1592997946000 1557321582000 Standard Record object-110005520 1747159851959 1681743053000 1747159409017 adlib fitz-online adlib-object-110005520 https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/110005520 6d17a521-4c45-3e0d-a0b0-976a47422507 5 person reference agent-192551 adlib-agent-192551 b494e74a-20ec-3ce9-be5f-3267eaba4253 Seward, Anna person reference agent-199109 adlib-agent-199109 128e09a5-2b62-31a3-a80b-a84a732d1101 Ball, Margaret person reference agent-198502 adlib-agent-198502 b67bd5fa-4f2a-302b-afaa-81f4c4f45ec8 Hayley, Eliza person reference agent-199140 adlib-agent-199140 5e650665-61d6-3712-a196-ea111d697d74 Beridge, Dr John person reference agent-199141 adlib-agent-199141 631877ff-f845-3783-ab40-ba82430f83c8 Beridge, Maria (later Mrs Twigge) person reference agent-198991 adlib-agent-198991 6704da4c-9ab6-3716-8ebd-8a5d62c1c5ab Saville, John person reference agent-198972 adlib-agent-198972 920da6ce-e8e0-3b0e-94df-aef3bd9411e9 Seward, Thomas person reference agent-199381 adlib-agent-199381 3b66e96a-4029-38e0-a2ac-9ef04f015e58 Harward, Charles content description Hayley writes to Seward of the death of Eliza's mother after "more than twenty years of insanity", and the actions of "a certain black Gentleman whose character is a little known to you, [who] had amused Himself in fabricating a Will for this good old Lady, whose affectionate Husband had wished her to die intestate, as from her peculiar state of Mind, she certainly ought to have done; in which case her own Fortune about 4000 would have been immediately & equally divided between her two Daughters. --- The black Gentleman thought otherwise.--" [From evidence in the ms of Hayley's Memoirs, "the black Gentleman" is Eliza's brother-in-law, Charles Harward, who had persuaded her father to resign the deanery to him in 1770]. Hayley recounts how his "duty to Eliza rendered it necessary for us to speak on the subject to the Poor old Lady, tho at that time extremely ill. She seemed to be hurt by our having received Information of it, & gave so confused, so contradictory, & so distressful account of the whole affair, that having my tender Feelings much affected, I clasped her Hand, & said to Her 'my dear Madam I know you have a benevolent & upright Heart -- I am satisfied with it -- we will harrass yr Mind no more on this painful Subject -- I fear indeed you have been cluelly deluded into an Act of the greatest Injustice against poor Eliza, but I will only say to you, that it shall never induce me to treat her unkindly' ... We resolved to trust in Providence, & never distress her unfortunate Mind any farther by touching on the Subject, as the reasons she alledged in her excuse were just as absurd as the saying that two are more than twenty..." Hayley explains that the "black Gentleman" refused to give him and Eliza "a copy of this mysterious Will, which He had not only contrived to fabricate but to keep in his Possession --- I have however obtained a sight of it at the House of his attorney & am at present not quite decided whether we shall leave the black Gentleman in possession of his plunder, or plunge into a long & expensive Law suit to punish his Iniquity by by overturning the Will, which I believe we have sufficient Evidence to accomplish--" He continues "The tender Spirit of poor Eliza has been deeply wounded in the course of these gloomy occurences - but she begins to revive, & as to myself, tho the Loss of a considerable Sum is severely felt in a poetical Exchequer, I am more disposed to thank Heaven for what I gain than to repine at what I lose; & plundered as we are, I still acquire on this event more than enough to pay all my debts & fit up my new Library... I have put the black Gentleman into such a Fright, concerning the validity of the will, that his Terrors really diveryt me, & I sometimes amuse myself with thinking in what form of composition ... I could delineate the best full length portrait of the said black Gentleman, & exhibit all his insidious Machinations for the Terror of those who may resemble Him---" Hayley then changes the subject, and asks Seward to "give my Love to your engaging Sophia [probably Sophia Weston (later Pennington)], & tell her I kiss her Muff in Idea --- not daring, as an absolute Stranger, to take that Liberty with her Person - yet the first Time I am happy enough to meet with your agreable Friend, I fancy she will find me a little more presumptuous." After a few pleasantries, he informs Seward that "Eliza has now finished yr Pocket Book" and asks after Seward's progress in writing "Louisa": "I hope you have by this Time kiled her rival Emira?" Hayley/XII/34 1 accession number Hayley/XII/34 110005520 priref 110005520 uri https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/110005520 https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/110005520 reference agent-149638 adlib-agent-149638 7376d833-d0a7-3be0-916e-9c892b7a24d8 The Fitzwilliam Museum 1783 1783 1783-07-13 reference agent-198487 adlib-agent-198487 4dbae6db-a725-3bfd-b34e-5d215b1a85e6 Hayley, William 1 sheet, folded. William Hayley to Anna Seward: letter object OBJECT