continued
mercy engage me to make such returns, as wiU be well
pleasing to Him, to whom I owe so much ; may I love much,
and manifest that love by keeping his commandments. Upon
the whole I find I have abundant cause to be humble, and
thankful, none to be dejected or discontented.
To George Harrison.*
Ketley, 2Zrd of Sixth Month, 1769.
Esteemed Friend,
I duly received thy letter of the 3rd instant, and take
kindly thy so soon complying with my request to let me
? Private tutor to Eichard Reynolds' eldest son.

90 LETTERS OF
hear from thee. I was at that other exhibition, and saw
the piece thou mentions, and though I guess partly the sub
ject, I doubt not if thou had been with me to have told me
the history it represented, it would have heightened my
satisfaction in looking at it. Our little tour was as pleasa^
as I expected it would be, and a strict adherence to tihe
resolution I had taken not to be hurried, prevented my
brother Darby's desire to be soon at home from lesseni|B
my enjoyment much. I think Greenwich Park and Kei|P
sington Gardens the pleasantest places near London ; tl|%
latter especially is a place which, as it is within reach, ai^|
the continued noise and hurry of the city would certainB
make soUtude and rural retirement pleasant to a person lei
naturaUy disposed to enjoy them than thou art, I cannot;
but recommend to thee. The admission is easy, the walks
extensive, various, and calculated for those who are disposed,
as I think somebody expresses it, " to woo lone quiet in her
silent walks ;" and as I doubt not thy being sometimes in
the disposition Toung was, when he exclaimed —
" 0 ! lost to virtue, lost to manly thought.
Lost to the noblest sallies of the soul,
Who think it solitude to be alone — "
I dare say thou would Uke the place. If I had not appre
hended the four next Unes would have made the division ia
so short a sentence too wide, I should have added them ;
and yet I think them so good, and my letter Ukely to he so
much in want of enrichments, that I wiU give them a place.
" Communion sweet ! communion large and high !
Our reason, guardian angel, and our Grod !
Then nearest these, when others most remote,
And all, ere long, shall be remote, but these."
But to return. The morning after we were there, we came
by Kew to Richmond. WhUst the rest of the company

RICHARlD REYNOLDS. 91
went to look at the outside of the king's house — for the
famUy being there, they could not be admitted into it — I
spent the time till duiner very agreeably upon the hUl,
regretting, though, that I had not "Thomson's Seasons"
with me, whose animated descriptions of the prospects to be
seen therefrom, would have increased my satisfaction. After
dining and drinking tea there, we had a very pleasant ride
to Twickenham, which we could not pass without thinking
on Pope, and enquiring which was his house. Bushy Park,
in which were a large number of chesnut trees and haw
thorns, both in iiiU bloom, with much deer, and a very fine
evening, made our next stage to Hampton Court seem a
short one. The seeing the house and gardens, the wilder
ness and labyrinth, took up the next forenoon, and occa
sioned us to have a very late dinner at Windsor. We came
through the park and by the lodge. It was as much as we
could compass that evening to see the castle, and take a turn
or two upon the terrace, which I have always thought the
grandest walk I have seen, and the prospect it commands
a very fine one. We repeated it in the morning, and from
the fineness of the weather, for the evening was but mode
rate, to great advantage. After staying two meetings there,
we reached West Wycombe that evening, time enough to
see a handsome church upon the top of a steep hiU, and a
spacious cemetery, or rather cenotaph, adjoining, both buUt by
Lord Le Despencer, formerly Sir Francis Dashwood ; whose
house, though smaU, is, I think, the highest finished I have
been at, not excepting Lord Littleton's at Hagley. I have
heard much of Earl TUney's house on Epping Forest, but
was never there. I confess I am not so much pleased with
superb edifices, as the gay or the grand, the bold or the deU-
cate of nature ; nay, I think I can go so far as to say with
Scott —

92 LETTERS OF
" The grassy lane, the wood surrounded field.
The rude stone fence, with fragrant wall-flow"rs gay.
The clay built cot, to me more pleasure yield,
Than all the pomp imperial domes display."
We spent the next forenoon in seeing the house and gardenia
and being upon the water, and should have repeated thie
latter part of our entertainment had not the thunder anil
the rain prevented. We came to Stowe next morning tjo
breakfast. Lord Temple's house and gardens there, thougfe
they were the last that we saw, were not the least pleasing,
I am not capable of giving thee a description of them ; buj;
was I, a printed account with engravings of the remarkable^
therein, which is to be bought there, and I presume ia
London also, renders it unnecessary. I shaU only add on
this subject that we came through Banbury, WarwicMj
and Birmingham, home ; and through mercy found aU my
family weU, who generally made affectionate enquiries after
thee, especially BUly, who desires his dear love to thee, and is
much obUged for thy letter and thy book. I have now
wrote a pretty long letter, and yet am not wUling to close it,
without inserting my sincere wishes for thy preservation
from the evUs which are in the world, and that as thy situa
tion and uncommon acquirements will make thy company
and conversation much sought for, thou may be enabled to
stand against those temptations, to which in consequence
thereof thou wUl be in a particular manner exposed. May
aU thy abiUties be exerted, as often as occasion shaU require,
in the cause of virtue and Christianity, and may we never be
ashamed nor afraid of testifying our obedience to the cross
of Christ, or of acknowledging the truth which we have pro
fessed, though it may be in the midst of a perverse and
gainsaying generation. Sensible of my inferiority, I presume
not to dictate ; but I trust thou wUl not take amiss my thus

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 93
expressing my good wishes for thee, and joining thee with
myself in desiring that our conduct may be such as from my
own small experience, and the ample testimonies of others,
I am sure wUl be productive of pleasantness and peace.
FareweU — I shall always be happy to hear from thee, and
am truly. Thy obliged and affectionate friend,
R. R.
To George Harrison.
Ketley, ZOth of Ninth Month, 1769.
Esteemed Friend,
' It affords me pleasure to observe, that the hope I

have conceived of my son's acquiring a power of application,
as he advances in years, is consistent with thy apprehensions
concerning him. I am thankful I have no greater faults to
condemn or more vicious dispositions to lament in him, and
can with great truth repeat, that I much more ardentiy
desire his advancement in virtue than in learning, and that
if he lives, he may merit imitation as .a good man, rather
than be admired as a great scholar; and yet I flatter myself
that my conduct towards him wiU sufficiently evince the
favourable opinion I entertain of the advantages resulting
from science, whether considered as conducing to the good
of the community, or the enjoyments of the individual.
I was at Manchester whilst I was out, and at the house
of Ashton Lever, Esq., about six mUes beyond, who has a
pretty large collection, consisting of curious birds, beasts,
reptUes, sheUs, petrifactions, fossUs, &c. &c. We went to the
Duke of Bridgewater's coalworks, and came along the side
of the navigation as far as it extends towards Warrington,
which is, I think, within two or three mUes. There have
been frequently published in the newspapers descriptions of
the works and navigations, but I shaU only say, I never read

94 LETTERS OF
one which gave me an adequate idea of the performances :
they are really amazing, and greater, I believe, than were
ever before attempted, much less achieved by an individual
and a subject.
We returned to Liverpool, where I was very agreeablj
entertained. I love to be so far idle as to have no part t|
act in the midst of hurry and bustle, but to have the min
engaged m the observations and reflections which occur fro
the sight of such a sea-port as Liverpool. The " Adventurei
of Telemachus," and "Nature Displayed," furnish me wit]
as many pleasing sentiments on such an occasion as an;
books I have read. From this busy scene — to take a soUi,
tary walk along the sea-shore, to survey the broad expanse]?
to Usten to the sound of the waves, sometimes from their
rushing with impetuosity, as it were awfully shouting, some
times from their running faintly over the sands, graduaUy
dying away on the wings of the passing breeze. The " Spec
tators" on the " Pleasures of the Imagination," which I
dare say thou hast or wilt read with attention and pleasure,
account very rationally for the delight which the sight of
the sea or extensive prospects from hiUs or mountains give
us, and I wiU add that my disposition to enjoy them has not
been lessened by the remark that they have the sanction of
the practice of our Saviour, who spent much of his time by
the sea-side, on mountains and in desert places ; nor wiU
the enjoyment of them, either present or in retrospection, he
impaired by remembering the use which he is recorded (and
I believe in more places than one,) to have made of them,
and which our circumstances render more than equaUy neces
sary to us.
I hope thou wUt always believe, without my repeating it
in every letter, that I shall always be glad to hear from thee,
and that I am with much respect and esteem.
Thy affectionate friend,
R. R.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 95
To Georoe Harrison.
Ketley, 20th of Eleventh Month, 1769.
Esteemed Friend,
I received thy acceptable letter of the 16th ultimo, the
morning I set out on a visit to my father at Bath. I left
him this day fortnight, and though not likely, in my appre
hension, to continue a great while, I yet thought it probable
he might live longer than, from an account I received last
night, I now fear he will ; however, I have the satisfaction of
believing with him that he has lived long enough for the
greatest purpose of life — the being fitted for the enjoyment
of a bUssful eternity — as weU as of knowing that he has
for all the desirable secondary considerations. He has been
enabled to discharge every relative duty, to make sufficient
provision for his chUdren, and to see them all settled to
iiis miuQ ***^*T^Tr^#
The apology thou makes for using the words Mooreish would
not have been wanting, had I not been very duU. I join
with thee as to the propriety of its application. I agree too
with thee that the difficulty we meet with in expressing vi^a
voce what we easily conceive in the mind, would be lessened
by our being obliged in our youth to make frequent extem
pore dissertations under the direction of a proper person,
and also that a facility of writing might reasonably be ex
pected from a similar practice upon paper. I can conceive,
too, that it is possible for thee on thy own account to wish
that the former had been thy practice, but I really know
not how to think the latter can be the object of a wish to
thee. For me, I am sensible it may be desirable, but I am
not willing to think it of consequence enough to justify the
use of the word necessary ; for if I did, how much more reason
than thou should I have to lament " the deficiency of my
own acquirements, and be disgusted with my own ignorance.

III.

96 LETTERS OF
I have looked over the Hst of books recommended by James
Beesly in the " Cambridge Magazine." If it is correctly copied
from the " Public Ledger," I shaU only say, I should have
expected from him something more highly finished than the
Introduction, and the few remarks upon the books he recwm-
mends, appears to me to be. I have a good esteem for I the
young man (as he is, I believe, younger than I am, I h ope
I may caU him so without offence,) and would wish him i low
to avoid every thing he shall hereafter wish he had avoidtt
Of many of the books I am no judge, of many I can be 'M
judge, and of the few with which I am or have been a li1ii|Ie
acquainted, I cannot approve of all. I cannot think aU
poetical authors likely to promote that purity of heart,
aU his speculative ones that humUity of soul, which I wis]
every friend of mine, and for myself I should have thouMt
the number of dictionaries, and of books upon the same sffi
ject or science enough for a compiler, and more than enoiffik
for the man who reads only for his own information or amujse-
ment. As impartiality is the aUeged plea for his introducing
to his friend the opposers of Christianity, and amongst others,.
Shaftesbury; I am surprised he should omit the " Essay upon
Characteristics," by J. Brown, a book which I wUl venture
to recommend as abundantly capable of affording a high
entertainment to the liberal unshackled mind, or, to adopt
J. B.'s divine character to a gentleman, according to Sir
Richard Steele's definition of a gentleman. The author -
appears to me to be perfectly well acquainted with the
powers of the human mind, with a discrimination of them
superior to most I have met with, and his execution as a
writer, if I may be aUowed the expression, has aU the force,
the perspicuity, the elegance of a master — in short, however
redoubtable the noble writer may have appeared in the view
of his admirers, in my opinion, he is a mere puppet in the

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 97
hands of the author of the Essay upon the Characteristics.
Thou wUt perceive I am not deterred by the fear of exposing
myself, from writing my opinion freely ; however I wUl just
add, that whatever I may say now, or at any other time, of
the merits of books, is only advanced as my opinion, and not
absolute, as though I deemed myself capable of pronouncing
thereon ; no, no, — for a person to commence critic without
understanding any one language grammatically would be an
absurdity of which I hope not to be guUty. I only speak of
books and other productions of genius, as I do of wines —
caUing those good which I reUsh. In a former letter I
recommended Lefevre's letters to thee — hast thou seen
them? BiUy wrote in latin whUst I was from home. I
hope his letter has been received. I expect an opportunity
of having the drawings Dr. Bell was so kind as to promise
him, with some prints from London, soon. * * *
To George Harrison.
Ketley, 2nd of Twelfth Month, 1769.
Esteemed Feiend,
I am at present troubled with a violent fit of the headache,
which makes writing rather troublesome to me ; but I am
not wiUing thou shouldst see my brother Darby without a
written acknowledgment from me of the receipt of thy
favour of the 25th ultimo.
Excuse me if I cannot think the want of a truly catholic
spirit characteristic of J. Lefevre's letters. Whether it is
that my being so much pleased with them prevents my
observing imperfections which are reaUy to be found in them,
or it is that bigotry and a want of charity are utterly incom
patible with such attainments as I think he had experienced,
they appear to me remarkable rather for a universal love
and cordial desire for the happiness of mankind, as weU as a

98 LETTERS OF
belief that a capacity for the attainment of it is not confined
to any particular sect, or insured by the performance of any
particular ceremonies.
I believe I can form pretty adequate ideas of thy occasional
mental feelings and the consequential alteration in the Indies,;
but whether I am right in conjecturing that the first parfc'irf
the paragraph may have reference to persons whose inteUecmal
capacity has not appeared to any disadvantage, from their cJut-
ward circumstances, and the latter part to one whose supeijior
discernment has not been lessened by a want of respee^j or
esteem in thy own mind, thou knowest best; but I beUeve fisom
my own experience that we never fear nor scarce ever suspdf
a superior discernment of our own mental weaknesses/I
those of whose esteem we do not wish to enjoy a consid
able share ; for our own mental weaknesses and imperfectioi
are naturaUy best known and most intimately felt by our
selves, and when I observe a person uncommonly apprehen^
sive of the superior discernment of another, I generally
suppose he thinks that other possessed of many other excel
lencies besides superior discernment. I could strengthen
what I have written by Locke's definition of shame — "that
it is an uneasiness of the mind upon the thought of having
done something that is indecent, or wiU lessen the valued
esteem which others have for us ;" and, if I am not mistaken,
and thou wUt be honest, I am partial enough to myself to
conclude, that what I have written wUl be no discredit to my
own superior discernment.
Thy observations upon the difference between wisdom and
learning are undoubtedly just; but however nearly thy
equal thou may allow me to be in one, I cannot at times
help regretting there is so great disparity between us in
the other. To write to the learned with the pen of the
learned, must never be expected by me ; but I am thankful

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 99
I have a mind so weU disposed to be happy in the enjoyment
of the pleasures within its reach.
If I do not soon mention what I intended most particu
larly to do when I began to write, I foresee I shaU not do
it at aU in this letter, already much longer than I expected
it would be, and that is, that as I take copies of the letters
I write to my particular friends, the sending of my letters
to them, and theirs to me now and then, appears to me in
some sort entering into conversation with them ; but then,
to keep up that idea, it is necessary the several letters should
be regular, and as much as is consistent with freedom, circum
stantial answers to the several observations or remarks made
in the preceding, or a free communication or exchange of
sentiments upon the same subject. Considered in that Ught,
I cannot think thy last letter, however valuable and pleasing
it is to me, is a fuU answer to my last ; but if thou hast not
been accustomed to consider an epistolary correspondence
in this Ught, perhaps the remark wiU give thee no greater
an opinion of my wisdom than thou must have of my learn
ing : however, look upon it as the effect of the freedom
resulting from friendship, in which too I have made my
remarks upon what thou caUs " the vagaries of thy thoughts,"
and with which I subscribe myself most truly.
Thy affectionate friend.

R.R.

To S. Lloyd.

Ketley, 19th of First Month, 1770.
 I duly received thy affectionate letter of the
20th ult., at my brother Cowle's, at Bristol. The part thou
art pleased to take, and the sympathy thou expresses on the
sorrowful occasion of my father's death, is consistent with
that friendship which I believed thou hast entertained for
f2

100 LETTERS OF
me, and to which, notwithstanding, give me leave to say,
mine for thee is at least equal. I wish not for many friends,
nor to be the friend of many ; but I would have my friends
more eminent for their virtue than understanding; for
understanding than wealth ; and rich, so far as riches may
contribute to their advancement in either virtue or under
standing ; and so far, and no farther, may I be rich myseff.
The death of my father did affect me a gOod deal ; but I
have so frequently considered, and according to my degree
experienced, the instabUity of the most desirable eujoymoDiii?:,
in this world — the frequent sudden abrupt transitions from
earth's happiest lot — the possibUity of a Ufe of misery — the
danger to which we are exposed, and the infinite coi^e-
quences of a miscarriage— that 1 soon acknowledged, as I
had many times before confessed, in the words of John, the
Divine, " Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." And,
with respect to my father, he had lived to discharge every
duty to his chUdren, and to see that his care and prayers for
them had not been altogether in vain — he was favoured with
an evidence of his acceptance with God. Surely then, with
respect to my father, justly might his death be considered as
a blessing. Our youngest son was taken with the small-pox while I
was from home, though I did not know it when I wrote to
thy brother N  . He has them very thick, and was so
ill, on Second-day, that my wife began to think more
favourably of inoculation than she had done before. He is
better since, but the disorder is scarcely at the highest yet.
BiUy, as soon as they appeared, went down to his grand
mother's at the Dale, with a resolution to be inoculated,
and is now under preparation there. I am glad he deter
mined vdthout my interposing ; for though I much approve
of the practice, I was afraid of saying much to him in favour.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 101
of it, as he expressed an aversion thereto. I wish every body
who is against inoculation could see our poor baby, and know
what it suffers. To relieve, or prevent it, if that were all,
would justify inociUation ; and this consideration seems to
weigh more with my wife, taken separately, than connected
with the probabiUty of preserving Ufe. The considerations
I have mentioned as sufficient to reconcUe me to the death
of my father, would, I doubt not, be equally effectual, should
one of our dear innocents be taken from us, after our having
made use of aU the means in our power to preserve its Ufe :
and how far inoculation should be considered as a means of
preserving Ufe — and, consequently, how far it may or ought
to be practised, must be left to every parent's own deter
mination ; but I think the natural affection and concomitant
apprehension of the parent, wUl prevent its being done in
the hasty forwardness of our own wiUs, and though we justly
conclude, that " giving a blessing even to Ufe, is only in the
hand of the Almighty" — I do not see that the inoculating
of chUdren lessens the necessity of their or our dependance
upon him for a blessing, even to Ufe itself. In short, it
appears to me a subject that wUl not bear reasoning upon.;
but if any say they have not freedom in their miads to do
it — that it is matter of conscience to them — ^far be it from
me to judge them ; to their own Master they stand or faU —
" Let every man be fuUy persuaded in his own mind ; and
happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which
he aUoweth."

102 LETTERS OF
To George Harrison.
Ketley, 8th of Twelfth Month, 1770.
Esteemed Friend,
Since the receipt of thine of the 26th ult., I have looked
into the account of the society, in PandaVs System of
Geography. For the reason ihou mentions, it certainly
would not be advisable to transmit it in the form it bears in
that book ; but, as I know not the size of the work now
under hand, nor the proportion the abovementioned account
wiU bear to the whole performance, I know not that the-' she
would be equally objectable ; however, if no one is able and
wUUng to send such an original sketch of our principlesi as
is wanted upon the present occasion, I think a tolerable one
might be compiled from the above account, as readUy as from
any other book that occurs to me at present. Whilst I am
writing the wind is very high, and frequently has been so of
late. It has brought to my remembrance a storm which
blew down a part of the booth that was then buUding at
Wellington, on occasion of the Welch Yearly Meeting. I
fancy thou remembers it ; but perhaps thou dost not re
member a remark, which, if I am not mistaken, occasioned
thee to observe, that the Greek words, which in the common
translation of the 2nd chapter of St. Paul's Epistle to the
Ephesians, are rendered, " the prince of the power of the
air," might have been more properly rendered by some other ;"
was it not darkness ? I have looked to see what Anthony
Purver makes of it in his translation ; but, fond as he is of
differing from the vulgar, even though it be in expression
only, and that not always for the better, he retains the
words, " prince of the power of the air" but in his note says,
" the evU spirits there — ^but not as having power over the
air ;" which he corroborates by a reference to the 22nd verse

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 103
of the 14th chapter of Jeremiah. I suppose the passage,
as it stands in the Ephesians, has occasioned the notion
which the common people entertain, of the evU spirits having
a pecuUar influence, or rather dominion in that element;
and thou, I doubt not, hast remarked their application of it
at the times of the assizes, which, from the seasons of the
year they are usuaUy held at, are frequently attended with
high winds ; for, was I to judge by my own feelings, and
suppose those of other people are similar, I must conclude
it could not be from their sensations the common people
suppose that the winds, those especiaUy which usuaUy blow
about the time of the vernal and autumnal equinoxes, are
the effects of a malign spirit. I well remember that, even
when I was a chUd, the wind blowing from the west, or the
south-west, though ever so high, had an exhilarating effect
upon my spirits, and seemed to inspire a Uvely vigour that
disposed me to rove through the fields and the woods,
amongst rocks, or along the brook-side, with a joy and
satisfaction which I still recoUect, with a kind of pleasure
that I cannot easily describe ; but thou wUl perhaps have a
pretty just idea of it by thinking upon some long past scenes
of rapturous enjoyment, and innocent as joyful, and which,
therefore, are more frequent in the early part of youth than
afterwards. Nor am I yet insensible to the sprightly in
flueuce of the cheerful south-west : I know not if that par
ticular point of the compass has ever been personified, or I
shoiUd have been disposed to have closed that period with
his name ; but either Zephyr or Favonius, though not exactly
south-west, seems to me tolerably expressive — that is, ac
cording to the idea I have annexed to it, without under
standing Latin. Thou knowest my ignorance, and therefore
I scruple the less to write that, at a venture to thee, whether
right or wrong, that I should not to some others, lest they

104 LETTERS OF
shoidd suppose I understood Latin when I do not, which
would be bad ; or that I would wish to have them think so,
which would be worse.
I little thought when I began to write that the blowing
of the wind would have carried my pen so near to the end
of my paper, before I had thanked thee for the trouble thou
hast taken to execute my trifling commissions. Thomas
Hatton desired me to let thee know how much he was obliged
to thee. The maps are come to R. P.'s this morning. The
Josephus may, if thou please, be sent by the waggon to his
house. I bought Prideaux's Connection some time since
for my wife, who had read part of it formerly, but I have
not yet read it. I think it most Ukely he should borrow.
pretty largely from Josephus ; but, from the opinion I have
conceived of the Dean's honesty, I conclude he would take
care to acknowledge the debt, which is equivalent, in my
opinion, to a receipt in ftiU, in trade and business. Ramsden
is very remiss — but I am in no haste about the globes. I
would not have thee by any means risk thy health by going
after them. I have seen a biographical chart by Dr. Priestley,
and, I think, a topographical one also. Thou wiU fiirther
obUge me, by procuring one of each, pasted on canvass, with
rollers, to hang up in my study, as I call it. I vriU let thee
know, in a future letter, how to send them.,to
Thine, &c.,
Richard Reynolds.
To George Harrison.
Ketley, 21th of Second Month, 1771.
 I have not seen Beattie's treatise, but shall procure
it from thy recommendation of it. I find thou hast not read
Hume : think not I should draw any conclusions to thy pre
judice, if thou had told me thou had read his writings, or

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 105
those' of any other deistical author. I cannot say I have been
much, if at aU, hurt by what I have read of that sort. I
think Christianity has been more ably defended than attacked;
and weU, perhaps, it may hava been for some, that the re
futing the objections and sUencing the cavUs of sophistical
infideUty, has been undertaken by those who, though they
could not have acknowledged the truth of the gospel or the
doctrines of Christianity with greater sincerity than myself,
have possessed a power of investigating and discussing a
concatenation of arg^uments, involved as well as abstracted,
which I shaU never attain. I have been long accustomed to
consider Christianity as supported by two kinds of proofs,
external and internal ; by the external consisting of miracles,
&c., the relation whereof has aU the proofs of authenticity
of which such kind of writing, and such accounts are capable :
by the internal, which I may perhaps think the strongest as
weU as most necessary, by reason of its having been most
frequently the object of my consideration, I mean the supe
rior exceUency of its precepts and doctrines. These appear
to my mind with such force of conviction (not to say demon
stration), that, though a professed disputant might possibly
raise objections which I could not answer, yet I should not
be moved thereby from my own persuasions, or rather
feelings ; and however deficient I may be, as deficient I con
fess I am, in the practical part of my duty, my disobedience
neither is, nor wiU be, the effect of a disbeUef ia the authority
of the Lawgiver, or proceed from an unconsciousness of the
propriety of his injunctions. Since I wrote last, I have read
Robertson's Sistory of Scotland. His style pleases me much,
and, from its perspicuity and strength, is well adapted to
history. I was carried along, as it were, by a majesticaUy
flowing river, through a country abounding with differing
prospects, pleasing though rude, and as a vessel that, favoured
p 3

106 LETTERS OF
by a propitious gale, moves over the heaving surface of the
ocean vrith a kind of dignity and triumph. The history is
like those gleams of sunshine which, from the course of the
clouds, appear to move over a tract of ground in a pleasing
but swift progression, beautifying as weU as rendering con
spicuous those fields and other objects over which the irradi
ation passes, and extending some degree of iUumination to
those adjacent. StUl more just is the simUe, if the duration
of the improvement I make be likened to those fleeting
glories of the sunshine. As the fields smile during the tran
sient brightness, whUst its effects upon vegetation are incon
siderable ; so, though I highly enjoy the instant satisfaction,
the traces made upon my memory are sUght and evanescent
from what was chiefly addressed to my imagination. And
this I attribute partly to my being necessarUy engaged, the
most of my time, in the employments resiUting from my
station in Ufe, and partly to my having indulged in a vague
and desultory manner of reading.
If the length of this letter, instead of being tedious, atones
for my apparent remissness, indulge me with One as long,
when it suits thee to write ; for I assure thee with truth,
great is the satisfaction thy letters afford to
Thy affectionate friend,
E. E.
To George Harrison.
Ketley, 4th of Fifth Month, 1771.
Esteemed Friend,
I duly received thy favour of the 6th ult., and also of the
23rd ; but have been prevented from replying sooner, by an
attendance upon the Northern and Welch Yearly Meetings.
The former was held at Chester, and as there were several

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 107
Friends from Kendal, I thought of thee with a wish for thy
company, apprehending it would have given thee pleasure to
meet so many of thy old acquaintance upon that occasion.
The Welch Yearly Meeting was held at Ludlow last week.
 Since my last, I have run through Robertson's
PListory of Gha/rles the Fifth ; being straitened for time, I
was obUged to content myself with a cursory reading. I
think, from the extent, as weU as the importance of the
tiansactions of that interesting period, their great variety
and unavoidable compUcation, it required a clear head and
extensively comprehensive eye to conduct the relation of
them with so much perspicuity, and at the same time so well
connected as our author has done ; and though I join with
thee in preferring the style of his History of Scotland as
more strong, warm, and animated, I consider the other's
being less impetuous and commanding, as an unavoidable
consequence of the more widely diffused stream of the
narration. Thou wUl perceive I have not attributed the freedom of
thy remarks to a want of sincerity, and I am pleased that
thou so cordiaUy accedes to my proposal of unlimited freedom
in aU our future communications. Instead of compUmenting
thee, or speaking as I think of thy mental acquisitions, I
wUl only take the Uberty of differing from thee in opinion,
and of thinking that a proper arrangement and discrimination
of the furniture of thy mind, wUl not prove such an Augean
task, as to require an effort beyond thy powers. Time does
much for us ; and in the particular I am writing about, a
degree of adjustment and regulation is effected thereby,
without our attending to it ; or is there an effect simUar to
that produced by attraction in matter, whereby our notions
and ideas consort in proportion to their congruity ? Give

108 _ LETTERS OF
me leave here, however abruptly, to remark the distinction I
make between notions and ideas, which by some have been,
and I believe by some yet are, used as synonymous terms.
By notion, I mean my opinion or sentiment of or about any
matter or thing, which may consist or be made up of many
separate and distinct ideas, of which, perhaps, some are
simple and some complex, as a constellation includes divers
stars, and of different magnitudes. But to return: I was
going to say, I remember a certain author advises the youth
to make reading one of their chief amusements, and says
that, though they may not perfectly comprehend the whole
drift of an author, or that their conceptions in some cases
may be crude, time, with reflection and observation, will
meliorate and bring into order those stores of the mind which
may have been accumulated before the judgment was mature.
It seems strange to me, that thou hast occasion to lament
thy not baring opportunity of associating vrith those whose
conversation, though not absolutely necessary to thee for the
attainment of the power of understanding clearly, thinking
justly, and judging accurately,, would, nevertheless, be
assistant thereto, as weU as a high entertainment at the
time. I thought that, as weU as every other advantage, was
to be had at London ; and have considered it as one of the
chief reasons for preferring a residence in town to firing in
the country, that a man might there have such company, as
weU as as much or little of it as he chose. * * *
I have received the map, charts, and ^olian harp. I am
pleased with them all. The latter exceeds my expectations.
Though it has great compass and variety of notes, I have not
remarked anything Uke light fantastic tunes ; from the irre
gular motion of the wind, I should have expected something
of that sort ; but it has been either solemn, soft, or sweet, and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 109
most naturally brought those lines of MUton's to my mind,
where Adam speaks thus to Eve : —
• * * " How often from the steep
Of echoing hill or thicket have we heard
Celestial voices to the midnight air.
Sole, or responsive each to other's note.
Singing their great Creator ? Oft in bands
While they keep watch, or nightly rounding walk.
With heavenly touch of instrumental sounds
In full harmonic number join'd, their songs
Divide the night, and lift our thoughts to heaven."
The extract is from one of the most amiable scenes in the
poem. Thou vriU. read or recoUect the whole vrith pleasure,
but, perhaps, wiU be ready to sigh, as the poet does, at the
conclusion of another highly-finished picture of conjugal
feUcity : — * • * "0, when meet now
Such pairs in love and mutual honour join'd f "
If thou can write in the course of next week, I shaU be
glad to hear from thee, and very glad to meet thee at the
Star at HockUff, on Fifth-day, the 16th inst.
I am tiuly. Thy affectionate friend,
R. R.

To S. Lloyd.
Ketley, 25th of Ninth Month, 1771.
To be considered by thee as thy friend, in the most in
timate and endeared sense of the word, gives me particular
satisfaction. The warmth and cordiality of the assurances
in thy last letter, as weU as in many others, have excited

110 LETTERS OF
congenial sentiments in my breast. My constitutional ardour,
together with my baring pretty early in Ufe formed to
myself very exalted, not to say romantic ideas, of friendship,
as weU as of some other affections of the mind, if it has
sometimes subjected me to disappointments and chagrin, it
also insures to those who merit and engage my regards, a
warm and more than equal return of affection, for aU the
love they bestow upon me.
Perhaps some might think that the expressions more than
equal, should have been quaMed by an occasional exception;
and it may be, was I writing to some people, I might have
said, in general more than equal; but to thee, whom I con
sider as more happily and more temperately constituted,
whose passions burn with a mUd lambent flame, compared
with the vehement ardent blaze of mine — I think I safely
say, thou may assure thyself of a more than equal return to
thy friendly regards. If my expressions of regard have not
been equal to my conceptions, they have been sincere.
Conrinced of the justness of the sentiment, I have remem
bered the expressions of Young to Lorenzo upon this subject,
and endeavoured to be to my friend such as I would have
him be to me. —
" Lorenzo ! pride repress, nor hope to find
A friend, but who has found a friend in thee."
ShaU I add, without censure —
" All like the purchase, few the price will pay,
And that makes friends such miracles below."
If I do not express myself exactly as thou hast done, on
the notion that matches in friendship, as well as in love, are
made in heaven, I am sure thou wUl join me in hoping, that
whether or not ours was made in heaven, it may at least be

RICHARD REYNOLDS. Ill
admitted there. I so far agree in the notion, that I consider
a faithful friend as a blessing from the Almighty, if not the
greatest blessing we can here enjoy. Friendship, including
true reUgion, and a proper subordination of our affections,
from the Author and object of love in heaven, down to the
subjects of it among our feUow-creatures, as certainly tends
to insure celestial happiness, as it constitutes the greatest
part of mimdane feUeity. But I confess vrith thee, that
among our numerous acquaintance, though mine may not be
equal to thine, I have not many friends, in the sense of the
word in which I use it — when I caU thee mine, or myself
thy friend ; nor shall I scruple to add, I wish not for many.
There is something of pecuUarity or appropriation in my
idea of friendship, which though not confined to absolute
unity, precludes a promiscuous indulgence or indiscriminate
efiiision, without prejudice to that universal philanthropy
which considers aU mankind as chUdren of one famUy. Our
relative connections, though equaUy near in consanguinity,
admit of a diversity in the mode or degree of our affection.
And though we cannot doubt that aU the twelve, whUe faithful,
were objects of our Sariour's affectionate regard, one of them
is emphaticaUy distinguished as that disciple whom Jesus
loved. This, if I am happy enough in exemplification, will
iUustrate my apprehensions of friendship, as well as it
suggests the suppUcatory wish that his blessing may accom
pany our friendly regards for each other ; then wUl our love
increase in this world, and perhaps in the next with an
enlargement of capacity. Our advancement in love, as in
bliss, may only be bounded by eternity. 

112 LETTERS OF
To George Harrison.
Ketley, Bth of Tenth Month, 1771. '
Esteemed Friend,
Let me repeat it gives me pleasure to correspond with
thee — a pleasure which is increased by the refiection that my
letters are acceptable to thee. If, indeed, they contribute
to thy improvement, it is the most adequate reason for thy
being pleased vrith them ; and be assured, that the pleasure
I receive from, thine has not the superficial foundation of
mere amusement only. If I have lived longest in the world,
and, from my intercommunications with its inhabitants in
the course of tiade and business, am more hackneyed in the
ways of men, thou possessest a greater share of erudition,
and mutual advantage may therefore be reasonably expected ;
but I wiU venture to advance it as a general rule, liable to
very few if any exceptions, that he who improves another
benefits himself; or, in the words of Young,
" Thought, when delivered, is the mM'C possest.
Teaching, we learn, and giving we retain
The births of intellect."
I write thus, that thou may not think I consider as com-
phments thy honest declarations of apprehended advantages
by our correspondence, and would return them in hind.
If Young reasons justly, my general rule must be good, and
we are both improved, as weU by the letters we send as by
those we receive.
Thou should not indulge the thought, though suggested
by a deUcacy of sentiment too seldom met with, that thou
dost too little when thou doest all thou art engaged to do,
which is abundantly manifested by the soUcitations for thy
continuance ; nor, when the value of thy serriees is estimated
by the importance of the trust, canst thou deem thyself a

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 113
useless or supernumerary member in the community. But I
do not mean that these considerations, though sufficient to
reconcUe thee to thy present situation, and to justify thy
avaUiag thyself of aU its advantages, should conclude against
thy embracing any proper opportunity of putting thyself in a
capacity to entertain thy ovm friend in thy own house ; and
it would increase my happiness did I possess the power of
advancing thine, to exert it in the manner most agreeable to
thy vrishes. We went upon the Wrekin sooner than usual
this year, that my children might partake of the pleasure.
The weather was pleasant, though rather vrindy. ]From
the top of that hUl the prospect is so rich, so extensive, and
so various, that, considered as a landscape only, it beggars aU
description ; and yet I cannot forbear, as thou desirest it,
mentioning the tufted trees in the adjoiniag woods, upon
which, occasioned perhaps by the uncommonness of the
scene, I always look doiim vrith a particular pleasure, as well
as survey those more distant, which are interspersed amongst
the corn-fields and meadows, contrasted vrith the new
ploughed feUow-grounds and pastures vrith cattle ; the tovms
and vUlages, gentlemen's seats and farm-houses, enrich and
diversify the prospect, whUst the various companies of harvest-
men in the different farms vrithin riew enUven the scene.
Nor are the rivers that glitter amongst the laughing mea
dows, or the stupendous mountains which, though distant,
appear awfiiUy dreary vrithout their effect considered as a part
of the landscape only. But not to confine the entertain
ment to risual enjoyment, what an iateUectual feast does
the prospect from that hUl afford when beheld, " or with the
curious or the pious eye. " Is not infinite power exerted, and
infinite goodness displayed, ia the various as weU as plentiful
prorision for our several wants. Should not the considera
tion expand our hearts vrith desires to contribute to the

114 LETTERS OF
reUef of those whose indigence, excluding them from an
equal participation of the general feast, is for a trial of their
faith and patience, and of our gratitude and obedience?
WhUst with an appropriation of sentiment which receives;
propriety from the consciousness of our own unworthiness,
we substitute a particular for the general exclamation of
humble admiration, in the words of the Psalmist, " Lord,
what is man that thou art mindful of him, or the son of man
that thou (thus) visitest him."
The romantic scenes of BentaU Edge ; its rocks and pre
cipices, its sides and top covered with wood ; the narigahle
Severn, in which its feet are immersed ; the populousness of
the opposite shore ; the motion, noise, and life on the rirer;
the adjoining wharfs and manufactories, are capable of
affording an high entertainment ; and I should vrillingly'
devote one day in the year to a repetition of the enjoyment
of the pleasures I have heretofore received from them ; but
though equally near, and equaUy desirable, a jaxmt to BentaU
Edge is not equally facUe with one to the Wrekin. It seems
more out of my province.
I am pretty much a stranger to the controversy began
by J. Beesly vrith Doctor Formey, and continued between
J. Phipps and Newton, a dissenting minister at Norwich ;
but conjecturing from the Uttle thou mentions, that it is
chiefly about matters of opinion, and the different appre-i
hensions of different men concerning notions of little or no
consequence, (for such I deem all of little or no practical
inference,) and perhaps for that reason uncertain, I am
inclined to wish that it had not been began, or that it
may be speedUy concluded ; for contention about trifles is
frequently productive of erils of infinitely more consequence
than even a mistake would be in what occasioned the dispute,
as must be aUowed to be the ease when charity and brotherly

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 115
love are graduaUy eradicated by an acrimonious contention
about modes of faith, or what is, if possible, of stUl less
importance, modes of opinion. Thy affectionate friend,
R. R.
To George Harrison.
Ketley, 24tth of Fourth Month, 1772.
(extract.)
Reflecting lately upon 'the distressed condition of some
indiriduals, I recoUected the poor man for whom thy friend
Lanthoine soUcited, and whom as I remember he represented
as a foreigner in jaU, in consequence of his being bound, or
making himself accountable for a countryman in distress.
As I do not know that he is not a good Christian, I wUl
suppose that he is, however he may differ in sentiment from
ourselves, and then, as a disciple of Jesus Christ, most if not
all the calamities enumerated by our Sariour as affording
an opportunity for the diversified exercise of that species of
charity that consisteth in doing good to his Uttle ones, seems
to be accumulated in him ; hungry, thirsty and a stranger,
naked, sick and in prison ! Who that has any feeling, but
must pity the object of such compUcated distress ? who that
is able, would not be willing to contribute towards the aUe
viation of such aggravated misery ? Even if his misfor
tunes were the consequence of attempts in trade that pru
dence could not justify, or he had been the victim of disap
pointed dependance upon the promises of the rich or the
great, who would not cheerfuUy assist him ? But when our
unfortunate feUow-creature is deprived of that participation
of free air and sunshine, subjected to pain, poverty, and
confinement, far from his friends and native land, not for a

116 LETTERS OF
crime committed, but for an incautious act of benevolence
and firiendship, in becoming responsible for the debts of a
stranger Uke himself; I beUeve naany would rejoice to be
informed of such an opportunity of applying a smaU part of
the abundance vrith which they are blessed in a manner that
their benefactor has told them he would consider as done to
himself ; but if he is not, as I have supposed him, a disciple
of the holy Jesus, if we are we shall not forget that he has
enjoined us to be mindful to such, thereby approving our
selves the chUdren of our Father which is in heaven ; for
" he maketh the sim to shine on the evU and on the good,
and sendeth rain on the just, and on the unjust." Lanthoine
had some thoughts of an address to the public by an adver
tisement in the newspaper. I doubt not of a proper repre
sentation of the case producing a considerable effect. 1 shall
vrillingly contribute my mite as soon as I know the sum
wanted, or if it should have happened that, since I was in
town, the object of our present consideration has been re
leased by friends or by death, it is too likely there are others
in simUar circumstances for whom Lanthoine's humanity
wiU equaUy interest him, and who are equaUy welcome to
my mite.
I did not expect to have written half so much upon this
subject, but I must add to it, by desiring that if any thing
be done in consequence of it, it may not be known it was
at my instance, nor my name mentioned upon the occasion,
either as a contributor or otherwise. Thy stiict care in this
respect wiU oblige me.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 117
Ketley, 2nd of Eleventh Month, 1772.
Esteemed Friend,
A journey into Wales is the principal reason I have to
assign for my not having sooner repUed to thy favour of the
22nd ultimo. I ajn much pleased with the agreeable con
tinuation of thy narrative. , Thy descriptions of the places
and manners of the inhabitants are sufficiently expUcit to
convey a complete idea, and thy account of and refiections
upon the effects of superstition and arbitrary government in
thy abovesaid are sufficient, though brief, to make me thank
ful that I possess in so great a degree mental and corporal
liberty, the freedom of thinking and an unrestiained power
of communicating my thoughts. I say so great a degree,
because I beUeve every mind, even in this land and day of
Uberty, is more or less shackled by the prejudices of education
and the conduct biased by early example.
The conclusion of thy letter was particularly acceptable to
me, and together vrith a letter I have received from S. L.,
has nearly removed from my mind the painful apprehension
which distiessed me when I wrote last. The wound may be
healed, but the scar vriU remain — ^to remember or forget
depends not upon the wiU ; but though I cannot forget, I can
remember vrithout resentment. The impression was too
deep to be immediately erased, but whUst it continues it wUl
continue to remind me of the sincerity of thy friendship as
weU as to excite the endeavour in myself, not to furnish
occasion for apprehensions so different from my intentions.
It was a conduct so much the object of my contempt, and
for which some who have had many other valuable quaUties
have been the subjects of my pity, mentaUy and verbaUy,
that it hurt me exceedingly to think I should be, not thought
but reported, not suspected but accused, of meanness and

118 LETTERS OF
ingratitude by those whose candour and veracity would be
undoubted, and instanced towards those who I valued
chiefly for being of a temper as much the reverse of such a
disposition as I knew my own was — ^to them especially.
It is high time I should resume and conclude the account
of my journey to Kendal. It happened to be the time of
the races when we were at Lancaster, which made it rather
unpleasant at the inns. As a town, it equaUed my expecta
tion; as a seaport, it fell very far short of it. I thought fi-om
what I had heard, it must be somewhat like Liverpool, or
Bristol at least ; but though there is a spacious quay and a
custom-house as remarkable for its neatness as its size, the
number of vessels bore no proportion to either : instead of a
forest of masts and the strand swarming with the children of
commerce and of labour, the few separate vessels were like
single trees upon a plain, and the silent soUtary quays
rerived in my remembrance, however remote the aUusion,
the predicted desolation of Tyre and Sidon. It is hkely
there are sometimes more vessels than were there at that
time, for I beUeve there were not six in all. The men I sup
pose were all upon the horse-course. I was acquainted vrith
but one friend in the town, but the generous hospitahty of
WUliam DUworth would have rendered a further acquaint
ance unnecessary if we had not chosen to be at an inn.
We were at their week-day meeting, and from the number
then assembled I suppose there is a pretty large body of
Friends in the town. If thou art not acquainted with John
Bradford, I wish thou wast. Though I had not seen him
before, I was much pleased with spending a few minutes at
his house. If the word was not generaUy confined to devo
tional performances, I should have said edified; for certainly
there was something very propitious to virtuous resolves in
the amiable simpUcity and cheerful innocency of the good

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 119
old man. We staid and dined at WUUam Dil worth's, drank
tea at Burton, and came to Kendal about seven o'clock. The
next day we went to meeting in the forenoon; Rachel
WUson and her daughters — for Isaac was from home — took
a walk with us to the top of FeUside, &c. in the afternoon,
and went from one Friend's house to another, finishing the
evening at her daughter Braithwait's, for her husband was
also abroad. The next day thy father was so kind as to
accompany us with MoUy and Betsy WUson, the three
Masters and Thomas Crewdson, to Winander Water. We
could scarcely have had a worse day. It rained very hard aU
the time we were there, and all the way back. The young
women could not go upon the water. The Masters, BiUy
and I, went over to the island ; and, as I expected to see the
proprietor in London that day two weeks, I took of the soil
and the produce vrith an intent to carry to him — for he
has never seen either — but imluckily left it in Shropshire
at last.
Though I think Kendal a pleasant place, the surrounding
mountains, the clear river, and the adjoining enclosures,
adding considerably to the town, of itself very agreeable; yet
I must say I like the people stiU better than the place. I
was about to mention the names of some to whom I thought
myself much obliged for their civUities, but I have not room
to enumerate half, so shall only say that for hospitaUty
towards strangers, love and unity among each other, and
universal goodwUl to their neighbours, I never saw the place
whose inhabitants appeared to equal the Friends at Kendal.
I am, thy obliged and affectionate friend,
R. R.

