William Hone to Charles Lamb, 05 May 1826 An Electronic Edition William Hone Kyle Grimes

For publication in the Hone Correspondence section of the William Hone BioText, http://honearchive.org. The letter is published under a Creative Commons license, details of which are accessible from the BioText homepage.

Transcribed from the version published in front matter of the first volume of the Every-Day Book, published in London in 1826.

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William Hone to Charles Lamb, 5 May, 1826. Every-Day Book, Vol. 1, p. v.[return] — -TEI-
To Charles Lamb, ESQ. Dear L----,

Your letter to me, within the first two months from the commencement of the present work, approving my notice of St. Chad's Well, and your afterwards daring to publish me your "friend," with your "proper name" annexed, I shall never forget.Hone's article on St. Chad's Well appears in the Every-Day Book, vol. 1, 2 March. The subsequent reference to Lamb's public acknowledgment of his friendship with Hone is a legacy of Hone's reputation as an infidel; other references in the letter suggest the persistence of Hone's episodes of depression. [return] Nor can I forget your and Miss Lamb's sympathy and kindness, when glooms outmastered me; and that your pen spontaneously sparkled in the book, when my mind was in clouds and darkness. These "trifles," as each of you would call them, are benefits scored upon my heart; and

I DEDICATE THIS VOLUME, TO YOU AND MISS LAMB, WITH AFFECTIONATE RESPECT, W. HONE May 5, 1826.