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before we left Sunley Park her youngest Son returned to England from
Geneva, in Switzerland, where he had been above a Twelvemonth
since which He & his Brother have purchas'd Chambers of their own
in the King's Bench Walk in the Temple, and where they live very
comfortably together. The Eldest has a place in the Crown Office
which is near to their Chambers, & the Youngest is preparing himself
by study & attending the Courts at Westminster Hall for the Practise
of the Law as a Counsil but as he is obliged to be of such a Standing
in point of Time, he will not be able to be called to the Bar these
Two years — and then his friends have no doubt but he will make
a figure by his own personal abilities & the acquaintances he has
to introduce him into business.
And in answer to your obliging Enquiries after my Sons particularly my Eldest you shall
have the best account I can give you of them both.
The Eldest, was in a manner born a Philosopher. He was called one, when he
was but Six years old, from his early fondness for Study, & his turn for
thinking, but tho' I wish'd to have him distinguish himself in Literature
I wish'd likewise to have him mix in Life, & (Parent like) to have
him qualify himself to figure a little my world, with his View from the rapid
progress he had made at School, I sent him very early to the University.
but, it had rather a contrary Effect, for in Letting him upon his own Legs
as it were, before he was well Thirteen — he followed the Bent of his
own genius, & continued the pursuit of his studies, so closely he contracted
such a habit for abstract Thinking, that, tho' he was bred to & called to the
Bar, under the hopes I had of his making a practical Lawyer —
it indisposed him for the practise of his profession, tho' it qualified him
with the knowledge of it — in short he acquired Ideas too enlarged
and at the same time too exact & I may say, refined for the
Common Tract of Business — instead of which his happiness & satisfaction
consists in striking out or attempting to Strike out something new, from the
hopes of benefitting mankind, not confining himself to his own Country
only, by his Studies — and so long as he has no purpose of Changing
his condition of Life for a married one, he can afford to do it even in
his father's Lifetime. especially as Temperance & Economy make
a part of his Philosophy. He has published two Books which have been
well received by the best Judges of the Subjects, but he is now
actually engaged in Correcting the Press for a third of much greater
Consequence and upon which principally will depend his reputation
as a Writer, or rather an Author, since the Work itself is new
and very different upon the Subject, from anything that was ever published
before; I have as yet seen but little of it myself, not above 100d
Pages of it has yet been printed off, the whole may probably be
finish'd in about six weeks or two months time, but when finish'd
it will be the Book for a Lady, and therefore you must be —
contented with a general Character of it, wch I am satisfied your
friendship for him makes you wish may be a favourable one, as it is
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Identifier: | JB/539/042/002 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 539.
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1780-05-04 |
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539 |
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042 |
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002 |
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Correspondence |
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Jeremiah Bentham |
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