120 LETTERS OF
To HIS Daughter,
(Then about twelve years old.)
Ketley, 1th of Second Month, 1773.
Dear Hannah,
I have intended many times since I saw thee to vmte to
thee, but have stUl been prevented, and now take up my pen
at an luiusual time to inform thee of the continuance of our
health, and to enquire after thine, of which I should have
been glad to have heard by letters from thee oftener than we
have, for I think we have received but one letter since I left
Bristol. I hope it vriU not be long before I receive copies
of those papers I saw when vrith thee — I mean some expres
sions of a chUd of John Gumey's — a testimony concerning
her sister Corkfield by M. Ash, and I think there was
another, the title of which I have forgotten. I hope thou
readest frequently in the " Dying Sayings" as weU as other
good books, but above aU and most frequently in the New
Testament. The Old Testament contains many instructive
and edifying accounts of good men and women, as well as
many relations of the just judgments of the Lord upon the
vricked and disobedient, and may most certainly be read to
great advantage ; but our duty as Christians, and the glorious
hopes of immortahty and eternal Ufe, are more immediately
revealed in the New Testament : there we read of what our
Sariour did and suffered for us, as weU as of the doctrines he
taught and the duties he requires of those who would receive
the advantages of his coming by becoming his disciples and
foUowers — and these are in an especial manner comprised in
his sermon on the mount, which thou hast been taught, and
I hope wilt never forget. If thou rememberest it, and thy
conduct is influenced by the precepts it contains " of doing
good and bearing UI," thou wUt be as happy ui this world
as is consistent vrith the nature of our eristence in it, and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 121
inconceivably happy in the next, where neither our own
infirmities nor those of others wUl prevent the completion of
that bUss which is perfect in its degree as well as endless in
its duration ; and after such momentous incentives to a Ufe
of religion and hoUness, let me add (and that with good hope
of its baring some weight with my dear daughter) that it
will be as a cordial to the hearts of her father and mother,
who love thee with a sincere affection, to see thee dedicate
thy early years to Him that hath promised that those who
so seek him shall find him ; and then it will be a pleasure
to us to make thy passage through life as pleasant to thee
as we can ; but nothing we can do for thee (were we ever so
able and ever so wUling) wiU be sufficient without it is acconi^
panied by the blessing of the Almighty, which I therefore
hope thou wUt be most concerned to seek after. I lately
heard from thy grandmother of thy being a good scholar with
thy needle. I am glad of it. I wish thy progress in writing
and arithmetic may enable me to bring thee home for good
before it be long. Joe gives his dear love to thee, in which
he is joined by thy mother and cousin Sukey, and thy very
affectionate father, R. Reynolds.
I heard from BUly lately that he was weU and had writ
ten two letters to thee, but had received only one from thee.
He loves thee — vrate to him again. Give my kind respects
to thy mistiess, &c. Ketley, 2Qth of Second Month, 1773.
Esteemed Friend,
I have to acknowledge the receipt of thy very acceptable
favour of the 18th instant, which confirms the opinion I
entertained before from some hints I had heard, even from
Blakey himself, of the detestable habits of the French. Their

122 LETTERS OF
want of cleanUness is incompatible with their acknowledged
politeness, at least in my apprehension. I should have
expected a refinedness of manners and an abhorrence of filth
would be as necessarily connected, as sordid customs with a
savage heart. Thy description of the city and public budd
ings is entertaining, and rendered stUl more intelUgible to
me by some riews of them by Perelle, which I happen to '
have among my prints. The public gardens, or rather those
of the king and the nobility which are of public access, the
paintings in the churches, convents, and palaces, would have
frequently attracted my feet and my eyes ; and though the
sight of a library can give no great pleasure when one has
not time to avail oneself of the stores of information it con
tains, I think I should have endeavoured to have seen at
least what EngUsh authors they admitted, especially on
poUtics, and whether heretical writers of polemic divinity
were allowed a place among the avowed champions for
papistic orthodoxy. I join heartily in thy ardent vrish that
mankind might more generaUy be able to distinguish be
tween religion and superstition, Christianity and idolatry.
One of the good effects of traveUing must be (I think) an
enlargement of the heart as weU as of the mind, an increase
of the benevolent affections as well as an increase of know
ledge, demonstrated by the effective wish for the happiness
of aU mankind in this world, as weU as by the belief of the
possibiUty of it in the next. Reading the histories of diffe
rent countries may have the same effect in degree, but not
so extensively as residing in them ; if, indeed, there is not a
possibUity, not to say a danger, of a person's losing the
belief of the truth itself by a residence in the regions of
error. This thought occurred to me as I was reading
Alexander Dow's dissertation on the religion and philo
sophy of the ]Hindoos, prefixed to his History of Hindostm, .

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 123
and his Introduction to that history. Perhaps a rigid belief
of the Hebrew cosmogony and the earUer historical part of
the Old Testament, may be dispensed with, in those who
pretty early in life remove into a country possessed of records
of equal authority among the natives, whose confident claim to
an antiquity inconsistent with the relation before mentioned
may weU be supposed to relax their opinion of the literal
authenticity of the latter, who have not been accustomed to
consider it as a dogma in dirinity ; but I should have thought
the belief of the truth of the . "jospel effectuaUy secured by
the superior strength of its internal evidence. As it is com
mon for the historians of kingdoms and governments, as well
as biographical writers, to say the best they can of their
respective subjects, so I can suppose the above-mentioned
author, wiUing to give his history as much consequence as
possible, has represented the religion and philosophy of the
Brahmins in the most favourable point "f riew, not suspect
ing that it was as Ukely he would thereby prejudice his own
judgment as that of his reader ; and perhaps that will be the
most charitable method, if not the most just, of accounting
for the preference he seems to give even to the Mahometan
religion before the Christian in the following paragraph : —
" Should we judge of the truth of a religion from the suc
cess of those who profess it, the pretended revelation of
Mahomet might be justly thought dirine. By annexing
judiciously a martial spirit to the enthusiasm which he
inspired by his religious tenets, he laid a solid foundation
for that greatness at which his foUowers soon after arrived.
The passive humility inculcated by Christianity is much
more fit for phUosophical retirement than for those active
and daring enterprises, which animate indiriduals, and render
a nation powerful and glorious. We accordingly find that
the spirit and power, and, we may say, even tlie virtue of the
G 2

124 LETTERS OF
Romans, declined vrith the introduction of a new religion
among them; whUe the Arabians, in the space of a few
years after the promulgation of the faith of Mahomet, rose
to the summit' of all human greatness."
I beUeve some of the advocates for Christianity may have
mentioned the rapid success of its promulgation, without-
external compulsion as a circumstance in favour of its truth,
but I do not know that any have aUeged it as a proof of it ;
and yet, when we consider the very different weapons therein
exercised, as distinguished by the Apostle in his Second
Epistle to the Corinthians, from those employed by Mahomet
and his party, it concludes perhaps tbe stronger in its favour
that it made such a progress in the minds of mankind, at
that time as contrarily disposed, by the subtleties and re
finements of worldly wisdom, phUosophy and taste, as they
were disposed to receive the religion propagated by the
sword of Mahomet and his followers at a time when, as the
author informs us, " aU manly spirit was extinguished by
despotism, and excess of vUlainy was the only proof given of
parts." I can attribute it to nothing less than a prejudiced
judgment, occasioned, as I have before supposed, that the
author does not see that the obligations of Christianity are
to the practice of those rirtues which are essential to the
happiness of mankind — that granting the greatest degree of
happiness of the individuals is the greatest degree of glory
to the whole, it is most rationally to be expected from the
influence of that religion which enjoins, with at least equal
rigour, active benevolence as "passive humUity" — which,
connecting the adoration of the Almighty with the discharge
of the relative and moral duties to our fellow creatures, ¦
exhibits, in the emphatic language of the gospel, " Glory to
God in the highest, and on the earth peace and good-will to
men." My paper vrill not admit, and in writing to thee it

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 125
would be superfluous to be diffusive in further remarks upon
the quotation ; yet let me add, that it must be a false glory
that is acquired by the slaughter of mankind, as it is an
abuse of the word to caU that virtue which can " animate
indiriduals" to attempt the acquisition of power and great
ness at the expense of their humanity. If, on the contrary,
the author would have us understand by virtue, moral good
ness, the declension of it among any people was never occa
sioned by the introduction of the reUgion he styles new to the
Pomams, but by their accounting the cross of Christ fooUsh-
ness, because inconsistent with their false notions of great
ness and glory. And if " human greatness," as the author
uses the word, implies nothing more than mere extent of
empire, did not the Romans — and if it includes also the more
glorious enlargement of the mind, did not the Grecians —
did not both, in Uterature, in every science and every art
that adds to the "pleasure, elegance, and grace" of human
life, surpass the Arabians, when, the author affirms, '' (in
the space of a few years after the promulgation of the faith
of Mahomet) they were risen to the summit of all human
greatness." The book thou hast bought forme at the instance of J. B.
was recommended by a person whose judgment I esteem,
but I have never seen it. J. B. has obUged me by a very
kind letter ; perhaps I may take the liberty of writing to
him again. If Robert Barclay is gone, I vrish him a good
voyage and a safe return ; if he is not gone, he has my good
vrishes, wherever he is or shaU be. I hope to hear from
thee again soon, and am Thy very affectionate friend,
R. R.

126 LETTERS OF i
To R. Reynolds.
11th of Sivth MoMhiJ^]^
Mt dear Wipe,
I hear nothing but bad accour '. (as they are gene

rally called) respecting the pig-iron trad^'^'nd predictionsof its
being stiU worse. I am thankful I cS^°^ij I am at aU times
enabled to consider the things of this li' ^ that degree of sub
ordination and inferiority to the com?® s of the next, that
whether an increase or a decrease of o™^''® d riches seems most
probable is matter of great indifferen -^P^^ne, and when I con
sider further the ill effects riches ^^ ®™intly have upon the
mind, especiaUy of young people, tr^^ _ er with the remem
brance that where there is but littlf® ^^^n there is but little
required, and where there is mu£ iven there is much
requUed, I am inclined to contemplate'* state of inferiority
to former expectations, if not with a positive desire for it, at
least with a cheerful acquiescence in it. If I attaini^to i^Tlty
of heart and meekness ofteinper, how Uttle of worldly riclivL-
vrill be sufficient," and if either one or the other of the former
will be prevented by my having even so much as I have of
the latter, may I be deprived of it. This I can truly say has
been the desire of my mind many times, and especiaUy of
late, and when I have considered the probability of losing
much in London and elsewhere, the hope that it might have
that effect has made the apprehension more tolerable ; but I
know that purity of heart and meekness of temper are not the
necessary consequences of outward poverty, and that in every
state and in every station sufficient assistance wUl be afforded,
if properly applied for and properly used for the discharge
of aU that is required of us ; but, my Rebecca, it is difficult,
when surrounded vrith outward besetments as well as inward,
to keep the eye of the mind singly and steadUy to the divine

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 127
Leader into purity and humiUty, and I long for the return
of the time when retirement and quiet from the continual
hurry I have lately been in, will afford, opportunities for
that reeoUection of mind so necessary to one of my natural
actirity of spirit, and abounding with so many and so various
concerns in trade and business.
To S. Lloyd.
Ketley, 8rd of Twelfth Month, 1774.
 However much one virtue may be supposed to differ
from another, in kind or in degree, it is our duty to practise
them all as necessities or occasions present. The injunctions
of honour or of gratitude, as weU as the laws of justice and
equity, are of eternal obligation: perhaps their greatest
difference may be occasioned by the latter being so cog
nizable by a human judicature, and the former necessarily
unamenable to any other bar than that of conscience here, and
of Dirine justice hereafter. I wish this consideration may
have an influence proportionate to its truth and importance
upon aU our transactions with our feUow-creatures, however
different they may be in outward circumstances.
I sympathize with thee under every disappointment ; but
as disappoij'^ment is only the frustration of hope, and more
properly/',, '^ative than a positive loss, instead of attempt
ing to r o. /st aUeviating considerations, let me inform thee,
that -li/o e a recent positive loss of many hundreds, and a
probq%aty, next to assurance, of a stUl greater, I endeavour
to reconcUe myself to what I cannot avoid, not only by
remembering the important truth thou mentions, " That
trial, and even adversity, is best for us," but also by con
sidering that the real goods of Ufe are to be purchased for
less money than I shaU have left at last. That what I have

128 LETTERS OF
lost, if not absolutely superfluous, was not absolutely neces
sary ; but which, notwithstanding, would have increased my
duties and my dangers. That the happiness resulting from
the gratiflcations of sense or of inteUect, is as much vrithin
my power as if I had not met with the loss. Most, if not
all the former, result from habit, the effect of custom, and
require circumstances to which abundance and money is not
always propitious. In general the peasant enjoys his coarse
fare with a higher relish than the peer his costly viands,
and I drink ale equal ia colour and brUlianey to wine with
superior satisfaction, though at a sixth of the price. If this
sense can be gratified as fuUy and as exquisitely by a man in
moderate circumstances as by the rich, the others are, if
possible, stUl less dependant on wealth — Feeling not at all —
Smelling very little — Hearing as much as any; but that>
perhaps, vrith Seeing, may, with almost equal propriety, be
considered either as a faculty or a sense. However that
may be, I have been very apt to consider the two last
different, at least in degree, from the three former, partaking
more of the soul than the body, and contributing little
to our pleasures, but as they administer to mental grati
fications by interesting or employing the inteUect. I confess
that a disposition to be pleased with modulated sound is
natural, and manifested as early as most others that have
not a nearer relation to the preservation of Ufe ; and I con
ceive it is not a proof of a depraved taste, or a mean under
standing, if — at a time of Ufe when we readUy inchne to
reason from effects to causes, and to foUow from link to
link that great connecting chain through the amazing variety
of its gradations — if, then, the melody of birds, the voice of
winds and of waters, from the whispering of the breeze to
the shouting of the storm ; from the tinkUng of the riU to
the roar of the ocean, and the stUl more awful thunder;

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 129
if these are then listened to with greater satisfaction than
more artificial sounds, I conceive it is no impeachment of the
understanding ; and to enjoy these it is not necessary to be
very rich. What music can do, it is not to be expected that
I can pronounce ; but if as a science it is capable of pleasing,
I conjectiu-e it must be by the discovery of the relation,
dependencies, and connection of its several intricacies and
involutions, by "  untwisting all the chords that tie
The hidden soul of harmony,"
and that is more properly the object of inteUigence than of
sense. Great effects have been attribued to music. I do
not forget those which it is recorded to have had upon EHsha
and upon Saul. It is not said the minstiel accompanied his
harp with his voice ; but as from aU accounts of those men
in ancient as well as later days, their practice was to rehearse
suitably to the occasion, accompanying their verses with their .
music, or as Homer, a cotemporary vrith Elisha, describes it :
" The heavenly minstrel taught to sing
High notes responsive to the trembling string."
So, in the latter case especiaUy, I think it may be inferred,
that as the sweet singer of Israel was not less Ukely to excel
in poetiy than in playing, the change in Saul's mind is most
feasibly accounted for, not by attributing it to the sound of
the harp only, but to the powers of music united to poetry,
or in the language of MUton, " married to immortal verse."
I woidd not be understood to exclude, in either case, the
subserviency of natural causes to the divine wiU, or to attri
bute that to inferior powers, which can only be effected by
the supreme. On the contrary, as it is the Almighty who
has established certain laws in nature, which operate uni
formly, except he is pleased to suspend them ; so I consider
every display of human genius as the effect of delegated
G 3

130 LETTERS OF
power from the Divine origin of aU things, and only wrong
when perverted or misapplied by us. And though, imder the
present dispensation of superior hght, the doctrine of sounds
is unconnected or opposite to the nature of that worship
which is required of us ; under the Mosaic, the proper appli
cation thereof was acceptable to God and beneficial to men.
The late J. Brown, author of the Essay upon the Charac
teristics, a book I very much admire and approve, wrote on
the cure of Saul, or the power of music: 1 have not yet
seen it, if I had, it is likely thou would not receive this
rambling scrawl, which may well be thought too Uttle con
nected with the subject upon which I was writing ; but
after having supposed aU the other senses may be gratified
as well with a moderate share of wealth as with a super
abundance, I think the sight, as stUl more immediately sub
servient to the inteUect, and furnishing the mind with more
ideas than all the rest, is capable of ample gratffication as
independently of riches as any other. Music without poetry
can afford a rational entertainment to very few, but ideas
the most sublime, as weU as the most tender, may, suice the
invention of writing, be excited in the minds of most by the
visual faculty. The grandeur of the scenery of the visible
creation, the immense ocean,
" The pomps of groves, the garniture of fields,
And all the dread magnificence of heaven,"
these, through the goodness of the great Creator, who makes
that which is most valuable the most common ; these are
offered, not to say obtruded, upon the sight of aU men ; and
weU might the author last quoted consider it as a degree of
impiety, to saerffice the beneficial effects of a proper survey
of the charms of nature to the lust of wealth. What then
have the rich that we have not ? The finest productions of
the chisel or the pencU are only valuable as they approach

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 131
to a just representation of nature. " The human face
divine," that " index of the soul," — how varying — how ex
pressive ! We admire a faithful deUneation of one passion,
or stiU more of such a compUcation as occupies the counte
nance at one instant ; but no copy can equal the original :
how quick are the transitions and varied the combinations
in the same subject at different times, observable in real Ufe,
and equally obrious to me as to a greater man.
To HIS Daughter.
Ketley, 6th of Seventh Month, 1776.
Dear Hannah,
I fuUy intended to have written a long letter to thee by
this post ; but the same reason that prevented my writing at
aU, wUl prevent my writing much by this, (I fear) ; but thou
must not judge of the strength of my love and affection for
thee by the length of my letters to thee. I wish thy happi
ness as I do my own, and knowing how much it depends
upon humiUty and meekness, I am earnest in my recom
mendation of those virtues — we have them not naturally —
but God is the giver of every good and every perfect gift.
If we ask them of him vrith sincerity, and erince our sin
cerity by taking up our daUy cross and denying ourselves,
we shaU find, through the operation of his dirine Spirit, that
alteration and change in our natural dispositions which is
meant by being bom again, and without which, our Saviour
assures us, we cannot see the kingdom of God. What have
we experienced of this change ? Another change approaches
certainly, perhaps suddenly, and assuredly final, as to our
happiness or misery. I write in haste, and these are only
broken hints ; thy own reflections upon them wiU probably
be more serriceable than the additions I might make if I had
more leisure. * * * I meet vrith many disagreeable

132 LETTERS OP
occurrences, and some from unexpected quarters. Next to
the peace of God in my own breast, which I desire in the
first place, the greatest alleviation I experience is the hope
I entertain of my chUdren' s growing in grace as they grow
in age. Continue my dear, by increasing in humility, meek
ness and self-denial, to increase thy own happiness, and
thereby, that of thy affectionate father,
R. E.
To HIS Daughter.
Bridgwater, 10th of Sixth Month, 1777.
 1 am not wUling to close this letter without mentioning

the desire that oftener than the day has been in my heart, that
my dear chUdren may live in the fear of the Lord, and die in
his favour : particularly that my only and beloved daughter ;
may, like her dear departed mother, know the power of the
cross in her youth — that, if length of days should not be her
portion she may also experience the happy effects of an early
obedience to the Divine requirings. It is only by the power
of the cross we can experience a being crucified to the world,
the love of and conformity to which brings death to that life
which consists of happiness and peace. Let not, my dear
Hannah, the example of others, who may be ashamed of the
cross and of the plainness and simplicity which we profess,
influence thy conduct ; nor the levity of heart incident to
youth prevent thy seriously and frequently reflecting on the
shortness and uncertainty of this life, and the continuance
of the next, as well as of the infinity of the consequences of
our present conduct. We are adrised to pass the time of our
sojourning here im fear : — how different is the conduct of the
world. It ridicules or despises that fear in which is true
safety and real wisdom. But let us rather be the companions
of the despised followers of a despised and crucffied Saviour

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 133
in meekness and lowliness of mind, than grieve them, and
injure our own souls, by conforming to the world and the
fashions and practices of it. If thou knew or could conceive
how much my happiness (at least in this world) depends
upon thy being good, because I know thine entirely depends
on it both here and hereafter, I believe it would — nay I
beUeve it wUl — have great influence vrith thee.
I am, and desire to be stiU more humble and thankful to
the Almighty that he has blessed me vrith children so affec
tionate and dutiful. Be assured I wish nothing more
ardently respecting you than to contribute aU in my power
to your happiness, and consider me as a friend to whom thou
may vrith confidence communicate every thing that concerns
thee, and grieve me not by discovering a distrust of my being
at all times and on aU occasions.
Thy most affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.
Ketley, 6th of Eleventh Month, 1111.
¦ I received thy short letter at Stourbridge, and that of

the 31st ultimo since, and am obliged to thee for both. I
shaU be very glad to hear thy anxiety on account of thy Uttle
daughter is converted into thankfulness by her perfect resto
ration to health. The uncertain tenure by which we hold
this life, and aU its connections, justifies our endeavouring
to sit as loose to them as their nature admits, as well as
endeavouring vrith superior ardour primarily to seek the
kingdom of God, and his righteousness, the which if we
attain we shaU cheerfully leave it to him,, to add or to resume
so much or so many of the good things of this Ufe, as in his
vrisdom and providence he shaU see best for us and for
them, and be enabled equaUy ni his giving or takmg away
to bless the name of the Lord. I can truly sympathize with

134 LETTERS OP
thee, and join in lamenting that our advancement is so slow in
the heavenly race ; but I trust we do not so absolutely stand
stiU as to be carried towards the confines of this world by the
current of time, vrithout also in some degree experiencing our
salvation to be nearer than when we might reasonably ex
pect our exit to be more distant. I should not be just to
the unmerited mercy of God, if I did not acknowledge with
the deepest gratitude my hope that, through the assistance
of his grace, I have experienced a smaU degree of deliverance
from the sins that did most easUy beset me ; but at the same
time I must as freely confess that if I had been more
obedient and more watchful, had made use of all the assis
tance that has been held out to me, I might have witnessed
a much greater advancement ; and that I have not is cause
of sorrow of heart unto me; and oh that it may continually
operate to the quickening my desires and prayers for perfect
redemption from the power of sin, as weU as from condem
nation for past transgressions, whether by commission or
omission. Thy father expressed a wish to have the enclosed list of
the places at which the yearly meetiags for Wales have been
held. I hoped to have had it ready to have given or sent to
him at quarter-day last.* Please to present it to him, and
with it my dear love, for I have a very great respect for him,
and sincerely vrish that, as some of his predecessors were
eminently serriceable to their companions and fellow-
labourers in those days, and upon some of those occasions,
so his descendants may be concerned to cultivate the same
field, and like himself, as a shock of com that cometh in in
its season, be gathered at the great harvest into the gamer
of eternal Ufe. I sometimes reflect upon those former days
and former worthies, as we read of them in the accounts by
* The Quarterly Macting of Ironmasters. — En.

RICHARD EEYNOLDS. ' 135
our ancient Friends and in their dying sayings. What zeal
and love animated them, what running to and fro that the
knowledge of the principles which they through faith and
obedience had experienced to deliver them, might be attained
by others. How constant in their attendance, and dUigent
in their meetiags for worship and discipline — how careful out
of them : I long to be like them — I desire to be redeemed
from the world and everything in it. To be what the Lord
would have me to be, whether anything or nothing, is the
first and most frequent wish of my heart, and the hope of
witnessing his peace in good meetings or out of them, the
greatest source of enjoyment to me. * * *
To 8. Lloyd.
Ketley, 11th of Twelfth Month, 1777.
 Thou asks me " how I feel myself as to the late

news from America." I do feel and sympathize with our
suffering friends on that continent, and am sorry for the
effusion of blood the contest occasions ; but with respect to
the political justness or injustice of either party, I do not
feel about it. My opinion, were I capable of forming a
right one, would have no infiuence, and as consistently vrith
my profession I can do nothing, I think it is best to say
nothing. Were I a man of fighting principles, perhaps I
might both say and do, at least I should think it right to
support the cause I espoused mediately or immediately, by
acting myself, or hiriag others to act ; but as I trust I have
been favoured to have a sight, if not an experience, of a state
in which there can be no wars or fightings, so I thiak it my
duty to pity and pray for those I believe to be wrong, and to
acquiesce in every dispensation of Providence, with a steady
beUef that all things wUl work together for good to those
who love God, vrith an earnest endeavour to evince my love

136 LETTERS OF
to him, by keeping his commandments, and in particular, the
new commandment of loving one another. The lukewarm-
ness and indifferency, the love of the world, and consequent
degeneracy of our Society, has been long loudly and justly
matter of complaint ; perhaps sufferings may be necessary, in
a Society capacity : I wish the present may be effectual ; if
not I might be aUowed to say in general, what I have ofl;en
secretly said for myself in particular, that if nothing but
sufferings would make me perfect, may I experience them
in the kind, number and degree, the Lord should see meet for
that purpose, and so stUl prays. Thy affectionate firiend.
Ketley, 25th of Twelfth Month, 1778.
My DEAR Daughter,
WTiile I was last from home it was frequently in my mind
to write to thee, and that I did not, gave me some uneasi
ness. Now thy absence revives the disposition ; and though,-
from having much to do in a Uttle time, together with my
mind being less qualified than at some seasons that are past,
I apprehend that I shaU do stUl less justice to the strong
desire I have to promote thy happiness, I am induced to
avaU myself of the present opportunity, lest a better should
not be afforded me.
I have sometimes considered how much we are disposed,
especially in what may be called the spring-time of life, to
indulge the wanderings of the mind in the fiowery regions
of imagination, and, untaught by experience, to suppose the
gay visions are representations of scenes as real as they are
pleasing. Hence in part, proceeds in after Ufe, disappoint
ment and chagrin, indisposing for the enjoyment of happiness..
ourselves, or contributing to it in others ; but, why not

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 137
come to the point at once ? The truth is, what I have
spoken of as cause and effect are properly both effects, or
rather, the one natural effect of our depraved condition ;
assuredly eridenced, if we were told nothing of its origin or
introduction, by om- constantly seekiag happiness ia sub
jects not adequate, tUl reiterated disappoiatment wrings the
frequent sigh under a sense of tbe necessity of that reforma
tion or change of heart which our Saviour caUs our being born
again ; but to which nature is repugnant, because it is only
effected by the inward crucifirion or death of the vain mind,
and manifested outwardly by a denial of the vanities and
follies, as well as of the impieties of a wicked world. Hence
appears the danger of reading books that tend to increase
the actirity and extend the infiuence of the passions at the
same time that they represent the beauties of the mind as
possessed or attainable in a state of nature ; " but aU is false
and hoUow."
When, by sickness, the awful future is brought near, or
by the immediate risitations of Divine mercy the Ulumina-
tions of tiuth are strong in the soul, and we see aU things
as they vriU then appear, or when we advert to the degree of
estimation in which the objects of sense or refined imagina
tion have been held by our great Pattern, and those who we
believe have foUowed him the nearest, the insignfficancy and
emptiness of the poet's risions, the tender or the pathetic
descriptions of ideal happiness or. misery which agitate the
distempered mind, appear as they really are — as much beneath
our notice as the empty toys of our childhood.
The most earnest vrish in my heart for my dear Hannah,
as for myself is, that by a constant earnest attention, and
faithful obedience to the inspeaking word of Divine grace, we
may, in the Lord's due time, experience that change. Great
would be the advantage even in this life ; the truly happy

138 letters of
are the truly religious, who having known, in their measure,
a death to sin and a new birth to righteousness, love God
above aU, whUe ia a due subordination to him they are more
susceptible of pure impressions, and better quaMed for the
endearing connections of affection and friendship than those
whose Ucentious passions are not regulated by the salutaiy
restraint of religion.
I doubt not thy admitting the truth of what I have written:
the assent of the understanding is readily obtained ; but to .
have the heart replenished with the holy preserring fear of
the Lord does not at aU times depend upon the vrill of the
indiridual, much less upon that of another. There are sea
sons of grace, times when the Divine visitation is extended
in an especial manner ; may we wait for it with more ardent
breathings of soul than for every other blessing, and, by
giving way to its leavening infiuences, experience that meek
ness, patience, true charity, and self-denial vprought in us,
which, and than which nothing else, wiU make us happy in
ourselves and a blessing to others.
I love thy brother as I love thee, and equaUy desire his
happiness with thine. Knowledge is.not wanting to any of
us, and oh ! that obedience may not be 1 Give my dear love to
him, and let him remember — let us all remember — God sees
the heart ; if our professed desires to grow in grace are sin
cere, they -wUl be heard and answered. To the protection and
preservation of the Almighty arm in every season of danger
and difilculty I desire to commit you both vrith my ovm
soul.
To S. Lloyd.
Ketley, 29th of Third Month, 1779.
 The occasion upon which I am going from home now,
and went to Birmingham last, as well as to some other places

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 139
lately, has excited in my mind a consideration how far my
conduct has suited these occasions, which I think may be
compared to the solemn assembUes of the Jews formerly,
when I presume their minds were occupied on sacred sub
jects, to the exclusion of seciJar concerns. Perhaps it may
not be necessary to some, (as I think I heard thee once
express it) to have the ark always upon their shoulders ; but
for my own part, so easily do my feet slip and my attention
relax, I have more reason to fear a getting from under the
burden or weight of the word, (if I may use that expression)
too soon, than bearing it too long. And I think, too, the
generaUty of mankind are most Ukely to miss their way on
the same hand. When I consider WUliam Penn's descrip
tion of us as a people, in his account of our rise and progress
to his day — when they were in conversation innocent,
serious, and weighty, their vriUs and affections bowed and
brought into subjection ; and that nothing could draw them
from this retired, inward, watchful frame — and compare it
vrith the present state of our Society, or indeed my own,
need I scruple to acknowledge and lament the disparity —
to admire, in his own words, " the humUity and chaste zeal
of that day ? — how constant at meetings ! how retired in them !
how firm to truth's life, as weU as truth's principles ! how
entire and imited ia their communion ? " Ah ! my friend,
how are we now ? But, instead of ineffectual bewaUings
and fiTuitless comparisons, let us, through the assistance and
divine help of the Holy Arm, which supported them in that
day, and which is equally ready to lead us iu the same path,
let us endeavour after a reformation in ourselves, let us walk
by the same rule, let us mind the same things, and foUowing
them, as they followed Christ, be quahfied to be examples to
others in the same way. The state of the Society, of our
own famUies, the glory of God, and our own happiness,

140 LETTERS OF
— everythmg unites to excite us to watchfulness and to
constant prayer; and may we be thereto so excited, so
vrisheth Thy affectionate friend.
Extract of a Letter to a Friend, wJio was a member of the
same Monthly Meeting, and the mother of a large family.
Ketley, 1st of Fifth Month, 1783.
— — When I was sitting vrith thee and thy chUdren, in
company vrith the Friends concerned to pay you a religious
visit, certain considerations occurred to my mind, which my
unwUlingness to prevent such adrice as they might have to
give, and a hope that their observations might supersede the
necessity of my making any, together with the thought that
if they did not, I could adopt this method of communicating
them to thee, occasioned me to omit mentioning them at the
time ; and may be considered as the reasons for my addressing
this letter to thee ; and as I have no motive to do it that is
not consistent vrith suicere desUes for thy own peace and
thy children's welfare, I hope thou vriU receive it in the bve
in which it is written. It became the subject of my con
siderations, of how great importance is the trust committed
to a parent of chUdren, and the mistress of a family. That
duties and obligations which exist not in a single state arise
from the relation in which we stand to our offspring, who we
ought to believe are entiusted to our care by the Almighty-n :
that every additional chUd is an additional charge, which
enlarges the account we shall have to give for our conduct
to them, and before them ; and also adds to our obUgation
to train them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,
were it only for this reason, — that the consequent good
example of the elder will make it more easy to manage and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 141
bring up the younger in like manner. When I consider how
much thy husband is abroad, and when at home, how much
his engagements in business oblige him to be absent from
his family, it appears to me thy duty increases with the
increased necessity there is for thy exertion in well ordering
thy chUdren, and more especiaUy while their tender age
renders them susceptible of the authority, as it subjects them
more immediately to the care of a mother : I might add, too,
how desirable it must be to a father, after a long and close
attention to business, for the maintenance of his vrife and
numerous tender offspring, to have a comfortable, weU-regu-
lated famUy, to sit down vrith at his meals, and to retire to
in an evening. What a pity would it be, if through a want
of timely exertion on thy part, UI habits, which are too
readUy as weU as too early contracted, should acquire such
strength with increase of age, as to be unconquerable by all
the endeavours thou can use ; and how would it add to thy
compunction and sorrow to refiect that much less reprehension
and restraint, laid on them in early Ufe, might have prevented
their too-late lamented defection from the right path. Or,
supposing it should not, it wUl be some consolation to thee,
as it has been to others, to be able to say, thou wast cleai' of
them — thou had restrained them from evil whUe they were
under thy power, and when their age exempted, or their
distance removed them from it, they could have no more from
thee than thy example, thy prayers, and thy occasional adrice ;
and all these I sincerely desire they may always have, and in
future always observe.
I remembered the exhortation was not only "be sober,"
but also " be vigUant " — that it is not only our duty to be
watchful to foresee, but also dUigent to prevent occasions of
blame in our children : and shaU we, through indolence,
through a want of that vigilance and dUigence, which the

142 LETTERS OF
importance of our. trust, the safety of our chUdren and our
own peace should inspire, suffer them to contract habits of
inattention and rudeness, even in their very tender age, and
when most easily governed ? What, then, is to be expected
when increasing years shall give the elder greater strength,
and the younger have the influence of their example, super
added to the propensity which thy chUdren, in common with
aU others, have to do wrong. Children soon grow too old
and too strong for a mother's government ; but, tUl a certain
age at least, the mother has the greatest part, if not aU the
care of their conduct, as well as of their health ; and the
success of their father's or master's endeavours afterwards,
in their learning and deportment, depends much upon the
mother's previous good management.
When I again assure thee I have nothing but love and
good-wUl in my heart to thee and thy chUdren, I hope thou
vrill excuse the freedom of the preceding remarks, and one
other hint, with which I shaU conclude an epistle already
longer than I expected it would have been, — and that is,
concerning thy well-ordering thy chUdren on the First-day;
It is to be desired that the frequent reading of the Holy
Scriptures mentioned in our queries, should be understood
by us to mean oftener than on one day in the week, and I
hope it is recommended and practised by some accordingly ;
but on that day especially, it should not be neglected; and
as, from the many engagements so numerous a family of
little ones as thine must furnish, it is not to be expecte^
thou can have many opportunities for reading, I have not a
doubt, if thou set thy chUdren to read them, vrith sincere
desires for their and thy own benefit, it would prove as muoil
to thy edification and comfort as if thou read them thyself
as well as it might be the means of preventing them fi'om
mixing in company and conversation with the many rude

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 143
children which, on that day especiaUy, are to be met with ;
and as there is then the greatest danger, they should be par
ticularly restrained from it, by being kept with their parents,
or other suitable company ; for as six days are sufficient for
labour or learning, they should be also for play and
amusement. Ketley, 11th of Second Month, 1784.
Dear Nephew,
The perusal of thy first letter above mentioned revives in
my mind a consideration that has many times employed it.
Can thou tell me why a sentiment not more justly conceived,
nor always more happUy expressed, is, notwithstanding,
better remembered and more wiUingly quoted from a heathen
phUosopher, than from a Christian apostle, — ^from the writ
ings of the Greeks and ]Romans, than from the Old or New
Testament ? Thy adducing as an instance of public virtue
in the ]Romans, their applauding this line of their poet, —
" Homo sum, nihil humani a me alienum puto,"
furnishes me vrith the occasion to remark in the first place
that there is a material difference between entertaining just
apprehensions of moral obligations and acting conformably
to them, as was observed of the Athenians. Thou will
readily suppose I allude to the contrast between their beha-
riour and that of the less refined Spartans, to the old gentle
man, which occasioned him to exclaim, " The Athenians
know what is becoming, the Spartans practice it ; and let me
observe the latter only is public virtue. I admit the beauty
of the sentiment, as thou perhaps vrill that of a modern poet,
who, after recommending to his pupU the observance of the
nearer relative duties by an affectionate regard to his parents.

