George Selwyn : $b His letters and his lifeSelwyn, George Augustus
History
George Selwyn : $b His letters and his life
Selwyn, George Augustus
Selwyn, George Augustus, 1719-1791; Selwyn, George Augustus, 1719-1791 -- Correspondence
I have then only answered, "My Lord, my wishes are that he may not,
and it is most probable that he will not desire it; but you are
quite mistaken if you suppose that in these arrangements I have any
anxiety or curiosity about him." All that is an object of my love
and esteem is quite independent of other people's resolutions; and
as for what regards myself, I am not indifferent, I own, and I shall
wish to know how I may be treated by those to whose power I am
delivered up, but I have never asked one question concerning it. I
shall provoke no man's anger unnecessarily; it is my only solicitude
to let people see that if they oblige me by good treatment, they
oblige one whom they do not despise, and who has acted 'in all
circumstances like a gentleman.
I have, I find, from what I have been told by the Party, the credit
of having behaved better and calmer on this occasion than many of my
fellow convicts. What I have felt I have felt like a man, and that I
have not attempted to deprecate by pretending that I thought myself
to blame. But, my dear Lord, this has been merely exterior, for at
home and alone I have been greatly depressed, both on your account
and on that of others. I have felt for the honour and credit, and
sufferings, of a person to whom I can only be attached by principle.
For the sentiment of personal affection does not arise for objects
of such inequality. I do not know how to account for it, but I have
had, and still have, such a share of that, as would make one think
that with the air of France and with the language of the country I
had imbibed all the prejudices of their education. My thoughts about
your distress, and of those dear children, which seem to belong as
much to me as to you and Lady C., have really affected me at times
in a manner which would have exposed me anywhere out of my own room,
and to anybody else but to Dr. Ekins, who knows how naturally, and
justly, I feel for you,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account