From William Ginty   Sunday evening, (Jul. 11th, 1842)

Great Crosby,¹ Sunday evening

Dear Tyndall

I received your invocation² to the sanctified shades of Dunran³ and Mickey F.⁴ in company with five others on last Wednesday morning – One from Cupid⁵ – one from ‘the lodger’⁶ one from ‘cousin Jack’⁷ (as he styles himself) one from David Bates and one from Ginty’s father. When I got a glimps of these and recognized the well known ‘sticks’,⁸ to use a hacknied expression, my feelings were more easily imagined than described. I grinned, I laughed, I scratched my head and danced one of Aubrey’s favourites⁹ in my extacy – all around me became a ‘passing dream’¹⁰ until I devoured their precious contents. As I have nothing else to write about I’ll just give you a synopsis of the impression that each and every one of them made upon my mind then and there, Commencing with your invaluable self – Oh ever venerated shades of the Kinsale ‘Inadequates’, offer up your orisons¹¹ in behalf of a brother – I dont well know how to comment on yours. I am very proud to hear that my probono publico¹² affords so much amusement – it was not treating me fairly to show off my bladderings before a room full of critics, but then I suppose they knew Ginty better than to pay too much attention to his

‘Nonsense precipitate like running lead

That slipp’d thro’ creaks and zizzags of the head’¹³

Devil a many laughed at yours, for this simple reason there was none seen it, more was the pity. The chainman¹⁴ I had with me that day did not know what to make of me. When I would take a fit of laughing he would laugh too, not at your letter, though it was the primary cause – but at me because he imagined I was either a fool or non compos mentis.¹⁵ Just as we were both enjoying it, an old woman was passing by the road and she poor credulous being imagined we were laughing at herself and so she commenced an harangue that astonished my ignorance and made me laugh myself nearly into fits; two men that worked at a hay cock nearly over us, seeing the sport we had, thought it was or must be something good, and so over they came and seeing nothing more laughable in the company than the old damsel they commenced laughing also at her; this drew forth her ‘invectives long and loud’ so that I thought a retreat advisable. So you see what a piece of mischief your letter caused.

Now for Jim,¹⁶ this 8th wonder of the world seems to be in a bad state – he has dipped deep into the pathetic – he says you and I are all that has remembered him – as for Holmes and Tid¹⁷ they are long since out of his books. In his own words he is ‘alone uncared for and forgotten’ I have advised him to treat the matter as philosophically as he can, and to turn misanthropist – by acting thus – when he imagines himself ‘alone’ to console himself by repeating the adage which says – ‘better alone than in bad company’¹⁸ and when he thinks he is uncared for and forgotten to amuse himself by singing Burn’s ditty:—

‘I care for nobody no not I

Since nobody cares for me’¹⁹

But I’m afraid he wont relish this much – for I think nature never designed Jim for a Timon.²⁰

No. 3 Tidmarsh – I have no correspondent that enters so fully into a detailed account of affairs in general as this gent. One of the leading particulars of his inimitable epistle is ‘that he had stirabout²¹ for breakfast for a change’ This is what I call a change with a vengeance, and in my opinion another change would be very advisable as soon as possible. Changes are all very fine as long as there is no changing for the worse. He learned all this quackery in McGrath’s.²² You were always too fond of trying stomachic experiments. I think this piece of valuable news was a ‘slip’, for he does not go much further before he informs me ‘by way of a soft’ner’ that they are to have a dumpling for dinner. Now this latter point I take to be an ‘invention’ for this simple reason that if he had anything good to tell he would tell that first, and that the certainty of having a dumpling for dinner in the wilds of Lancashire would make him soon forget that he had Burgoo²³ for breakfast. However, he informs me that Dick²⁴ and he will be in Liverpool on the 30th without fail. I imagine that every hour is a day until that wished for time arrives. It would seem that fate has allotted it for the gathering together of the scattered tribe of Erin²⁵ and that for one night at least we will be ‘one fold and one shepherd’²⁶ So all that remains for you to do is to keep a sharp look out for 4 fellows with faces approaching to the brunette – or the very antipodes of your own; and mind,

‘Mislike them not for their complexions

The shadowy livery of a burnished sun’²⁷

No. 4 Holmes – after wasting half a sheet of letter paper in a practical treatise on inaccessible distances,²⁸ he winds up with an invocation to me and all good people to pray for the preservation of the Corkonian for in his own dry witty style he says he is afraid that the Field work will soil his boots and ‘may be his socks’ I think he will come off very safe if it doesn’t go something higher even to soil his shirt – what do you think? Now do not forget to send the exact time of your embarkcation – and if you have a piece of a hard pencil in your pocket in Liverpool I’ll think it very hard if you dont give it to me. William Latimer desires to be remd.,²⁹ and would thank you if you will tell Geo.³⁰ to write to him this week. My best respects and kindest remembrances to Mrs Cotter and Mr Robbinett³¹ and to the inamorata³² of Willy Hunter. I hope that sweet dream of your slumbers in Geo. St.³³ is well. Tyndall – false fickle man, do you forget Kinsale and ‘the lady of the raven plume’³⁴ Oh! Oh! Oh! The heart of man is deceitful above all things. Concerning that piece of gospel that you were enquiring about, I heard it for a fact. Holmes tells me that they will get pay when sick by obtaining a doctor’s certificate.³⁵

I have no more news nor room.

so goodbye | Yours very sincerely | Ginty.

RI MS JT 1/11/3581

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