144 LETTERS OF
&c., enjoins an unlimited interest in the concerns of his
fellow-creatures :
" All human wfeal or woe
Learn thou to make thine own."
But in what does that differ from the Christian injunction,
" Rejoice with those who do rejoice, and weep vrith those
who weep ;" or is the Roman's language more animated than
the Apostle's, " Who is weak, and I am not weak ? who is
offended, and I burn not ?" Where wUl thou find tender
sympathy and ardent love more strongly recommended, more
cogently enforced, or more conspicuously exhibited, than
in the language of the New Testament and the example of
the Apostles, for I would not on the present occasion men
tion their divine Master ? " Love as brethren ; be pitifid, be
courteous." "Remember them that are in bonds, as bound
with them, and them that suffer adversity, as being your
selves in the body." " Look not every man at his ovm things,
but every man also on the things of others ;" and, says the
Apostle, when imprisoned at Rome, to those whom he had
converted by the preaching of the gospel at Philippi, " Yea,
*and if I be offered upon the saerffice and service of your
faith, I joy and rejoice vrith you aU." I have set dovra such
passages as occur to me at the instant, neither believing they
are the best, nor by many the only ones, which would be
found for my present purpose : on the contrary, I apprehend
neither this sheet, nor another with it, would contain every
correspondent injunction, or similar declaration. I have
wished somebody capable of doing the subject justice, would
coUect the most celebrated sentiments of ancient and modern
philosophers and poets, and contrast them vrith paraUel pas
sages from the Bible, especiaUy the New Testament : being
of opinion, so far as my contracted reading and observation

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 145
enables me to form one, that there is nothing truly valuable
in either of the former, that is not to be found more simply
and iatelUgibly expressed, as weU as more strictly enjoined,
by the precepts, and more powerfuUy recommended by the
examples, recorded in the latter. I am also of opinion that
the light estimationin which the Scriptures are held by too
many, is in some degree occasioned by the manner in which
they now peruse them, as that perhaps may be ovring to the
manner in which, by the general mode of education, they
were subjected to their perusal in early life ; and my induce
ment to say so much upon the occasion which I hope thou
wUl at least excuse, is the vrish that a frequent and attentive
reading of them, may not only make them acquainted vrith
and reUsh their beauties, but what I beUeve is a certain con
sequence, conduce to the practice of the virtues they recom
mend, and thereby procure that happiness which can be
obtained by no other means. 
To THE Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke.
21*i! of Fourth Month, 1784.
¦ 1 have always maintained a firm belief iu a particular.

as weU as a very extensive beUef in a general Proridence ; I
think I am justified in it by experience and observation, as
weU as warranted by the doctrine of the Gospel and the
declaration of our Sariour. If our solicitudes respecting the
necessary supplies of food and clothing are obviated by an
appeal to the providence of God manifest by his cave for the
inferior part of his creation, ought we not much more to
beUeve, in an affair whereon so much of our happiness in this
life depends, and that has so great an uifiuence on our conduct,
that the Lord whom we are taught to supplicate as our Father
who is in heaven, has an especial regard to us in so interestiBg

146 LETTERS OF
a conjuncture, and that every circumstance, however fortui
tous in appearance, vriU be found to have been controlled, if
I say not adapted, by a wisdom and direction superior to our
own contrivance, as weU as, perhaps, contrary to our ovm
intention, and at the same time perfectly consistent with the
benevolencfe of a tender Father to his dependent chUdren.
It is not only best but easiest to me to adopt these Unes : —
" AU nature is but art unknown to Thee,
All chance, direction which Thou cans't not see,"
on the principles of Christianity : and I account it an happi
ness that, not baring learning sufficient or a capacity equal
to it, I have not attempted to reconcUe the difficulties that
occur, whether in the intellectual or moral system, by pHlo-
sophy. We seem to be placed here rather to act than to
speculate, to be perfected in love than in knowledge. The
prime instructor in religious and civU duties, I beUeve con
sistently with the profession of the Society of which I am a
member, is that portion of Divine grace which is commu
nicated to every one, or as the Scriptures and our primitive
Friends affected to express it, the Light, that enhghteneth
every man who cometh into the world — ^the grace of God
that bringeth salvation to those who are taught by it, as
the apostle describes its effects : and the next and only
inferior as the mediate manifestation of it, the holy Scripture
of the New Testament, without excluding the old Bible:
and so far as I may be permitted to form an opinion it is,
that every excellency in every system of ethics taught by
all the phUosophers before or since the promulgation of the
Gospel, is included in it, and surpassed by it ; that every
man who reads it with simplicity of intention, and sincerity
of desire to be benefited by it, vriU, through the assistance
and illumination of the same Spirit by which the holy men

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 147
who wrote it were inspired, be enabled to read it to advan
tage, and with sufficient information for present duty and
final acceptance vrith God, so far as either depends thereupon.
He vriU too, I think, be convinced that the world is infat
uated, and that the generality even of professed Christians,
are unacquainted with the pririleges of the Gospel, the
victory to be obtained over the guUt and the power of sin
through faith and obedience, and the deliverance from the
fear of death, to which they must othervrise live in continual
bondage ; and the wonder is, that truths so important, so
alarming or so animating, as are those exhibited in the sacred
volumes, should so generaUy and so long escape their atten
tion. But what am I writing ? where, in the words of the
poet, "where faUs this censure? it o'erwhelms myseU." I
am far, very far, short of the attainment I might and ought
to have experienced, and would have this apply rather as an
incitement to further dUigence in myself, than be considered
as needless declamation to another. But it is time to check
my pen, which has run on further and faster than I either
expected or intended, and yet though I sincerely beUeve I
have said nothing which thou did not know before and better,
I wUl make no other apology for writing it. 
To THE Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke.
Bridgwater, 28th of Seventh Month, 1784.
My dear Friend,
I thought the time long before I received thy letter of the
23rd instant ; and yet I had no reason to expect it much
sooner. We were gone from Bristol before it came there,
and they lost no time in sending it hither, for I had it last
night. I was so sensible of the state of thy mind the last
evening we spent together, as weU as the next morning, that
H 2

148 LETTERS OF
I regretted I had at aU urged thy coming down at a time
when, if thy inclination did not lead thee another way, it
certainly did not appear to tend towards the Dale. But I
did not suppose, nor can I yet conceive, from any outward
circumstances that have come to my knowledge, there was
any reason for thy being, and consequently that thou would
be, so uncommonly depressed ; for to a man of sense — I had
like to have said to a phUosopher, but I wUl rather say, to a
Christian — possessed of the favour of God, of the love of the
object of his tenderest affections, and of the esteem of his
friends, what should prevent his enjoying such blessings, in
the manner that inspires the disposition of mind which the
Apostle intends when he exhorts to constant rejoicing ?
But though I cannot account for it from any outward cir
cumstance, yet, as I can conceive from experience of my
own, as weU as thy account, the reality of such a state of
mind, it must, I think, be attributed to other influences
which I shall not attempt to discriminate or define. As a
simple man — and God knows I am a very simple one — it
seems more my business to make the proper improvement of
such seasons, than to attempt to discover whether they are
most justly to be accounted for by the action of matter upon
spirit, or of spirit upon matter, by bodUy temperament or
extraneous influence ; and yet (that I may not use another
word that would imply a capabUity at some time to discuss
such a subject) if I had leisure and was, or rather only was,
as much disposed thereto as I have been, I think I could
assign what would appear, at least, not contradictory to
Scripture nor inconsistent with reason, in support of what
thou art pleased to call my hypothesis — if, indeed, I rightly
apprehend thy intention in thy present application of the
word. But not to forget what would be of most consequence to

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 149
myseU^ and if I could suppose anything I wrote could be of
consequence to thee, I would mention that the most natural,
because most profitable, effect of such seasons of desertion
and spiritual desolation seems to me, consistently with thy
practice upon the occasion, to be the taking refuge, or, which
is the same thing, the desire to take refuge, under the vrings
of the Almighty, the God and Father of aU our mercies,
equaUy infinite in goodness as in power, and who is justly
caUed a God hearing prayer.
K anything can make us happy in this world, it must be
the same that is to constitute our happiness in the next ;
and that is an abiding sense of his favour : but as the present
is only a state of probation and refinement, and which, from
our beUef in God and his above-mentioned attributes, we
must conclude necessarUy involves a vicissitude in the state
of our minds as of the seasons ; so to pray vrithout ceasing is
the most safe, and I beUeve the most pleasing employment
of a truly devout soul, and not only completely consistent
with, but immediately conducive to that love and joy and
peace, that sunshine of the soul which inspires the constant
rejoicing and thankful acquiescence with every dispensation
of Proridence, so much the duty and interest of every one,
though so Uttle the experience of many and of myself.
Even whUe I am writing, the consciousness of my own
deficiencies would deter me from describing what I reaUy
beUeve to be attainable and intended for all Christians,
because it is reaUy only ideal or notional in myself, did I not
hope thou would not only read it with the candour and
aUowances of friendship, but also consider it as the strongest
proof I can give of a confidence which friendship only can
inspire ; for to very, very few others in the world could I
say the same thing. But I wUl further add, that being firm
in the beUef that such a state is attainable, and was intended

150 LETTERS OF
for aU, I do at times, and I hope with sincerity and earnest
ness, desire to experience it and thereby to have cause of
rejoicing in myself, and that aU mine, from the same
experience, may give me the same reason to rejoice in them
also. I have written so much, and I bad like to have said
so differently from what I intended, — but I reaUy began
vrithout any specific intention, only to answer thy letter as
it should happen ; but it has happened so as I did not expect
it would ; and I had a passing thought of the propriety of
sending it ; but such are my sentiments. If I conceal them
from thee, I could not call thee my friend, as I now mean it,
and if I disguised them to thee, I should not deserve to be
caUed thy friend, as I have desired it ; so I shaU let it go,
and abide the consequences.
That I think egotisms as admissible in eorrespondenefc
between friends as thou dost, my practice wiU demonstrate ;
nay, I think it cannot subsist vrithout them. Thou can
write to me on no other subject half so interesting ; but
thou wUl understand me (as our friends sometimes express
it of a man and his vrife) to include thy whole self, and I
vriU include my Hannah with myself. We went to Ford
yesterday. The pleasure grotmd is laid out very agreeably ;
but the house, at an expense of time, labour, and materials
sufficient to have buUt a complete dweUing, is so void of
elegancy, and even of conveniency, which I think may well
exist in the same structure, that to avoid being vexed myself,
or vexing those who did for the best, I think I shaU go there
but seldom, if I go there at all ; and yet it is the place I
most peculiarly intended for Hannah. 

RICHARD REYNOLDS. , 151
To J. Phillips.
Ketley, 24ith of Eighth Month, 1784.
 I spent a week at Bristol. One day I went to the
woods on the other side of the river, and opposite to the hot
weUs ; the scene pleases me better, though it is adapted more
to the pencU of a Salvator than a Claude. The pomp of
groves and savage grandeur of the rocks, the awful aspect
of the genius of the place, (if I may use such a figure,)
and which was scarcely to be contemplated without a mii-
ture of terror, naturaUy tended to inspire that sense of the
presence of Almighty power and our own insignificancy
which produces humility and thankfulness, a rejoicing in ;l
consciousness of his presence and protection, and acknow
ledging our own unworthiness ; to which-kind of devotion in
the soul, the gloom and sUence of the grove, into which one
immediately enters, upon turning round, was also exceed
ingly propitious. Though I do not adopt aU the notions,
and cannot receive aU the relations of Swedenbourg, I have
always beUeved that the spiritual world is nearer to us than
many suppose, and that our communications vrith it would
be more frequent than many of us experience, did we attain
to that degree of purity of heart, and abstraction from worldly
thoughts and worldly tempers, which quaUfies for such com
munion or intercoiu:se.
We confer with each other through the medium of our
organs, being in the body ; but that the Supreme Intelli
gence communicates of his wUl concerning us, and of the
comforts of his Holy Spirit to us ; that we hear his voice,
saying, " This is the way, walk in it," when we would turn to
the right hand or to the left, and that we are conscious of
the renewals of his love and of strength to our souls, without
the medium of external language, our own experience, I

152 LETTERS OF
trust, conrinces, as weU as the Holy Scriptures assure us.
I beUeve in the ubiquity of the Almighty ; that " God is ever
present, in the void waste, as in the city fuU ;" but whether
it is that I am constitutionaUy weaker than some others, as
weU as that I am far behind them in attainments, I confess
I find myseU' not equally capable of introversion or abstrac
tion of mind in aU places, and therefore I think it allowable
to avaU myself of such retirements as often as I can ; which
practice, as I once observed to another friend, has the sanc
tion of our Saviour's example, who so frequently resorted to
the sea-side, to the tops of mountains, and to desert places,
that I believe it is mentioned or referred to more than thirty
times by the different Evangelists ; and I repeat the wish,
that my practice on such occasions may be consonant to his,
inasmuch as we stand in greater need of Divine assistance,
and we are exhorted to continue instant in prayer.
Letter ' soliciting a Contribution to a Charity.
6fh of theMnth Month, 1784.
That T  , as well as thou and I, have more than is neces
sary for our own use, wUl be readUy aUowed, and I hope we
shaU as readUy acknowledge, that we are but stewards for
the overplus, as that we have not merited the abundance
any more than many who stand in need of our assistance ;
and, in short, that as we must render an account of our
stewardships, the abundance is only a trust, or rather a trial,
which wUl prove a blessing to us, or otherwise, accord
ingly as we acquit ourselves under it. It has been justly
observed, that a bequest by will is rather obliging our heu-s
to be liberal than being liberal ourselves. WhUe we could
keep it we did not give it, and when we can keep it no
longer, we direct them to apply to charitable purposes that

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 153
which, if not so applied, would have come to them, and
which therefore seems more properly to be considered as
theirs than ours, and consequently is more properly to the
credit of their stewardship account than ours. I would not
be understood to discourage aU charitable legacies ; those who
have only enough to support them comfortably and properly
through Ufe, give it as soon as they can spare it when Ufe
is over ; but we who have every year more coming in than we
can properly spend, besides accumulated sarings already at
interest, may very properly, and I hope profitably, revolve iu
our minds the foregoing considerations, with many others
which might be mentioned, and which I doubt not will be
brought to our remembrance, if our miuds are rightly ap
pUed ; but I wUl add, without any comment, a passage of
scripture, which has appeared to me awful, and particularly
applicable to the present purpose — '' We must aU appear
before the judgment-seat of Christ, that every one may
receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath
done, whether it be good or evU." 
To S. Lloyd.
Ketley, 16th of Eleventh Month, 1784.
 1 have for some time past intended to address a letter

to thee upon a particular occasion ; but a variety of engage
ments, and thy absence' from home, have hitherto prevented
me. Understanding by thy letter last night, that thou art
returned from London, I take the Uberty of applying to thee
for thy assistance towards the estabUshment of a fund for a
charitable purpose, and which I flatter myself the long sub
sisting friendship between us authorizes me to do without
apology — nay rather, that thou vriU consider it as the fruit
of genuine affection — and that I shaU be entitled to th.y
H 3

154 LETTERS OF
thanks for presenting thee so fair an opportunity of contri
buting to an estabUshment productive of consequences
pleasing to every benevolent mind, but applying most for
cibly to thy feeUngs as a parent; and thou hast heard I
presume of the abundant success of the charitable endeavours
of the Friends in Ireland for raising a fund to give portions,
according to the exigencies of the case, to young persons of
exemplary conduct, upon their marriage. A consideration
of the state of the Society in Wales, has inspired the wish
that something of like kind could be effected here, and
something has been done by way of beginning. The share
thou permittest me to hold in thy friendship, together with
a superior propriety from certain pecuUar circumstances,
induces me to give thee a preference of application, with an
assurance of success greater than I should have from some
others. When I inform thee that in aU North Wales, (im-
less I should except  Clerk at  who has a
wife, and three chUdren, and who may have saved rather
more than is absolutely necessary for them,) there is not
one person whose situation in life or abiUties would justify
his or her giving on such an occasion ; thou will perceive
and admit the reason for my applying elsewhere.
The reduced scattered state of the Society in Wales with
respect to property, but more especially with respect to
numbers, cannot faU of exciting the pity and sympathy of
every tender feeling mind who knows and considers it.
From the accounts in print and in manuscript, as weU as by
tradition, we learn not only how much more numerous they
were in North Wales, but also the" coimtenance and support
they received from the example, the labours, the charity
and hospitality, of thy worthy ancestors, who it is probable
gave and spent more in the serrice and for the spreading
of the truth, and to the honest though poor and simple pro:

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 155
fessors of it, in one year, than has been required from their
descendants in seven. The consideration too, of their suf
ferings, in property as weU as person, during their impri
sonment for the testimony of a good conscience towards
God, has often occurred to my mind; and shaU not we,
whom the good proridence of the Almighty hath exempted
from such sufferings, be willing to devote a Uttle of that
abundance, which might have been taken from us by the
hand of persecution, to Him, and for his sake, who giveth us
so plentifuUy of aU things richly to enjoy ? The loss the
Society and individuals have sustained by mixed marriages,
is universaUy admitted and lamented ; and though I should
not think it right to bribe or hire mere nominal professors
to continue in it, yet, when we reflect on the exposed situar
tion of the chUdren of very poor parents, (perhaps the orphan
chUdren of such,) in very smaU meetings, secluded thereby
from the company and countenance of Friends, vriU it not
give a pleasure not otherwise to be purchased, to reflect that
there is some prorision made for the comfortable settlement
of such pitiable objects, and who vriU not be the less likely
to be deserving of it, by knovring that only vriU entitle them
to it. There is a poor Friend, and I believe as simple and
honest as any one in North Wales, who has several small
chUdren, I believe six, and who may have as many more,
whose earnings as a mason do not exceed two shiUings a-day
in summer, not amounting to eighteen-pence a-day aU the
year round: let us put ourselves and our chUdren in the
place of him and his chUdren, — and who hath made us to differ
from him ? — and why ? With what comfort should we reflect
on an establishment furnishing motives to our chUdren to an
orderly conduct, even in the means of a comfortable, though
little prorision, when it should be desirable to them to settle
in the world, and which it was so far from being in our power

156 LETTERS OF
to give them, that our present earnings, with some occasional
assistance, was barely sufficient to provide them with present
necessaries. Considering it in this Ught, and certainly this
is the right light in which to consider it, the number of our
children furnishes so many additional inducements to our
Uberality, and I think, were I in thy place, I should be very
wUling to give every little chUd I had at least a couple of
guineas to contribute, considering it as a part of their
portions, and believing they would never be the poorer, but
either have more, or want less, for it as long as they lived ;
for faithful are the promises of the Lord, He wffi fulfil
them. My pen has run on longer than I expected ; I have said
what I did not expect to say, and have omitted what I first
thought of. But I wiU now be as brief as I can, and leave
it to thee to make such a comment as shaU arise in thy own
mind. I thought of the superiority of Evangelical to moral
righteousness, of the precepts of the Gospel to tbe obliga
tions of the Law. The latter enjoined the appropriation of
the tenth of the increase, to the retainers of the temple, the
stranger and the poor, besides many other sacrifices and
offerings. Under the Gospel no specffic proportion of our
substance is mentioned, but we are to consider ourselves as
chUdren of one famUy, and manifest our love to God the
Father of aU, by a love of our brethren, or how dweUeth the
love of God in us ? I do not say every one is to give a
tenth ; but it may be weU for us to consider what we have
given, and I desire for myself and for my friend, that through
the influence of Dirine Grace, our righteousness may ex
ceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees. 

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 157
Ketley, 12th of First Month, 1785.
If my advancement in a fitness for a better was in pro
portion to the declension of my attachment or liking to this
life, its cares and concerns, I sometimes think I should have
much more cause to rejoice under the frequent remindings
of futurity, which advancing age and declining health ad
minister ; but though my lot has been cast among scenes of
worldly care and continued from early manhood — may I not
say to this very day ? — whereby secular concerns have em
ployed the greater part of my time and my faculties ; stUl I
have loved and vrished Godspeed to those who have been
better employed ; and if I at all know my own heart, my
most earnest desires are to be vrith and to be Uke^them.
And if I have any inducement to look forward to the pos-
sibffity of continuing a few years longer in this world, it is
from the hope of greater Uberty for that retirement from
the busy scenes of it, which, U" not absolutely necessary to so
weak a mind, is at least, with submission to the ordering of
an all-wise Proridence, desirable, as Ukely to be conducive to
that preparation of heart which quaUfies either for soUtude
or serrice, as the great Master of aU shaU permit or require.
Continue thy prayers for me, as a poor, weak, unworthy
creature, but who loves thee with an affection not founded
on worldly considerations, or of which the merely worldly-
minded have any conception ; and may the Shepherd of
Israel, who hath hitherto led and fed and preserved us,
have us and ours in his holy keeping and protection in
every difficulty and under every besetment, whUe we pass
along through the ricissitudes of time to an unchangeable
blessed eternity.

158 letters op
Extract.
2nA of Eleventh Month, 1786.
I admit with thee, " there is nothing amiable in melan
choly;" yet it is the tincture of my soid — "that there is
no virtue in closing the avenues of the heart to innocent
pleasure." J vriU go further, and say this is a crime. Can
we then suppose we comply with the dying injunctions of
our departed saints, manifest a respect for their memory,
and ensure our bUssftd meeting again hereafter, by a temper
unlovely, and a conduct criminal ? That they do communi
cate with our spirits, and that our felicity is consistent vrith
theirs ; that it is increased by our taking those steps which
lead to our present and future happiness, and that we maybe
therein assisted by their ministration, is a thought I have
often indulged vrith deUght, if I say not with advantage;
and I could enlarge upon it vrith pleasure, did time and
opportunity permit, but can now only say, it doth not appear
to me inconsistent with reason, or unwarranted by scrip
ture ; and after mentioning the one text that hath most
forcibly affected my mind at this time, I vriU request thee to
let me know how many others may be adduced in further
confirmation of an opinion so soothing to those who, vrith all
the helps they can draw both from scripture and reason,
cannot be insensible of the loss they have sustained ; though
the happiness of those they have loved, or thought they have
loved, better than themselves, has been increased by their
removal to scenes " From sin, and pain, and death, for ever free."
I said, thought they loved better than themselves ; for if we
did, should we not, on such occasions, rejoice rather than
mourn ? But Ifeel, and God and they know, the weakness
of human nature ; and that they are not indifferent to our
highest interests is fairly to berinferred from the text to

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 159
which I before aUuded, and which informs us, there is joy in
heaven over the repenting sinner.
Extract of a Letter to R. D.
Ketley, 28th of Fourth Month, 1787.
I send herewith a New Testament, in which I have
marked some texts that directly assert, or manifestly imply,
the immediate or present deliverance from the guUt of sin,
of which we spoke : or, in the words of one of them, " the
forgiveness of sins that are past."
This hath long appeared to me most essential to our pre
sent happiness, as being the only means to deliver us from
that bondage, to which without it we must, through fear of
death, be aU our Ufetime subjected : and it hath been occa
sion of thoughtfulness to me that so glorious a truth, and
which is so clearly, so steongly asserted, in the places I have
marked, and doubtless in many more in the book I have
sent ; a truth so comfortable to us, so consistent vrith the
goodness of God, and the practice, (if I may use that expres
sion) as weU as the doctrine, of our Sariour, should be so
seldom proclaimed, or the experience of it declared, by those
who are caUed to the work of the ministry — the preaching of
the glad tidings of the gospel among us, even deUverance to
the captives, and the opening of the prison doors to them
that are bound. I have wondered at it the more, because
they have boldly and frequently asserted a doctrine which I
admit to be equaUy glorious, though not more than equaUy
true, but harmonizing most perfectly vrith it, and that is,
not only the possibUity, but the necessity of christian perfec
tion, of manifesting our being born of God, by living without
sin ; which I apprehend vriU justify the appropriation of the
texts I have marked by those who have attained to it, and
that if, by the effectual assistance of the grace of God, we are
delivered from the present power of sin, we are also through

160 LETTERS OF
the mercy of God in Christ Jesus discharged from the guUt
of sins that are past ; or as it is expressed in the text, " There
is now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus,"
(that is) to them, " who walk not after the flesh but after
the Spirit." I have no doubt, from what I recoUect of the
writings of our ancient Friends, their testimonies were as
ample to the one as to the other of these great and glorious
truths of the gospel, and if my leisure admitted, I should
gladly look over the few I have, with reference to them. 1
think the time would be weU employed. But my dear
friend, may we never beUeve we are justified whUe we are
not sauctffied, or fancy we can be free from the guUt while
we are wUlingly subjected to the power of sin ; but by walking
in the fear of the Lord may we experience the comfort of the
Holy Ghost, and know the Spirit itseU to bear witness vrith
our spirits, that we are the chUdren of God. This I beheve
was the experience of those to whom the apostle then wrote,
and that it was equally intended to be the privUege and ex
perience of Christians in every succeeding age — that it may
be ours, is the fervent prayer of
E. E.
To D. Dabby.
Ketley, 80th of Seventh Month, 1787.
I know not what others may expect from me — ^per

haps, I know not my own heart ; I beUeve, in its natural state,
mine is no better than my feUow-creatures ; but if I have at
aU known the changing power of redeeming grace, if I at aU
know its present desires, it forms no wish so frequent or so
strong, as that I may be and do what the Lord woidd have
me — that he would create a clean heart, and renew a right
spirit vrithin me. Not having nor expecting any great" or
lasting satisfaction from the enjoyments of this world, pos
sessed of enough of its treasure, and vrithdravring from it

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 161
cares, grieved by the eril that is in it, and by the ingratitude
of too many of its inhabitants, I sigh for peace and perfect
redemption ; and desirous of obtaining the former by expe
riencing the latter, I often look forward to a time, which I
hope is not far distant, when removing from these scenes of
business, where I am and shaU be Uable to be called to take
a part in engagements of a more pubUc or of a private
nature, I may be in a situation more favourable to that
advancement I vrish * * * #
I often look round me, and often consider if I have anything
to do ; I am wUling to spend or to be spent, but afraid and
unwUling to engage where I am not employed. Those who
staid latest, but could give as a reason — " because no man
hath hired us" — were employed, when the Lord of the vine
yard bade them go, and received their penny when the even
was come. If in some instances I have not been altogether
idle ; if at present I appear so to others and do indeed stand
stUl, I can truly say, I am not hired, and I hope as truly,
that I desire to be as ready, under the same quaUfications,
as he who said, " Here am I, send me." * * * *
I do not envy the advancement of others, I am glad of it.
I heartUy bid them Godspeed, and rejoice in the success of
their labours. I wish to be like them, and am wUling, nay,
rather desirous, to be employed vrith them — further I dare
not go ; and finding myself, stUl so poor, so barren and so
desolate, I ask myself is there not a cause ? my unworthiness
presents itself; but, if I was not afraid that my heart
retained some secret impediment, unknown to myself, I
should adopt the language of Peter, and say " Lord thou
knowest aU things : thou knowest that I love Thee," and
the consciousness, that if I do not love him above aU things,
I do desire to do so, is my only support under that with
drawing of Ught and sense of Dirine requirings which I so

162 LETTERS OP
frequently experience, and which I sometimes fear vriU con
tinue tUl perfect light and love shaU exclude all doubt and
darkness in the life to come ; for under aU, I am enabled to
hope I shaU be saved at last vrith an everlasting salvation.
To Sarah Trimmer,
Ketley, near Shifnal, Shropshire,
4tth of Second Month, 1788.
Respected Friend,
I duly received thy favour of the 15th of last month, that
of the 25th was mis-sent to Stourbridge. It is now also
mine, and I am much obUged by the attention thou hast been
pleased to bestow on the hint suggested in the letter which
I took the Uberty of addressing to thee, on the 11th ultimo.
But permit me to say, if my expressions did admit of such a
construction, it was not in my idea that a petition to Par
liament should even be signed, much less be presented, by
women : the most I could desire or expect was, that they
would pubUcly and ia print declare their abhorrence of the
inhuman traffic, and their vrish that the measures pursuing for
the abolition of it might be siiccessful, confirmed by a small
subscription annexed to theiB na.mes, for defraying, in con
cert vrith that already begiin, t "oenses attending the
efforts now making for that purpiS^ Sey^ which I doubt not
would have been added, their private andJ personal influence
and interest vrith those who are most capable of giring effect
to the benevolent attempt, whether^of the nobUity, clergyj
or members of ParUament. Perhaps even this was more
than I should have expected ;^-or,-rif I had known much of
the world, should have proposed. My ignorance and my
motive wUl be my apology, or rather vriU render one unne
cessary to thee.
I wish to have reason to think well of every body, but

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 163
especiaUy of those of whom I had formed, from whatever
circumstance, an opinion higher than common. I admire
the bright quaUties of the head, but I love the good ones of
the heart. I was sorry that any thing, whether I know its
name or not, should prevent H. M. from cordiaUy uniting
vrith thee on the present occasion ; but I hope that wUl
not prevent thee from using thy pen if it appears necessary,
not doubting thy acting vrith caution or fearing the cause
wffi suffer by thy injudiciously attempting to serve it. I
hope too, for her ovm sake as weU as the poor Africans, her
extensive influence among the great, and aU the powers of
her genius wUl be exerted ; and am confident we shaU both
rejoice in the accompUshment of our wishes, by whatever
means it is effected.
As to the money, it has touched the altar — has been
appropriated to a charitable purpose. Thou wUl admit it
cannot be so properly appUed to any other ; be pleased to pay
to the Humane Society — pounds, from a friend unknown ;
and if thou vriU direct thy bookseller to send for me twenty
of tixj Economy of Charity, neatly bound in calf and lettered,
to James PhiUips, he wUl convey them to me, and I vriU
distribute them in the best manner I can, to promote thy
benevolent intention in pubUshing them ; the remainder be
pleased to apply to thy school, or such other purpose as thou
shalt think best. Thy mentioning thy hopes of conveying
to the hands of the Queen, whom I beUeve every body
honours and loves, the late pubUcations on the slave-trade,
induced the thought of my sending to thee a copy of an
address to her by Anthony Benezet, whose name thou vrill
have seen among those who have written on the subject, and
whose address appears to have been accompanied vrith his
books. I do not know how they were received ; but as a
matter of curiosity at least — thou wUl accept it, as thou

164 LETTERS OP
also will excuse my wishing thee to peruse a book of the life
and writings of John Woolman, who was one of our Society
in America, the first I believe and most eminent, or at least
with Anthony Benezet, an eminent instrument in the com
mencement of the concern for the reUef of the slaves on that
continent. The simplicity of his manner and some pecu
liarities as one of our Society, wUl not I am persuaded pre
judice thee against the writer, nor prevent thy uniting with
his most tender concern for the distiesses of mankind of
whatever colour or station. I have taken the Uberty to
desire James PhUUps to send the book, which I hope thou
wiU condescend to accept as a smaU token of the esteem and
. regard with which I am
~~ Thy o'cliged and respectful friend,
>, Richard Reynolds.
P. S. Pray hast thou'^een a book entitled ^ra Introduction
to the Beading of fihe Holy Bible, particularly adapted for
the use of Sunday Schools ? Those I have were printed
at Birmingham, and are pretty weU executed and bound,
at 22s. 6d. per score. I do not Uke it the less for having
been written by a lady in Poland.
Extract prom a Letter to the Rev. Theophilus
Houlbrooke.
6th of Tenth Month, 1788.
1 feel for thee and with thee — that is, for myself— on thy
bemoaning the days that have passed without benefit to our
selves or to others, and the opportunities of spiritual improve
ment that have been neglected. May my desires be equaUy
ardent and my endeavours equally strenuous to redeem the
time, fuUy expecting, if they are not, that the days I have
'to come in this world vriU be, as the Patriarch said his had
been — ^few and eril. Fewer and worse than those that are past

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 165
they must be by the course of nature ; but if I am enabled,
or rather, if I avaU myseU of the help that is graciously pro-
rided for those who want and ask it, an irradiation from the
glory which shaU be revealed, wUl gUd the gloom of dark
ening days — of those of which I should otherwise have so
much reason to say, I have no pleasure in them.
I, too, have made the same humUiating comparison of the
superior dedication of heart, and devotion of powers, that
thou so justly remarked in the amiable young woman thou
saw at our house : the expression of aU the meek virtues
which soften without weakening, and distinguish the Chris
tian character vrith a lustre no other reUgion can give, was
not more conspicuous in her countenance than their influence
was real on her conduct. I had many opportunities, and
became intimately acquainted with her. The more I knew
of her, the more I approved and the better I loved her. I
hope and I expect a friendship between her and  wUl
be productive of advantage — to one at least, and satisfaction
to both, when, if I am sensible of it at aU, I shaU partake,
in common with the spirits of the just made perfect, of the
joy they receive, from the advancement of others, by an in
crease in their virtues toward the same blissful communion.
I must as readUy, and with equal grief at least, admit to
thee that those of our Society do not generaUy exhibit such
proofs of the efficacy of the principles we profess ; but
while I acknowledge and lament our defections, permit me
to suppose others are not less culpable because they profess
less. On the contrary, from the baptismal engagements of
the national church, and many parts of its service and
prayers, it should seem the composers of them had as high
a sense of the Christian duties as we have ; and though it is
true the mode of education, and iu some, though too few
instances, the influence of example among us, may give some
of our youth advantages that some others have not, yet it

166 LETTERS OP
ought to be remembered ours are by nature " chUdren of
wrath, even as others ;" that religion and virtue are not by
inheritable descent ; the same aversion to restiaint, the same
propensity to evU, the same reluctance to the cross and self-
denial, is inherent in them as in the rest of the descendants
of Adam ; and if these considerations obtain in mitigation j
of defects in other professors of Christianity, I presume
they vrill not be considered as aggravations in the fadings of
ours ; but I wish not to justify or paUiate the wrong in any.
I lament it in myself and in them, earnestly desiring it may
not terminate in unavailing acknowledgments and ineffectual
bemoanings ; but that animated by the promises and privi
leges of the gospel, we may let the time that is past of our
Ufe, wherein we have walked according to the course of this
world, suffice, and considering that the end of aU things is
at hand, we may be sober, watching unto prayer, and above <
all things, have fervent charity among ourselves !
I concur in general with thy remarks and reflections on
the Spirit of God as given to men for a guide and leader.
Indeed it is the fundamental principle of the religion I
profess ; but neither my time nor my paper, and I might say
my abUities, admit of my saying much on the subject ; nor
would it be necessary, were I ever so well quaUfied in every
respect. I believe thou art already in possession of my sen
timents concerning human Uterature. I am not capable of
appreciating its merits accurately ; but I do not think so
much of it, as thou says, is necessary ; for the examination of
the external eridences of Christianity can be obtained by
the generaUty of the professors of it. I have been long of
opinion that the internal eridences, — and to the consideration
of them every rational mind is competent, — are abundantly
sufficient to satisfy such a mind ; but even that consideration
abstractedly may not be practised, nor is necessary to many.
A simple christian, who attends dUigently to that Spirit of

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 167
Truth, which is given to every man, and wUl lead into aU
truth, wUl find as little difficulty in comprehendmg his duty
as he that hears a voice behind him, when he turneth to the
right hand, and when he turneth to the left, saying, " This
is the way, walk in it."

To THE Bishop of Bath and Wells.
Bath, 1th of Eleventh Month, 1788.
The condescension with which thou permitted my friend
and thy tenant, John Thomas, to mention his conscientious
scruple to the terms made use of as thy designation in a
deed to which he was to be a party, was very sensibly felt,
and wUl be always gratefully acknowledged by him. But,
as thou did not conclude to give the soUcited direction to
thy steward, but wast pleased to say thou would consider of
it before thou went to WeUs, and to recommend my friend
to do the same, vrith which I doubt not he vriU comply ;
permit me to mention a few particulars, should they only
go to shew that the aUeged scruple is so far from being as
thou seemed to think, altogether unfounded, that it is sup
ported by reasons that appear, to us at least, conclusive ; but
which could not be urged at that interriew without tres
passing too long on the attendance of others ; and this I
shaU attempt with the same attention to the value of thy
time, as well as vrith that respect and deference that is due
to thy age and rank, and under a Uvely impression of thy
late courteous attention to those, whose station in Ufe and
mean acquirements, would be supposed by some men to
give them but little claim to such indulgence. I apprehend,
the form or style of the designation of a bishop of the Church
of England, as by law estabUshed, is, the Right Reverend

168 letters op
Father in God, by Dirine permission. Lord Bishop of  .
As we have conscientiously withdrawn from the national
worship, and are considered as one sect, among the others
of Protestant dissenters, — can it appear strange, that those
who think the legal ecclesiastical Establishment incompatible
vrith the freedom of the ministry of the gospel ; as well as
that the gospel itself forbids the application of such epithets
to any man, should object to the use of them ? Christ hath
said, " CaU no man your father upon the earth, for one is
your Father, which is in heaven ; and ye are all brethren.''
As this cannot apply to our natural parents, I think it must
have a spiritual and reUgious intendment ; and hope it -wiR
be aUowed sufficient to furnish a scruple to a tender mind,
and therefore obtain that consideration thou kindly professed
a vrilUngness to indulge to such minds.
However justly the preceding words, " right reverend,"
may apply to thy deportment and conduct, their connection,
in the present instance, vrill, I persuade myself, warrant
their omission without impeachment. The words, " by
Divine permission," are so convertible, so equally applicable
to opposite circumstances and characters, that, as they may
be admitted in any case, the recital of them doth not seem
essential in the present. But if they must be understood to
imply an appointment commanding obedience, our being
dissenters supplies a reason for their being omitted. And as
to the title oi Lord Bishop, let it not offend, that we, who
cannot admit the estabUshed hierarchy, who have different
ideas of a gospel ministry than that it can be constituted or
.^limited hy-\mma,n authority, or ought to be supported by
compulsory exactions, though sanctioned by acts of parha-
ment, that we scruple to acknowledge under our hands and
seals, an appropriation of terms, inconsistent, in our appre
hension, with the office of a Christian bishop, as weU as

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 169
forbidden to be applied, by thy Lord and ours, to any man
upon the earth.
I do not forget that it was urged there was as much
reason to object to the terms sacred majesty as applied to
the person, and the grace of Ood as appUed to the office of
the king, the worshipful as applied to magistrates, &c. AU
this we admit. And may I be permitted to observe, that
producing a variety of simUar objections is not likely to
weaken or do away the one aUeged by us. But we, as a
people, do not apply those titles, so justly said to be equally
objectable. Our addresses to the king have been favourably
received, though expressed with our wonted simplicity, as I
presume thou may have remarked. And I hope thou vrill
be equally condescending to the tender conscience of an
aged man, as have other dignitaries in the national church
to others of our friends, who have permitted them to give
the bonds for duly administering under vriUs, and I believe
to renew leases also, without the epithets which they were
not easy to subscribe, and very much to the credit of their
humanity and Christian charity.
Thou remarked that thou had granted leases to some of
our profession who had not scrupled thy customary designa
tion ; but, if that was occasioned by their not haviog ad
verted to the preceding objections, or others that might be
made, let me hope the proof it also furnishes that my friend's
scruple is not borrowed from others, but the result of mature
consideration, will prevail vrith thee to give directions to
thy steward to leave out the words objected to in the deed
to be signed by him, and such others of our profession who
have the same scruple. If such omission was to invaUdate
or weaken the lease, the loss would be theirs who pay the
fine : but I am as certain it wiU not, as I wish thee to be
assured it would not be requested by him or by me if we

170 LETTERS OF
thought it could operate to thy injury in the remotest
degree. I vriU only add, to an address already longer than
I expected it would have been, by desiring that what I have
written may not be considered as intended to oppugn the
doctrines or practices of the church of England,— but so far
only as to account for the conscientious scruple aUeged by
my friend, which the time did not admit of his doing himself;
and that thou wUl permit me to subscribe myself, though so
little known, with much respect.Thy Christian friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Sarah Trimmer.
Bath, 12th of Eleventh Month, 1788.
Respected Friend,
Of avocations so numerous and important as are those
that engage thy attention, and employ thy time, I must have
a very inadequate opinion, as well as of my own claim to
thy notice, eould I think the bare mentioning of them was
not a more than sufficient apology for the protiaction of thy
reply to my last letter ; but I should not have thus long
delayed my acknowledgment of it, if I had not been very
busy after my excursion to Bridgwater, preriously to my
learing home to make a trial of the water at this place,
which my friends and the faculty have recommended, vrith
more kindness and expectation on their part than hope on
mine ; but that doth not prevent me from concluding to
give them a fuU trial, for which purpose I shaU be likely
to stay a month or sis weeks longer, having been here a
fortnight already, and I shaU gladly hear from thee at
No. 11, in the Grove, if thy better employments admit of
thy favouring me with a letter.
I vrish our school at Ketley was the only one that has

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 171
suffered and vriU suffer for want of regular and properly
quaUfied risitants — ^vrith us it seems irremediable, there not
being a sufficient number in the ricinity, but I regret it the
more in cities and towns, where there are many capable
but few willing. The decrease of the numbers in some
schools, and of schools in one city, are sorrowfully affecting.
I really fear the consequences wUl be fatal in some places,
and discouraging to those who are meditating the extension
of the benevolent undertaking to others, where the establish
ment is most apparently wanting. I rejoice in thy account
of the success of your school of industry, and shaU thank
fuUy accept the lady's accoimt of that so well conducted by
her, and adapted to retired vUlages, hoping to ptofit by the
communication in an attempt, or at least a proposal, for
something of that kind in our neighbourhood.
It is now my tum to be very sorry if I have given thee
reason to suppose I was displeased vrith thee for thy manner
of introducing the advice to parents into thy magazine. I
only meant to express my apprehension that an inference
might be drawn from it, as inconsistent with my attainments
as opposite to my incUnation, but I doubt not, the notice
taken of it in the number for the succeeding month, though
I have not seen it, has done away the occasion.
I expected when I wrote, to have built seven habitations,
but the plan was so altered as to admit only of six. If the
letter is stUl in existence, I vrish the number might be altered
to six. I am glad to find thou vrill give Turford's grounds
of a Holy Life, a further consideration vrith reference to the
introduction of an abstiact from it into thy magazine. I
thought it well calculated for the class of readers intended
to be benefited by that pubUcation ; and without referring
to the hint I ventured to suggest, as furnishing the reason
for such an opinion, I may mention the .great success that
i2

172 LETTERS OF
has attended a mode of instructing young chUdren by a
pious gentlewoman in the parish of Madely, who has favoured
me vrith a short sketch or specimen of her manner — ^the
questions she asks the children, &c., and which, if I thought
it would be acceptable, I woidd send to thee, as little doubt
ing thy considering it with the same candour and charitable
aUowance as if it was written by
Thy very respectful friend,
Richard Reynolds.

