Preston, | June 24th, 18471
Dear Mr Tyndall,
You anticipated my feelings of surprise, when I received your letter;2 it is quite impossible for me to write as my heart would dictate, but I trust you will excuse any incapacity I may evince in my letter to write. I find myself placed in a very difficult position, indeed I am afraid of trusting my pen. I wish to inform you that you have received a very wrong idea about H.M.3 I did not give up his friendship on your account, considering such an act as mean and unjust. I have thus far told you the exact truth, and trust it will give you satisfaction. The perusal of your letter gave me pleasure because of the liberality of your views; and the candour of your expressions give me to hope that I am resting on a firm foundation of honour and integrity. There is one matter on which I may ask an explanation – you remember the conversation we had at Sister Allen’s,4 when we were alone at tea-time. Your remarks may flash into your mind. I should never consider that I was doing an act of justice, if I continued an intercourse or an attachment when I did not feel an increasing degree of respect and love. I never would bind myself for life on such conditions.
At present I do not consider that you are in a situation to render life very comfortable, but I have no doubt that as time rolls on by the power of your ‘own right arm’ you will be so strengthened that happiness and comfort will not dwell in name alone. Will you be kind enough to direct any of your epistles to Mr or Sister Allen without my name being outside at all, as I never receive a letter without Papa5 opens it, unless it is directed to somewhere besides Stanley Terrace.6 I beg to be excused writing any more at present. Hoping you will excuse any imperfections my letter may contain, I remain, dear Mr T.,
Your affectionate friend, | Fanny Smith.7 | Mr Tyndall.
RI MS JT/1/TYP/11/3866
LT Transcript Only
June 24th, 1847: Louisa Tyndall annotation: ‘See envelope’. It is possible that this is the postmark date, not the date on which the letter was written.
when I received your letter: letter missing. From Tyndall’s journal, 21 June 1847: ‘While in Preston Allen m’a dit que le gage d’amour entre Mlle F. et M.M. était cassé à cause de moi! Je sentais beaucoup agité, quoique je ne le montraîs pas. Je suis comme un esprit mauvais sans en avoir l’intention. J’écrivais à Mlle F. une letter très longue dans la quelle je l’ai informé touchant ma position incertaine. Je lui ai dit que je suis beaucoup plus agé qu’elle; en un mot, j’écrivais comme je ne pouvais pas écrire en Francais. Je lui ai dit toute la vérite et j’ai laissé la conclusion à elle même’ (RI MS JT/2/13a/213-214). Translation: ‘While in Preston Allen told me that the pledge of love between Miss F. and Mr. M. was broken because of me! I felt very agitated, though I did not show it. I am like a bad spirit without having the intention. I wrote a very long letter to Miss F. in which I informed her about my uncertain position. I told her that I am much older than she is; in a word, I wrote that I could not write in French. I told her all of the truth and I left the conclusion to her.’ Tyndall’s choice to write about these events in French suggests that he felt the episode was of a private nature.
wrong idea about H.M.: Henry Merryweather. From Tyndall’s journal, May 24, 1847: ‘Tea at Mrs. Allen’s, where I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Fanny … elle est [une] bonne fille … Elle est engagée quoiqu’elle n’a que 15 ans. Son amant est un surveyor …. du l’appelle Henry Merryweather. Hereux homme!’ Translation: ‘Tea at Mrs. Allen’s, where I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Fanny … she is [a] pretty girl … She is engaged even though she is not but fifteen years old. Her lover is a surveyor … by the name of Henry Merryweather. Happy man!’ (RI MS JT/2/13a/200).
conversation we had at Sister Allen’s: probably the wife of Robert (Bob) Allen, who may also have been a sibling or cousin of Fanny Smith's.
Papa: not identified.
Stanley Terrace: the Smith family home in Preston.
Fanny Smith: (c. 1831-?), a Preston resident and friend of Robert Allen’s; possibly a young relative of Allen’s wife’s. From Tyndall’s journal, July 28, 1845: ‘Allen came and actually dragged me from the house. He told me that I was expected to dinner at Stanley Terrace [the Smith family home]. … On my left sat “Miss Fanny Smith”, the “sweet” young lady who had asked a blessing at dinner.’ Tyndall thought she was around 14 at the time (RI MS JT/2/13a/13a/92), making her around 16 when this letter was written.
Please cite as “Tyndall0332,” in Ɛpsilon: The John Tyndall Collection accessed on 2 May 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/tyndall/letters/Tyndall0332