MR. PITT’S MARRIAGE — THE HONEYMOON
The return letter from West is so interesting that I give it in extenso—
“Croydon, November 18, 1754.
“My dear Cousin,
“Your admirable letter found me at the Archiepiscopal Palace at Croydon, where Mrs. West, Dick and I had been ever since Wednesday; and it was lucky that it found me there, as I had by that means an opportunity of showing the Archbishop, whom you very properly style good, your most ingenious and judicious Reflections of Lord Bolingbroke’s pompous Rhetorical and inconsistent Declamations with which his Grace (who, by the bye agrees entirely with you in the censure you there pass’d upon Mr. W(arburton)’s way of answering him,) was so pleas’d that he desired me to give him a copy of the whole paragraph, promising that if he show’d it to anybody he would, however, cautiously conceal the name of the author. After this I need not tell you how much we both said in praise of you; I shall only add that I, this morning, received his commands to present his respects to you, and to tell you in his name that if you allow’d yourself the liberty of saying fine things of him, he would be even with you. These are his own words, grounded on a piece of information I had given him of the great honour and esteem you had for him. We quitted Wickham, as I told you, on Wednesday last, that we might throw no obstacle in the way of that amorous impatience which Mr. Pitt had in all his notes express’d of bringing Lady Hester to our sweet and hospitable Habitation, as he call’d it; but to our great surprise, and to the no small mortification of Mrs. West in particular, who was afraid that all the good things, with which she had fill’d her larder, would be spoil’d by their delay—the happy Bridegroom and his Bride did not arrive till Saturday, on which morning they were married[78] by Dr. Ayscough[79] with the Archbishop’s License. They came down alone, and have continued alone ever since, and, I imagine, will continue during their stay at Wickham, in that Paradisaical Solitude, tho’ by the quantity of provisions which Mr. Campion[80] brought with him, and more which he has since sent for from Croydon, we conclude he expected some visitants from Town, as Lord Temple, etc.,[81] but having heard of no such visitants being expected, I suppose that all this profusion was owing to Mr. Campion’s solicitude to testify in his own way his respects to his new Lady, and make his compliments on this joyous occasion, in the polite, that is, in the French Phraseology: this is all the intelligence I can at present give you of this important affair, for we have had no communication by messages, either to or from Mr. Pitt, whom we were unwilling to disturb, or interrupt the free course of those pleasures, which for a time at least, possess the whole mind, and are most relished when most private; for this reason I cannot yet acquaint you when we shall leave Wickham, but I believe it will be about the middle of this week, and I suppose we shall not be able to go to Chelsea before the latter end of the next, or the beginning of the week after, and by that time I am still in hopes you will come to Hill Street, and by giving me the pleasure of seeing you there in good health, compleat the happy change which you observe is already begun in the once gloomy month of November. I do often, my dear Cousin, look back with pleasure and thankfulness on many incidents of my past Life, and compare them with my present situation, so much changed for the better in a thousand instances, such as Health, fortune and Friendship, among which there is none that has given me more happiness than yours, and which therefore I hope will continue, till it is lost where only it can be lost, in the brighter and warmer radiance of an unchangeable and everlasting Society, where I hope to have it continued to me through all eternity. I am going to take the air with the good and amiable Archbishop, and therefore must conclude.
“Adieu, my dear, dear Cousin, and assure yourself that all that period I shall continue
“Ever most affectionately Yours, etc.,
“Gil. West.
“Mrs. West and Mrs. Herring desire their compliments to Mrs. Montagu and Miss Anstey.”
[78] Married November 16, 1754, by special license, in Argyll Street.