21st of Eleventh Month, 1788.
The morning was serene as my placid companion —

the western breeze rather breathed than blowed, and as we
gained the gradual ascent at Ford and moved slowly, very
slowly indeed, along the broad back of CockhiU, our eyes
wandered over the recognized scenes and delightful pros
pects vrith a pleasure softened by the reeoUection of former
days and absent friends. The sun that had been up nearly
two hours, shed a mild lustre through the thia mist that
meUowed the uniting hUls and bended skies, which bounded
the charming horizon ; the scattered herds on Sedgemoor ;
the recumbent flocks on the green sides of Socum ; if they
did not reaUy enjoy the scene they might be fancied to be
contemplating or reflecting on what they had before enjoyed,
added to the beauty of our present riews without embittering
our restrospect on the past. Never did I experience a com
pleter harmony,— the weather— the scene— the beholders,
were in perfect unison,— our enjoyment was as exquisite as
we could wish it ; nor was it I trust, without a degree of
that reference to the Dispenser of aU thmgs good, which
consecrates every place, and sanctions every enjoyment *
******
I trace in idea agaui and again the varied picture; some

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 173

of the trees stUl retained a part of their leaves, but
with autumn's dying breath, and some despoiled of aU, would
have made us think winter was indeed arrived, had not the
late rain, succeeded by uncommonly warm weather, given
the meadows a verdure, more frequently the livery of a
spring than a winter month, whUe the mUd effulgence of the
sun, the balmy freshness of the air, and the accordant wood-
lark's sweet note, diffused a tranquUUty not often expe
rienced at any season of the year.
To THE Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke.
29th of Eleventh Month, 1788.
 InteUectual pleasures depend but little on pecuniary

resources — indeed, some of the most subUme and refined
entertainments that we receive through our bodUy organs,
are the effects of the works of nature, or rather of the God
of nature, and therefore depend Uttle on an abundance of
wealth. I have passed " my flowery spring — my summer's
ardent stiength" — and " sober autumn /o«# fading into age,"
is now my time of Ufe — ^it is therefore no virtue and confers
no merit, that I consider death as the termination of a state
of existence, the protraction of which could only be vrith a
certainty of weakened powers and increasing conflicts ; but
though I am thereby reconciled to the approach of death,
I am contented — I ought to be more than contented — to
Uve. I vrish to be duly sensible of, and sufficiently thankful
for, the many blessings with which the evening of my day is
brightened. But there could be no enjoyment of them if
there was not a belief in Him, who hath been to many and
would be to aU, a deUverer from the fear of death ; which
otherwise, by subjecting me to bondage all my life long,
would mar every pleasure that this world could produce, or

174 LETTERS or
human nature admit. But in Him, we have pardon for the
past, preservation for the present, and reUance for the future.
He has not only made reconcUiation for us, but is able to
succour us when we are tempted. And, confiding in his
mercy, I am sometimes enabled to consider with thankfidnes's
the very many outward advantages I partake, more than
I once expected, or ever deserved.
My endeavours, I hope I may say vrithout boasting — ^my
honest endeavours, in that station in which his proridence
placed me, have been sufficiently successful to enable me
to retire to that shade and privacy which is most favourable
to my time of Ufe and temper of mind ; and, if I mistake
not, to my advancement in virtue, and, that vrith more than
- enough for aU the accommodations which age or sickness
shaU make necessary — may the surplus be appUed to alle
viate the pains and supply the wants of those, whom in his
vrisdom and providence He may have seen fit to make the
occasions for the exercise of our benevolence, as the medium
by which to extend of his blessings to them also.
If I shaU have health to enjoy them, many are the
pleasures, that as the scene in which are exhibited mani
festations of his power and vrisdom, displayed vrith a good
ness pecuUarly and solely adapted to the rational part of
his creation, the country wiU afford me. Nor is it the least
of many favours, that He has endued me with a capacity to
observe, and a disposition to enjoy, the beauties of " these
his lower works" — but higher stUl should my gratitude
arise for the more exquisite as weU as more important
advantages of virtuous friendship, which thou so truly defines,
and so justly derives from God, as a kind and indulgent
father to aU his creatures and the dispenser to them, of aU
the good they can communicate to each other.
 I am never so much ia possession of myself, nor ever

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 175
so capable of contemplating the face of nature, of attending
to the music of the groves, or inspecting the pecuUarities of
colour and of shape that distinguish and beautify the
different subjects of the vegetable kingdom, as when upon
my feet. This makes summer so desirable to me — we can
liien move slowly, or sit stUl with safety and vrith ease.
The present severity of the weather forbids our going out,
or obUges me to walk so fast as to convert the excursion
into mere bodUy exercise, without much interesting the
mind, or, at least, without that converse which converts a
walk into a social entertainment. But, while we have spirits,
from good health, and peace from a good conscience —
" Every season with us suits —
Spring has pleasant fiowers.
Summer shade, and autumn finiits,
And winter, social hours."
It is time, however, to check the roving of my pen. I
began this letter fuU of the idea of Susan NickUn. I have
again read her letters with satisfaction and pleasure, and
hope she wUl excuse the liberty I have taken to make some
extracts from them in my common-place book, so just do I
esteem some of her opinions * * I rejoice thou art in
the possession of a friend so much better qualffied to ad
minister to thy entertainment, though not more desirous of
promoting thy happiness, than Thy affectionate
Richard Reynolds.

176 LETTERS OF

Extract op a Letter to J. Phillips.
Ketley, 11th of Second Month, 1789.
At the same time I must add, of however little con

sequence my letters are, it would be difficult, and I find the
difficulty increase, as I grow older, and perhaps too as mj
leisure increases, to correspond with any body, but in cer
tain relative proportions, or according to the laws of actioj.
and reaction. But if every instance of declension, reluctance,
or abatement in my friends, has an irresistible, as weU as a
proportionate effect, I am at least equally susceptible of
impressions, and subject to influence from the opposite exer
tions. Naturally diffident from" early youth and always.
conscious of the Uttle claim my education or acquirements in
reUgion or science gave me to notice or confidence, my heart
has glowed with gratitude, as well as exulted with pleasure,
when I have shared the friendship of those who have been
wiser or better than myself, and if I can boast of but few
such friends, I am thankful for the few, and am glad I have
never cultivated any other. * * * *
I shall now be at liberty to enjoy that relaxation of mind
and freedom from care I have long desired, and which I
found in the degree I experienced it last week, so soothing.
and grateful, when my health admitted of it, or perhaps con
duced to it more than it doth at present, but whether it
was the effect of the recent change, and total absence of all
anxiety or solicitude about secular concerns, or is to be
otherwise accounted for, I enjoyed better health as well as
greater peace and tranquiUity of mind, than I had for some
time past experienced.
The flrst reUgious meeting I attended after I had quitted ,
the trade, though small and silent as ours generaUy are, was
a season of comfort and refreshment to me, and earnest were

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 177
my desires that it might not only be a time of renewal of
strength, but of renewal of covenant also, that now I was in
one sense of the word become, more than before, my own
freeman, I might be more than ever I had been a servant of
Christ, of his church, and of his people. And one sweet
week I passed — nor are I trust my desires weakened, though
my abilities seem lessened, and my powers both of action
and enjoyment reduced by a return of my complaint.
24ith of Third Month, 1789.
I acknowledge I frequently have lamented — I have stUl
too much reason to lament, my own languor in religious
affections. I often contrast the Uvely zeal, the apparent
heavenly-mindedness of some I know and love, with my own
cool or constraiaed devotion ; the difficulty with which I
restiain, or rather attempt to restrain, my thoughts from>
wandering when in public worship or private retirement,
is painful to me. It is the vrish of my heart that every
faculty may be engaged, may be absorbed, in the devout
application of my soul to him who seeth in secret, and that
under the influence of Divine assistance, I may acceptably
worship and avaUiugly supplicate the adorable object of aU
my hopes of happiness hereafter ; a sense of whose present
forgiveness and favour alone can convert the consciousness
of former transgressions into an occasion of thankful acknow
ledgment of the mercy, and an increased desire for instant
and future preservation. These are often my sentiments,
and sometimes I trust, my experience; but alas I I want it
to be the abiding, the habitual state of my mind, as of others
who have appeared to me to possess that uninterrupted
access, or at least that constant looking to the Lord, that is
implied in its being as our meat and drink to do his wUl.
^ I beUeve " it is a faithful saying, and worthy of aU accep-
13

178 letters of
tation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sirmers,"
and as confidently trust in the efficacy as I am sensible of
the need I have of his salvation, and am equally desirous of
being delivered from the power as from the guilt of sin : stiU
this appears to me at times more like a cool rational deduc
tion from admitted premises, than an experimental know
ledge in my own particular — though I admit and admire it in
others — and more worthy. If the absolutely necessary change
is effected in me, why do I ever find a reluctance to reUgious
exercises ? Why do I not always prefer books in proportion
to their religious tendency, and discharge reUgious duties
vrith an alacrity in proportion to their fitness to a redeemed
state ? I have often thought of one trait in the widow
(Mary) Fletcher's deUneation of her late husband's character,
and I believe as true in him as it was striking to me ; " he
was," says she, " ever aUve to Christ" — that is the state I wish
to experience ; but alas ! if I am notdead, I fear I am too often
less lively than I should be : still I desire with unceasing,
though I doubt it vrill never be vrith unremitting ardour, to
press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of
God in Christ Jesus, as the only means of attaining to that
blessed assurance of perfect redemption and finished salvation,
which thou admits some have enjoyed before they have been
at the gates of death, and which if not absolutely necessary,
is very desirable for aU when they pass through them.
Oreen Bank, 4th of Seventh Month, 1789.
My dear Son,
Thy brother's letter of the 29th past was very acceptable
to me, and I desire thee to give my dear love to him, and
tell him so. Thine of the same date gave me equal.pleasure.
I readUy admit the reason thou aUeges for its brerity — so
long as you are weU, and do weU, I shaU be happy in you.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 179
and thankful for you, however short or seldom I hear from
you; and yet the more frequently I receive a letter from
either of you, the more as weU as the oftener shaU I be
gratffied ; but I do not forget your numerous and important
engagements, nor desire or expect they should be sacrfficed
to inferior claims. It occurs to me whUe I am writing, as it
did before I received your letters, that the quarterly meet
ings of the iron masters at Birmingham and Stourbridge,
are in the course of next week. This has occasioned me to
reflect on years that are past, and the sentiments that so
prevaUed in my mind before I went to them, as weU as the
reflections upon them after my return home. I wUl not say
that the consideration of the dangers to which I was about
to be exposed, and the desire that sometimes accompanied
it for preservation from them, was always attended vrith that.
degree of watchfuLness and circumspection which would
have ensured the plaudits of my own conscience after it was.
over. For though I may say, vrith humble thankfulness, X
hope my conduct did not bring any reproach on my religious
profession — nor, I trust, vriU my chUdren have reason to
blush when their father's name is mentioned — yet, when I
reflected upon the lerity of the conversation, (to speak of it
in the mUdest terms) and how far I had contributed to it,
or, at least, countenanced it, by sitting longer among them
than was absolutely necessary, it has brought sorrow and
condemnation on my mind. And earnest are my desires
that my dear children may be wiser and better than their
father has been. I know I allow for the influence, more
especiaUy at your time of life, of company, conversation and
business. The season of the year wUl have its effect : but
the more the occasions, and the greater the danger, the more
necessary is watchfulness; and the more fervent are my
prayers for you, as I hope yours vriU be for yourselves. Thy

180 LETTERS OF
drinking water vrith thy food, vriU, I hope, not only conduce
to thy health, but contribute to th.y safety. I would recom
mend thee to drink some port vrine after it, especially in this
hot weather ; and, as I am thankful to say, I have not had
one imeasy hour on thy account, so, I hope, my dear son,
thy conduct will continue to administer comfort and joy to
thy parents and friends. And among them, I have reason
to believe, no one will more sincerely rejoice than thy brother
WUliam, to whom, I trust, thou wilt be an useful assistant,
and that he will be a good example and kind encourager of
thee. But this I know ; there are others who woidd triumph
if they could lead thee, or any other sober young man, into
excess or intemperance. And, strange as it may seem and
sorrowful as it is, they are more zealous to make converts
to the master they serve, than too many of us are to bear
an open and decided testimony against their principles and
practices. Of such may my dear chUdren be aware : and may
others who are looking up to you, and are influenced by your
example, derive strength and encouragement from the con
sistency of your conduct to resist the temptations to which
they are exposed in common with you.
I have thought of going to the Quarterly Meeting at
Lancaster, which wUl be about the time you are attending
one of a very different kind at Birmingham. I believe I
shaU think of you — and if you should, at that time, recoUect
your father's care for you, I thitik the remembrance of me
wiU do you no harm. Thy mother continues very well, as is
my sister — who both, as weU as thy sister, join in dear love
to thy brother and thyself, vrith
Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 181
To P. H. Gurney.
14^ of Ninth Month, 1789.
 I beUeve I am too apt, in referring to the communion
of the highest nature and greatest importance, and to which
aU my hopes are founded on the unmerited mercy of the Lord,
to be affected more by what I vrish to enjoy than by what I
ought to expect ; consequently every withholding of light
and comfort is, perhaps, too forcibly attributed to my own un
worthiness ; when alas ! were that the alone cause, it would
never be othervrise ; for in me dweUeth, and from me can
proceed, no good thing — all I have I have received ; and all,
if any I have done or should do, has been and must be as He
shaU see meet to work in me, and by me, of his own good
pleasure ; if I aUow, and I will not deny, that He has com
mitted to me a talent, or talents, though not such or so
many as my too partial friend supposes, I am not conscious
that any concurrence of circumstances "dependant only on
endeavours of my own," has prevented their full and due
exertion. On the contrary, shaU I confess to thee, in the
confidence which only such a friendship as ours wUl justify
or would inspire, that so far from it, I have rather sought
than shunned such opportunities; that though I have been
very often desirous above all things, and if I know my own
heart at this instant, I stUl am so desirous, that I may be
one of His flock and famUy, though it should be the least in
the one or the last ia the other. I have also at times been
vrilliag to run on His errands, and be employed in his viue-
yard ; nay, so earnest has been my desire for good, as well
as so great my poverty, that it has reminded me of the ex
pressions, however foreign the occasion — " Put me I pray
Thee into the priests office, that I may eat a piece of bread."
But yet whatever I may suffer, or whatever I want, I hope

182 letters of
I shaU never presume to run where I am not sent, or intrude
where I am not caUed ; and weak as I am compared vrith
many, and desirous as they can be to have me, of earning
my ovm bread, and if it might be to administer to others, it
is the ardent prayer of my soul — and wUl not she whose
peace and preservation I covet as my own, unite with me in
it ? that we may never suffer ourselves to be permitted to
move in His work under any influence but that of His
Spirit, nor foUow any caU but that of His inspeaking word.
Thou hast heard of impulsive and compulsive love : I hope
I shaU be at least equaUy intelUgible, if endeavouring also
to express my meaning in two words, I most earnestly
desire we may move and act in every religious duty rather
by incitement than excitement, by the requirings to service
inwardly manifested, than the desires and opinions of others,
however superior their qualifications, their love, or their zeal ;
for by patiently abiding in quiet resignation to His vriU, as
contented to be nothing, as wUUng to be anything, we shall
both do and prove our own work, and then shaU have
rejoicing in ourselves, and not Ui another."
Extract prom a Letter to one of his Sons.
Bath, 2nd of First Month, 1790.
I can very sensibly, as I do very affectionately sympathise
vrith thee on thy present solitary and embarrassed situation
at •  , yet I can conceive the possibUity of an aggrava
tion, having experienced it ; and as long as thou art exempted
from that, thou wUt not want an incitement to dUigence,
nor a consolation under thy difficulties, if your affection ia
founded on virtue and supported by reUgion. If you love
God above aU, and manifest it by a due discharge of your
reUgious duties and conformity to the example of a crud-
fied Saviour in bearing the cross and denying yourselves, you

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 183
vriU be happy here and hereafter ; but if you turn your backs
on the stiaight and narrow way, and seek for happiness ia
the indulgence of the vain mind, in the spirit and friendship
of the world, depend upon it you wiU soon or later find your
mistake: the vrish of my heart is, that it may be whUe
it is retrievable, neither the wiU nor the power, any more
than the time, being at our disposal. I Uttle thought when
I began to write, to have said any thing of this kind, and
now I hardly know what I have said, having written in great
haste, and not looked it over ; but I know it is the effusion
of a heart replete vrith desires for your happiness, and con
vinced it is only to be expected from a Ufe of Christian hoU
ness and self-denial.
To M. Wright.
Coalbrook Dale, 14th of Sixth Month, 1790.
Dear Friend,
I have this morning received a letter vrithout a date from
, by thy desire, informing me that Lord Sheffield is

nominated for a representative in parUament for the city of
Bristol, and requesting my interest, &c. I never yet gave
a vote for any man, and as I understand the party only
propose one member, I hope there wUl not be a contest. I
admit Friends, as weU as any others, have a right to act for
themselves on such occasions, but I think the more it is by
themselves the better — much hurt has been sustained by
some from taking too active a part in elections, and especiaUy
in contested elections, which I believe are always occasions
of doings which no good Christian could countenance, nor
any good citizen support. My retired situation exempts me
from much danger ; may those who are more exposed seek
for and find in this instance, preservation by that fear which
I desire may be mine and theirs, under every other trial and

184 LETTERS OF
from every other evU. From what I know of Lord Sheffield;
I beUeve him to be uncommonly well qualffied, from his very
extensive knowledge of the trade and manufactures of this
kingdom and of commerce in general, to be a proper repre
sentative of the city of Bristol ; but vrith this persuasion, and
the personal respect I entertain for him, I fear his opimon
and conduct with reference to the Slave-trade, vriU put it
out of my power to give him a vote; for I am not free, and I
wish nobody else may be free, to vote for any person who is
against the abolition of a trade inconsistent with the freedom,
as weU as love of our feUow-creatures, and repugnant to the
spirit, as weU as hi opposition to the injunctions of the
gospel of Christ. I am with love to thy wife,
Thy affectionate friend.
Liverpool, 4th of Fourth Month, 1791.
My dear Son,
I fuUy intended to have written sooner, but one thing or
another has prevented me. But though I have omitted
writing to thee for so many days, I beUeve I may say that
not one has passed vrithout my thinking of thee. I am not
insensible of the temptations to which youth is incident, or
the dangers to which thy situation exposes thee ; and fre
quently have I rejoiced with thankfulness to the Almighfy
perserver of men, that thou hast been enabled to conduct
thyself hitherto with so great a degree of circumspection
and plainness, consistent with the reUgious profession we
are making, as weU as reputably among men. Svrift are the
approaches of old age upon thy parents : nor slight the
occasions of sorrow to which of late years they have been
subjected. As, next to their ovra. conduct, the conduct of
their chUdren must affect their happiness, so they cannot
but regard with tender anxiety every indication of increased

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 185
danger, and vrith painful apprehension every relaxation of
essential duty. Connected vrith my remembrance of thee,
before I set out, as well as since I came here, has been the
exhortation, accompanied with the promise of our Lord,
" Seek frst the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and
all these (necessary) things shaU be added unto you" — and
earnest are my prayers that such may be thy choice, that
such may be thy experience — then vrill every duty, whether
religious or civU, be duly performed ; and that preference
given to the highest, which its superior obligation requires
and justifies, and our esteem and our practice of it be in
proportion to its greater importance. As such, religious
meetings as the means of obtaining the blessing of preser
vation, as weU as an occasion of thankfulness for it, will be
gladly as weU as diligently attended, and a humble reverend
exercise of spirit maintained in worshipping God, who is a
Spirit, and who is mercifuUy attentive to such worshippers ;
or, as it is graciously expressed, " seeketh such to worship
him." It was a disappointment to me that I did not see
thee at our monthly meeting the day before we set out. I
attributed the omission to some secular engagement, though
thy brother did not know what particular business prevented
thee. Let me caution thee against giving way in that par
ticular : every omission of duty, as weU as every commission
of evU, not only increases the difficulty, but lessens our
power in future; nor should we be unmindful of the influence
of our example in faithfully bearing that testimony, as weU
as in supporting every other branch of our Christian pro
fession. Besides its effect upon those who are younger, or
in any manner dependent upon us, it is sometimes, perhaps
often, of service to others, when we do not think of it our
selves. I have experienced the benefit of it from others
formerly, and sometimes in my attendance of the quarterly

186 LETTERS OF
meetings of the iron masters, which I have considered as
times of pecuUar trial, and have often gone to them with
fear as well as disUke. But even there, the conduct of some
who have kept their places and acted consistently, has done
me good and been a comfort and strength imto me, as the
contrary has sorrowfully affected me ; the remembrance of
which, and the expectation of thy being about to go to the
same places on the same occasion, has, at this time, as before
now, excited in my heart strong desires for thy preservation.
And, I trust. He who has hitherto preserved thee thus far
as thou hast been preserved, vriU continue his protection
and renew the risitation of his love to thee — and may thy
obedience to every manifestation of his vrill concerning thee,
however apparently small or trivial the requisition, increase
thy peace, as it vriU also increase thy strength to perform,
as weU as capacity to understand, his law.
I have written quite as much as I expected or intended. I
trust thou vrilt accept it as proceeding from the most affec
tionate desire for thy happiness, which wiU be some conso
lation under afflictions that cannot be altogether unknovm to
thee, but can only be adequately conceived as they can only
be so felt by a parent. May thou, my dear son, have the
foundation for hoping for happiness in that relation (should
it ever be thine) which is to be derived from contributing to
ours by thy religious and circumspect conduct, as weU as
continued kind and dutiful deportment to us, and whibh has
been some aUeriation of the sorrows and some support to
the weakness incident to the situation fast approaching old
age, as weU as, of a mother who loves thee and unites in
prayers to God for thee, as, in an especial manner, to
those of Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.

richard reynolds. 187
Extract.
Coalbrook Dale, 26th of Seventh Month, 1792.
Let not a desire of pleasing some, or a fear of ofiending
others, turn thee aside from the stiaight Une of duty. As it
was formerly, so at this time, the way is narrow and strait
the gate that leads to life. The terms of discipleship and
admittance to rest here, and to the kingdom of heaven
hereafter, are not different from what they were when
our Sariour prescribed self-denial and the daUy cross — this,
therefore, I hope thou vriU not shim, nor be ashamed of the
simpUcity or singularity into which it leads. The infiuence
of thy example vriU not be lessened by thy youth, either
among those of thy own age, or those who are older.
Let me repeat the recommendation I was so free as to
give thee before, though I may hope thy experience of the
advantage to be derived from it may have been sufficient to
induce thee to continue the practice of waiting upon the
Lord before thou enters upon the business of the day, for
the blessing of his preserring fear through the course of it ;
and in perusing a portion of the holy scriptures, under the
influence of that desire, which some have experienced to be
very helpful to them, often fumishiag, as it were, a watch
word for the day, to which some occurrence has given an
tmexpected propriety. Many, indeed, are the precepts for
our information and government ; and many the examples
therein recorded for the encouragement of our efforts and
the animation of our hopes, under the various trials and
afflictions to which our nature, our different stations in Ufe,
and the dispensations of Proridence, in unsearchable vrisdom
and consummate goodness, may subject us. Of the latter,
that of Joseph occurs to me as very worthy of thy attentive
perusal. Of the former, as comprehending aU that can

188 LETTERS OP
relate to, or affect a proper disposition of mind toward God,
and of conduct toward men — I would recommend to more
than an attentive perusal, to a learning by heart and a
frequent recurrence of the mind, our Sariour's sermon on
the mount, as recited in the fifth, sixth and seventh chapters
of St. Matthew. A conformity in practice to the doctrines
therein contained, vriU not only supersede the necessity of
further advice, but will make thee happy in thyself, a com
fort to thy parents, a blessing (as Joseph was to Pharaoh)
to the famUy whose kindness and care merits the best return
in thy power, and a cause of rejoicing to aU who know and
love thee, and in an especial manner to
Thy affectionate friend.
Coalbrook Dale, 1st of Eleventh Month, 1792.
As every civU compact depends upon the observation of
certain conditions agreed to by the contiacting parties, so
the several members of every reUgious society, whether by
birth or admission, are responsible to the body for the riola
tion of the rules of such society ; and besides some, pecuUar
to every different profession whereby they may be in an
especial manner distinguished from others, I should have
supposed that every one would have admitted, that every
part of a man's conduct whereby the reputation of the
religious society of which he was a member could be affected;
and as such in a more especial manner his moral and
religious conduct, was cognizable by and himself therefore
responsible to, the society so affected by his riolation of
it. And as such, holding a tenet subversive of order,
subordination and responsibility, is inconsistent vrith our
principles, incompatible with our discipline, and would dis
qualify the avowed professor of such an opinion for member
ship with us.
I am unwUling to add unnecessarily to the length of thia

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 189
letter by quotations from the New Testament, to prove that
every member of the Christian church was, as a part of the
body, responsible for his conduct, and amenable to its rules ;
that so far from being indifferent to the concerns of each
other, the primitive Christians were taught, not only by the
precepts and example of our Sariour to love their enemies,
but also by the doctrine and practice "of the promulgators of
his gospel, to consider each other as brethren — children of
one famUy ; or nearer, as members of one body, united under
one head, and subject to his government, who hath dispensed
a variety of gifts and appointed a variety of offices for the
edffication of his body, the church. The process of disci
pline in gospel order, and the ultimate appeal to the body, is
distinctly prescribed by the head of it in the 18th chapter of
St. Matthew ; consistently vrith which, are divers passages in
St. Paul's Epistles ; how often we are therein taught to con
sider ourselves as members of, and interested in the happi
ness of each other, I need not attempt to enimierate to thee ;
and how far the apostle was from regarding himself in the
unconnected state that would render him as indifferent to the
concerns, as independent on the support of others, may be
inferred from his animated exclamation — " Who is weak, and
I am not weak : who is offended, and I burn not." And
consistent therewith is his generous exhortation — " Look
not every man on his own things, but every man also on the
things of others."
Accuracy and correct arrangement I do not attempt ; to
serve thee is my vrish, and I have no other interest in it
than that which arises from the conviction of the truths I
have endeavoured, under the infiuence of gospel love, to
communicate. The conclusion I would draw from what I
have more properly referred to than quoted from the New
Testament, is, that if every believer ought to exercise the

190 LETTERS OF
offices of love and care toward every feUow professor, every
particular member is at least equaUy responsible to the body
for the consistency of his moral and reUgious conduct.
To THE Ret. Theophilus Houlbrooke.
Coalbrook Dale, 18th of Sixth Month, 1793.
My dear Friend,
I never was at Plymouth ; but if you go to Plymouth

I can accompany you in idea. I attempted to go to the
Edystone Lighthouse, but though we approached near to it
we were obliged to return vrithout landing at it. It would
be more desirable to me now, from Smeaton's account of its
erection, which I have been reading ; and I think the fear of
French privateers would not prevent me from again attempt
ing to see it, if I was at Plymouth.
— ^ — I am obliged by the manner in which thou speaks
of the few opportunities we had of being together in London,
and for the pains thou took to give me those few. I can
truly say, it has been cause of equal regret to me that my
time admitted only of my seeing thee so seldom and so
tiansiently. I should have had particular pleasure in going
vrith thee to those places thou so kindly vrishes me to have
seen, from the advantages I should have received by thy
information and strictures upon the several subjects, and
the execution of them. I have thought, too, I should also
have received much pleasure from reriewing in thy company
some scenes both down and up the river, that were formerly
famUiar to me; and, among others, Greenvrich Park and
Kensington Gardens, in which I beUeve a concatenation of
ideas involving persons dead or absent, and circumstances
which at the time of their occurrence I deemed important,
would present itseU — and clothing the various emotions in

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 191
words as the surrounding objects excited them in my mind,
with the freedom and faithfulness which only friendship
would induce or justify, might have afforded a pensive kind
of gratffication, more congenial with the temper of my mind
perhaps than any other ; inducing, as it doth at this instant,
as weU as the idea among others of the dear friend to whom
I am obliged for them, the verses which begin vrith this
stanza, — " What art thou, memory of former days.
That dost so subtly touch the feeling heart,
That knows such pleasing sadness to impart,
That does such thrilHng dear ideas raise ?
Each wonted path, each once familiar place,
Each object that at first but common seemed,
Beheld again some sacredness has gain'd,
With fancy's hues inexplicably stain'd,
And by remeinbrance venerable deem'd. —
Hence recollection prompts unbidden tears" —
 but of this enough — ^perhaps for either of us — and
thou can recollect more, nor would the places, which I hope
thou would see soon after thou receives this letter, less
forcibly than any other touch that string in my heart — I
mean Sutton and Ford.* There, I have enjoyed the company
of those together whom I shaU never see together again. —
There, I have been vrith some who vriU never be there again.
And, what at this instant affects me proportionably — t]here,
thou wilt be without me, and I without a hope of ever being
there vrith thee.
I expect thou wUl see both places to a disadvantage from
their having been neglected ; but thou vriU see that they
* Sutton and Ford were two estates which he had purchased in
Somersetshire.

192 LETTERS OF
might be made pleasant, especiaUy Ford, to which my dearest
daughter was very partial. I expect, vrith increasing soU-
citude, her approaching time of trial, and the more from some
apprehensions (I would vrillingly believe them superstitious)
entertained by herself; and which, in hours of weakness,
and many such are mine, are aggravated, in my imagination,
by a long remembered simUar occurrence — ^but on this sub
ject I dare not enlarge. I beUeve thou can conceive, as
adequately as most who are not parents, what a conflict the
hazard of losing such a daughter as few parents have and
including such concomitant sufferers, must excite in the
breast of one so weak, so dependent as I am. But I cannot
write much more. I vriU hope in the mercy of God for
her preservation, as I confide in it when I reflect upon the
accelerated approach of that change which I doubt not wffi
be glorious to our dear E. R., who has been, long as knovm,
deservedly esteemed and beloved, by my poor Hannah, as
weU as by Thy affectionate friend,
Richard Reynolds.
I hope I shaU hear from thee again, and that I shaU see
thee on thy returning to HoUy Grove. FareweU !
To A Boy at Ackworth School.
Coalbrook Dale, Ninth Month, 1794.
Dear James,
I have often, since I was at Ackworth, reflected on the
pririleges of the children who partake daUy of the benefit of
the Institution, and of the masters who feel the weight of
the charge with which they are entrusted, in a manner which
the objects of their care do not at present fully comprehend ;
but I was glad to hear that many of them had so farcon-

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 193
sidered it as to enter into engagements amongst themselves,
to give their instructors and guardians the least possible
trouble, as weU as to example their schoolfeUows in general,
in love and good conduct. I gave thy parents (who vrith
thy brothers and sisters are pretty well) an intimation to this
purpose, agreeably vrith what I heard when I was with thee ;
and they hope thou vrilt increase the pleasure they wUl have
when they hear of thy health, by infornung them more par
ticularly, of the good resolutions and rules agreed to by so
many ; and not only agreed to, but adopted, and kept by aU
the rest as weU as thyself
But to teU thee aU the truth, dear James, this is not my
only inducement in writing to thee at this time. A thought,
which occurred whUst I was there, has been so frequently
revived in my reeoUection, since my departure, that I am
willing to mention it in this manner to thee ; hoping it wUl
be received as proceeding from that love which desires thy
happiness, as well as that of every other member of the
numerous famUy at Ackworth School.
The general appearance and deportment of the chUdren at
the meetings for worship was unexceptionable ; and I have
no doubt, many of their minds were duly impressed vrith the
truth of what they had been taught and beUeved, that God
is a Spirit, and that they who worship him aright, must
worship him ia spirit and ia truth ; but whether the minds
of aU were so duly and deeply impressed, I presume may be
questioned without breach of charity.
The painful appearance of drowsiness, which, as I under
stood, was unusual, requires no further animadversion. But,
if vre do not sleep, yet, if by an indolent manner of sitting,
looking about, or by gestures and motions inconsistent with
^ the solemnity of the occasion, we betray an unconcernedness
of mind which might grieve the rightly exercised amongst

194 LETTERS OF
those who behold us; or if, under an orderly outward ap
pearance, we indiUge thoughts on our outward engagements,
(which might be proper and even necessary at another time)
and much more, if we admit such as would be wrong at any
time, we not only miss the benefit we might hope to receive,
but we trespass against God, who seeth the heart, at a time
when we profess to be worshipping him. What would be
our feelings, if every thought we admitted, whilst we are
sitting in sUence, were to be uttered audibly to the whole
congregation ? Should we not blush vrith shame at their
folly ; or with guUt, if they were worse than foolish ? And
is not the God, before whom we present ourselves as his
worshippers, a discemer of the thoughts and intents of the
heart ? yea, aU that we think, is spoken in the ear of the
Lord; and how awful is the consideration! — ^Letit sink deep
in thy heart, dear James ; and forget it not, when thou art
about to assemble vrith others in pubUc or private worship,
or in those more secret opportunities of retirement, vyhich,-!
trust, thou seekest, at times when no human eye beholds
thee. That God is ever present — and not only our words
and our actions, but our most secret thoughts are manifest
to, and constantly observed by him, are truths to which we
cannot too often advert ; and which, if rightly attended to,
would have a salutary effect on our conduct, out of meetings
as well as in them ; and I hope thou vrilt cordiaUy accept
this earnest and affectionate recommendation of them to thy
frequent remembrance. From thy true firiend,
Richard Reynolds.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 195
3rd of Eighth Month, 1795.
 Thou should not apologize for any remark that may
occur to thee to make, especiaUy any that may excite me to a
more cheerful or a more faithful discharge of my duty. The
time when it vrill be said to me, " Give up thy stewardship^
for thou shalt be no longer steward," is svriftly approaching;
and though the talents committed to me are mostly of the
inferior kind, yet a great degree of circumspection and rigi-
lance is necessary to enable me to give in my account vrith
joy. Let it continue to be thy desire that I may — ^the desire
of the heart is prayer; for I find (not I hope a greater
reluctance to give or a stionger desire to acquire) but less
¦abUity, and I fear less incUnation for exertion, whether of
body or mind, than when I was younger : if it influenced me
only in respect to the business and pleasures of this world, I
should not, so far as I only am affected, much regret it ; but
I fear its inducing a IdnA. of spiritual indolence, that may
terminate in lukewarmness and indifferency towards my
reUgious advancement, more to be deprecated than the most
acute sense of spiritual want, or mourning under appre
hended desertion.
The possibUity of our expecting stronger degrees of eon-
riction than may be consistent vrith the unimpeachable wUl
of the Almighty ; the promptitude of our obedience to his
requirings, should not be proportioned to our estimate of
the importance of them to our feUow-creatures, though per
haps the manifestation of them may be ; and may not the
want of a ready comphance vrith the whispers of " the stUl,
smaU voice," have induced a degree of doubtfulness aud un
certainty, which a more simple foUowing of the gentle leadings
of that Spirit, which would guide us into all truth, would
have prevented? It is by walking in the Ught we attain
k2

196 letters OF
more Ught, and by obedience as in the day of small things,
that greater discoveries are attained.
Extract of a Letter to J. C.
Coalbrook Dale, 28th of Tenth Month, 1795.
 On concluding a remark on the inequaUty of the
ecclesiastical emoluments, and the inconsistency of the esta
bUshed hierachy with tbe government of Christ in his church,
as uniting the civU power therewith, thou closed thy acknow
ledgment of it vrith saying, " It is very tiue ; but it matters
not, we are told if we believe and are baptised we shaU be
saved." Now supposing it had been then asked what beUef
and what baptism was so efficacious, would it have been said
that an admission of the truth of the relation of the facts
recorded in the New Testament, or an assent of the under
standing to the propriety of the doctrines inculcated therein,
is that ibelief ? or the administration of water, whether by
immersion or sprinkling, is that baptism ? — Do we not see,
nay do we not experience, that one may be admitted, and the
other received, without any renovation of the heart, or melio
ration of the temper ! If, as saith the apostle, there is one
Lord, one faith, and one baptism, can there be more than one
of either. We aU acknowledge but one Lord — and shaU we
not also acknowledge, that the one faith is that which over-
cometh the world, which worketh by the purifying of the
heart ? and that the one baptism is not an outward applica
tion of water — ^not the washing away the ffith of the flesh-
but the answer of a good conscience toward God."

