Philadelphia 23d February 1852
Dear Sir
It is with pleasure that I acknowledge the receipt, in due course, of the two memoirs and also of your kind letter of the 15th November last,1 which acknowledgement will serve to show my own unfitness for correspondence, inasmuch as I have so long delayed to answer one for whom, from all I have heard, I, in common with all my Fathers’ family, entertain a high respect and esteem. I most sincerely reciprocate your kind regrets caused by our not having met during my recent visit to Europe; more especially as I have the mortification of believing, from your memoirs, that I was in Berlin at the time of your temporary residence in that city during the last summer. I had hoped to have met you at Leighlin Bridge, when I had the pleasure to meet and to form an acquaintance with your kind Mother and Sister to whom, in your correspondence with them, please present my best regards and the assurance that their kind attentions are strongly impressed upon my memory. All the more so as they were the only members of my Father’s family I met with.
My visit to Leighlin Bridge and its vicinity was one of the most interesting and sad I have ever made. It is easy to understand why the birth place of a Father should be interesting to a Son. I heard, during my childhood, so much of the various precincts of Leighlin, both from my Father2 and my Uncle William,3 that I had become familiar, in thought, with every field, lane and hill which lie around the Barrow and the ‘Dineen River’, as my Father called it,4 had worn a channel in my imagination almost as deep as that little streamlet, as we would call it, has worn upon the rocks below it. While the names of persons then, resident were living in my mind as familiarly as those of my own playmates. While looking upon these scenes I did not reflect that those from whom I had so often heard of them had left the country when young, a country where youth is more youthful and certainly longer lived than in our climate, and that what to them was grand or beautiful was so because painted with the vivid recollections of childhood colored by all the beauties that happy ignorance (or innocence) of childhood alone can know. Not remembering this you will readily understand the difficulty I had to realize the fact of my actual presence upon the birth-place of those so dear to me and long since passed away, and I confess to a feeling of disappointment, which I did not fail to reproach myself for.
You who had the advantage – for in one respect, at least, it is so – of being born in the land of your Father, where every locality is filled with your foreFathers memories; will perhaps fail to understand why I should dwell upon what, at best, partakes more of the feeling of the child than of the sentiment of the man. And it was exactly with the feeling of a child that I saw those places for I had never known them, whose names had filled so large a space in my memory, and therefore all the experiences of after life rested under the control of youthful feelings and childish recollections. It was the most complete ‘overthrow of the present order of things and the most decided triumph of first principles’5 I ever encountered.
It is simply because it was so interesting to me that I should trouble you with this, perhaps, tedious mention of it. That you are yourself a native of the same vicinity, bearing the same name and therefore will, I hope, pardon this long recital of personal feelings without attributing it to the improper cause of egotism. Will you however allow me to add to this weary relation6 the cause of my disappointment in my visit to ‘Augheroo’7 – the place which my Grand Father and his Father held and upon which my Father and all his family were born – for I was so notwithstanding all my early impressions, or rather perhaps by the cause of their brilliancy. I saw nothing of the charms and beauties my Father saw a child but merely a desolate moor-land, hilly, dark and barren. Without even the chiefest Irish characteristic of gayity and vivacity.
I met with another disappointment (for I might as well – to use an old Northumbrian Saw – from which county by the way I believe we date our name, Tyne-dale8 (?) ‘[be] hung for an old sheep as a young lamb’9 so long as I have already bored you so very deeply) in not being able to find any family records, at least so far as to amount to nothing: The clerk, or Sexton, of the church of Old Leighlin informed me that the Church Records, with the small exception remaining, had been destroyed by time, carelessness and the – butter dealer!10
For these things I have, myself, but little, if any, regard but my eldest brother Sharon11 (you see my Father thought his duty filled by the adoption of one scriptural name12 and therefore felt himself at liberty to take choice from pagan traditions and accordingly he dragged poor Hector (Hector’s name but not, I trust, his mores) once more from out the buried walls of his city and tied him neck and heels to me;13 And I have humble trust that if my sponsorial title be a down drag that my brothers’ scriptural one will help me upwards especially as I can say with great truth and affection he is a good brother and an honest and sincere man.) but my brother has a desire to climb the genealogical tree as high as possible. And if you can aid him in this laudable desire both he and myself will be indebted to you.
I thank you for your kind attention in sending me the two addresses, or scientific papers, delivered by yourself and though I have not the slightest claim to an acquaintance with any scientific subject this simple style enabled me to understand them clearly. I read them with pleasure and must ask of you the favour to forward at any time any additional papers from yourself as I must, notwithstanding our want of personal acquaintance, always feel an interest in you and your pursuits.
It would give all our family great pleasure to see you here and in the course of events it is likely we may do so, but permit me to say that while there is occupation in England or in Europe it is safer to remain there. Our country is so new, so much in need of mere physical labour that as yet there are only the poorest prospects for a person of scientific pursuits and professions, unless there is a positive call, or request, from some of our institutions. Yet I will hope that at some future day we shall have the pleasure of seeing and of forming a personal acquaintance with you. Should you visit the United States I shall be glad to see you and so will all the family of my Father. If you would wish to make any inquiries or to obtain any information relative to this country or in any manner in which I can aid, it will give me satisfaction to do so, and I hope you will make use of me should you desire it.
