From Thomas Archer Hirst   July 9th, 1850

Northowram,¹ July 9th, 1850.

My dear Tyndall –

I am out surveying here & have been overtaken by violent rain, and taken refuge in a little coal-weighing-machine house, where luckily to dissipate ennui the fellow happens to possess a sheet of writing paper: so that you must not think I am writing so much for an express object, as just to please myself. I got your letter² & delivered its enclosed one to Carter; likewise told Jemmy what you thought were his deserts. Poor fellow he is poorly in bed to day, with his Rheumatism. I had my weekly meeting last Saturday and as usual passed a very pleasant evening. They are a lot of good fellows and interesting too. Their idiosyncrasies are so varied and well worth studying I have put a short sketch of them all into my Diary for last Sunday week³ which I will shew you some time. Carlyle’s last pamphlet⁴ formed the principal point of conversation as it generally does once a month. It contains some of his most powerful & valuable sentences though as a whole, and as an analysis of the phenomena of Hudson’s influence, it is scarcely what one might have anticipated. I would not part with it however at any price. Jemmy was very sly in his present to you,⁵ though when he mentioned having sent for it I must say I suspected it. Well it is a valuable present and one you will prize I know, you possess few books more prizable, and no library would be complete without it. We will have many a dip together into that in ‘Vaterland’.⁶ How are you getting on with your educational work?⁷ There was a somewhat doubtful review of Smiths book⁸ in the Leader last Saturday;⁹ it had too much of a patronizing, self important air about it for me. He could not but acknowledge its great merits, but he seemed to do it grudgingly & what is more he lost sight a good deal of its real intention, which is an earnest protest against the rottenness and hypocrisy visible in our Society, viewed thus it is a worthy book, its protests are everywhere just, & immensely earnest, which as I take it is the most valuable style of writing for getting them remedied. Instead of taking such expressions to heart & using them for their real purpose, there is too much cant about originality stirring, in a new book we expect something new, as if the old were yet but into action. Carlyle suffers from this sort of Criticism & it is now wielded against Smith. Viewed as an analysis of our Social Aspects there is undoubtedly a crudity apparent, but as I said, it is not in this aspect that we should view it. I have arranged for you to be at Halifax at least on the Thursday & Friday the 25^th & 26^th of July the former is my night at the Improvement Society the latter my paper at the Franklin Society.¹⁰ The Saturday you must stop also, & on Sunday pay Phillips your promised visit. This is what you have to do without fail; you can walk about your business as soon as you like after, you restless being – If you come through Manchester again remember me to M^r & M^rs Ginty, tell the former he never returned my Preston Chronicle with Zig-zag in it,¹¹ bring it with you if you can. Ginty has talked about coming to Halifax soon – I wonder if he meant it. Oh, I had nearly forgot, you must go & see little John¹² too, he invited Jemmy & I to go over & we promised, perhaps we can manage it altogether. Now I have done M^r Carter is just saying it is clearing up so Goodbye.

Yours affectionately | T.A. Hirst

RI MS JT/1/H/148