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 197
28th of Tenth Month, 1795.
Respected Friend,
If the numerous and important avocations resulting from
thy station, have prevented thy often remembering the writer
of this letter, and those more worthy, whom he attended on
thefr reUgious risit to the Isle of Man, permit me to assure
thee that both they and myself, frequently reflected vrith
gratitude and satisfaction on the general cordiality of their
reception. And if it vriU not be thought too presuming, I
may profess my pecuUar personal regard, and the interest I
take in the prosperity and the happiness of thyseU and thy
famUy, inspired by the condescension and candour vrith
which thou wast pleased to communicate of the circum
stances attending a life of important and arduous employ
ment, which issued — ^however beneficially to those who have
the advantage of thy abUities and thy experience, under thy
. government — ^less to thy own emolument than thy services
would warrant, or thy friends would wish.
Disappointments are not always erils : if we are taught
by the ingratitude of our feUow-creatures to estimate the
returns we have rendered for the benefits we have received
from our Creator, perhaps the acuteness of our feeling of the
former may be blunted, our dependence on the smUes of the
world be lessened, and the favour of the Almighty cultivated
vrith greater dUigence and more success. I vrill not apolo
gize to thee for this reflection, which I had no intention to
make when I took up my pen to request thy acceptance, as
a token of my respect and esteem, of the books this letter
accompanies, vrith a hope that the perusal of them may more
than amuse, — may employ and improve some of thy leisure
hours, in the lengthened evenings of the present and ap
proaching season. The apology for the principles which I

198 letters of
profess, written by thy countryman Robert Barclay, contains,
if I mistake not, sufficient to justify from the imputation of
admitting without proof or beUeving vrithout conriction,
those who make the same reUgious profession. Of the more
multifarious writings of WUUam Perm, though some of them,
being occasional, are now less interesting than when they
were first published, the principal correspond with the declar
ration of our Sariour, that if any man wUl be his disciple;
he must deny himself and take up his cross daUy ; and his
example, as exhibited in his life and conversation, evinced
his sincerity by a compliance vrith the condition imposed, for
the possession of the crown immortal ; which is on no other
terms to be obtained. Other parts do him credit as a good
citizen, a politician, and a legislator ; nor vrill a parent read
with less pleasure, or his children, I trust, vrith less improve^
ment, his letter to his vrife and chUdren, his " fruits of a
father's love," addressed immediately to his ovm, with his
"reflections and maxims," more just as well as more liberal
and benevolent than some since pubUshed in France or
Geneva. The latter being printed separately, I shaU request
each of thy chUdren's acceptance of one of them, as soon as
they are received from London, and if they do not come in
time to be sent with the other books, I have desired my
kinsman R. B. to forward them accordingly.
I duly received thy favour of the 22nd ultimo, and com
municated the contents of it to our party, who were aU
gratefuUy sensible of thy kindness, and especiaUy our ancient
friend from America, who vriU not forget, if she is permitted
to return to her husband and friends at PhUadelphia, the
encouragement and comfort she derived from the countenance
and notice of the governor of the Isle of Man, in her reU
gious risit to the inhabitants.
If, in the uncertainty of future occurrences, any thing

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 199
should bring thee into this part of England, I hope thou
would not pass by vrithout caUing at my habitation, and par
taking of such entertainment as it would afford vrith the
heartiest welcome, and in the mean time I shaU rejoice to
hear of the health and happiness of thyself and thy famUy,
if thou finds thyself disposed to communicate the acceptable
inteUigence by directing it to Coalbrook Dale, Shiffnal.
Thy very respectful and obUged friend.
Bridgewater, 25th of Eighth Month, 1796..
My dear Son,
Strange as it may seem, it is nevertheless true, that as
including health and leisure, with a capacity for writing, this
is the first opportunity I have had to begin a letter to thee,
with reasonable expectation of finishing it in time for the
post ; and even now, I am apprehensive, I shaU give but little
proof of my possessing the last of the three before-mentioned
requisites. I think I may say I am never weU at my first
coming to this place, and my spirits seem as unfavourably
affected as my health, so that I am as much vrithout energy
of mind as actirity of body, to which, perhaps, the continued
and, as we think, excessively hot weather, contributes. But
I assure thee, my dear Joe, nothing has prevented me from
frequently reflecting on my own children in Shropshire, and
their varied situations ; nor has it been vrithout pecuUar
satisfaction that I have remembered thy sympathy vrith thy
brother, and the liberaUty of thy conduct as weU as of thy
sentiments towards him. Continue, my son, the Uke con
duct, so long as his circumstances shaU furnish the like
occasion and opportunity. I feel, as well as thee, for him
and thy sister, in the loss of his little daughter. We have
each of us a daughter, and by considering how their death
would affect us, we are quaUfied to sympathize with them for

200 LETTERS OF
their little Hannah. My s'ister has vmtten to him, and I
hope to do so soon ; but give my dear love to him and his
wife, and I persuade myself he wUl not attribute the delay
to a want of the most affectionate sympathy with them as
parents ; though many considerations vriU present themselves
to prevent their griering long or immoderately for an event
which to the dear infant must be an exemption from suffering
and danger, of which painful proofs in the experience and
often unexpected reverses of condition in others, not to
mention our own, too frequently occur. I find more business
to be done by me than I expected ; the allotment of a part
of Sedginoor to the land I had at Sutton, though not a fourth
part of the quantity I was told would belong to it, is to be
aUotted to the farms ; and though they are but four in
number, it requires much attention to do it fairly and satis
factorily to each of them ; and then new terms are to be
settled for their future rents, and covenants for their ob
servance. Though not very well quaUfied for such negotia
tions, and as averse as ill quaUfied, yet thinking I have faithful
and capable advisers in John Wood and Robert Anstice,
I am wUUng to complete it, if possible, whUe I am in the
country, were it only to save my successors trouble, and to be
a faithful steward to my children ; nor do I think there is
Ukelihood of a more favourable time occurring in seven years,
which is the term proposed for the leases ; and which, though
there is not, according to the best rules of calculation, a pro-
babffity of my seeing the end of it, cannot lay a long restraint
on those who come after me.
Thy mother was a little poorly a day or two, being un
commonly cold, though the weather was so remarkably hot ;
but she is now quite weU again, and I am better than I was
at first coming. The rest of our relations at this place are
in usual health, and I had a comfortable letter from my son

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 201
]Rathbone last night. T. H. and the boys are returned from
the Isle of Man. They go on, though slowly, safely vrith
the iron bridge at this place.
FareweU, my son. I shaU be glad to hear from thee, and
hope thou wUt have to give me a good account of thy own
health and comfort, as weU as, or which indeed includes, thy
dear vrife and chUdren, to whom and to thy sister Betsy give
my dear love, in which thy mother joins, as she does in the
same to thyself, with Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.
Liverpool, 12th of Tenth Month, 1798.
— — On the subject of my refusal topay the assessed taxes,,
I have only to allege my beUef that aU wars are inconsistent
with Christianity, and if it shaU appear that paying the
assessed taxes is not inconsistent with a simple, faithful testi-.
mony against wars, I shaU not continue to refuse to pay them.
That I apprehend the practice of our Society, and as being
uncensured by any I conclude our principles also, are not
thoroughly consistent, is also true. But as thou dost not say
we should shut our eyes to such prospects, so I as cordiaUy
admit it is consistent with our peace and our duty, " to study
to be quiet." How far the acquisition of wealth, or the ap-
pUcation of it, can be subjected to the rules or censures of our
Society, [I do not at present consider that it may be so to
its adrice and admonition,] our epistles and minutes afford
satis&ctory proof, I vrish I could add vrith more certainty,
effectual. But vrithout wishing to make thee uneasy, or to
be so myself, what thinkest thou of our Society voting for
members of parUament ? A man comes to me, asks me for
my vote, to be my representative, teUs me beforehand he is
a friend to the present constitution in church and state, wUI
Ka

202 LETTERS OT
support the hierarchy, compel the payment of tithes, &c.,
maintaia wars by impressing as weU as voluntarily enlisting,
vriU swear himself and enjoin oaths to others, vrith many
other things which I conscientiously refuse ; I have, there
fore, dissented from the National EstabUshment of Church
and State, and subjected myself to pains and penalties, to
imprisonment, and loss of property — how, then, can I be
represented by him ; or if I consent, do I not awkwardly
refuse to be bound by the act of him whom I have delegated
to be my representative, to act for me ? To me, at least,
there appears an inconsistency in it; perhaps others may
reconcUe it to their conscience ; but I believe many have not
adverted to it. I am thankful I did not give a vote before I
had considered of it. Now I trust I never shaU ; but in
this and every other instance ia which my opinion differs
from the practice of others, and especiaUy of our ovm. Society,
I desire to consider the possibility of my being mistaken ;
the certamty that, in the instances of those whom I justly
prefer to myself for their experience and superior reUgious
attainments, the same things do not aU appear in the same
Ught, and that we have no right to judge one another, inas
much as that to his own Master every man standeth or
fafleth ; and aU these considerations concur in disposing me
" to study to be quiet, and do my own business."
To Sarah Allen.
5th of Fourth Month, 1799.
 Nor can it in the course of nature be long before I
may hope to experience a reunion vrith some who are now
inhabitants of a purer region, where none of them say, " I am
sick;" and who I am as wilUng as thou seems reluctant to
beUeve I shaU recognise, and thereby increase my own and

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 203
their happiness. For though I do not suppose the bliss of
the blessed is incomplete or imperfect, I think it is not
inconsistently admitted, that their capacity to receive, as
well as their powers to be thankfid, may increase with the
boundless continuance of their eristence — or, as the poet
expresses it —  " Where the mind
In endless growth and infinite ascent
Rises firom state to state and world to world."
Or as, and perhaps more in point vrith our present subject,
a more modern poetess has it : —
" Then sweet remembrance wakes without regret,
And back each human path they fondly trace.
That led through steady wisdom's peaceful ways,
To thia blest paradise, this beamy crown,
This cloudless day whose sun shall never set."
Nor doth it appear to me that when we come " to the
general assembly and church of the first-bom, to the spirits.
of just men made perfect," it inust be in the land of forget-
fulness where former associates wiU not be remembered by
us, though a consciousness of having been united in sufferings
on earth — perhaps of baring been in the ordering of a
merciful Proridence, mutuaUy instrumental to their present
respective happiness — would not lessen their gratitude to
God, or the joy of the indiriduals.
Dost thou think, my dear cousin, that because we are not
expUcitly informed there will he a recognition in heaven, it
is heresy to suppose it ? Had we been told the contrary, I
ahould not have aUowed myself to conjecture ; and rather
than offend those who cannot receive it, I would continue
to confine my thoughts on the subject to my ovm breast,
though to thee I risk them. I taust I am not presumptuous.

204 LETTERS OF
I affirm nothing ; but I have thought it aUowable to admit
the supposition, which is not likely to lessen my comfort in
this life, nor make me less soUcitous of happiness in the
next. If the angels interest themselves in human concerns, and
rejoice in the repentance of a sinner on earth, may it nOt he
beUeved they wUl rejoice with him in heaven ? If the apostles
were made a spectacle to angels as well as to men, and the
rioud of vritnesses referred to by St. Paul were those men
tioned in the preceding chapter, is it unreasonable to suppose
that the communion of spirits may be more perfect and more
comprehensive when the vaU of our fiesh is removed from
both parties, than while it circumscribes the powers of one ?
I acknowledge we are told, " eye hath not seen, nor ear heard,
neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which
God hath prepared for them that love him." But because
we cannot conceive all the things we shaU enjoy, is it a
crime to expect they wUl in part consist of something
soothing to the human mind in its present associations, and
which neither reason nor revelation precludes, but, on the
contrary, so far as they are adverted to in it, are coun
tenanced by the scripture.
I do not think I have done my ovm. opinion justice, or
that I have mentioned all the arguments that might be-
rationaUy employed, or drawn half the inferences in favour
of it, that an attentive perusal of the scriptures, with a par-.
ticular reference to the subject, would admit. It is sufficient
if it induces thee to consider it in that point of riew ; and
if from reason, or the scriptures, thou shalt obtain more
ample satisfaction on either side of the question, I shaU be
glad to have my speculation corrected or confirmed by thee.
For let it always be remembered, I only speak of it as a con
jecture, or at highest as an opinion to which I attach no

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 205
obUgation, nor think the worse of those who think differently
ti-om me, or who do not so much as entertain an opinion
about it. But I should be sorry that any, (if such there are)
who would deem such a speculation presumptuous, should
be grieved or offended, by knovring that I had indulged the
thought ; though it doth not appear to me to be among the
profane or fooUsh and uideamed questions which Timothy
was told to shun or avoid. If this opinion, as well as some
others generaUy admitted by the primitive Christians, was
entertained by Plato and others, heathens, before the pro
mulgation of the gospel, and not being incompatible with
the duties enjoined by Christ, were not particularly noticed
by him or his apostles, must they be rejected by us, because
they were received by those who also admitted notions or
opinions which superior Ught has since discovered to be
erroneous ? May we not aUow that such speculations as do
not lessen the inducements, or weaken the obUgations to a
virtuous life, may be indulged ; as weU as that no change
of old for new opinions, is worth adopting, where the latter
are not more conducive to our preset comfort, or do not
brighten our prospect of the future ? By this rule, I adhere
to the old opinion, that the termination of this life is the
commencement of a happier, in opposition to the more
modem supposition, that we shall be insensible of existence,
either past, present, or to come, imtil the day of judgment,
the " time of restitution of aU things." This appears to me
a kind of scepticism, tending to infidelity — and infideUty, so
far as I have known any thing of it, has invariably a cold,
comfortless, and discouraging effect upon the mind ; and so
long as our hopes and fears can be affected thereby, must
proportionably influence our conduct. * * *

206 LETTERS OF

Extract from a Letter to his Daughter.
24th of Tenth Month, 1799.
 There seems too much reason to fear the accom
plishment of the threatened calamities, if not staid by
repentance and reformation ; for my part, I think I cannot
remember a more awful conjuncture — war, pestUence, and
famine, may be considered as impending over this guUty, if
not devoted, land. In divers parts of the earth they have
been, perhaps I may say are at this instant felt — the faUure
of harvest, and of seed-time probably entaUing a greater
scarcity on the coming year ; the consequent rapid advance
in the price of wheat, aUeady with us from fourteen to six
teen shUlings a bushel, and scarce even at that ; the stffi
more rapid advance in the price of oats, hay, and beans, vriU
make it difficult to support the horses, and probably make
butcher's meat dearer ; the fruitless attempt of our troops
and the Russians in HoUand — the expense and waste inci
dental to transporting and maintaining such a number of
men and horses, with the increased consumption at home of
the additional Russians to be wintered in England; and a
long winter it may be ; wiU have a sensible effect in enhancing
the price of prorisions to the poor tradesmen and others in
this country, from whom more wUl be claimed in consequence
of the measures that lessen their ability to pay and increase
their difficulties to maintain their famUies ; these are afflict
ing considerations, and are ready to suggest the humble
expostulation, " Oh Lord how long," &c. &c. Besides " the
pestUence that walketb in darkness, and the destruction that
wasteth at noon-day," which hath swept away so many in
Barbary, we are told that lately a vessel arrived at Liverpool,
bringing letters to the 10th of last month, that the yeUow
fever was raging at New York and PhUadelphia, and that the

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 207
number of deaths was as great as at any former period of the
calamity. How desirable amidst it all, my H  , is it to be
enabled to say with Darid in the Psalm to which I have
referred, " I wiU say of the Lord he is my refuge and my
fortiess ; my Ood, in him wUl I trust ;" and so far as is
consistent with his good proridence and gracious designs
towards us, to experience that preservation from such out
ward erils as are therein enumerated, or such a removal
from them as may exempt us at once from danger and from
suffering. To thee I write vrithout premeditation, and hope
it vriU be received in that love which alone wUl induce that
freedom, and in which without further addition, I remain
Thy very affectionate father.
To William Savery, Philadelphia.
Oreen Bank, lOth of Eighth Month, 1799.
 1 am induced to send vrith the enclosed a plan of

the Stranger's Friend Society, to bring under thy notice a
charitable institution in this land, vrith a hope that thou wUl
employ thy influence and endeavours to estabUsh something
simflar at Philadelphia, in which I trust thou wUl have many
assoraates among other people, as weU as among Friends.
By the papers herewith sent, thou wUl see it commenced
vrith the people caUed Methodists ; and though some of the
rules laid down by them for the qualffications of risitors, as
weU as some expressions in the address, &c., may be excep
tionable, I doubt not but others, as weU as thyself, wiU find
no difficulty in making such aUowances as shaU be thought
necessary, for expressions as weU as sentiments, which they
cannot adopt, or in framing such other rules for conducting
the business of such an institution, as wUl secure the desired
effect, and which a knowledge of local circumstances, varying

208 LETTERS OF
in different places, vriU enable you to do vrith the greatest
propriety, and yet though it may be unnecessary to suggest
any thing on that head, I vriU just submit that some of the
rules recited in the enclosed, appear to be so generaUy appU-
cable, as to require only such addition as the pecuUar- or dif
fering circumstances of PhUadelphia may render necessary.
the sudden departure of the "Perseverance," and of which
I have been this instant informed, doth not aUow me to
enlarge upon the subject, and which indeed my knowledge
of thy liberaUty and charity in every sense of the words,
renders unnecessary, and would even if I had more time ;
but I wUl just add, that I think the attempt so desirable,
that I am wUling to be an annual contributor for five years
to come certainly, and I hope longer, if longer I Uve, and
therefore if thy endeavours shaU be at aU successful, be
pleased to draw upon  for  as soon, and at as short a
date as you please. It appears from the annual sums in the
reports, that many of the contributors are among the compa
ratively poor, perhaps of twopence or threepence a week each,
and divers of the visitors have been from among that class ;
perhaps it did not succeed the worse from its commencing
with the poor, and ascending to the rich, than if it had been
the reverse. I love that such may have an opportunity to
contribute their mite, and to impart their adrice and their
sympathy.

To THE Rev. T. Houlbrooke.
Coalbrook Dale, 26th of Sixth Month, 1800.
My dear Friend,
The next post, after I had written my letter of the 19th
to my son Rathbone, I received thy very acceptable favour

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 209
of the 14th, which, by the post-mark upon it, appears to have
been sent from Liverpool, the 18th. Thou may justly think
my acknowledgment of it protracted as much beyond the
time when gratitude and affection should have dispatched it,
as thy account of your safe arrival at Liverpool appeared to
my anrious expectation. But though a week has elapsed
since it first excited my thankfulness for the comfort it
afforded me on your account, and a letter from my son and
daughter has also reUeved me in a good degree from the
solicitude thy account of my son's indisposition had inspired;
I assure thee I have not had an opportunity of thanking thee
or them for it tUl this instant, having had to attend meetings
of one sort or other every day this week, and yesterday, one
at Shifnal; in consequence of which I presume my son
Joseph has vmtten to Rathbone, Hughes and Duncan, for
forty barrels of rice. Sir Corbet Corbet was there. I did
not ask him. what were his expectations respecting his appli
cation to the county ; but from what he said of Kynaston
PoweU's claim to the peerage being deferred, and the diffi
culty attending the prosecution of it, I infer Sir Corbet does
not think it necessary to urge his wishes, as the Apostle
adrised Timothy, to preach the word — " instantly, in season,
out of season;" for he said not a word on the subject, though
it might have been (considering the occasion of our meeting)
rather in season than out of season. Thou vriU probably
conjecture, from this light, not to say trifling way of writing,
that my heart is reUeved from the load which oppressed it,
and to which thy pious suggestions, as opportunely as affec
tionately urged, were so weU adapted to induce submission
vrithout repining ; while they afforded all the assistance to
bear the ineritable affliction which friendship and sympathy
could contribute. I am thankful, if not in proportion to the
blessings received from the Giver of aU things good, yet, I

210 LETTERS OF
trust, according to the capacity of my poor stupid heart,
that my prospect, as referring to others near and dear to
me, is less gloomy, though yet far from bright.
My health and spirits are much improved since last week,
both, perhaps, most in consequence of the alteration last
mentioned ; but the latter especiaUy, by the company and
conversation of my cousin, Sarah AUen, who has been vrith
us three weeks, and wUl stay tUl we go to Bristol, in our
way to Bridgwater. I think thou art not acquainted vrith
her. If thou wast, and with her friendship, I might say her
affection for me, thou would not be surprised I should be so
much the better for the attentions which that has procured
me, and my circumstances continue to render so desirable.
I rejoice with thee in thy favourable accounts from
America; especially that the good fortune and success of
thy nephew is accompanied vrith a continued attachment to
the substance, as weU as to the forms of reUgion. My
acquaintance with him, if indeed I am warranted to use even
that word on the occasion, is too slender to justify my sending
a congratulatory message to him on the birth of his daughter,
(Susan.) But his relation to thee, and my knowledge of
the virtues and endowments of the estimable woman whose
name she inherits, prompts the wish that her acquiring the
same quaUfications for Uring, if her life be continued, or
preparation for an early departure, as was her aunt's, if such
shaU be her's, may make her a joy to her parents whUe she
Uves, or console them when she dies.
I condole very sincerely with Sophia PhUUps. The sym
pathy of her near and numerous relations, her own good'
sense, stUl more her pious resignation ; and more than aU,
the gracious assistance of the Father of mercies, the God of
aU comfort, by the influence of his Holy Spirit, which under
every dispensation of affictive proridence, is most truly, as

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 211
most emphaticaUy, the Comforter, renders it as unnecessary as
I am incapable to add more than the hope I indulge, that she
vriU continue to remember me, as one sincerely desirous of
her happiness in time and in eternity.
I anticipate, vrith thee, the return of thy friend, GuUemard,
from America, and hope,- besides the pleasure of his con
versation and general information, he wUl continue and
confirm the good account of thy relations and friends on
that continent.
The parcel sent by my daughter is received and forwarded
in a box, vrith some clothes of mine, to Bridgwater. The
two handkerchiefs came safe, and have increased my obUga
tions to thee, by enabling me to gratify two worthy women,
whom I vrished to please. My sister, Darby, went for Bath
this morning. I expect to go into Somersetshire about the
9th or 10th of next month, but hope to write to my daughter,
as weU as to hear again from you both before I leave this
place — and am, in the meantime, with dear love to her and
my son, the chUdren and thyself, in which my wife joias.
Thy affectionate friend,
Richard Reynolds.
Coalbrook Dale, 3rd of Third Month, 1802.
My dear Frienb,
I shaU now reply to the latter, and as I truly said in my
last, the most interesting part of thy favour of the 11th of
last month, hoping the reasons assigned in mine of the 25th
were sufficient satisfactorily to account for my not writing
sooner. The retrospect of nearly twenty years, and the par
ticular instances which thy advertence forcibly rerives in my
remembrance, bring with them a comparison of the past
with the present, which not only makes me sensible, and

212 LETTERS OF
may it be profitably so of the lapse of time and the accoimt
to be rendered for the actions of so long a portion of my Ufe,
but excites vrith the iateresting reeoUection, an increase of
consideration for those who so long since, and especially the
few who also ever since, have been the sympathisers in my
affections, the promoters of my comfort, the friends of my
heart; nor can I number one of equal standing, therefore
more justly dear to me than thyself. I never had- many
friends even at that time of life, when experience had not
damped the ardour of expectation and the unsuspecting
heart readUy attached itself to congenial dispositions and
paid a wUling deference to superior virtue and greater know
ledge ; the few whom my situation permitted me to know
and love as such, are mostly dead; the two or three left
are separated by distance and engaged in different pursuits.
Our intercourse has graduaUy, and I trust without much
blame to either party, declined. The bands that now connect
us are so slender, that the event which wUl speedUy and
finaUy loosen them, wiU not be thereby made painful;
though at times it is not unpleasant to remember that such
were once my friends.
I have endeavoured to recoUect the poets I had been
pleased vrith, and thou disapproved, and the prose vmters
that I stUl thought might instruct me ; but I beUeve few
were then named, and thy dislike was expressed in general
terms, rather than in particular objections, only I think thou
said " there was Uttle genuine or original poetry of late years,
there were the same thoughts a Uttle differently expressed,
and one who had read the ancients would find little new."
I think thou excepted ChurchiU. It would be very difficult
for me of the very few I have read, to mention one poet,
whose writings I wholly approve, nor of them can I name
one totally exceptionahle. I beUeve every body is pleased

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 313
vrith writings adapted to their respective capacities, and that
both in nature and in art, the pleasure as well as the excite
ment is in proportion to the competency of the beholders ;
and as the productions of a mediocrity of genius and the
simpler or inferior ones of nature, are most numerous and
easUy obtained and better calculated for the meridian of
common understandings, the possessors of such have a better
chance for enjoyment than those of more enlarged capacities
and refined taste, who would perhaps be disgusted by that
which would deUght their simpler neighbour : a reference
to the imitative arts vriU Ulustiate my meaning. Suppose
a rustic youth, who had never heard, not of Phidias or
ApeUes, but of statuary or painting, should find a barber's
block in the pit he was sinking, or the ground he was plough
ing; would not his admiration, his pleasure, be exquisite,
whUe he contemplated his discovery and marked the striking
resemblance to a man's head — "the human face dirine?"
"Look," says he, "here's his eyes — and here's his nose and
mouth, for aU the world Uke a man's." I think he would not
be, proportionably, more highly gratffied when, by a possible
reverse of fortune and cultivation of latent genius himself
become an adept, astonished if not ashamed that he could once
have admired the rude performance of the blockmaker, he sur
veys vrith rapture the chef d' aeuivres of the chisel or the pencU.
So also of poetry and other kinds of Uterature. He is most
Ukely to be pleased, whose understanding or whose taste is
rather inferior than superior to the author whose productions
he reads. I need not be ashamed to acknowledge what my
whole Ufe has evinced. I was never calculated for great
things. Some men of bolder darings would perhaps, even
vrith the opportunities I have had, have acquired celebrity as
iron masters, as mineralogists,, or metallurgists ; but I was
always so much vrithout ambition, or more properly, genius.

214 LETTERS OF
that I could not aspfre beyond the contiacted sphere aUotted
to my movements, and proportioned to my powers. I am
of opinion with Covrper, a favourite poet of mine though a
modern, and what if I say confirmed by experience and
observation, that "God gives to every man —
" The virtue, temper, understanding, taste,
That lifts him into life ; and let's him faU
" Just in the niche he was ordained to fiU."
And happy those, so far as worldly success can make them,
who risk not their safety by rushing from it. WUl it be
presumption in me to think God also gave
" To me an unambitious mind, content
In the low vale of life, that early felt
A wish for ease and leisure, and at length
Found here that leisure and that ease I wished ; ''
that is, so far as the latter consists vrith those relative"
dependencies that Cowper never knew ; " but I am grovring
garrulous." How has my pen run on ! I have written not as I intended,
for I did not think of making myself the subject of my letter.
Thou told me of the effects of approaching age. I can, by
continuing my egotisms, tell thee of the effect of old age
arrived. And, whether or not it vriU prove me sUly as well
as again chUdish, I am not sorry that I find the continu
ance, if not the increase, of a disposition which I felt in early
life, to be pleased vrith those things in nature and in art,
so far as I am thereunto Uable, which are most obrious and
most easily obtained ; at least I am not much disposed to
seek, nor at all to regret that I possess not a capacity for
the enjoyment or the means of obtaining, the subUme acqui
sitions of science, or the exquisite productions of art. I

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 215
could say formerly, and I can repeat it vrith undiminished
complacency —
" The grassy lane, the wood-surrounded field.
The rude stone fence with fi'agrant wall-fiowers gay,
The clay built cot, to me more pleasure yield.
Than all the pomp imperial domes display."
Not that, properly speaking, I have so much pleasure in
these as less desire for the others ; my iucUnation even for
the aUowable enjoyment of this transitory scene abates with
my powers, and the attachment to Ufe weakens as that
shortens. May my fitness for the next world increase vrith
my indifference to this 1 then vrill the gracious purpose of
the Author of my eristence be accomplished in my present
acquiescence vrith his dispensations, and the future and
endless happiness of Thy affectionate friend,
Richard Reynolds.

Bristol,' 12th of Fifth Month, 1804.
My dear Son,
I am very glad to hear, by thy favour of the 10th instant,
that thou found thy dear chUdren pretty weU, after thy
having accompanied thy mother-in-law to London. It
would have added to my satisfaction if thou had infomned
me of the state of thy ovm. health, and that of thy sisters
who are with thee, though I do not know which of them
went vrith hef mother, and who, as thou says nothing to the
contiary, I hope thou left well vrith her there.
I take kindly the regret thou expresses at the conse
quences of my removal, as preventing the interriews that
we might have had, and the delay the distance occasions in

216 LETTERS OF
the information thou can receive of any Ulness to which I
may be subjected. It applies respecting thyself and thy
children with equal effect, and therefore I request that when
ever thou writes thou vriU mention it particidarly ; and I
hope thou wUl soon have leisure to write more frequently, as
weU as more circumstantiaUy, than has been the case since
our separation ; nor wUl thou, I trust, have any reason to
complain of the delay, whatever thou may have of the impor
tance of my answers. If thy aunts should decline to purchase
upon the terms I have offered to them, I think the expedient
thou hast proposed so very eUgible, and the reasons thou
assigns as affecting thy brother's children, and your deter
minations respecting Ketley Coal-works, Wombridge, and
Wrockwardine, so very conclusive, that I hope by some means
or other, it wUl be brought under thy aunt's consideration
before the pending treaty is concluded, especially if they vriU
not purchase.
I have received a letter from John Prichard, of Brosely,
enquiring for a certain deed which my friend Richard Hill's
attorney supposes to have been, by mistake, placed among
those which I left in thy possession, in the box No. 2, as by
the list drawn up by Jos. Shipton. I have referred him to
thee for an answer. I shall be glad to hear from Edward
Simkin the expense of the late M. Bladen's funeral. Please
, to give my love to him and his vrife, and with much to thy
self, and the dear children, &c. I remain
Thy affectionate Father,
Richard Reynolds.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 217

To HIS Daughter.
Bristol, 12th of Eleventh Month, 1805.
 I also, my dear Hannah, have been longer than I in
tended to have been, or than is pleasant to me, in acknowledg
ing the receipt of thy acceptable letter of the 30th of the last
month ; but I wiU not occupy thy time or my own in re
citing the many occurrences that have contributed to prevent
me, nor ej^en by referring to my increased unaptness for this
kind of employment.
I hope this wUl find thee and my son Rathbone safely
returned from a satisfactory risit vrith your sister Benson, to
her chUdren at Manchester, and that they, as well as those
at home, vrill continue to justify her considering them as
friends and supports in her declining age. Such, I also
hope, vrill your's prove ; nor is there, I trust, more than the
possibffity common to you with others, to induce the par
ticular wish that the elder of them may be in the place of
parents to their younger brothers. If, " as long as thou can
suppose one human being is in any way pleased or benefited
by this existence, it wiU be a sufficient reason for thy thank
fulness in its continuance ;" those who love thee most and
most desire thy life, need not wish it to be longer : and if
thy happiness is as much promoted by their regard as thefrs
is by thine, thou may reasonably expect as much as can
result from the intercourse, affection and friendship, so long
as love and gratitude shaU infiuence those on whom thy con
duct has established thy claim to both.
I can sympathize with thee especially in the declension of
thy sight, though I apprehend mothers frequently experience
its commencement sooner than others, and that vrith them
it does not rapidly increase, but is rather stationary for some
ii

218 LETTERS OF
years, glasses of the same magnifying powers ' continuing
equally useful to them. How it may be vrith the faculties
of the mind in general, which certainly are affected by the
weakness of the bodUy organs, I know not ; of the faUure of
the memory I have remarked a pretty general and a pretty
early complaint ; ^but mine, of late, deoUnes so very fast,
especiaUy of persons' names, that I sometimes think if I
remember my ovm and my chUdren's, with a very few others,
that wUl be aU. Were I to teU thee some instances that
have recently occurred, thou would be surprised, if not
grieved ; and yet, my baring this day completed my seventieth
year, furnishes abundant cause of thankfulness, that after
such a series or succession of conflict, care and sorrow, on a
frame never very strong and- a mind always very weak, I
possess so much hfealth of body and mental ability, as is
mercifuUy continued to me : but, my dearest daughter, if '* a
consciousness that the gift of life has not been improved as
it ought to have been," necessarUy precluded hope of suc
ceeding happiness, how miserable must have been thy father!
No, though far, very far, short of the improvement I might
and ought to have made, I am not without hope. I beUeve
that unless a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom
of God, and that his grace operates as the leaven in the meal
tiU the whole be leavened ; yet, incomplete as is my expe
rience, I derive some comfort and some support from the
consideration, that the new birth doth not imply an imme
diate attainment unto the measure of the stature of a
perfect man in Christ Jesus, and that the operation of the
sanctifying influence of Divine grace is progressive. Nor
need our consciousness of past offences prevent our hope of
future happiness. Believing the divine authority of the New
Testament, and that the gracious promises and assurances
contained therein are addressed to aU the descendants

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 219
from Adam, I conclude they are as much mine as any of my
feUow-creatures, without presuming to pronouncsi upon the
incomprehensible economy (if I may use such an expression,)
of the Almighty, or attempting to apprehend the mysterious
process of human redemption, I thankfuUy admit that it is a
faithful saying and worthy of aU acceptation, that Christ Jesus
came into the world to save sinners ; that God hath set him
forth to be a propitiation for the sins of the world, and through
faith in his blood we obtain remission of sins that are past.
I observe that the promises and the attainments are spoken
of in the present tense to those to whom they are ad^
dressed ; that is, according to my understanding of them
as above expressed, to me and to my daughter. Are we
sensible of having been, of our being sinners ? Such Christ
CBime to caU to repentance ; such had present salvation ; and
forasmuch as we are subject to the infirmities of flesh and
blood, He tool^ also part of the same, that through death
He might destroy him that had the power of death, and
deliver them who, through fear of death, were all their lifcT
time subject to bondage.
Why then, my Hannah, shoidd we fear ? I did not know
when I began, I should write so much on tMs subject;
though it is of aU others the most important ; and I vrill
conclude it vrith recommending to thy attentive perusal and
Irequeiit meditation the flfth chapter of St. Paul's Epistle to
the Romans, as containing a brief, yet comprehensive and
fiiU delineation of the beneflts and pririleges of the Gospel
dispensation, fuUy justifying our immediate appropriation of
them, by their being described, not as what the believers
were to have, but what they had, and what is intended.^*- us
to have. May it be our happy experience ! and then, though
whUe we continue in these elementary bodies, we shaU be
liable to the ebbings and flowings of our animal spirits — to
l2

220 LETTERS OP
ricissitudes of light and shade, yet dark as sometimes the
gloom may be permitted to involve us, stiU we shaU have an
hope which, as an anchor to the soul, both sure and stedfast,
wUl enter into that vrithin the veU, and preserve us safely
through every storm.
I observe thy considering the depredation of the mouse as
a misfortune ; but if he has only destioyed one of the many
letters I have written to thee, I think thy loss cannot be
great ; however, as it seems desirable to thee, if thou can
send me the date of it, and it happens to be one of which I
have a copy, I shall vrillingly transcribe it for thee ; indeed,
I have lately thought of burning many letters which I have
written, and were then of some little consequence, but wffi
soon be of none ; and yet I should not like to have them faU
into improper hands when mine can hold them no longer.
Of the letters I have received, I think it wUl be right they
should be reinirned to those of the writers of them who shaU
be then bring, and of those who shaU have died before me,
that they should- be burned unopened ; but I should Uke thy
inspection of them and assistance in the meantime.
Please to give my love to our T. H., whose letter of the
8th I received yesterday, and hope to write to him soon, and
to my grandson, from whom I have received another accept
able letter. I suppose my son Joe has consulted his
brother Rathbone on his design of opening a bank at
Wellington, in which I shaU vriUingly assist him, though I
think a little differently on the subject, to which he may
be more competent.
P. Gurney and S. AUen are both vrith me at present, and
unite in dear love to thee and aU thine, vrith
Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 221
Bristol, 12th of Fifth Month, 1808.
My dear son,
I shall attend to what thou says respecting the pre-emption
of the Manor Mines and Iron Works being vested in my
grandsons, Joseph and ]Michael Reynolds, for which thou
assigns reasons that did not occur to me, not less to the
credit of thy disinterestedness and integrity than to thy
judgment in the case, whether they ever knew or not of
their obUgation to thee in this as weU as in other instances.
I am very desirous of putting it into thy power to consider
Lincoln Hffi vrith coppices — ^indeed all the land on that side
of the Dale, from the NSw Pool to the end of Lincoln HUl,
or at least the possession of it at thy option or absolutely,
as vriU be most agreeable to thee, and therefore request thee
to send me, before thou goes from home, a proper item or
clause to insert ia my vriU for that purpose. I am now
employing an attorney to make it for me, and have peculiar
reason to hasten the execution of it. I am, with dear love
to the chUdren, and thy sister Dearman, Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.
Bristol, 8th of Twelfth Month, 1808.
My dear son,
I was comforted to flnd by thy letter of the 28th ultimo,
that thou left thy brother Rathbone so much better than
thou found him, and which was confirmed by a letter from
T. Houlbrooke written early in the week after thou returned ;
but by one this instant received from thy sister Reynolds,
I am again alarmed, though I have not heard from Green
Bank since T. Houlbrooke's letter as abov6 said. Thy cousin

222 LETTERS OF
S. AUen, who is at present at Frenchay, has been expecting to
hear from thee with directions for the pictures, which at present
are at John BirtUl's, carefuUy packed in cases, which should
be as carefully opened. John BirteU has paid £48. 4*. Id. for
the pictures, frames and cases, which should be repaid to
him. I understood from S. A. it was thy wish to make thy
sister a present of one of them, and in that case please to
remit the amount to John BirteU ; if she (S. A.) is mistaken,
remit the money to J. B. nevertheless, and I wUl repay thee
the half of it ; but I insist upon one condition both from
thee and thy sister : that a's long as I live, the pictures be
nowhere but in your bed-chambers. The first was begun
without my knowledge, and indirect means used to acoom-
pUsh it ; at length I was candidly told it was determined to
have it, and when I saw what was done, I thought it better
to sit for the finishing than to have it a mere caricature;
but I think it a very moderate performance at last. I was
vriUing, too, to avail myself of the opportunity, if such a one
must be presented, of exhibiting my beUef of Christianity
as exhibited in the 5th chapter of the Romans ; and my esti
mation of certain authors, by affixing their names to the
books delineated in the back ground. Thou dost not mention
thy own, thy chUdren's or thy sister's health. I hope you are
weU, as through mercy I am, excepting that I feel the
increasing infirmities of old MgY -vfTi^ch though , many in
stances convince us that the "^'^g maygo, convince me that
the old must go ; and if both c'e prepared for their change,
it is little consequence which goes first.
I hear nothing of the intended Iron Company at this
place, only Darid Evans told me you were off your bargain
vrith him. If thou wants the money mentioned in thy former
letter, I beUeve thou may have it from me at the time men-

RICHARD REYNOLDS.

223

tion'ed-, or sooner if more desirable ; and on this subject I
shaU be pleased to hear from these soon.
I am, vrith dear love to thy children, thy sister, and thyself.
Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.
In reference to this subject (his portrait) in a letter
addressed to his son, about a twelvemonth after the
above, he says, in a postscript —
I have received a letter from each of my d'eair gran
daughters, giving me a favoured account of their health, &c.
Hannah says, " I do wish thou would send me a little
piteture of thee— I should not like any thiiig so much : we
aU used to like to look at that in father's room."
This reminds me to mention what I intended to have
mentioned before ; that is, an alteration I propose to be made
in the one here, and if this could be done in the others, I
daould Uke it ; and which, I suppose, would be best effected
by obUterating the books, and arranging them differently;
according to the estimation im which their writings or
character may be supposed to be held ; vrith the addition of
Kempis and Fenelon, not only for their intrinsic merit, but
to show that our good opinion was not confined to our own
countrymen. They would then stand thus ; —

Foiand
Penh.

Woolmam and
Clatkson.

Han way
and
Howard.

Milton and
Cowper.

¦
Addison and
WaMS.

Barclay and
liocke.

Sir W. Jones
and
6it W. Blackstone

Kempis and
Fenelon

I do not know whether I gave thee my reasons, as I did
to thy sister, for the original selection. She may shew thee

224 LETTERS OF
my letter to her, and thou may communicate the above to
her, with my dear love to all, repeated from
Thy affectionate father,
Richard Reynolds.
To R. G.
Bristol, 10th of Fi/rst Month, 1809.
Respected Friend,
Although I received thy letter of the 15th of last month
in due course, I was not qualified to answer it before this
day, when  commissioned me to give his love to thee,
and vrith it £15, towards £30, for which I enclose two biUs,
as at foot.  1 notice the three cases of distress mentioned
in thy letter — alas, I could send thee many such, and more
calamitous ! I observe two of the three are the wives and
chUdren of soldiers. I would by no means discourage thee
from reUeving tlie wants of such, if no others want it worse ;
but, as I apprehend there is a difference made by the law
for the famUies of our mUitary men, especiaUy the mUitia, so
it may be proper to consider, whether a difference should
not also be made between those who go voluntarUy, and
those who are compelled to go. If we had enough for aU,
no need to discriminate ; but as we can reUeve only a part,
and that a smaU one, I have thought it right to consider
who wanted it most, and who deserved it best. Though I
vriUingly admit, thy knowledge of local circumstances must
qualify thee to determine on the best mode of administering
relief, and it is possible the payment of their rents may be
the most eligible for the poor at Glasgow, I would just
take the Uberty to suggest, that in the Uttle experience I
have had, some fuel, additional clothing, or a blanltet or two,
has been more acceptable, more lastingly serriceable, and less
Uable to abuse or misapplication than money.
Thy respectful friend.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 225
To THE Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke.
Bristol, 16th of Tenth Month, 1809.
My dear Friend,
I have been a few days from home since I received thy
acceptable letter of the 18th instant. I thought it long in
coming. Thy account of thy tour is pleasant as it was pro
ductive of pleasure to thee, and interesting as exhibiting
some instances of very affecting as well as affiicting dispen
sations by the death of some young and amiable, with many
others, whose numerous removals, since they were thy com
panions ih thy studies and juvenUe pursuits, has contracted
the circle into very smaU dimensions. When I was with
my cousin SaUy AUen, at Oxford, in. the year 1806, we met
Archdeacon Corbet, vrith two of his daughters, in New
CoUege. She remembers them well, and says they were
uncommonly elegant girls, in the prime of youth and beauty.
We suppose it is one of them whom the other mourns, but
from thy account of her, it appears most Ukely it wUl be but
for a short time. It forcibly brought to my recollection a
passage in Catherine Talbot's Ode, which begins-^" What
art thou, memory of former days," &c. ; riz..
" For stormy clouds too often intervene,
And throw dark shadows o'er this mortal scene ;
Blast the fair buds of Hope, or snatch from sight
The dear companions of our social way,
Absorb'd at once in Death's impervious night.
Lost for a while — ^but when eternal day
Shall gladsome dawn, at once its glorious ray
Shows the fair scene of happiness complete ;
Then friends, companions, lovers, joyful meet.
Thence never more to part ; and fully blown
The buds of Hope their lasting bloom display."
D 3

226 letters OF
This, I doubt not, vrill occasion thee to remember our
mutual dear friend F. T. I am glad to find her last letter
gave a better account of her health than the preceding —
stUlI fear it is precarious. I had a kind letter from her
the 6th instant. She speaks of going from home ; if I
knew where to write to her, I could only tell her I love her
dearly and rejoice in the happy state of her mind, and this
thou can say for me, with something better from thyself the
next time thou writes to her.
I have been the more disposed to write in this manner, by
my having this day attended the funeral of one of the most,
if not the most valuable member of civU society with whom
I was acquainted in this city, and who vrill be more sin
cerely lamented, as he was more deservedly beloved than any
other who has died since my returning to this place.
John Birtill,* though not thereunto ordained, was some
times an exhorter in the Moravian Society, and at all times
in life and conversation, a preacher of righteousness to them
and aU men ; cheerful, humble, pious, and learned, though
not elaborately educated ; an admirer of antiquity and the
fine arts, though not in circumstances to be an expensive
purchaser of them ; and if he had been, I beUeve he would
have preferred reliering the wants of the living to the pos
session of the productions of the dead, whether by the
pencU or the chisel, With aU this he was my particular
friend and most intimate associate in any thing I was capable
of undertaking for the good of others, or my ovm ; in short,
he was that to me in this city, which thou wast to me in the
country ; need I then say, I loved him Uring, and lament
• Mr. Birtill had placed in a private chapel, attached ta his house a
marble tablet, bearing this inscription : —
" John Howakd. John Fothbkoill, M.D.
Johas Hanwat. Eiohard Revnolds."

