Dear Sir

Downing June - 8^th. [...]9[...].

If I was not a first rate patriot I should be angry at Charles Papps Price for diverting your journey to Downing. How happy should I have been with shewing my treasures to miss Bull & her good father. let us not drop all hopes of the pleasure aged as we are. I am tolerably well: walk moderately & ride much & if anasarca¹ becomes impertinent I drive her away with a prescription of my worthy friends Doctor Haygarths. - Pococks drawing &c are yours: still what a debt do I owe you. I make a resolve never to give to the rich my indoostan, nor beg them to buy it: but wish to know what you hear of it.

I now send you some Prose & some poetry. the first of an old Dotard justice of 75. a wondrous production. the other, a song sent to our celebration of the Kings birth day on Monday. author unknown² after the exercise & vollies of the morning my son & the whole corps dined at one long table to the amount of 110 fine fellows the parental heart leaped within me to see the festivity & affection of the day. I have now, son, his beauteous spouse, &, charming grandson with me. Tom the Christch: man will joi[...]n us the latter end of the month. The lad caught the military flame, & without neglect of his studies joined the mottley military corps. He will never be hurt: but I dislike the clerical rage. I am truely angry at Canterbury when I saw within these three days seven divines gazetted as caplains &c.

[...]At Caerwis has been just held an Eisteddfod or Session of the poets, see welsh Tour vol. I.³ I am told that their productions were the most stupid imaginable. & their libations in ale most beastly. The season of the welsh poetry has long since been over so I trust that the attempt will never be revived.

You forget answering my query about Th. Philip earl of Pembroke’s mother taring [sic] her hair at her son’s cowardice where is the tale told.⁴

Every good wish attend you & miss Bull must ever be repeated while
Dear Sir
exists y^r very affect: friend

Th. Pennant.

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Editorial notes

1. Pennant suffers from anasarca, 'A dropsical affection of the subcutaneous cellular tissue of a limb or other large surface of the body, producing a very puffed appearance of the flesh'. OED.
2. These enclosures have not been preserved with the letter.
3. See A tour in Wales (2nd edn., 1784]), I, pp. 456–8.
4. For this query, with a variant name for the afflicted woman, see 1219.
5. The final two sections of this frank are handwritten.
6. The address is not in Thomas Pennant's hand.