Notwithstanding our very limited acquaintance you may be assured that ‘anything relating to my (your) personal life would be of interest to you (me)’14 and I shall be happy, whenever your time permits, to hear from you in relation to yourself, to your profession and prospects as also concerning your Mother and Sister. And if anything relative to our family on this side the Ocean will interest you I will with pleasure give you any information.
I trust that the distinction of election as a Fellow of the Royal Society has been or will shortly be conferred upon you. I am glad, nay all our family are glad, that you have by your own exertions worked yourself to distinction, they trust that you will achieve still greater things and that your progress will not be limited by that honorary de[g]ree but that your name will add lustre even to that institution, rich as it is in names of eminence.
My brother Sharon, to whom I have alluded, and who, by the way, desires his respects to be sent to you, wishes to know whether you or ourselves spell our name correctly. Tyndall or Tyndale? It has been spelt, so far as I would see by the records, in all sorts of ways, Tindal, Tindall, Tyndal, Tyndall and Tyndale and a long time ago, it is said, Tynedale. Have you any information on the subject?
You already know that my Father is deceased, 1842, he commenced business with nothing and though he built the business up to a large amount and had made quite a fortune yet at the time of his death he left but little property, owing to an unfortunate (Irish) habit of loaning – anglice15 giving– money but I may say that he left an honest name and a good business, the importation and dealing in China and Glass ware,16 to which myself and my brother in law, Mitchell, the husband of my eldest sister Elizabeth, succeeded. My Mother17 is living in good health and is as good a woman as ever lived. My eldest brother, to whom I have referred several times, found, at rather a late period, that his tastes did not lead him to traffic18 and has within two years again betaken himself to study and is now at one of our first colleges preparing himself in Mathematics as a Civil Engineer. My youngest, living, brother – Harold19 (so called not after the unlucky Saxon King but after a good Catholic – Roman – priest who formerly resided here and now I believe in Dublin) is in the land of golden-dreams, California, where I hope he will do well. All my Sisters are well married and the whole family have taken off their hats, Caps and overcoats to stay for life. My uncle William died, as I believe you know, in 1845 leaving a small business – though comfortable, which his widow manages – and five children.20 They are comfortably situated and the family is a promising one.
Thus then, my dear Sir, I have given you a sketch of ourselves, or rather of our positions, and have nothing further to say save the begging of you to pardon this long, rambling, tedious tax upon your time and good humour and to subscribe myself very faithfully and truly Your friend
Hector Tyndale
John Tyndall Esq
RI MS JT/1/T/43
the two memoirs ... November last: Tyndall’s letter is missing. Hector mentions that the memoirs reveal that Tyndall had been in Berlin, which strongly suggests that one was the paper on diamagnetism published in the Phil. Mag. (cited letter 0498, n. 6) which was dated ‘Berlin, June 1851’ at the end. The other may have been Tyndall’s recent paper on bismuth (cited letter 0525, n. 2).
my Father: Robinson Tyndale (c.1775–1842); a prominent Philadelphia businessman (see n. 16).
my Uncle William: William Tyndale (1783–1845); born in Carlow; died in Philadelphia.
the Barrow … as my Father called it: the Barrow is the river that runs through Leighlin; the Dineen River is possibly the River Dinin (or Dinnin) which is to the northwest of Leighlin Bridge and Old Leighlin on the Carlow-Kilkenny boundary, and adjacent to Agharue (see n. 7).
‘overthrow … principles’: not identified.
relation: report.
‘Augheroo’: also written Augharoe or Agharue, a village in Carlow located NW of Old Leighlin.
Tyne-dale: referring to the river Tyne.
‘be hung ... young lamb’: a well-known saying, usually used to justify committing a greater offence having already perpetrated a minor one.
butter-dealer: allusion not identified.
my brother Sharon: Sharon Tyndale (1816–71), was born in Philadelphia and pursued a commercial career in Philadelphia and Illinois before turning to engineering. He studied mathematics in Illinois and engineering at Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass., and graduated in engineering in 1851. He began his engineering career as a railway surveyor in Illinois. Later he became secretary of state for Illinois (1864–69). He was murdered in 1871.
one scriptural name: Sharon is a Biblical place name.
poor Hector: alludes to the prince of Troy who was killed by Achilles during the Trojan War and his body then dishonored, to which tied ‘neck and heels’ may be an allusion. The allusion to Hector’s mores is unclear.
‘anything … you (me)’: Tyndall may have (formulaically) expressed doubt that news of his ‘personal life’ would be of interest to Hector and Hector is quoting from Tyndall’s missing letter.
anglice: ‘in English’ or ‘as the English would say it’ (OED).
a good business … Glass ware: initially Tyndale & Company; renamed Tyndale & Mitchell after Robinson Tyndale’s death.
My Mother: Sarah Tyndale (1792–1859).
traffic: the buying and selling or exchange of goods for profit; bargaining; trade (OED).
Harold: Harold Tyndale (1826–?).
his widow ... five children: Mary Tyndale, née Carter (1804–82) and William Emmett Tyndale (1834–64), Mary Tyndale (1837–1907), Jane Tyndale (1838–1927), John Tyndale (1840–1925), Tecumseh Thomas Tyndale (1845–1912). Their first child, Rosa Tyndale (1833–9) had died in childhood.
Please cite as “Tyndall0605,” in Ɛpsilon: The John Tyndall Collection accessed on