RICHARD REVNOLDS. 227
him dead ? nor need I desire more for thee or for myself than
that we may, as he did, die the death of the righteous, and
our last end be like his, in the fuU assurance of hope, through
faith in Jesus our Sariour. This event enforces the monitory
warning, prepare to meet thy Ood, so justly repeated by thee
when, counting with thy friend Edward Harries, you found
but five remaining of his class or thine : thou says, " How
soon may those five be, with us, removed ?" How awful then
to me the important admonition, who am ten years olderj
than either of yon ? May it have a proper — a permanent
effect upon me ! I was glad to hear he continues so capable of
enjoying and contributing to the enjoyment of his friends; so
long as that is mutuaUy the case with you, your interviews
wiU be increasingly interesting, as the contraction of the
circle of friendship brings your minds into greater intimacy,
(if I may use the expression,) into closer contact, and your
communications vrill be more of inteUectual than material
subjects — more of the concerns of the next life than of the
present. The 9th instant I received a letter from my daughter, vrith
a good account of their health at Green Bank. She says
but Uttle of the concerns of her sons WUUam and Richard :
"But if the trials and vexations her dear boys meet with
may but have the right effect, upon their minds, she desires
nothing more. 1 am obliged by thy kind solicitude for my
sister. I went to see her in the last month, when she was very
poorly, but she was finely recovered before I left her. I had a
letter last night from her son Gawen, who, with his brother
Joseph from London, is at present at Bridgwater, but I ex
pect them here the latter end of the week. My sister had
been again very poorly, but was better ; her health is very pre
carious, and frequently reminds her that here she has no con
tinuing city, which her age alone might sufficiently do, she

228 LETTERS OF
being nearly seventy-three, but little more than one year
younger than I am, who ought therefore to be proportionably
mindftd of the little time I have to continue a probationer
for a better inheritance in a better world. ]Remember me
affectionately and respectfully to IsabeUa and the family
of the -Douglass', when thou writes to her. My friend, .
P. Gurney, is at Bath ; when I write to her, I wUl desire
her to enquire after Todd Jones. My cousin S. AUen and I
are pretty weU ; she desires to be remembered to thee,
vrith Thy affectionate friend,
Richard Reynolds.

To HIS Daughter.
1st of Tenth Month, 1810.
 The listlessness amounting almost to lukewarm
ness of which thou complains, is felt I believe at times,
by every professor of faith in Christ, however sincerely
desirous to be his disciple ; at least I am sure it is as well
as by thee ; and like as by thee, lamented by thy father ;
but may we not hope we shaU in the Lord's time experience
deUverance from it, and does not the sorrow it occasions
excite our prayers at the same time that it proves we are not
left in a state of torpid insensibUity ? How often have we
desired to suffer pain rather than to become insensible ?
" WhUe there is life there is hope ;" and however sincerely
as justly we may disclaim the least shadow of merit, are we
not conscious that ours is not the hope of the hypocrite, and
may we not confide in His promise who has said, " I wUl
never leave thee nor forsake thee ?" I was glad to find it
was thy practice to begin the day vrith religious retirement,
»nd reading a portion of the Holy Scriptures. The regular

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 229
and frequent recurrence of any practice is too Uable to reduce
it to a form ; but though less Uvely at some times, at others
we experience a revival, and to consider the promises and
exhortations which we read in the Scriptures, the New Tes
tament especiaUy, as addressed to us immediately and indi
vidually, vriU increase their interest, by authorising us to
appropriate the abundant fimd of consolation and encourage
ment contained in the gospels and epistles. And if we read
the experience of those whom we have reason to beUeve have
been among the exceUent of the earth, and without partiality
I think I may refer to some of our own Society ; from these
it wffi appear that a great advancement in religious experi
ence does not exempt from mental conflict and apprehended
desertion. May I vrithout blame, as it is vrith awe and
reverence I presume to refer to the unparaUeled and tre
mendous agony of our Sariour's expiring conflict, and — may
it never be named without devotion, humility and thankful
ness—it was, my Hannah, for us He endured it. And can
we doubt our safety, seeing, as the apostle expresses it in my
favourite chapter, we have now received the atonement, and,
]biowing that under every future temptation his grace is
sufficient for our preservation and that our prayers vriU be
heard by God, who giveth Uberally to all that ask Him and
upbraideth not. Let us then, my daughter, duly prize the
sacred pages, considering them as written for our learning,
" that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures may
have hope," inasmuch as they are " able to make us wise unto
salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus."

230 LETTERS OF
To THE Rev. Theophilus Houlbrooke.
Bristol, 21st of Second Month, 1811.
 A friend in Edinburgh vTrites to me thus : — " I was
much gratified by an instance of Tisefulness which I met vrith
a day or two since in this place. Two religious young men, of
the name of  who are banker's clerks, have esta
blished a school for the instruction of negroes, in reading,
writing and accounts ; as also vrith a riew to their religious
information and improvement. The school is open every
evening, except on Seventh-day, and the brothers attend
alternately. The meeting on First-day evening, which was
that which I attended, seems to be almost exclusively ap
propriated to religious instruction The negroes read the
scriptures, a verse each in rotation ; then the young men
read a portion, and catechised them on the subject of their
last lecture, which they appeared to remember well, and
mostly gave sensible and pertinent answers. • They each
repeated the text they had heard at their respective places of
worship, and the meeting concluded with prayer. An in
quiry was made after their temporal necessities, but none
were in want. Between twenty and thirty attended ; but
being mostly servants they cannot often all attend together.
The young men raise the necessary funds among their
acquaintance. The blacks appear fond of being brought
together, and are very assiduous."
It occurred to me, when I read this, how many more
negroes there were at Liverpool than in Edinburgh; and
how much more extensive the good effect of such an esta
blishment would be at Liverpool; and that, as no under
taking of this sort can be carried into effect vrithout incurring
some expense, I shall be wUUng to contribute  towards
it, in such proportion as thou shall recommend. # * #

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 231
Bristol, 9th of Third Month, 1811.
 For though the times may not mend, nor the
prospects as referring to pubUc affairs brighten, I trust, that
if we are favoured with health, our phUosophy, or, I would
rather say, our reUgion — vrill inspire us with fortitude to
bear the worst that wiU be permitted in this world ; and
with confidence, in expecting happiness vrithout abatement
and without end, in the next. Nearer eighty than seventy
years of age, I have the consolation, under my conflicts of
mind or body, that they cannot continue long ; and conrinced
that a total exemption is not to be expected on this side of
the grave, I consider the short time that remains to me, as
caUing for aU the exertion of which I am capable, to bear
them vrith patience and cheerful submission to the divine
wffi, as the dispensations of a proridence merciful as wise —
whUe faith in Christ, as a propitiatory sacrifice for the sins
of the world and for mine, dissipates the fears that my con
sciousness of my own demerits woidd othervrise inspire, and
intioduces the hope, which as an anchor to the soul, will
keep it safely through the awful transition from time to
eternity. It appears from the statement in the letter from New
York, of the number of faUures in that city, and from the
number of bUls returned to the West Indies protested, that
the commerce of America is nearly ruined, and ours, as thou
says, is hastening to its crisis. I am much less affected by
the concerns of the rest of the world, than I am by my own
impending state in futurity — the thought of this is almost
always present with me. The former seems as that in which
I once was, but am not now interested, so that I sometimes
think myself too selfish.
I am thankful, however, that I am not altogether vrithout

232 LETTERS OF
sympathy with my feUow men and compassion for the
sufferings to which the want of employment subjects the
poor manufacturers ; and the faUure of trade and of pay
ments, equaUy, or perhaps to sufferings stUl more severe —
some of their former employers. Thou mentions Rochdale,
Bolton, Leeds and HaUfax. WUl thou apply the inclosed
toward the relief of some of them, at thy discretion ; those
who want it most and deserve it best should have the
preference — the aged, honest, sober and industrious. I am
sensible how limited the benefit from such a sum in so
populous a district, and of the difficulty of personal inves
tigation before distribution. If it could be made subserrient
to the procuring an extensive contribution it would be of
more important serrice. If it cannot, I think it would be
best to commit it to some jufficious person or persons in each
place, to distribute with the utmost privacy, and (that) for
their own sakes, were it only to avoid appUcations from
more than they could supply, and yet the refusal would
subject them to abuse. But in whatever manner thou shalt
dispose of it, I send it upon the express conffition, that
nobody liring ever knows thou hast it from me ; this is
matter of conscience with me. In places where we are
known, and on pubUc occasions, when one's example would
have an influence, it may be as much a duty to give up one's
name as one's money ; but, otherwise, I think we cannot too
strictly follow the injunction : — " Take heed that ye do not
your ahns before men to be seen of them, otherwise ye have
no reward of your Father which is in heaven."
When thou acknowledges the receipt of the inclosed,
do not mention the sum ; it wUl be sufficient to say, my
letter of this date, with its contents, came safely to thy
hands. 

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 233
Bristol, 10th of Fourth Month, 1811.
Respected Friend,
When I took the Uberty of soUcitiag thy contribution
toward augmenting the income of the almshouses in this
city, thou wast pleased to say thou would consider of it.
Permit me to submit to thee that there are 23 almshouses
or endowments for the reception and support of 239 poor
persons of both sexes — mostly aged, many as old, and several
older, than we are — that 85 of them have but 2s. 6d. a-week ;
47 but 3s. ; 38 from 3s. 3d. to 3s. 6d. ; 46 have 4s. ; 5 have
4s. 3d. ; and 5 have 4s. 6d. a-week. Two of the almshouses
have been built and endowed more than 500 years ; five more
than 300 years, and most of the rest more than 150 years.
Prom the' reduction of tbe value of money, and the increased
deamess of all the necessaries of Ufe vrithin the shortest of
those periods, that which might, at the commencement of it,
afford to the poor creatures a subsistence, vriU not now keep
them from starring ; and had not extraneous assistance been
from time to time administered to them, many must have
been famished. I beUeve many have suffered severely, and
their lives been embittered as weU as abridged by the want
of -food, of clothes, and of fire — the consideration whereof has
induced the attempt to raise a fund for the purpose of
increasing to five shillings a week the aUowance to these our
poor feUow-creatures and fellow- Christians, many of whom,
in early life, had as Uttle reason as ourselves to expect so
calamitous an old age.
This very moderate addition would be deemed an impor
tant improvement of their present condition, though not such
as to preclude the necessity of further aid from the benevo
lence of our successors. But to effect even thus much will

23'4 LETTERS or
require such a sum as leaves me only the hope that what
may be at present procured, wUl be the commencement
of a contribution which subsequent additions wUl at some
future day render sufficient to accomplish the purpose
iaitended. The Uberality of the few to whom I have appUed, warrants,
I think, imy indulging the hope. Among them I am thankful
to name thy son Richard's donation of two hundred pounds.
I am unknown to thy son James, and have not the pleasure
of knowing him ; but from his general character, I might
have made bold to apply to him when I was at WraxaU, had
he been at home. I may yet be emboldened, if I have to
exhibit the example of his father, as weU as of his brother,
with due advertence to the respective abffities of each,
remembering " that if there be first a willing mind, it is
accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to
that he hath not."
May I without offence refer to the infirmities attendant on
old age, and our experience of them — how distressing, vrith
every alleviation that money can purchase or friends admi
nister. To the same, or to a greater degree of Buffering are
so many of our feUow-creatures, older and more infirm than
ourselves, subjected — vpretchedly lodged, scantily as weU as
meanly fed, vrithout a friend to pity or assist them ; in
want of clothes, food, and fire, vrithout the means to keep
their apparel clean,,if they had it, with less than sixpence
a day to supply aU their wants. Though so unequal the
dispensations of the present Ufe, these are, equaUy vrith
us, the objects of redeeming love, equally interested in the
benefits of the sufferings, the death and the mediation of
Jesus Christ, our common Sariour.
Should we not consider who made us to differ from them,-
and what have we that we did not receive ? Is not that

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 235
which we have received and do not want, the property of
those who do want and have it not ? Is it not committed
to us as stewards for the poor, who often are incapable of
aaamaging for themselves. For these and other talents
entiusted to us for improvement, we must very soon .give an
account — the time is so near that I trust my freedom wUl
not offend. It is not likely we shaU ever meet again in this
world, it is certain we shaU soon be in another-— may we meet
in A better !
Our time of life justffies our considering what we now
offer as an evening sacrifice, which wUl not be the less accept
able because intended for those who cannot thank us, and to
continue to their successors when wo and aU ours shaU be
extinct. For the little time we can have the means and the
power, may we " be ready to distribute, wUling to communi
cate, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased."
I have written more than I intended to write, or than, I
fear, vriU be easy to thee to read ; but I hope I shall obtain
thy excuse, and thou enjoy the peace of God and the blessings
of the poor for that which thou shalt be pleased to add to
the contributions annexed, and which wUl be thankfuUy
received and faithfuUy appUed by
Thy very respectful friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To ONE OF HIS Grandaughters.
Bristol, 5th of Fourth Month, 1813.
My bear Grandaughter,
I duly received thy acceptable letter of the 5th of last
month; I have since had the pleasure of a visit from thy
father and brother Thomas * * * I am pleased
to hear the gentlemen at Leicester have entered into a large

236 LETTERS OF
subscription for the reUef of the poor. I approve of the
spirit of independency in the two poor men thou mentions,
but not equally the manner in which they exhibited it. He
that told the gentleman who risited him from benevolent
motives, that he had maintained his famUy hitherto, and
though the times were hard, yet he would not be dependant
on any body and did not want them in his house, for he had
never asked them, should have acknowledged their kindness
in more grateful expressions : the other, who said he had
brought up twelve children and was very poor, but reftised
aU assistance, because he thought there were many others
who were stUl poorer than him, — ^this man I admire as weU
as approve, and if he is not quite comfortable, would wUl
ingly contribute towards making him so, as I hope thou
and thy sisters vriU do, according to your abilities, if there is
occasion. I am pleased to find the oranges were received,
and hope they were good ones. Please to teU thy sister
Rebecca, that vrith my love to your brother John, when she
writes to him, I would have her tell him, that I shaU be
much pleased to receive a letter from him, being his as
I am Thy very affectionate grandfather,
Richard Retnolds.

To G. H.
Bristol, 9th of Tenth Month, 1813.
Thou tells me, and I admit it, that thou art now en

titled to know my mind on this most interesting subject.'* I
vrish I was competent to pronounce upon it; but, conscious
* Eeferring to a proposed new translation of the Scriptures.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 237
with due deference to the judgment of the better learned —
of the contrary, I shaU only venture to suggest my opinion,
admitting, without hesitation, that every chUd should be
taught to read the scriptures.
Much as it may be desired that we might have a correct
translation of the scriptures, I cannot think it indispensably
necessary as a preparatory step, or that the British and
Foreign Bible Society should not have distiibuted the scrip
tures till such a translation should be obtained; because
the diversity of opinions among the learned and the . zealous,
would, I conceive, delay the completion of such a translation
so long, that the probabiUty is, that the good that has
aheady been done, and is increasingly doing, would never
have been done : and vrith increased Ught and liberty, it
may be hoped corrections and improvements wiU graduaUy be
made, by translations more faithful to the original.
I have frequently urged the propriety of distributing the
New Testament in preference, inasmuch as our object is not
to convert heathens or Mahomedans to Judaism, but to
Christianity : and as Ufe and immortality was brought to
hght by the gospel, thaf is what we should most zealously
promulgate. I am of the same opinion as to the poor and
ffiiterate objects of our bounty on our own island, and in
Ireland ; and have confined the little I have done for the
latter to the giving of New Testaments only. On this
subject I had some conversation with  and though I
continue to be of the same mind I was before, I am convinced
that selectmg certain parts of the history, the Psalms, and
the Prophets, from the Old Testament, which I had thought
might accompany the New Testament, for the use of the
continents of Asia and Africa, would be attended vrith
greater difficulty than I had apprehended.
I think  must be convinced by the perusal of thy

238 LETTERS OF
remarks, of the expediency, if I do not say the necessity, of a
prior civUisation, by means of the increase of the comferts
and arts of social Ufe, in order to the extensive adoption of
Christianity from the dispersion of the scriptures, or the
labours of missionaries, such as have hitherto been sent
abroad for that purpose. And I am of opinion, that but for
the present shocking war, injudicious and injurious to both
countries, the comparative success of tbe endeavoiyB of
Friends in Amaerica among their Indian neighbours^ would
have evinced the superiority of their mode, and proved the
justness of thy opinion. I admit the purity of the motives^
and admire the zeal of the missionaries in the East Indies^
and other parts of the globe : nor wiU it, I tiust, be con
sidered as an impeachment of either, if, upon comparing tiie
time and the expense, the labour and the encouragement
given, vrith the result^I have been ready to exclaim, " Who
hath believed our report," &c.
The argument respecting Atheism, quoted from the Com-,
mon-place Book, is more compendious, and perhaps equaUy
conclusive vrith Paley's masterly refutation of it on the
ground of contrivance and contriver ; which yet is not new,
though he might not have seen it advanced, as I did, when I
was a youth, in the third volume of Spectacle de la Nature,
in an appendix, entitled, " Useful Reflections on the
whole.'' * ? #

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 239
Bristol, 19th of Tenth Month, 1813.
MX DEAR GrANUSON,
It is not because I have not frequently remembered an
expression in the letter I some time since received from thee,
that I have not sooner cultivated the correspondence with
thee ; but besides the increasing inaptitude for writing, the
effect of advancing, or rather advanced, old age, my frequent
letters to my daughter and others at Green Bank, left me
nothing to say of my health and general concernments. I
had ^lao, by th© means of their letters to me, the pleasing
iafprmation of thy being as comfortable as their kindness
could make thee, vrith, perhaps, the abatement on thy part,
which the want of sufficient employment in serrice to them
would make in a grateful heart.
But my solicitude, my dear John, has been lately excited
by my hearing from thy father of thy being very ill ; and
though I am measurably reUeved by a letter from thy sister
Eebecoa, giring an account of the hope entertained of thy
graduaUy, though slowly recovering, I do not refrain from
hearing thee often in remembrance, accompanied vrith an
earnest and affectionate desire that this visitation may be
sanctified to thee, and the means of inducing an increased
consideration of what might have been the issue of it-^the
instant recollection of thy cousin Wffiiam, who, about six
years ago, at very nearly the same age, and with very Uttle,
if any, more warning, was caUed away from works to rewards,
loudly proclaims the more than propriety of our being also
ready ; for to us also, in an hour when we think not of it,
the summons may be sent. But come soon as it now may,
I trust it vriU not come unexpected. Thy recent reminding
bf the uncertainty of health may keep it in thy frequent

240 LETTERS OF
reeoUection ; and my constant advertence to it ought to be
ensured by the lapse of so many years beyond the longest
admitted estunate of human life — how soon must the scenes
of eternity be opened to me — ^how soon may they open to
thee ? O ! that the consideration miay have an effect on us
in some proportion to its avrfiU importance — to the fuU i^
cannot. All that can occur to us, that can yield us pleasure, or
give us pain in this world, vriU make Uttle difference,
but as it shall affect our condition in the next ; and often, I
believe, future happiness has been promoted, perhaps insured,
by the merciful aUotment of painful, though mysterious, dis
pensations — of blessings in disguise. May it be thy expe
rience in the present and every future affliction, whether of
body or of mind — for to both, however before exempted or
insensible, thou wUt be liable, or rather art by thy faUen
nature subjected — and miserable shoidd we be had not the
mercy of God in Christ Jesus prorided the means for our
redemption. I am not disposed at present, nor perhaps would it be
suitable — I trust it is not necessary — to enlarge upon this
mysterious subject, to convince thee of its reaUty ; the effect
of which no individual's experience wUl invalidate. May we
as experimentally witness the necessary change produced in
us by the operation of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ—
in him we may trust for the remission of sins that are past,
and hope for preservation in future.
But it is probable thou wUl think I have written enough
for once ; and so do I — though I have as little prospect of
writing again as I had when I began of writing so much ;
and therefore thou wUl take it, concise, or rather crude, as
are the thoughts, and mean the expression of them, as pro
ceeding from a desire for thy vreUare in every respect, but

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 241
especiaUy in the most important, vrith all sincerity and
tenderness in the heart of Thy affectionate grandfather,
Richard Reynolds.
30th of Fourth Month, 1814.
— :- As I understand it, a settlement is intended to except
the property so settled on the vrife from the legal claims of her
husband's creditors, though they may have become such in
consequence of the credit acqmred by his having such
addition to his property as his wife's fortune gave him —
that, though it is intended the wife shall be benefited by his
successful occupation of his own and her fortune — yet, if he
proves unfortunate, though by inevitable losses or the imme
diate ffispensations of Providence, his wife shaU retain aU
she brought, and perhaps more, and his lawful creditors be
unpaid, though their families shaU be thereby reduced to the '
want of bread.
From the possibiUty of a man's becoming so wicked as to
dispose of his property to somebody else, to the injury of his
vrife and chUdren, perhaps it may be allowable to prevent it
by a prerious settlement ; but I submit, whether that should
be done to the exclusion of the ' payment of his just debts,
and whether every settlement or deed intended to operate as
such, should not be subject to the proriso, that such debts
be first paid, as every honest man in making his wiU,
bequeaths, after the payment of his just debts and funeral

These considerations appear to me to apply, confining
them to doing justly, to mere morality. But if we consider
the case in a religious point of riew, as including a depen
dence upon the aU-sufficient Providence of the Almighty, and
the vrisdom and goodness of aU his dispensations, the extent

242 LETTERS OF
of his care of the animate part of his creation, I think we
may rely on him for ourselves and our chUdren, and that, if
we walk uprightly, no good thing vriU be withheld from us
or our chUdren, and He knows best what is, or vriU be, best
for them and us.
That riches are not always best for aU that have them, we
have abundant proof. They are always trials, and may be
blessings, U the possessors make them such to others ; but
how few are fully faithful in the discharge of their steward
ship ! how awful the responsibUity attached to great wealth !
Though my charge is less than many, it is more than some ;
and I greatly fear for myself
The prayer of Agar is wise — " Give me neither poverty
nor riches." But why should poverty be so much dreaded
or deprecated ? " Hath not God chosen the poor of this
world rich in fait and hefrsh of the kingdom which he hath
promised to them that love him ; and hath he not said, Leave
thy fatherless chUdren, I vriU preserve them alive ; and let
thy widows trust in me ? " What, then, have we to fear for
ourselves or our children, that we should endeavour to pre
vent, by means scarcely, if at aU, consistent vrith justice and
equity ?
I hope the young couple are influenced by the love of God
and a desire to live in his fear, to rely on his proridence,
and by seeking first his kingdom and his righteousness, to
ensure the addition of all that shaU be necessary for them.
I fear I shaU be too late for the post, or I might scribble
more (perhaps I have written more than enough already) ;
but thou wiU excuse the manner — haste must be my apology
for that, and my sincere good vriU and desire to comply vrith
thy wish, for everything else. Give my dear love to thy
Eliza and all yours, and accept it from
Thy affectionate uncle,
Richard Reynolds.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 243
Bridgewater, Ylth of Sixth Month, 1814.
Dear 
The sentiments to which thy brother alludes, though I
know not that I expressed it to him, was in consequence of a
reference to some post mortuary charities, if thou wUt aUow
of the expression, when adverting to the saying of the
apostle, that we are to receive hereafter according to the
things done in the body, I contended that these were not
deeds done in the body ; and I do not think the assertion
need be qualified by the alteration thou suggestest, of being
best done whUe we are in the body ; for, in the case under
consideration, we keep what we have as long as we are in
the body, and would keep it longer if we could. AU that
we do is to prevent our heirs doing as we have done, by
obHging them to do that which we should have done ; and the
deed is not done either by them or by us whUe we are in the
body. K we should admit there is any merit in the deed, it
certainly cannot belong to us, who do it not ; and that which
we do, by enjoining what others shaU do, is lessening as
much as we can every thing like merit in them, by depriring
them of free agency, especiaUy if they are not the persons
to whom the money would have gone if we had died intes
tate : these, if any, have a right to take credit on account
of the act. Perhaps those, if any such there be, who pre
vent others from having that which the law would give them,
would do weU to eomider whether the account is properly
adjusted by their obUging those who do give it to apply it
to charitable purposes, which can do them no credit. The
testator certainly can claim none as for a deed done in the
body, which, as I said before, neither was then done, nor would
have been done, had he continued in the body. I am pleased
to find the reflection warmed thy heart — I hope it vriU move
thy hands also upon an occasion of which the same post
m2

244 LETTERS OP
that brought me thy letters brought me an account, styled
a case of distress, relating that  of  was drowned
near  learing a wife and nine chUdren, vrithout any
prorision for their support ; that contributions would be
received at the banks there tUl the 5th instant, after which
time the inhabitants would be applied to personally. I
suppose thou art not a stranger to the case — ^most Ukely not
to the individuals, and as a neighbour — stUl more as a parent
of a numerous offspring, I conclude thy assistance vrill be
proportionably liberal, nor the less for it being a deed done
in the body. I know not who sent me the case, which I
did not receive tUl the time was expired for pubUc contri
butions. Nevertheless, if thou vrilt inform me what thou
and otheT"^ 'f-''.'^ne, and you have left room for more,
though u. .,_^ti^eT to the persons and remote from the place,
my mite shall not be withheld by
Thy affectionate friend,
Richard Reynolds.
Bristol, 4th of Eleventh Month, 1814.
I think the doctrine of perfection, as contended for

by our primitive Friends, is consistent with the tenor of the
New Testament generaUy, as well as vrith particular exhor
tations and injunctions therein contained; and I presume
thou will admit that infirmities, the unavoidable consequences
of the elementary composition of our fraU tabernacles, and
the intimate connection between them and our minds, vrith ,
the consequent reciprocal influence on each other, vriU ac
count for certain aberrations from the standard of abstract
perfection, vrithout invalidating the doctrine as held by our
ancient Friends.
Consistently with such an opinion, I rejoice in considering
thee, among some others — too few, I acknowledge — who I

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 245
believe have, by a proper use of the means afforded them for
that purpose, attained to that degree of perfection intended
by the apostle, when he exhorted those who were perfect, to
walk by the same rule, and to mind the same things whereby
they had so far attained, vrithout considering themselves as
having arrived at the utmost degree of attainment, or were so
perfect, that there was no further advancement to be made by
them, from whence I conclude that there is no impropriety in
considering that degree of attainment, which is the result of
a faithful occupation of the talents committed to us, whether
many or few, equaUy that state of perfection to which the
apostle refers, and for which our friends so earnestly con
tended. I cannot account for my thus writing on this subject to
thee, but by attributing it to the freedom which friendship
inspires and induced by thy observation, without expecting
to say so much, unnecessary if not impertinent, to one of thy
superior judgment ; but thou vriU excuse me, and I wUl con-
elude vrith sincerely desiring that, even according to my own
limited idea of perfection, we may not be found wanting in the
great and svriftly-approaching day of account ; that I shaU
not, my dependance truly is not upon any works of righteous
ness that I have done, or can do, but upon his mercy, who
saveth us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of
the Holy Ghost, through Jesus Christ our Saviour ; that
being justffied by his grace, I shaU be made an heir according
to the hope of eternal Ufe. Though, through mercy, I am
enabled at times to confide that such wUl ultimately be my
happy experience, frequent fears assault me ; the absence
of aU sense of good, or the comfortable influence of divine
favour, suggests with fearful apprehension the possibUity of
my ta]king up a rest short of the rest which remains for the
chUdren of God ; but whatever sufferings it may be neces-

246 LETTERS OF
saryl should endure or deprivations sustain, to prevent so
fatal a delusion, may I be preserved from it ; and however
inferior my talents, or imperfect my obedience, may I
through the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, have hope in my
death — tUl then remember in thy prayers, when so per
mitted. Thy poor but affectionate friend.
To Gawen Ball.
Bristol, 10th of Eleventh Month, 1814.
 I began this letter according to the date, but have

not had leisure to resume my pen tUl this the 12th instant,
and on this day I commence the eightieth year of my age — ¦
a circumstance so awful, that it indisposes for every other
employment, but the consideration of the probable speedy
termination of a life already protracted so much beyond the
admitted natural term of human existence, and that term
not attained by the hundredth part of those bom into the
world. I cannot describe the effect of the retrospect of the
time that is past, the events that have occurred in the course
of a long life : how important many of them were thought
whUe in expectation, how much reduced when attained; and
now, of so little consequence, that the wonder is they should
ever have been thought of so much. Where are now the
companions of my youth ? — my associates in the animating
endeavours to acquire knowledge ? — those whose friendship
I cultivated with pleasure and advantage ? — those with whom
I entered the busy scenes of trade, some in concert vrith me,
some in competition ? Not one of them remaining ! not a
relation, not a friend, scarcely an acquaintance, but who is
my junior. Most reasonably, therefore, may I expect soon
to foUow those who are gone from this state of probation and
intended refinement — ^from works to rewards: and earnest

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 247
are my desires, nor always faint my hopes, that through
the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, it wUl be to be again
imited in heaven with those whom I have loved best on earth.
Not as though I had already attained a sufficient degree of
];efinement, or were already perfect ; alas, much remains to
be removed, much to be acquired, and in how short a time I
If it depended on my own unassisted efforts, or my ex
pectation rested upon works of righteousness which I have
done, or can do, my hope would perish and my confidence
faU ; but I tiust I may, in aU humility, though in a very
hmited degree, adopt the language of the apostle, and say,
" I know in whom I have beUeved," and commit my soul to
]Him, as unto a faithful Creator, and all-sufficient Redeemer.
FareweU, my dear nephew ; unite thy prayers with me and
for me ; and if we never meet again in this world, may we in
that into which our nearest relations and dearest connections
have already entered ; there to unite vrith them in praises to
]Him who sitteth upon the throne, and to the Lamb, who is
worthy for ever, amen !
So prayeth for thee, as for himself.
Thy affectionate uncle,
R. R.
Bristol, 20th of First Month, 1815.
My dear Grandaughter,
If thou remembers how we were circumstanced when thou
left us, and knows the addition we have since had to our
engagements by the succession of company and increase of
occupation in consequence of the year's end — ^that I have
not sooner acknowledged the receipt of thy acceptable letter
of the 21st ultimo, vriU not surprise thee. I have more than
once taken up my pen, but have as often been interrupted
and prevented from proceeding. But I wUl now begin by

248 letters op
expressing my pleasure to fltnd your safe return to Ketley
was also so pleasant. Thy description of the inundated
country between Gloucester and Worcester, enUvened by
the reflection of the bright moon light, and of the stars, and
of the vrinter scene at Hagley, is animated and just. It
made me recoUect some passages in Thomson's Seasons, and
especially Addison's beautiful hymn, in the 465th Spectator,
which I never remember without pleasure.
The meeting of the Prudent Man's Friend Society, which
thou would willingly have attended, and at which our S. A.
would have been pleased vrith thy company, was smaU, but
satisfactory, though the mayor, who was to have taken the
chair, was prevented from coming, and Dr. Randolph, who
took it on the spur of the occasion, was under an engage
ment to be soon at another place, and thereby obliged to be
more brief in his commendatory remarks on the utility of
the institution, and the conduct of the committee in the
conducting of it, than I suppose he otherwise would have
been. However, upon the whole, it concluded agreeably;
and the report which he read was much approved, and ffid
great credit to S. M., the secretary, who wrote it. I do not
know whether our friend, Theo. Houlbrooke, and his vrife,
went by Ketley in their way to Liverpool : they were unde
termined when they left us : they came on the 10th instant,
and left us the 13th : they appeared to be much pleased vrith
each other, and I hope will so continue as long as they live.
I was very poorly when they came, not being recovered from
an Ulness which commenced the preceding week : and though
I am now pretty weU again, it has not so entirely left me,
but that frequent relapses repeatedly remind me that here I
have no continuing habitation : may I successfully seek one
that has foundations eternal in the heavens ! — The unusuaUy
long time that I have occupied a crazy tenement in this

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 249
world, should make me constantly expect to be summoned
at a short notice, or ejected without any. But so precarious
is human existence at all times, that even my grandaughter
may properly remember the exhortatory injunction, " Be ye
also ready," Forasmuch as she no more knoweth than I
do, at what hour she may be called from works to rewards —
from the imcertainty of time to an unchangeable eternity.
May it also be happy to us both !
Thy brother is very weU. Give my dear love to thy father,
from whom I have not heard, as he gave me to expect — to
thy brothers and sisters and aunt, and accept it thyseU, from
Thy affectionate grandfather,
Richard Reynolds.
To GAvraN Ball.
Bristol, 28th of Fi/rst Month, 1815.
 A letter which I received last evening informs me of
the favourable termination of an affair that has occupied much
of my time of late, and which I think wUl appear of sufficient
interest to warrant my relating the circumstance to thee, as
foUows. About sis weeks ago a Negro lad was brought by his
master from Jamaica. He had been kidnapped in Africa,
being then, it is conjectured, about eight years of age. He
was purchased as a slave for his master, who being about to
bring him to England, and aware that he could not retain
him there as a slave, had him baptized and bound to him as
an apprentice. The lad being apprehensive that as his
master intended to send him back to Jamaica, he should be
sold as a slave, ran away from his master, who pursued and
attempted to bring him back. The boy resisted, and the
contest excited the notice of the neighbours, some of whom
rescued the lad and put him under the protection of a con
stable, who brought him to me for my advice and assistance.
n3

250 LETTERS OF
I appUed to counsellor Smith and to the mayor, who had
resided in the West Indies, and has at present plantations
and many slaves in St. Vincents, but was favourable to the
boy's emancipation.
After some ineffectual attempts on his part, and mild
remonstrances on mine, the master consented to relinquish
his claim and let his slave go free. This he did with so good
a grace at last, that I offered to pay a servant's wages to
attend him while he continued vrith us : this he refused.
Considering the inconvenience he sustained by being de
prived of the boy's serriees, I proposed in as deUcate a
manner as I could to avoid offending him, to make him a
present of twenty guineas. This he also decUned accepting,
vrith acknowledgments of the kindness of the offer, and we
parted very good friends. He is a young man, a mulatto,
vrith wool on his head, and a complexion almost as dark as
his slave, who is a complete negro.
I placed the boy at our British and Foreign School, and
had the satisfaction to find him uncommonly quick at learn
ing, and of a capacity equal to most, if not to any one of his
schoolfeUows of the same age.
The probabUity of his being qualified in due time to go
out as a teacher in the school estabUshed at Sierra Leone,
induced me to apply to the board of directors of the African
Institution, through Thomas Harrison, their secretary ; and
last evening I heard from him that the Institution would send
him to the Borough-road School for a year, in the hope that
he would by that time be qualffied for the situation I had in
riew for him. The certain benefit to the youth,* as rescued
from slavery and ignorance, and the possible, not to say pro
bable, extent of the benefit of his serriees to his countrymen,
* The boy's name was William Symonds — he went to Sierra Leone,
thence to Hayti, and was afterwards tutor in Toussaiut's family. — En.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 251
and the promotion of the civiUzation of Africa, is so satis
factory, that, under the immediate influence of it, I have
written perhaps more than may be agreeable to thee, but
thou vrilt excuse it. Bristol, 30th of Third Month, 1815.
 Thou says  has made a good thing for himself of

that which proved ruinous to others. I am surprised thou
should be far from thinking he has been guilty of any thing
which would be deemed dishonourable among tradesmen. I
think a tradesman ought to have, and I trust some tradesmen
have, as high a sense of honour as any other men — I think
too, that Uberality, equity, justice, and the golden rule are
incumbent upon tradesmen, and a conduct in opposition to
them disgracefiU to them; but I cannot think any modification
can make that admissible in one rank or description of men,
which would be reproachful in another. The money spent or
lost at Sierra Leone has been enormous, the benefit in pro
portion to it we must confess very little, and I fear the
pubUc wiU not be very forward in contributing toward the
expense, incurred by petitioning ; however I am wiUing to
contribute Uberally when I know of its being commenced
and the scale upon which it is undertaken.
The foUowiag extract of a letter from a friend in
New York, dated the 9th of Fifth Month, 1815, having
been found copied by my grandfather, it has been
considered desirable to insert it here.
One of the Friends who has resided a number of years
, vrith one of the Indian tribes to promote their civilization,
told me that a missionary came there lately from this place,
who having caUed the council together, told them he had
come, sent by such and such, out of love and pity for them.

252 LETTERS OF
poor, ignorant, and benighted people, to teach them the way
to happiness, and to bring them that holy book, the Bible,
without the knowledge of which and their observing the
doctrines which he had come to teach them, they must be
for ever miserable, or words to the same import.
Red Jacket, the Indian Chief, repUed, " that he did not
know wherefore the Missionary and his friends that sent him
should call them a poor, ignorant, benighted people ; they were
not without religion, but possessed the same that their fore
fathers had handed down unto them — that is, the good Spirit
taught them to be kind, hospitable, sober, patient, to love all
men, forgive injuries, and to persecute no man for differing
from them in religious sentiments ; but, said he, we hear
that you who have that good book, quarrel and fight to
gether, and that you do not agree about the contents of that
book — therefore go first and agree together, then we vriU
consider the matter."
To Priscilla H. Gurney.
28!;;^ of Fifth Month, 1816.
The receipt of thy letter of the 15th was a consolation to
me when poorly in the evening, and the re-perusal of it
comforts me now. It is true that in this variable state of
things, and especiaUy as we advance towards the termination
of the probationary scene, the bitters may at times appear
to exceed the sweets ; yet it is with thankfulness I acknow
ledge that ever since we parted I have experienced a degree
of support sufficient to prevent my sinking below hope in
seasons of apprehended desertion, depression and weakness,
which have sometimes been such as to deprive me of the
power of praying for the help I so much needed ; yet in hear
ing the Scriptures read I have even at such times been
enabled to apply (I hope I was not presumptuous if I
thought I was permitted to appropriate) the gracious inrita-

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 253
tions and promises of our blessed Saviour, more to my
encouragement and confirmation, than at some opportunities
in times of greater bodUy strength and mental energy.
To Gawen Bill.
Liverpool, 12th of Seventh Month, 1816.
 I set out on the 24th of last month for Coalbrook
Dale, where we arrived the evening of the next day ; and
whether the exercise of the preceding days, or of those
spent at the Dale, was too much, I know not, but I was so
much worse and weaker than I was when I set out, or
expected to have been, that I feared I should not be able to
accomplish my purpose. However, we proceeded to Ketley
on the 28th, tomy son Joseph's, and kept the house the next
day, went to the New Dale Meeting on the 30th, and came
to my daughter's at Green Bank the 3rd instant, finding her
and her chUdren at this place in good health, (for which I
desire to be thankful,) and confirmed in the persuasion I
have for some months past admitted, that my continuance in
this world wffi not be long. I have no specffic complaint,
unless a troublesome cough, especially at night, can be con
sidered one : but with every assistance that diet, exercise,
and change of air can afford, I continue as weak or weaker
than before. My appetite faUs me, especiaUy for animal
food, and I, Uke Barzffiai at my time of Ufe, incapable of
enjoyment from aU animal gratffications, and indifferent to
aU this world can threaten or indulge, am desirous as he was,
when, in answer to Darid' s inritation to him to accompany the
king to Jerusalem, he desired to be permitted to return home
that he might die in his own city, and be buried by the grave of
his father and his mother; which I hope to accomplish so far
as to return home on the 19th, and wait with patience my
appointed time. My mental faculties, as well as my bodily

254 LETTERS OF
strength, faU me much, especiaUy my memory : but though
indifferent to everything else, I hope to be preserved aUve to
my eternal interests, and that I may rather be in a state of
present suffering than of insensible indifferency. I have not
been hitherto without hope, and through the mercy of God
in Christ Jesus, I desire to be enabled to trust therein to
the end.
To Gawen Ball.
Bristol, 30th of Seventh Month, 1816.
 I know not how to acknowledge as it deserves thy

most affectionate and affecting letter of the 26th instant. I
can write but Uttle, and, had I more strength, I could not
express my thankfulness for the favour, which I receive as
the medium of a manifestation of continued Divine regard
most seasonably vouchsafed at a time of deep depression
under a long continued sense of the vrithdravring of the
light of His countenance, whose loving kindness is better
than life.
That I have been a participator vrith thee in a degree of
spiritual union, so far exceeding my conscious deservings,
humbles me as it ought : that it has been to thy comfort
and advantage is cause of thankfulness to me, whUe it excites
the fervent prayer, that during my short continuance in this
world our spiritual feUowship may increase, and that we may,
vrith the deepest humffity and self-abasement, be permitted
to adopt the language of the beloved disciple, and say,
" Truly our fellowship is with the Father, and vrith his Son
Jesus Christ."
I do not find myself stronger since my return ; the pain
in my side is less. When medical men are caUed in they
must do something, and the patient goes through a certain
routine of medicine and treatment : but as it is appointed

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 255
for aU men once to die, so I have been, since the commence
ment of my present iUness, of opinion, that the time of my
departure was approaching, and nothing has occurred to alter
my opinion ; and thankful I am, that the process, sometimes
more rapid, sometimes more tardy, is attended with no very
severe bodUy suffering. I hope I shaU with patience wait
the appointed time when my change shaU come.
I shaU be very glad to hear thy plan of proceeding wiU
admit of thy commg to Bristol whUe I am living ; for to see
thee once more in this scene of mutabffity and conffict would
be very pleasant to Thy very affectionate,
R. R.
To George Harrison.
Bristol, 2nd of Eighth Month, 1816.
I have had, for some weeks past, a constant, though not
always equaUy severe pain in my side, loss of appetite, with an
aversion almost to the sight of animal food, and frequently,
as at present, a degree of sickness that renders every exer
tion, even writing, difficult and a task ; but it is so long
since I received thy kind letter, that I would no longer
refram from acknowledging it. I wiU not conclude vrithout
mentioning that, through my iUness, I have not been without
hope, and which, vrith hunUUty and thankfulness, is con
tinued, and I trust vrill be to the end. But it is solely
founded on the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, who died for
us, in whom we have redemption though his blood, even the
forgiveness of sins.
FareweU, my dear friend ; it is not likely we shall meet
agam in this world ; I hope we shaU in a better. Excuse
this scrawl, which is written vrith difficulty by
Thy truly affectionate friend,
R. E.

256 LETTERS OF

It is not to be expected that the follovring portion of
the Correspondence of Richard Reynolds vrill possess
much interest for tbe general reader; yet, as the
various subjects which it embraces were to him impor
tant, and occupied much of his time and thoughts, such
letters could not be altogether omitted, and a few of
them have therefore been selected, as exhibiting the
writer in a point of riew of a less pecuUar and private
character than could be afforded by letters addressed to
members of his own famUy or his intimate friends.
To THE Chancellor of the Exchequer.*
Ketley, near Shiffnall, Shropshire,
12th of Seventh Month, 1784.
As from my situation and connection in coal-works and
iron-works, I was better apprised of the iU consequences to
be dreaded from a tax upon coals than some others, I doubt
not I shall obtain thy excuse for my endeavouring to prevent
it, by communicating to Lord Gower, to whom I have the
honour to be known as his tenant, as weU as to Thomas
GUbert, Esq., and some other gentlemen, such an account
of what would have been its operation, as was sure to obtain
from thy candour and true patriotism the relinquishment of
so obnoxious a tax. I have communicated to Sir Richard
HUl, whom I have requested to be the bearer of this, such
hints as have occurred to me on the subject of a substitute
in lieu of the coal tax, as weU as some remarks on the brick
* The Right Hon. William Pitt.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 257
and tUe tax. And I shaU think myself fortunate if this is
accepted by thee, though it were only as proceeding from a
wish inspired by gratitude and respect to endeavour to
lighten the task which thy office imposes, and which I am
convinced thou would exercise in the manner most favourable
to every inffiridual.
I shaU now mention another tax, which, affecting a
description of men whose power, and my connections vrith
them, renders it necessary that I should have an absolutely
safe reUance upon thy secrecy, whether any thing be done in
consequence of it or not.
The tax upon bffis»of exchange is a shiUing on aU above
£50. I would propose, that sixpence be paid for every
adffitional £50. above £100. At present, Uttle tradesmen,
whose returns do not exceed £1000. per annum, may be
supposed to pay as much as many whose returns are fifty
times that sum ; and, as there are more competitors where
the capital employed is smaU, and the profits thereby reduced,
it seems more tolerable, as well as more consistent with
eqmty, that the larger the sum, the higher should be the tax
in proportion ; but if it is only after the same rate, there can
be no reasonable objection. And it would obriate a difficulty
there might be in procuring a very high stamp on particular
occasions, by making use of divers lower stamps to the same
amount. I do not write this because I should not be affected by the
alteration. For the use of the works under my imniediate
inspection, I have taken for some time past, £2500. monthly,
in cash, to pay the workmen. It may be supposed that I
give, as often as I can, such bills as I receive ; but I sometimes
draw on our bankers for the whole sum, in one bUl, for one
shUlmg. K every one's wiU to do good was in proportion to their

258 LETTERS OF
power, I should have no occasion to engage thy honour for
thy secrecy on the present occasion ; but, as the ffisposition
to resent is more natural, thou wUt excuse my repeating it,
and requesting that thou vriU be pleased to return this letter
to me. I have too just an opinion of thy good sense to apolo
gise for the simplicity of the language, which, consistently
with my religious profession I have made use of in it, and
of the value of thy time, than to intrude on it longer than,
to desire to be considered as
Thy very respectfiU friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To George Rose, Esq.
Ketley, 1th of Second Month, 1785.
Respected Friend,
I repUed to thy favour of the 3rd instant yesterday, and
afterward received that of the 4th. Though I continue of
the opinion that my journey wUl rather prove my vriU than
my power to render the Committee any important serrice ;
yet having, on the receipt of thy first letter, sent a person
to overtake the post, vrith one from me to Wiffiam Gibbons
of Bristol, requesting him to attend in London vrithout delay,
and promising to meet him there ; and there not being time
to prevent his setting out, I fear he would have reason to
think himself iU-used if I now declined it. I therefore con
tinue my intention of setting out to-morrow, and hope to be
in town the evening of the 9th instant, and yet see, in my
way through Birmingham, some inteUigent and extensive
manufacturers of iron in that place. I might therefore,
perhaps, more properly defer attempting any reply to the
query in thy last favour tiU I have the pleasure to see thee ;

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 259
but as thou desirest an immediate statement of it, I will
just recite it, vrith a short remark or two.
Thou art pleased to ask my opinion "whether, if the
manufacturers of iron of Great Britain and Ireland were
made subject to the same duties upon importation into each
country respectively, the manufacturers of Great Britain
would have any reason to fear a competition ? "
As there is very Uttle, if any, fron made ia Ireland, I
presume by fron of Great Britaia and Ireland is meant, bar-
iron, whether foreign or made in the country ; and taking it
for granted that if the duties are equal, it vriU not be regarded
how low they are, I wiU venture to give it as my opinion
that we should have nothing to fear, prorided the duties on
the importation of the fron manufactures of each country
respectively are sufficiently low ; or rather, that it would be
stiU better there should be none on either side: because
duties upon importation go in aid of the revenue of that
country which lays the duty, and against the export trade
of the manufacturmg countiy, by enhancing the price to the
consumer, which operates, in proportion to the amount of it,
to prevent the consumption.
If the duty is high, it also induces smuggling. In the
present case, if Ireland pays an equal duty with England
upon aU foreign iron imported — and which is most desfrable,
or rather, absolutely necessary — we need not fear them as
rivals in manufacturing of it, so long as our fuel is untaxed
and our national spfrit of industry and exertion continues.
Thou art pleased to add, " There are many questions of
fact to which it would be very desfrable to have answers, if
you had been present." I should be very glad to have those
questions in writing, dfrected to me, on the receipt of thia
letter, at Smith, Wright, and Gray's, 21 Lombard Street j
because I might be thereby better prepared to answer thero,

260 LETTERS OF
and in less time, when I shaU have the honour to attend
thee, which thou will also be pleased to mention for my
government and punctuality. I am, very respectfuUy,
Thy assured friend,
Richard Retnolds.
To Earl Gower, Lord Privy Seal, &c.
Ketley, 31st of Twelfth Month, 1785.
The bearer hereof is Wffiiam Eotch, of the island of
Nantucket, who is deputed by its inhabitants to soUcit
assistance and relief from the British Government, under
their present and, so far at least as relates to thefr country,
unmerited sufferings.
I was so unfortunate, by being from home when he was in
Shropshire, as to miss the opportunity of profiting by a
personal acquaintance vrith him ; but I am emboldened by
the concurrent testimony of divers persons whose judgment
I prefer to my own, and who have had the means of perfect
information, in the warmest manner to recommend him as
an indiridual respectable and inteffigent, worthy of thy
attention and favourable notice, as the representative of a
very considerable body of useful and industrious people,
appealing to thy humane feeUngs for a mitigation of thefr
distress, and claimmg thy patronage, as affording the means
of benefiting this country. And permit me to add my vrish,
that Britain may attribute the soUd advantages of an
extended trade and an increased population, to thy influence
on the determination of its councUs on the present important
occasion. The island of Nantucket has been peculiarly unfortunate.
The peaceable inhabitants (3,000 out of 4,500, at which
number they are computed, being of the Society caUed

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 261
Quakers), refusing to take any part in the American rebel-
Hon when required so to do by the state of Massachusetts,
to which they belonged ; and considering themselves, and
supposing they would be considered by this government, as
m the king's peace, had, notwithstanding, taken from them
by the EngUsh, during the war, about two hundred saU of
vessels, vrith other effects, to nearly the value of £200,000 ;
by which and other events of the war, the bearer and his
father lost nearly £30,000.
Nor did the return of peace restore to them the power of
retiiering thefr losses ; for being, by our revenue laws, sub
jected as aliens to the payment of a duty amountmg to a
prohibition on the oU they brought to London, which was
almost thefr only market, as the whale-fishery — especially of
the spermaceti kind — was almost thefr only employment :
they are disabled from foUovring it at that island ; and now
solicit the assistance of that government which they would
not oppose and under which they have suffered, to enable
them to settle in the British dominions and prosecute a
branch of busmess important to every nation as a nursery
of seamen, and profitable, as producmg wealth by the acqui
sition of an article useful as Ught, and necessary in many of
our manufactures, by their superior skUl in taking the fish ;
for which we may be othervrise obUged to pay foreigners,
besides transferring to them the coUateral, but not inferior,
advantages of population and revenue ; which latter, in con
sequence of Lord Sheffield's being caUed upon to account for
what he had adopted from the letter, I took the Uberty of
addressing to thee on the tiade of making iron in this king
dom, I have had occasion to reconsider, and am fuUy con
vinced it amounts, as I then supposed, to more than sis
pounds a year for each man employed in it.
The patronage and assistance offered by Ireland to the

262 LETTERS OP
oppressed Genovians did no less credit to the good poUcy,
than to the humanity of our sister kingdom ; and vrithout, at
this time, urging it as only a compensation to the people of
Nantucket for thefr sufferings, for thefr fidelity durmg the
late troubles. As an lElnglishman, I had rather this island
than Ireland, or any other country, should be benefited by
an acquisition of saUors and fishermen, stUl more valuable
than watchmakers from Genoa ; and that both parties expe
riencing the accumulation of national riches and strength
thereby may have to remember vrith gratitude the interference
of Lord Gower in thefr favour, rather than any other person
in England ; for I am, with great truth as weU as vrith
deference and respect. Thy faithful and much obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Lord Sheffield.
Ketley, 19th of Tenth Month, 1786.
 The clause respecting linens appears to me likely to

increase the revenues of both kingdoms, and the satisfaction
resultmg from the consideration of the whole is heightened by
the hope it inspfres, that the mutual advantages received vriU
be the means of preventmg war between the two nations,
perhaps of ensuring the peace of Europe, and at last of the
world. Thy obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 263
To Lord Sheffield.
KetUy, 10th of Twelfth Month, 1787.
iJhy observations on my hoping the present treaty wiU be
the . means of preventing wars between the two nations,
makes me almost vrish I had let the foUowing passage stand
in my last letter, but which from a consideration more easUy
assigned than justffied, I suppressed; for I beUeve thou
would not think the worse of a man, as a member of civU
society, for a refiection escaping him which might be coloured
by his particular or pecuUar reUgious sentiments.
I had remarked that the interests of humanity appeared
to be better understood by modern, than by ancient patriots,
and that the attention many of the European governments
are paying to the improvement of thefr internal and the
extension of thefr foreign commerce, furnished some reason
to hope that former rivals in arms vriU become mutual helps
to each other in the free intercourse of trade ; and that a
reciprocation of the benefits and blessings of peace 'may
lengthen the continuance of it. I had added — but as avarice
is as opposite to virtue as ambition, and commercial advan
tages as desfrable to one as dominion to the other, so nothing
short of the divme phUanthropy enjoined by the gospel, and
only acqufred by the influence and operation of the Holy
Spirit, vriU prevent the return of wars and the destruction of
thefr feUow men by those who should "love as brethren."
And though this continues to be my persuasion, I fiatter
myself thou wUt, notwithstanding, permit me to subscribe
myself vrith much respect and esteem.
Thy obliged and faithful friend,
Richard Reynolds.

264 LETTERS OF
To Thomas Gilbert, Esq.
Ketley, 25th of Sixth Month, 1786.
Respected Friend,
I certainly ought earlier to have acknowledged the receipt
of thy plan for the better regulation of the poor, if I had
been capable of suggesting any improvement ; but I thought
that vrithout it, a profession of the just sense I, vrith very
many others, have of our ovm., and indeed of the nation's
obligations to thee for thy contmued endeavours to serve it
so essentially, would be an mtrusion on thy time so impor
tantly engaged : nor should I now be thus troublesome to
thee, but on an occasion interesting to one part of the poor,
and to the community at large. The great success and
advantages of those called Sunday-schools in other places,
and a consideration of the very great want of such means of
improvement and- civffization among the numerous poor
chUdren of the Marquis of Stafford's cottages, whose parents
are employed in the works we rent of his lordship, hath
induced me to determine to attempt something of the kmd
in this neighbourhood, and no place appears so proper on
which to erect a suitable building for the purpose, as the
unenclosed land near this house, which is part of the farm
rented by Robert Clayton. I have spoken to him, and have
his consent, but I thought it proper to obtain Ms lordship's
also ; and I therefore make bold to request thy good offices
on the occasion. Without going out of the township of
Ketley, there are at least three hundred proper objects;
and I think a buUding about eighty feet long, fourteen feet .
vride, and seven or eight feet high, without a ceiling, divided
into four parts, wffi answer the purpose and, so situated,
bring the conduct of the chUdren and the teachers under my

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 265
ovm occasional inspection, or my sons, or other suitable
persons, if such can be found.
There is not another person among the Marquis of
Stafford's tenants in this tovmship to whom I can apply for
assistance in the buUding — a few may be asked to subscribe
toward the annual expense of teachers, books, &c. ; and if I
obtain his lordship's permission only I vriU proceed to erect
the buUdmg ; but if I might vrithout offence, I would sug
gest how acceptable his lordship's contributing to it would
be, not only as giring a sanction to the undertaking, and
placing his lordship in the most amiable point of view, as the
father of the helpless part of his tenantry, but exhibiting an
example more Ukely to be followed by the neighbouring
gentlemen, than any thing that could be done by so insig
nificant an inffiridual as
Thy very respectftd and obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Lord Sheffield.
' Ketley, 22nd of Twelfth Month, 1785.
Thy favour of the 11th instant was longer in coming to
my hands than might have been expected, offing, I appre
hend to the irregularity of the cross posts since the intro
duction of coaches for the carriage of the London maUs,
which I mention to account for the appearance of delay in
my acknowledgment and reply to it.
I shaU be sorry, if what I advanced as matter of opinion,
has been the occasion of thy being caUed upon for proofs in
consequence of thy advancing it as matter oifact ; but if the
only place in which thou speaks of the workmen employed
in the makiag of iron as paying six pounds a year or upwards
to the revenue, be, as I conceive, in page 211 of thy Obser
vations on the Manufactures Sfc. of Ireland, it is there
s

266 LETTERS OF
advanced only as a supposition, or matter of opinion. In
the letter I took the Uberty of addressing to Lord Gower,
to which I presume the reference in thy letter is made, I
expressed myself to this effect: — "The value of eachmdiridual
to the revenue vrill not be ascertamed by a reference to the
country excise office, because that includes only the ex-
eiseable articles they consume, the duty for which is paid in
the ffistrict wherein they reside ; and not those they have
from other parts of the nation, or from abroad, the whole of
which has been computed, I believe, to be equal to sis pounds
a year ; but I am persuaded that in this country it is more."
Now though I might be mistaken in supposing that it was
generally computed at so much, as I confess myself much a
stranger to political calculations, as weU as but little skiUed
in political ffisquisitions, and, consequently, not qualified to
form an opinion that may be safely relied on — yet as I was
not intentionally wrong, however hasty in my conclusion, so
I do not at this time see any reason to alter my opinion :
for when I consider that six pounds a year is not quite four-
pence a day, and how many are the articles of consumption,
in food and clothing, that are taxed, and how highly some of
them, as spirfts, ale, tobacco, candles, soap, leather, &c. — I
must stiU conclude it would not, nor has one with whom I
have since had an opportumty of conferring, supposed it
would, be so little as sis pounds a year to each.
I might urge, that as in the beforementioned letter I was
considering the importance of the trade of making iron in
England as m competition with the importation of foreign
bar fron, so I was thmking of and intended workmen engaged
in the making of iron, particularly fumace-men and forge-
men, whose employment is supposed to render necessary, as
thefr wages enables them to provide, better or more expen
sive food and liquor than common labourers or husbandmen ;

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 267
but, and this I suppose will be readUy admitted — ^if by so
much as any article is advanced in price to the consumer in
consequence of taxes imposed by Government, by so much
is that Government advantaged by such consumer — then I
think it wffi be evident that sis pounds a year is less than
every workman pays, without confinmg it to furnace-men and
forge-men ; for as through every stage of every article of
food and clothmg, from the com in the furrow and the fiax
in the field — from the ox and the sheep in thefr pastures to
thefr hides and thefr fieece passing through various hands
and various processes into clothing, and their flesh salted
before or after it is on the table as food, or furnishmg them
vrith light, and contributing to thefr comfort and health, by
conducmg to cleanliness when converted into canffies and soap
— as aU these are regularly increased in price, by the addition
the farmer and every one after him must make, in consequence
of the taxes to which each is Uable, as well as the particular
duties or excise on many articles used in the varied process,
so the price the consumer pays for all he eats, or drinks, or
wears, vrill be found to consist of an accumulation of duties
and excise, advanced mdeed by others as the articles pass
through thefr hands m their several stages to perfection, but
paid by him at last, with an addition for rent, interest of
capital, and thefr labour respectively, which in divers instances
constitutes the least part of the price.
Nor is this reasoning confined to the produce of our own
land. It is equally conclusive when appUed to that of our
colonies, and to foreign commerce ; for if in the first instance
a farmer rentmg an estate of £100. a year, pays in taxes of
aU kmds £20. a year, and I know in some places it is much
more; to make his rent he must sell his produce to the
manufacturers for £20. more than if he paid no taxes. The
manufacturer must be paid for his labour 20 per cent, more
n2

268 LETTERS OF
than he otherwise would, and the articles made by him for
the export trade, whether sent to the Indies or to America,
up the Mediterranean or the Baltic, must be sold at a rate
proportioned to such advanced price, which must be repaid in
the price of the raw material or manufactures taken in return,
and this perha,ps is the best reason to be given, as it hereto
fore has been, for the higher price paid by the consumers of
West Inffia produce froin the English than from the French
islands. From the preceding it appears to me not only that my
former opinion was weU founded, but also that, however specu
lative poUticians may estimate any class of men, it is merely,
and only in proportion as they are consumers of the produce
of the soU, the manufactures of the country and the imports
of its merchants, that they contribute to its revenue : and
this shows the importance of population to a nation, and of
trade as furmshmg employment for the people. Indeed Uke
action and reaction they in great measure produce each
other, and, eventually, they vriU stand or faU together ; which
should induce the consideration, whether raising the suppUes
by taxes upon raw materials and implements of manufecture,
or others that ultimately affect trade in general, as has been
so much the practice of late, is good policy.
So long as the consumption of our manufactures and
imports at home or abroad contmues, so long the burden
may be borne, but the higher the impositions the higher the
price of them must be, and the sooner we shall be undersold
in foreign markets. The want of a foreign trade would
deprive many of our manufacturers of employment, and by
obliging them to emigrate, lessen our home consumption, and
defeat the revenue of the duties upon both; but I expect
this will be sooner felt than seen, by those who should know
that in all cases it is better to prevent than to cure ; and.

RICHARD RteYNbLDS. 269
that in some, that which might have been prevented cannot
be cured.
I have now written a longer letter than I at first expected
to write, and have only to apologise for it by saying, that
long as it is, I have restrained the wandermgs of my pen :
for the subject (bf trade) is so various, so compUcated, and
so beneficial to society, that one is almost unavoidably led
into refiections more diffuse than comports with the bounds
of a letter — and yet I wiU add to this, by wishing thy most
valuable observations on the commerce of America and
Ireland had been seen by some mOderii writers. It might
have prevented some reflections Of theirSj as absurd as they
are Uliberal. I am going to spend two or three weeks at
Bristol. If I can render thee any serrice there, I shall be
glad to receive thy commands, at Mary Cowles', in Castle
Green ; and I trust it wiU not be attiibuted to an affec
tation of humffity, if I request it may be vrithout an addition
to my name, — ^which, considermg its mUitftry origin, is UI
appUed, and would be worse assumed by one of my peaceable
principles — which, however common, but few are entitled to —
and which^ whatever Johnson or Boswell may have thought
to the contrary, is not necessary to elevate the real rank iu
society, of a tradesman — or, as they as elegantly as justly
express it, of "a feUow sittffig aU day at a desk," — or even.
of such an one as is bold to subscribe hitaself, without a fear
of offending thee; Thy very respectful and obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.

270 LETTERS OF
To John Smitheman, Esq.
Coalbrook Dale, 14th of Seventh Month, 1795.
Respected Friend,
It is likely thou wUl have heard that there was a numerous
meeting of gentlemen, farmers, millers, and tradesmen, held
at the Tontine Inn, the 9th inst., on the alarming occasion
of the present scarcity of corn and deamess of all other pro
visions, at which a committee was appointed of certain persons
specially, and generally of all subscribers, for the immediate
collection of contributions and the purchase of such grain as
can be procured to be ffistributed to the necessitous, at the
reduced price of one-fourth, or nine shillings for twelve.
It was cause of regret that the meetmg had not the ad
vantage of thy company and advice, for of thy contributing
vrith them they doubt not ; and I am directed by the com
mittee, on behalf of the meetmg, to apply to thee on the
occasion, the urgency of which admits not of delay. The
wants of the poor are far beyond- what has been at any
former time experienced, and from the best account that
could be coUected, the quantity of grain of aU sorts in the
country is three thousand bushels short of the consumption
before harvest. There are many famUies now m want of
bread, and the present supply is very scanty in proportion to
the increasing demands. The colUers, &c. have hitherto been
prevented from rising by assurances that the gentlemen of
property were disposed to contribute liberaUy to thefr relief,
as weU as to adopt measures for obtaining from distant parts
such aids as can be procured ; and I have by thefr direction
sent to Liverpool for one or two thousand bushels of Indian
corn ; but such are the increasing wants, and such the con
sequent murmurs of the poor, that it is impossible to say
what wUl yet be the consequences, and I should not be sur-

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 271
prised if they appUed in a body at those houses where they
expected to find prorisions, or from which they thought they
ought to be reUeved. They already begin to make distinc
tions between those whom they consider as their benefactors
and those whom (as George Forester expresses it in the
annexed letter) are at war with their landlords ; and I fear
those whom they would consider as deserting them in their
distress would not only incur their disapprobation, but might
be the next to suffer from thefr resentment. I therefore the
more readily attempt to fulffl my appointment by recom-
mendmg thee in the most earnest manner to send by the
return of the post to Richard Dearman at this place, who is
appointed treasurer on the -present occasion, a bill for such
a sum as thou shaU thmk proper to contribute, and at the
same time to write to thy servant at the West Coppice to
give notice to thy tenants, (as G. Forester has to his) and
especially to WUUam Parton of Little Wenlock, that it is thy
desire that he and they should conform to the general practice
and deliver immediately all his wheat to the committee, at
twelve shUUngs per bushel, for the use of the poor. And if
there is any wheat, barley, beans, or peas, at the West Cop
pice, or elsewhere in thy possession or power, I recommend
thee to order it to be sent vrithout delay to the Committee ;
and then if the coffiers, &c., should go in a body, or send, as I
think more Iffiely, a deputation to thy house, thy having
so done, and thy servant shewing them thy order for so doing,
as weU as thy contiibuting UberaUy as above proposed, wiU
be the most likely means to prevent the commencement of
mischief, the end of which, if once began, it is impossible
to ascertain.
Annexed is a copy of the letter from George Forester,
before alluded to, and the enclosed advertisement wiU show
thee the parishes included in the present Association for their

272 LETTERS OF
relief, and the amount of the sums immediately subscribed,
among which are the foUowing, riz.— George Forester, £105.
CecU Forester, £105. J. H. Browne, £105. the Coalbrook Dale
Company, £105. Richard Reynolds, £105. Thy neighbour,
John WUkinson, is among the subscribers, and has also
engaged to deliver a quantity of wheat under the market
price to the amount of £50. — and as some money was im-
meffiately wanted to purchase corn, &c., George Forester,
J. H. Browne, and myseU consented to advance £700. each,
to be repaid from the produce of the corn wffich is to be
sold at the reduced price.
The donations are to pay the expense of grmding, &c., as
well as the loss of three shUUngs out of twelve sbffiings, and
thou wiU easUy calculate how much it will require to do that
on 9000 bushels, which, at the most moderate computation
wiU be wanted to support the country for sis weeks to
come ; and the Committee assure themselves thy liberality
wUl be m proportion to the occasion, of which, such is the
urgency of the temper of the people, that there is not a day
to lose if we are desfrous to preserve the poor from outrage,
and most likely the country from plunder, if not from blood.
Though general calamity doth not require particular or
local inducements to obtain relief from the affiuent and
humane, permit me to suggest that the inhabitants of this
parish, and particularly the colliers and miners, are ffisposed
to look up to thee in an especial manner as their former
master and thefr present friend ; nor are thefr or our hopes
the less, or the less founded, by thy income being increased
by passing thy mmes or the produce of them into a different
kind of property, or to the purchase of land in a less popu
lous part of the coimty.
I make no apology for the freedom of the proceeding,
conscious that it is what I should have used under simUar

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 273
cfrcumstanees to my faither,' had he been living, and the
strongest proof I can give thee of my being as truly as I am
respectfully Thy faithful friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Sir Richard Hill, Bart.
Coalbrook Dale, 5th of Third Month, 1796.
Respected Friend,-
I was obUged, by thy favour of the 19th past, giring me
the agreeable information of the success of the motion by
W. Wilberforce, for the aboUtion of the slave-trade. I hope
the Bffi for that purpose vriU be equally prosperous in
passing both Houses, and obtaining the royal assent.
Understanding from the public prints that a tax is mtended
to be laid upon dogs, I have taken the Uberty to mention it
in my acknowledgment of a letter from thy worthy colleague,
as introductory to a subject to which I also beg leave to
engage thy attention, and that is, my hope that the tax upon
dogs, in which, I tiust, the sum imposed on bull-dogs vriU
amount as near as possible to a prohibition, may be made
subserrient to the suppression of the iufamous practice of
buU-baitiag, the UI effects whereof upon the tempers and
manners of the frequent use of them 1 need not describe,
to justify the introduction of such a clause, if it be possible.
If that cannot be done, I really think, as I presume no law
at present in force wffi apply to the prevention of the evil,
it. is of sufficient importance to warrant the bringing in a
bffi for the especial purpose ; and I cannot but wish the
representatives for the county of Salop may have the honour
of abolishing a practice which is a disgrace to the nation,
mconsistent vrith religion, and degradmg to human nature ;
n3

274 letters or
and if the practice of cock-fighting, but little less objection
able, coffid be included, it woffid lessen the number of existing
evUs, and add much to my satisfaction. Perhaps thou wUt
confer with John Kynaston upon the occasion. Sensible of
thy many engagements, I will not intrude upon thy time, by
apologizing for the Uberty I have taken, or by adding more
than that I am, with much respect and esteem.
Thy obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.

To John Kynaston, Esq.
Coalbrook Dale, 5th of Third Month, 1796.
Respected Friend,
I accept very cordially thy congratulations on the success.
of William WUberforce's motion for the aboUtion of the
slave trade, and received very gratefuUy the printed biU
mtended to effect it, assurmg myself of its havmg thy sup
port as weU as that of thy worthy colleague, whose attention
I shall solicit as I do thine on the foUowing occasion. I
understand from the public prints, it is intended to lay a tax
upon dogs. If more consistently vrith my vrish than my
expectation, it should be done, and a difference made in the
species, I hope buU dogs vriU be highest taxed, so high if
possible as to amount to a prohibition, but I wish stiU
more earnestly that the occasion may be made introductory
to the abolition of the cruel practice of buU-bating, dis
graceful as it is to the nation, inspiring with a degree of
ferocity the human brutes, who with thefr dogs are immedi
ately concerned in it, as well as inducing idleness, dissipation
and mtemperance among the mob, who assemble to partake
of this worse than savage diversion.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 275
I hope thou will find an opportunity to confer with Sir
Richard Hffi on the subject, and am very respectfully
Thy obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Sir Henry Bridgman, Bart.
Coalbrook Dale, 2nd of Fifth Month, 1789.
Respected Friend,
I was hot at home when thy favour of the 24th past was
brought to this place. I returned last night, and take the
earliest opportunity to acknowledge so condescenffing a mark
of thy attention.
It is not, I trust, necessary for me to employ any argu
ments to justify thy very obUging compliance with my
request in favour of the aboUtion of the slave trade, but
whether it shoffid be effected by an immediate total pro
hibition of it, or be extinguished in a very few years by
the gradual operation of provisions to be enacted by parlia
ment, for that purpose, I shall most cheerfuUy submit to thy
better judgment. Stffi thou wiU give me leave to hope it wffi be
one or the other, as weU as permit me to object to the proposal
of an act to regulate the slave trade, and render it less shocking
to humanity ; because no modification of that which is evil in
itseU can convert it into right, and especially because by
makmg it less shockmg it would probably be rendered more
lastmg — and the riolation of thefr rights as men and of our
duties as Christians be entaUed upon thousands yet unborn,
by the specious prorision for their more lenient treatment as
slaves who should always have been freemen. Thou will
excuse this further freedom, and believe me with much
respect and deference, Thy obliged friend,
Richard Eeynolds.

276 letters of
To Lord Sheffield.
Coalbrook Dale, 21st of Sixth Month, 1790.
Before I received thy favour of the 17th instant, I had
replied to my friend on the subject of it. I apprehend thy
election wUl not be opposed. I trust it wffi be allowed as
the strongest proof the nature of the case admits, of my
thorough conriction of the total repugnance of the slave-
trade to our duty as Christians, and to aU that ought to
ffistinguish us as men, that a diversity of sentiment and
conduct on that subject would prevent my giving a vote for
the person, who, of aU others, I shoffid otherwise thmk best
qualffied and most eligible to represent the commercial city
of Bristol, and whom I had considered as such, with an hope
thou woffid be its choice, before the business of the slave
trade was agitated in this nation, and long before the ffisso-
lution of the late parUament was expected.
I thmk too it wffi be made to appear that the slave trade
is no more necessary to the existence of our West Inffia
trade, than it is mconsistent with equity, humanity, or the
golden rffie — but this is not the time, were I qualffied as I am
not, to discuss a subject of such magnitude as weU as import
ance. Let it, however, suffice to assure thee of the con
tinuance of that respect and esteem, with which I have
hitherto subscribed myself. Thy obUged and assured friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Coalbrook Dale, 12th of Tenth Month, 1799.
I vrill not take up thy time by apologising. Always a
friend to government, and desirous to promote the pubUc weal,

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 277
thy candour vrill excuse Without it, my submitting to thy
consideration the expediency of ffiscontinuing the use of hair
powder in the army. The lateness of the harvest, and con
tinued wet weather, not only injurious to the present crops',
but, by preventing the sovring, entaUing a scarcity on next
year, justly excites the public fear,- the effect whereof is
not lessened by the present disastrous conjuncture. The
attention of government wffi be very opportunely displayed
m suppressmg, at aU times an unnecessary, and at this time
an mjurious, profusion by the misapplication of so much of
the most essential support of human life, at present with
difficulty procured by many poor famffies, and eaten by more
with too justly founded apprehensions of speedy want, if not
timely prevented, and towards which this measure woffid
contribute a quantity more easUy calcffiated by thee than
by me.
I am of opinion, that upon a very moderate aUowance per
man to aU the mUitary m this kingdom, it woffid be found
to be, if not the whole, a very large proportion of that which
vriU be necessary for the Foreign tioops expected to be win
tered (and a long wmter it may be) m England, Even if
they come not, the faUure of the crops m other countries, as
weU as so generaUy in this land; wUl render every exertion
Uttle enough to secure a very moderate supply for this
kmgdom and its dependencies ; and how conducive to public
ffissatisfaction and tumffit is the want of bread I presume
thou art sufficiently sensible, to promote a measure so ex
pressive of the ]kmg's desire t@ aUeriate the sufferings of
the lowest ranks of his subjects, whose loyalty and submis
sion to the laws, entitles them to encouragement and assist
ance from every branch of the legislature. I presume this
might have been addressed vrith more official propriety to
the Secretary at War, or the highest mUitary officer ; but

278 LETTERS OF
baring before now expressed my sentiments to thee, on a
dffierent occasion, and sensible of thy power to give weight
to a representation from an msignificant indiridual, I am
desirous the exertion of thy influence may conrinee the many
who wffi be benefited by the measure, that it is as consistent
vrith thy ffisposition to serve them, as that disposition is
confided in by Thy respectiffi friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Sir Richard Hill, Bart.
Coalbrook Dale, 5th of Twelfth Month, 1799.
Respected Friend,
If the trouble thou has taken to bring under the notice of
the OhanceUor of the Exchequer the measure suggested in
the letter I took the liberty of addressing to thee, produces,
by ffis adoptmg it, the salutary effect mtended, thou wUl
have a more adequate recompense in the relief it vriU afford
to the poor, than from my acknowledgment of thy con
descension, which yet be pleased to accept, as it is tendered
with gratitude and respect.
Conscious how inapplicable are the terms m which thou
hast spoken of me, I must attribute to thy desfre to give
some weight to the proposition, thy representmg the pro
poser of so much more importance and mfluence m his
neighbourhood than attaches to him. Formerly, my con
cerns m trade gave me a little consequence among the occu.
piers of mines and makers of fron ; these I have some years
smce reUnqffished to my sons, who, wdth abundantly more
science, as weU as experience, have made improvements in
the quality of fron proportionably important to the nation,
though. I cannot say with equal emolument to themselves ;
so that whatever of weight or distinction in the commercial

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 279
part of the community I once possessed — and 1 never pos
sessed any other — I am now, not more compatibly with my
time of Ufe than consistently with my mclination, m that
state of retfrement, and I hope of safety, which was the pri-
rilege of those of whom the poet says —
" Exempt from danger as remote from fame,
Their life's calm current flow'd without a name."
Tet, though detached from actual participation in the losses
or gains of fron works and mines, I partake vrith my betters
in the feeUngs of humanity in these times of compUcated
distress, from war and want of bread, and I think myself
honoured ffi being permitted to uffite my feeble endeavours
vrith thme, to nutigate the latter; as to the former, it is
altogether out of my province. I woffid it were as much m
thy power as I am confident it would be thy wish, to induce
the rffiers of the nations to become more, than m a profession
flagrantly false, the foUowers of the Prince of Peace ; but on
this subject it was not my mtention to have touched, and I
hope thou vriU excuse me. * # *
Thy respectftd friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Eari; Gower, President op the Council, &c.
Seventh Month, 1784.
Unacquamted as I am vrith the customary mode of address
ing a person so much my superior, the experience I have
aheady had of thy condescension on other occasions would
embolden me to reply to thee on the present important one
m our usual plam manner vrithout a fear of incurring thy dis
pleasure, or of faffing to procure that attention wffich the
magnitude of the object I desfre to submit to thy considera
tion wffi be found to deserve.

280 LETTERS OF
I understand by the papers, as weU as by a letter from
Isaac Hawkms Browne, Esq., that the Chancellor of the
Exchequer has proposed a tax upon coals of two shUUngs per
ton, which if enacted, wUl be of the most fatal consequences,
I apprehend, to many branches of manufacture and com
merce, and particularly destructive of those which are the
support and employment Of thousands ffi this and the
adjoiffing counties ; nor do I believe the produce of the
land of at least one parish in this neighbourhood would m
that case support the poor of it, neither is it to be computed
the ffi consequences it must have on the landed estates iu
general ; but the difference to those who have mines of coal
and fronstone, may be estimated by the consumption of
both in the very extensive works in this and the adjommg
eounties. The advancement of the iron trade within these few
years has been prodigious ; it was thought and justly, that the
makmg of pig fron with pit coal, was a great acquisition to
the nation by savmg the woods, and supplying a material to
manufactories, the make of which, by the consumption of aU
the wood the country produced, was unequal to the demand,
and the naU trade, perhaps the most considerable of any one
article of manufactured fron, would have been lost to tffis
country, had it not been found practicable to make naUs of
iron made vrith pit coal. We have now another process to
attempt, and that is to make bar iron vrith pit coal ; and it
is for that purpose we have made, or rather are makmg, the
alterations at Donnington Wood, Ketley, &c. , which we expect
to complete in the present year, but not at a less expense
than twenty thousand pounds, which wffi be lost to us, and
gamed by nobody, if this tax is laid on our coals. The only
chance we have of making iron as cheap as it can be imported
from Russia, is the low price of our fuel, and unless we can
do that, there wUl not be consumption equal to half the

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 281
quantity that can be made, and when we consider how many
people are employed in makmg a ton of iron, and the several
trades dependent thereupon, we shall be convinced the
revenue is much more benefited even by their consumption
of exciseable articles, &c., than by the duty on a ton of
foreign fron, nor wiU it I believe escape thy observation, that
the iron tiade so fatally affected by tffis absurd tax, is only
of the second, if indeed on some accounts it is not of the. first,
importance to the nation. The preference I know is given,
and I beUeve justly as to the number of hands employed, to
the woollen manufactory, but when it is remembered that aU
that is produced by makmg of iron with pit coal, is absolutely
so much gamed to the nation, and which vrithout its being so
appUed would be perfectly useless, it wffi erince its superior
importance, for the land grazed by sheep might be converted
vrith whatever loss to other purposes of agricffiture or pas
turage ; but coal and fron stone have no value ffi thefr natural
state, produce nothmg tiU they are consumed or manu
factured ; and a tax upon coal, wffich as I said is the only
article that m any degree compensates for our high price of
labour, &c., or can be substituted in the stead of water for
our wheels and beUows, would entfrely ruin this very popu
lous county, and throw its numerous labouring poor upon
the parishes, till the emigration of those of them who are
able to work shall strengthen our opponents, and leave the
desolated wastes, at present occupied by their cottages, to
the lords of the soil.
I fiatter myself what I have urged, though abundance
more might be said did time permit, wffi obtain that oppc-
sition to so rumous a tax, which thy abffities and thy station
enable thee to give, and for which as a lover of thy country
at large, as the protector of thy tenants, and as the here
ditary pation of the manufactories m this and the adjoining

282 LETTERS OF
county, so many look up to thee vrith confidence, propor
tionate to thefr apprehensions of danger, and of thy disposi
tion to save them from it. As to the tax on bricks and tUes,
if it is not confined to those used in bffilding dweffing
houses, it wffi be very heavy on those concerned in coffieries,
&e., and at any rate be very partial; few bricks, if any,
being used m divers counties ffi England.
Let the importance of the occasion excuse any warmth of
expression, if such has escaped me. May my reUgious pro
fession, the simplicity of my manners and the smcerity of my
respect, obtaffi thy permission to subscribe myself vrith due
deference, though in much haste.
Thy obliged faithful friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Earl Gower.
Bath, 28th of Third Month, 1785.
Observing that the consideration in the House of Com
mons of the Commercial Treaty with Ireland, is adjourned
to the 31st instant, and not expectmg to be in Shropshfre
before this day week, I take the liberty of addressing a few
lines on that subject to thee from this place.
Nothing woffid ffiduce me to be thus troublesome, but a
thorough conriction of the fatal tendency of the resolutions
proposed to be adopted from the Irish House of Commons,
to the trade and manufactures of this kingdom in general, as
well as their prejudice to the landed estates of many noblemen
and gentlemen, and to the property of those who have
adventured their fortunes, and the provision for whose
families, as well as the payment of thefr rents, depends on
the success of thefr engagements ffi the ironworks and mmes
which they rent or occupy.
There was a petition sent from Shropshfre by the makers

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 283
of pig and bar iron, the proprietors of mines, and others
interested therein, which was to be presented to the House of
Commons the 21st instant, and which I doubt not vrill obtain
thy attention. As a famUy very materially affected, and
who have been emboldened to look up to thee for pro
tection as thy tenants, as weU as havffig experienced thy
assistance ffi their undertakmgs, permit me ffi the name as
weU of my relations at the Dale, as of my chUdren and in my
own, to solicit thy effectual ffiterposition against a measure
so injurious to us, and to the many hundreds of poor people
employed by us in working and carrying on mines, &c., for
the supply of a large sale of coals by land and water, and of
coals and mme for sisteen fire engines, eight blast furnaces
and nme forges, besides the air furnaces, miUs, &c., at the
foundry at Coalbrook Dale, and which with the levels,
roads, and more than twenty miles of iron railways, &c.,
stiU employs a capital of upwards of one hundred thousand
pounds, though the declension of our trade has, as stated in
a former letter, obliged us to stop two blast furnaces, which
are not fficluded ffi the number before-mentioned. Nor have
we ever considered ourselves as the first of many others,
concerned ffi fron works or coal works in this kingdom.
However we may have thought we had reason to complam
of being sent for by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to give
information on subjects at that very time brought forward
and determmed in the Irish House of Commons, if not also
mtended to be adopted vrithout any quaUfication or alteration
in that of England, we are offiy influenced by a regard to
the real ffiterest, and the just and fafr regffiation of the
commerce of the two countries, equally free from party
influence, and the least mtention to embarrass or obstruct,
the busmess of the nation.
So much has been said of the equalizmg of the duties

284 LETTERS OF
between the two countries, that, conffiung myself to that
trade of which it may be supposed I have some knowledge)
(the importance of which to the nation at large, and to the
counties of Salop aud Stafford in particffiar, I have afready
taken the liberty to remark to thee,) I trust I shaU be
excused, if conformably to what is stated in our aforesaid
petition, as well as our examination before the Committee of
the Privy Council, I advance, that whUe there is so great
a difference between the import duties on foreign iron, the
notion of an equal duty on iron wares exported from each
country is an Ulusion, and the trade of this country must
be lost. At the same time, a reduction of the duty on
the importation of foreign iron into England, to the same
rate that is paid in Ireland, woffid not only immediately
and greatly decrease our revenue, but stUl more exten
sively, as well as more importantly, ffijure it and the country
also, by ruining the fron works of this kingdom ; and,
therefore, the Irish payffig an equal duty to ours on aU
foreign iron imported, as it is the shortest, so it is the
truest, though not the only way, of putting the iron trade of
the two kmgdom s on an equal footing; for the same end
would be in great measure obtained by the Irish imposmg a
duty on all manufactured iron exported, equal to the ffifference
of the duty on the bar-iron wrought into the fron wares so
exported; but that would not be so easily or so exactly
ascertained ; yet it might be done sufficiently near, for we
are not disposed to contend about trifles.
Conceiring the impending conclusions of our Parliament
likely to affect not only myself and the present generation, I
hope I shall obtaffi thy excuse for what I have written, as I
eould not thmk I had discharged my duty to my chUdren, to
my country, and to posterity, if I had not soUcited the ffiter
position of a nobleman most capable of knovring the tiuth of

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 285
my assertion, and best qualffied as weU as disposed to pre
vent the rum of his country. And in hopes that, under such
influence, a commercial arrangement wffi take place be
tween the two countries, upon the permanent foundation of
a liberal, equal, and fair regffiation of duties on importation
and exportation, permit me to subscribe myself, vrith due
deference, Thy obliged faithfffi friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To William Pitt, Esq.
Coalbrook Dale, 21th of Tenth Month, 1802.
Respected Frienu,
In the course of a conversation some time smce) speakmg
of the money subscribed for the erection of thy statue, it was
observed that a more effectual way of perpetuating the
estimation m which thou wast holden by the contributors,
would be by eonvertffig the money mto a capital sum, the
mterest of wffich shoffid be appUed to the reduction of the
national debt. This, though cursorily mentioned, has, after
mature observation, appeared to me so feasible, and so likely
to comport vrith thy own patriotic regard for the nation, over
whose concerns thou so long presided, that baring heretofore,
at the recommendation of the Marquis of Stafford and thy
instance by George Rose, attended on a Committee of the
Privy CouncU, when the Irish propositions were under con
sideration, and sffice that time taken the liberty to address
thee on some other occasions, I flatter myself thou vriU
excuse the present, which I believe vriU be the last, and
aUow me to submit to thee that, as baring benefited the
nation during thy administration is the assigned reason for
the proposed erection, thou would by this means benefit it

286 LETTERS OF
in perpetuity, and toward which some might contribute who
could- not concur ffi the other mode of exhibitffig their
approbation. It woffid be as impertinent as presumptuous
in me to prescribe to one so much more competent to deter
mine the mamier in which effect shoffid be given to the
proposal I have ventured to make. I doubt not, if the
thought is approved, a little consideration wiU enable thee to
adopt such a plan as shaU give it permanency by a ParUa-
mentary sanction. Whether it be that the ffiterest accumu
lated ffi a given number of years shoffid then be applied to
the discharge of so much of the national debt by dfrection of
the House of Commons, and noticed as such among the ways
and means at that time, which woffid as often remind the
nation, and by the pen of future historians, succeedffig
generations and the world at large, of the man who made his
fame substantiaUy conducive to the benefit of his country,
as his endeavours intentionaUy had ; or whether some other
mode shall be adopted by thy better judgment, I hope thou
will accept this suggestion as the effect of the regard and
respect with which I am Thy faithfffi friend,
Richard Reynolds.
, ' Ketley, 21st of First Month, 1186.
To Lord Sheffield.
I returned from Bristol last night; and when I acknowledge
that I received thy favour of the 28th past, the 2nd of the
present month, it appears necessary that I shoffid account
for my delay by informffig thee, it was occasioned partly by
my being obliged to go to Bath before I could make, or
rather attempt to make, the enquiries recommended m thy
letter, and partly from being prevented by a close attention.

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 287
to a very troublesome, but to me, an important business,
from sooner seeing the very few I know m that place, and
from whom I at last received but little ffiformation, not
bemg able to tell them what was proposed by our govern
ment on one side, or by the French on the other, as the terms
of the commercial intercourse between them.
I took an early opportuffity to communicate thy letter to our
mutual friend Wiffiam Gibbons, who expressed himself much
obliged by thy attention. I recommended to him, as much
better acquainted with the inhabitants of Bristol than myself,
who have left it nearly thirty years, to make the proposed
mquiries and to write to thee, which I hope he hath done or
wffi do, though he was at that time very busy takmg an
account of his stock and settling his accounts to the year's
end. With respect to the iron trade, I apprehend the inter
course between the two nations cannot be too free. From
its most imperfect state as pig iron, to its highest finish in
the regulating sprmg of a watch, we have nothing to fear if
the importation ffito each country shoffid be permitted vrith
out duty. And if, as has been apprehended, this must be
purchased vrith a reduction of the duties on their wines and
branffies, that it would be a good purchase for this country.
As to thy observation, that with French manufactures the
same kinds from all the world will find thefr way to our
market ; admittmg, as I do, the truth of it, I think it is
obviated by a conclusion as fairly drawn, that our manufac
turers wffi likewise find their way to aU the rest of the world,
with those of ]France of the, same kmds.
Supposing the Unen manufacture as Ukely to be affected
by the proposed ffitercourse vrith France as most others, I
conferred with an ffitelligent and respectable person in that
trade, but he did not apprehend much danger. He, as well
as others, asked me on what terms the importation of French

288 LETTERS OF
cambrics was to be admitted; I coffid not teU him. He said
the consumption in England woffid not, ffi his opmion, be
much more than it now is ; for those who woffid then wear
them generaUy ffid so at present, and if they were admitted
at a moderate duty they woffid be bought in the shops
instead of being purchased of the smugglers^-that we had
nothing to fear from France, or from HoUand or Germany,
through France, vrith respect to other Unens.
I was disappointed in not seeing a gentleman who is by
much the best informed of any one I know respectmg the
general commerce of both countries, as well as particularly
that to the West Indies, in wffich the French have of late
years made an amazing progress, and the wffies and brandy
of France, bemg himself largely concerned as a sugar-
baker and wine merchant. He was a few years since high
sheriff of the county of Somerset, and is at present at Mont-
pellier. I saw his partner at Bristol, who encouraged me to
hope that, if he was requested, he would be likely to attend
WUUam Eden, Esq. at Paris; for he is a gentleman of a Uberal
mmd, loves his country, and is as capable as weU-ffisposed
to serve it. He has been in Spam and spent much time
in France, and if he is prevaUed upon to give his assistance
or ffiformation, I doubt not I shall not be entitled to the
thanks of this country, as I flatter myself, if he cannot
come to Paris, I shall obtaffi his excuse for informing thee
that if WUUam Eden, Esq. is pleased to apply to him he may
direct to "James Ireland, Esq., Montpellier." Passmg
through Worcester, I conversed with a friend who em
ploys many hands in makmg gloves, and which is a manu
facture as likely to be hurt by that of France, as most, if
not of any other. He was of opinion that, if we coffid have
the skins at a moderate duty, it might be advantageous ; but
I know so little what articles are intended to be admitted ffi

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 289
lieu of those they wiU consent to take from us at reduced
duties, that I could say nothing to it.
It gave me great pleasure to fibnd that my reasoning in
support of what ladvanced, respectmg the worth of every work
man ffi the iron works to the revenue, met thy approbation.
I have been so much otherways engaged of late, that I do not
know, even from the papers, whether or not Wiffiam Eden
is gone to Paris. There was a report that Lord Carlisle
was to be joffied vrith him on the occasion : vriU thou oblige
me by letting me know, and also if there is any reason to
expect that so desfrable and jufficious an ffidffigence is about to
take place, as an aUowance of the landmg and re-exportation
of foreign commoffities vrithout paying any duty, which is
offiy to be exacted when they are taken out of the ware
houses for sale, or for home consumption. Fearffig to be
too late for the post, I have only to add, that I am with
much respect and esteem. Thy faithfffi and obUged friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To John Wilkinson.
Ketley, 14th of Twelfth Month, 1787.
On the effect of a law for making book debts carry interest.
Respected Friend,
I received the melosed letter the 10th mst. I went from
home the next mommg and returned last night. As the
time limited for an answer is so short, and the uncertaffity
of its bemg convenient to the few to be consffited to meet
for that purpose is so great, I have concluded to send thee
my opimon as briefiy as possible, and to request thee to let
me know in what thine is different, and I shaU be glad to
improve mine by it. I do not know that my brother

290 LETTERS OF
Rathbone is returned from Liverpool, but I shaU be obUged
to thee to communicate it to Banks and Offions, or any
others thou shalt think proper, and to let me have it again,
with your opinions, by to-morrow night or the next morning.
I am against the proposed measure for the foUovring
reasons : — ^At present there is a little, though indeed but too
little, regard paid to reputation ffi the punctual ffischarge of
debts owing : the entitUng creditors to legal interest, from
the time thefr debts become due, vriU I apprehend lessen that
inducement to the debtor to pay, and increase the offium
unjustly fficurred by those, who, , however necessary it may
be for them, shaU msist upon bemg paid ; because they wiU
be told the law prorides them a consideration and prevents
thefr sufferffig by thefr forbearance, though every tradesman
knows, as weU as the purchasers of land or of government
securities, that the ffiterest for money is not at all times, or
rather is but very seldom, an adequate compensation for a
delay of payment. To renters, whether of mines or works,
whose landlords will be paid, and to manufacturers whose
workmen must be paid, the extension of credit to the pur
chasers of thefr produce would be ffigUy mjurious ; because
it woffid requfre an mcrease of capital mcompatible with the
cfrcumstances of many of them, as weU as mcrease the risk
of bad debts to aU, and thereby check the spirit as weU as
lessen the means of enterprise and exertion, of late years so
conspicuously ffisplayed ffi the extension, and so essential to
the contmued prosecution, of the various mines and manu
factures of this kingdom.
If it was aUowed in cases of bankruptcy, those who had
given the longest creffit would prove the largest debts in
proportion ; but as it would not increase the effects to be
dirided, I think its only operation woffid be to mcrease the
number of bankruptcies, by holdffig out an mducement tt

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 291
the extension of creffit, which afready contributes so much to
a circumstance rendered less scandalous than it ought to be
by its frequency. I have offiy time to add that I am very

respectfuUy,

Thy assured friend,
Richard Reynolds.

To George "Forester, Esq.
Ketley, 2nd of Fourth Month, 1788.
Respected Friend,
I desired Egerton Leeke to inform thee how much I
thought myself obUged by thy message to me on this day
week. I have consistently therevrith essayed a sketch for a
petition agaffist the Slave-trade, which I shaU be very glad
to find meets thy approbation, or that thou wiU be pleased
to make such improvements in it as thy better judgment
^haU suggest.
I presume it vriU be expected that some reason shoffid be
assigned for petitionffig, and I have confined myself to such
as I apprehend must strike aU men equaUy forcibly. An
immediate abolition of the trade woffid be very injurious to
many indiriduals and perhaps to the nation at large, and
therefore is not to be asked ; but I believe it is very possible
to subject it to such regffiations as shall gradually ffimffiish,
and, by the encouragement of population, at length totally do
away, the necessity of supplies from the coast of Africa, and
thereby extffiguish the trade without loss to inffividuals or
to the nation. I am very respectfully
Thy obUged friend,
Richard Reynolds. o 2

292 LETTERS OP
To the Honorable the Commons of Great Britain
ffi Parliament assembled.
The humble Petition of the Bailiff, Recorder, and Burgesses
of the tovm and liberties of Weffiock, m the county of
Salop, in Common Hall assembled,
Sheweth, —
That your petitioners understandmg that the Slave Trade
on the coast of Africa, in America, and the West Inffies, is
about to come under your consideration, are desfrous to jom
the very great numbers of their feUow-subjects, who, from a
just abhorrence of the inhuman tiaffic, have petitioned
agaffist it.
That it is inconsistent vrith that most eqffitable rffie of
doing to others as we would they shoffid do unto us, every
man will acknowledge, who for a moment, and that but ffi
idea, substitutes ffis parent, his wife, his chUd, or his friend,
ffi the place of one of the miserable rictims, which avarice
and acqufred necessity subjects to separation, to ffisease,
to slavery and to death.
That your petitioners presume not to prescribe to your
honorable house what measures they shall adopt, but to
express their hope they vriU be such as in due time shaU
extmgffish a trade which they apprehend to be ffisgracefffi to
the nation, as Christians and as men.
And your petitioners, &c.
To Sarah Trimmer.
Ketley, 30th of Eighth Month, 1788.
Respected Friend,
The box of books which I expected to receive from James
PhUUps was detaffied some time at the carrier's warehouse
through a mistake of the book-keeper; notwithstandffig which

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 293
I might, I confess, have acknowledged the receipt of thy
favours of the 16th and 19th of last month which came ffi it,
as weU as have thanked thee sooner for thy Sunday School
Catechist, and the speUmg book and Easy Lessons, had
not company and many other engagements prevented me.
I vrish I coffid give thee a better account of our schooL I
beheve it doth not much decUne ; but, from its bemg situated
where the few who can be procured to act as teachers are
almost whoUy vrithout the aid of risitors, it doth not flourish,
as I am glad to hear the schools do m many other places, and
as I hoped tffis woffid have done. Another attempt is about to
be made in the town of WeUffigton, m the extremity of which
parish ours also is: that bemg m a market tovm, I expect
wffi succeed better, were it offiy from its being undertaken
and patromsed by severah
I had sent for aU the books thou hast published, exceptffig
those I possessed before, and as a efrcumstance that may
mcrease the satisfaction thou must have received from the
success of thy attempts to promote the cause of vfrtue and
the good of thy fellow-creatures, I may inform thee, that
havffig for some time past intended to do somethmg of the
kmd, I was animated and excited to an immediate detfermina-
tion by the considerations urged m page 107 of thy Economy
of Charity, and have made the bricks, &c. to buUd six com
fortable Uttle habitations, and glad shaU I be if, when they
are erected, I can find six such poor men or women as are
there described to inhabit them. I shall be under some diffi-
cffity to estabUsh such rffies as vriU be best adapted to insure
peace, reUgious sobriety, and cleanUness among them ; but as
I am apprehensive the houses vriU not be habitable before
next spring, perhaps, with thy leave, I may take the liberty
of consffiting thee on my plan when I have thought more of
it, and reduced it to vmting : but of this, permit me to request

294 LETTERS OF
— niay I say to insist ? — that thou takes no further notice ;
not havffig yet told the workmen employed for what purpose
they are mtended.
I have taken ffi thy magazine for the benefit of our servants.
I observe the paper I left vrith thee is inserted in one of them,
and ffi a manner that may lead some who have seen it in the
detached form in which that was prffited, to apply a certain
character to me, to which, being so inferior ffi every other
particular as weU as circumstance, the mistake woffid give me
much uneasmess, even if the whole of that paper had been of
my writing, whereas I offiy had it reprinted, with the adffition
of the second paragraph, and that ffi the forepart of the third,
respecting prayer. It was originaUy written, I believe, for a
school at Barr, near Bfrmingham, by one thou would eaU a
lady of our Society, and a relation of Robert Barclay, whose
wife is of thy acquaffitance. I took the Uberty of makffig a
few remarks, of Uttle importance I confess, on that pubUca
tion, when I had the pleasure of seeing thee at Brentford. I
doubt not thy mtention was as disffiterested m the magazffie
as in thy other books for the use of the lower classes of the
people, and I as little fear offendmg thee by suggesting,
whether it might not improve that work, if occasion was
taken to apprize the readers of the absolute necessity there
is for them to experience a change of heart, a restoration from
their fallen nature, which is so emphaticaUy and expUcitly
declared by our Sariour to Nicodemus. This appears to me
to be the root from which alone is to be expected the fruits
of the Spirit, as described by the Apostle, and opposed to the
works of the fiesh in the 5th chapter of his 'Epistle to the
Galatians. An attention to outward conduct or exterior
deportment is certaffily very good in its place, and by no
means to be omitted; but a prior, a superior attention to
"the ingrafted word," wiU ensure success to the labour

RICHAKD REYNOLDS. 295
bestowed m traming and pruning. Sensible of the mferiority
of my own attaffiments and attempts, I offiy venture to drop
the hint, as confidently hoping thou vrill improve it as be-
lievuig thou wiU excuse it ; and permit me to recommend to
thy ffispection, as Ukely to furnish some observations which
perhaps may not be improperly mtroduced ffito thy magazffie,
a httle book printed by James Phffiips, entitled The Orounds
of a Holy Life, by Hugh Turford.
I am obUged to thee for sendffig the anniversary sermon to
the Humane Society ; but where no good end is answered by
the publication — and I know of none there woffid be ffi my
being a life-director — I think our Sariour's injunction re
specting almsdeeds shoffid be observed, were it offiy for the
very important conffition annexed thereunto ; but in the pre
sent instance I eould not comply with it literally. Thou wUl
approve of my doffig it as nearly as I can.
If thou considers the military origin of the adffition thou
hast been pleased to make to my name in the direction of thy
last letter, thy good sense vrill discover its incongruity vrith
the peaceable principles I profess, even were I legaUy quaUfied
to assume it ; but as I am not, it is stUl more improperly
applied, nor will my disclaiming it, I trust, be attributed to
an affected humility, or prevent thy stffi permitting me to
subscribe myself, though simply, very sincerely,
Thy respectftd and obliged friend,
Richard Reynolds.
To Thomas Addenbrooke.
Eespected Friend,
As thou iffiormed me thou expected to see Lady S—
soon, I take the Uberty to address this to thee on the foUow
mg occasion. Some time ago, J. C  rented of the Com
missioners of the turnpike roads, one of the gates adjoiffing

296 LETTERS OF
to the town, and with ffis wife resided m the house, which,
though smaU, is neat, and had with it a good garden much
improved by his cffitivation. When his term expfred, he,
dependffig on the promises of some who were to take it for
him, was disappoffited ; it was let to another person. He
then opened a Uttle school for ffis wife to teach young chU
dren to read ; but being Roman CathoUcs, the clergyman
of the parish mterfered and would not suffer them to teach,
threatenffig the parents of the chUdren, as weU as the poor
man and ffis wife. They then set up a Uttle shop ; but, Uring
among very poor people, their necessities ffi the late time of
scarcity pleaded more stiongly with tffis benevolent pafr
than the risk they ran by trastmg those who had notffing
to pay, and a few bad debts were more than equal to the
profit of many such customers. I was at  a Uttle after
Midsummer, and makffig some enqufry after them, was
informed as above related. I caUed to see them, hopmg
they might have been under the notice of some more
opffient Roman Catholics ; but was told there was offiy
one family left in the neighbourhood, about four mUes from
thence, and they, though ]kffid and weU-ffisposed aecordffig to
thefr abUity, were not m cfrcumstances to do much for
others. Haring the pleasure of bemg a Uttle acquaffited vrith
J. D  , Esq., I took the liberty on my return of men-
tioffing the case to him. He was pleased to say, he shoffid
have been glad had it been ffi his power to have been of
serrice to them, but it was not ; and upon my mentioffing
that the poor woman was the daughter of a clergyman and
had resided some time in France with Lady C  ,, he said
I should do weU to apply to Lady S  (the daughter of
Lady C  ). Now though Lady S  's charitable dispo
sition is experienced and acknowledged so extensively, and I
beUeve her condescension and affabiUty woffid prevent her

RICHARD REYNOLDS. 297
from being offended if I had appUed immediately to herself,
yet as the claims on the benevolent generally increase in
proportion to thefr abUities, and as I have not the honour
of beffig knovm to Lady 8  , I shall offiy take the Uberty
of submittmg to thy better judgment, the propriety of the
appUcation I wish to make, for those I beUeve to be very
worthy, and agamst whom I never heard anythmg aUeged
but thefr reUgion.
John C  , formerly Uved ffi the capacity of a gentle
man's servant, and I suppose has had a tolerable education,
and knows something of music. His wife appears to be a
respectable character, and I understand was treated by
Lady C  with much confidence and tenderness whUe she
lived ffi France vrith her. Both of them are midffie aged, or
perhaps near fifty years old, vrithout chUdren. I shoffid think
them very capable of a house-steward's and house-keeper's
place m a good famUy, but I question whether they would
choose to Uve ffi any famUy who were not Catholics, or near
a chapel vrith Uberty of attendmg it. Not beffig wilUng to
raise expectations I coffid not fulffi, I did not teU them I
shoffid attempt to serve them ffi this manner ; and, as it
woffid have appeared impertffient to ask many questions with
out assignffig a reason for my enquiries, I am not qualffied
to say much more than that I beUeve them to be perfectly
honest, inoffensive people, who evffice the smcerity of thefr
reUgious persuasion, by riskffig their scanty subsistence, and
relymg upon Proridence to support them m thefr upright
profession of it.

o 3

APPENDIX.

From the Eeport of " Ebynolds's Commemoration
Society."

Bristol, October 2nd, 1816.
At a General Meetmg of the ffihabitants of this city, con
vened by public advertisement, for the purpose of forming a
charitable institution to perpetuate the memory of the late
Eichard Eeynolds, the foUowmg resolutions were unanimously
agreed to : —
1. — That ffi consequence of the severe loss society has sus-
taffied by the death of the venerable Eichard Eeynolds, aud
in order to perpetuate, as far as may be, the great and
important benefits he has conferred on the city of Bristol
and its vicinity, and to excite others to imitate the example
of the departed philanthropist, an association be formed under
the designation of " Eeynolds's Commemoration Society."
2. — That the members of this society do consist of life-
subscribers of ten guffieas or upwards, and annual subscribers
of one guinea or upwards.
3. — That the object of this society be to grant relief to
persons ffi necessitous cfrcumstances, and also occasional
assistance to other benevolent institutions, in or near this
city, to enable them to continue or fficrease their usefuffiess,
and that especial regard be had to the Samaritan Society, of
which Eichard Eeynolds was the founder.

APPENDIX. 299

IL

Extract from the " Deed op Trust for Charitable
Purposes."
The clear residue or surplus of the rents and profits,
&c. &c. shaU be paid, applied, distributed, or divided, to,
between, or amongst, all, or any one, or more, of such only
of the seven foUowffig charitable institutions at present sub
sisting in, or m the ricffiity ofj the city of Bristol aforesaid,
as for tbe time beffig shaU be supported by voluntary con
tributions, that is to say: the Bristol Infirmary, situated ffi
Marlborough Street ; the Bristol Smnaritan Society ; the
Stranger's Friend Society; the Asylv/m for poor Orphan
Crirls; the Society for the Discharge of Persons Confined for
Small Debts ; the Bristol Dispensary; and the Bristol Female
Misericordia; and if to more than one of the said ffistitutions,
then in such shares and proportions as shall be resolved upon
by the trustees for the time being. And the sum of mouej'
which shaU by such resolution be dfrected to be paid to any
of the said charitable ffistitutions, shaU either be paid to the
treasurer, governor, &c., or shaU be by the said trustees
themselves applied for the benefit of the objects of the
same mstitution, or any of thein, &e. &c. * # # *
Prorided always, and ffi case any of the said seven charitable
institutions herem before named, shaU at any time or times
hereafter, ffivest or lay out any part of the annual revenues,
subscriptions, &e. (except legacies) in the purchase of lands,
&c. or of stock bearmg interest, or in any other manner
whatsoever, with an intention of increasing the future revenue
or fficome of such institution : then, and in that case, the
trustees of those presents are hereby ffirected and required
to withhold from such ffistitutions any part, &c. 

300 APPENDIX.
Extracts from a MS. book containing reflections,
&c., by Eebecca, wife of Eichard Eeynolds.
I reconcUe myself to the disagreeable qualities of servants,
and bear with their uufaithfffiness from a consideration that
were they more perfect, they probably would not be my ser
vants, but fiUing a more useful station than that of gratifying
aU my desfres, which may often be more than is necessary
to comfortable accommodation, and hurtful ffi their conse
quences. Were we as wise as our great Pattern and Law
giver dfrects, ffistead of studying to gratify our desfres, we
should consider what superfluities in our possession might be
spared and how to deny ourselves of them ffi future, and also
render servants less necessary by adffictmg ourselves to em
ployment, by which, if in the bounds of moderation, our
health would improve, and our peace be secured from the
interruptions, we are incident to by the common mode of
liring.

Children are very early susceptible of religious ideas, and
there is no sort more comfortable and pleasant to such as are
not diverted from them by the objects of sense — their cffiture
illumffiates the understanffing, increases the capacity for
knowledge of natural thmgs, and facUitates the exertion of
the reasoning facffity beyond the most elaborate endea
vours mdependent thereof Solomon had this conception of
its efficacy when he prayed for wisdom from God — he knew
it to be His gift and he desfred it above all thmgs. It is ffi
the acknowledgment and obedience to its dictates that piety
consists, and such ideas cannot beincfficated too early ffi the
mffids of chUdren— not by creeds and catechisms and the
like, but by a watchful care to keep them from corrupting
company, and to discourage everythmg in them that is con
trary to the purity of the Christian reUgion.

appendix. 301
Written apparently on the marriage of her Son.
My dear Children,
My heart foUows you to your habitation, where I am
desirous to greet you vrith a testimony of my love, which
longs for your permanent happiness. Methinks I behold
you ffi the mutual enjoyment of each other's affection : the
idea is pleasant to me beyond expression. May you live
near to the Fountain of Love and Source of aU Comfort ! so
shaU you from day to day participate thereof ffi sweet feUow
ship, experiencing it to be your cffiefest joy ; then wUl it be
your chief pursuit. There is no safe walkffig but in the fear
of the Lord. It is the beginnffig of wisdom — by it the mind
is instructed to follow the thmgs that make for peace, whUe
those who lean to their own understanffing stumble as ffi the
dark, for we are no longer effiightened, than whUe we are
sensible that ffiumffiation proceeds from the great Author of
our being, and that it is His wffi we should walk ffi the Ught
which ffiscovers the necessity of submittmg to its manifesta
tions ; ffrst, in little thmgs, to which if you are faithful, you
wffi be made rffiers over much — over all inordinate affections
for the tffings of this Ufe, wffich is a great rictory and a
dominion superior to that of the whole world. May it
become your portion !

Those whose nunds are subjected entfrely to the divine
vriU have no difficulty to discern what is requfred of them by
the Lord, because he works in them to wUl and to do of
his good pleasure ; such walk m the light of the Lord, are
united to Him and His vriU becomes thefr vriU ; they speak
and act with confidence, because he upholds such ffi aU they
say and do — they have no need of repentance, or to mourn on
thefr ovm account, but go on thefr way rejoicmg, or patiently

302 appendix.
suffering the contradiction and opposition they sometimes
meet with, from such as are not ffi subjection to His dirine
wffi ; which vriU, is the true harmoffizer of Society, givffig a
quick discernment by the Ught accompanying its manifesta
tions, what to say and what to do for the promotion of this
harmony and when to be silent.

VERSES TO THE MEMORY OP THE LATE RICHARD
REYNOLDS.
BY JAMES MONTGOMERY.
Strike a louder, loftier lyre ;
Bolder, sweeter, straffis employ ;
Wake remembrance 1 — and ffispire
Sorrow with the song of joy.
Who was he, for whom our tears
Flow'd, and wUl not cease to flow ?
FuU of honours and of years.
In the dust his head lies low.
He was one, whose open face
Did his inmost heart reveal ;
One who wore with meekest grace.
On his forehead Heaven's broad seal.
Kindness aU his looks express' d.
Charity was every word ;
Him the eye beheld, and blefs'd,
And the ear rejoiced that heard.
Like a patriarchal sage.
Holy, humble, courteous, mild.
He coffid blend the awe of age
With the sweetness of a child.

appendix. 303
As a cedar of the Lord,
On the height of Lebanon,
Shade and shelter doth afford
From the tempest and the sun ; —
"WTiUe in green luxuriant prime.
Fragrant afrs its boughs diffuse.
From its locks it shakes sublime,
O'er the hffis, the morning dews.
Thus he flourished, tall and strong.
Glorious ffi perennial health ;
Thus he scattered, late and long
All his plenitude of wealth.
This, vrith free unsparing hand.
To the poorest chUd of need.
This he threw around the land.
Like the sower's precious seed.
In the world's great harvest day.
Every grain on every ground.
Stony, thorny, by the way,
ShaU an hundred fold be found.
Tet, Uke noon's refffigent blaze,
Though he shone from east to west.
Far withffiawn from public gaze.
Secret goodness pleased him best.

Oft his sUent spirit went.
Like an angel from the throne.
On beffign commission bent
In the/e«r of God alone.

304 appendix.
Then the widow's heart woffid sing
As she turned her wheel, for joy ;
Then the bUss of hope would sprmg
On the outcast orphan boy.
To the bUnd, the deaf, the lame.
To the ignorant and vUe ;
Stranger, captive, slave, he came.
With a welcome and a smUe.
Help to aU he ffid ffispense.
Gold, ffistruction, raiment, food,
Like the gifts of Proridence,
To the evU and the good.
Deeds of mercy, deeds unknown,
Shall eternity record.
Which he durst not call ffis owa.
For he ffid them to the Lord.
As the earth puts forth her flowers,
Heaven-ward breathmg from below ;
As the clouds descend ffi showers.
When the southern breezes glow.
Then his reno rated mind.
Warm vrith pure celestial love,
Sheds its mfluence on mankffid,
WhUe its hopes aspired above.
FuU of faith at length he ffied.
And rictorious ffi the race,
Wore the crown for wffich he ffied.
Not of merit, but of grace.

APPENDIX. 305

NOTES BY A
GRANDSON OF RICHARD REYNOLDS.

I have been mrited to contribute somethmg, of my ovm
personal knowledge, to the preceffing Memofr of my grand
father; but, after much retrospective consideration, I am
astoffished, and feel almost ashamed, that I have so very
little, that can possess any general mterest, to commimicate.
In fact, my grandfather, though cheerfffi, was not com-
mnfficative vrith chUdren ; he woffid often talk vrith us
freely, but he very rarely conversed vrith us. His greatest
happmess, next to that of promotmg the happiness of others,
was m intimate commumon vrith the cherished few who, Uke
my mother and like himself, were possessed of large mffids,
warm hearts, generous sympatMes, and uncompromising ffi-
tegrity — ^vrith such he was open and confidffig as a chUd —
and with such he deUghted to converse.
My earliest reeoUections of my grandfather are of his
risits to Green Bank — of the pleasure vrith which these
risits were anticipated by my mother — of her care and
thought that everythmg shoffid be arranged for his comfort

306 appendix.
ffi the best manner possible — of her anxiety, as the time for
his arrival (never, barring accident, either forestalled or
delayed) drew near, that nothmg shoffid have happened on
the road — that he shoffid be ffi good health — and that he
should not have been over-fatigued. AU these thmgs are
as present with me now as when, after the ffist greetffigs,
I sat in sUence, " like a good Uttle boy," at my mother's
knee. We were thus brought up from mfancy, by the
influence of first associations, to regard my grandfather vrith
the most profound reverence ; and, although he always met
us vrith almost parental kmdness, I am persuaded that this
impression never left any one of us at any after period of
our lives. The general gravity of his demeanour, his dig-
nffied carriage, and, above all, his playfffi satfre, wffich we
understood much better than he supposed, and felt much
more keeffiy than he desired or intended, all combined "to
associate vrith our feelings of affection and gratitude, a never-
banished consciousness of awe in ffis presence. Tet, he
was ffideed very kind to us, and when we accompaffied our
father and mother, as we frequently ffid, to his house at
Coalbrook Dale, he would take us ffito his workshop, and
show us his turnffig-lathe, and tum spinnffig-tops for us,
and make lashes for our wffips, and teach us how to set up
our tops, vrith a liveUness and corffiality wffich charmed and
surprised us about equaUy.
He was a dear lover of humour, and it would be difficult
to do justice to the comic expression of ffis usuaUy serious
face, whUe listening to a good story or, as was not seldom
the case, when he was himself the narrator. I cannot resist
the temptation to repeat one of his stories, because whenever
1 thffik of it, he is brought before my mffid's eye, as palpably
as in his bodUy presence. It was of a man who walked the
streets of Bristol, cryffig lustily " Hot mutton pies ! hot

APPENDIX. 307
mutton pies ! " — then, suddeffiy stopping for a few seconds,
hewould hold up his fore-finger, and cry vrith an eager kind
of hurried impetuosity, " Offiy think of the relish ! " Often
as my grandfather had told us this story, the sparkle of his eye,
a,nd the fun of his whole manner, were always irresistible.
Durmg a season of extreme scarcity two extensive MiUerS,
who lived in his neighbourhood, excited no smaU dissatisfaC'*
tion, by holffing back for extravagant prices, their stocks of
grain and fiour, and my grandfather used greatly to amuse
us, by quoting the foUowing ffistich, composed, I believe, by
an acquaffitance for the occasion : —
Two millers thin, called Bone and Skin,
Would starre us all, or near it ;
But be it known to Skin and Bone,
That 'Flesh and Blood won't bear it.
We also enjoyed very much our grandfather's account of
a risit paid to the Ketley Iron Works, by Lord ThurloW,
the then Lord ChanceUor. My grandfather, havffig gone
through the works vrith his lordship, and given him aU
requisite information and needful refreshment, proposed to
accompany him part of the way on his return, which offer
his lordship gratefuUy accepted, and the horses were ordered
to the door accordffigly. They were, both of them, good
riders, and were, both of them, weU mounted. The Lord
ChanceUor's horse, no doubt a Uttle instigated thereto by his
owner, took the lead, and my grandfather's horse, nothing
loth to foUow the example, kept as nearly neck and neck
with his rival as his owner considered respectfffi. The
speed was alternately increased, untU they found them
selves gettmg on at a very dashing pace indeed ! and they
became aware that the steeds were as nearly matched as
possible. At last, the ChanceUor puUed up, and compli-

308 APPENDIX.
menting my grandfather upon his "very fine horse," con
fessed that he had never expected to meet vrith one who
coffid tiot so fast as ffis ovm. My grandfather acknowledged
to a simUar impression on ffis part ; and ffis lordsffip, heartUy
shakffig hands with ffim, and thankffig him for his great
attention, laughed, and said, "I thmk, Mr. Reynolds, tffis is
probably the first time that ever a Lord ChanceUor and a
Quaker rode a race together !"
It vriU readUy be supposed i;hat earnest was the desfre,
and numerous were the appUcations of relatives and friends
to obtaffi some Ukeness of one so highly esteemed, — some
resemblance of that countenance on which they had so often
affectionately gazed, — somethmg to recall that smUe, so fuU
of sweetness, which ever appeared to me to be one of the
most expressive that I had ever seen; — ^but aU our entreaties
were ffi vam, and he resolutely refused to accede to our
vrishes. Under these cfrcumstances, an attempt was made
to obtaffi a likeness, vrithout ffis knowledge: one dark
eveffing, a miffiature-painter was mtroduced into the garden
behffid the house, where my grandfather was readffig by
canffie-Ught, m a Uttle back parlour, vrith the vrindow blffids
up, and aU unconscious of what was gomg on vrithout. The
miniature so taken, and another sketch which was made
whUe he was at the Friends' Meetmg, were not considered
very fiattering, — m which opiffion our grandfather entirely
coincided: and, as he saw that "it coffid not be helped," he
was at last persuaded to gratify us, by sittffig to Mr. Hobday
for a regular oU portrait, vrith no other condition on his
part, than that my mother should be with him during the
whole of the sittings. I happened to be also at tffis time in
Bristol, and she, ffi Uke manner, desfred that I would accom
pany her, and endeavour, as Mx. Hobday said, to " keep up a

APPENDIX. 309
lively conversation," our success on the first day was very
indifferent indeed. We were constramed and uncomfortable,
and my grandfather was writhmg under an infliction, to which
he, of all men, perhaps, woffid be the most sensitive. We
were, in fact, all discomfited ; and he " canffiffiy admitted
that it was very fatiguffig and disagreeable." The next day
(I coffid offiy remain ffi Bristol long enough to attend this
second sitting) when my grandfather had re-taken his seat,
I mentioned to my mother the contents of letters which I
had that morffing received from Liverpool, givffig a fearfffi
account of the heavy faUures which were takmg place there,
and spreaffing far and vride devastation and ffistress. I spoke
under stiong excitement, whUe conteasting the unprincipled
conduct of many houses with the unswervmg honesty of
others, and the generous readffiess of some to assist at great
risk to themselves thefr less fortunate but not less honest
neighbours. My grandfather Ustened attentively, and soon
became so deeply mterested, that his countenance, losffig its
constrained expression, glowed vrith feeUng and animation ;
and when we were learing the room, Mx. Hobday expressed
ffis regret that I coffid not be present at the remaming
sittings. " Oh ! Mr. R  , if we coffid but engage the
attention of Mr. Reynolds away from ffimself, as you have
done tffis morffing, it woffid be qffite mvalnable to me."
In conclusion of these, very unsatisfactory, notices, I shaU
offiy ftirther record, that it was my privUege (haring been
hastUy summoned, vrith my sister, to Cheltenham) to be
present durmg my grandfather's last moments. The scene,
on our arrival, is deeply impressed on my memory — ^the
tianqffiUity which breathed around the little group of
mourners, who were qffietly assembUng, to behold the death
of the righteous — the ffiexpressible peacefulness of those last
moments, when my grandfather, by the slight mcUnation of

310 APPENDIX.
his head, expressed to my mother his wish that she should
come to the other side of the bed. Speechless, but quite
conscious, he took her hand, looked earnestly in her face —
and died. There were, then, ffi the room, his only daughter,
his only surviving son, his nephew. Dr. Ball, my sister, and
myself, his faithfffi cousin and companion, Sarah AUen, and
his intimate friend PriscUla H. Gumey.
Woodcote, Liverpool, 13th May, 1852.

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