Adieu! my dear Sir, this letter was necessary for me to write--I find it as necessary to finish it.

(742) Mr. Foote married the second sister of Mr. Mann; as his brother, a clergyman, afterwards did the third.

356 Letter 208 To Sir Horace Mann.  Arlington Street, January 6, 1757.

I live in dread of receiving your unhappy letters!  I am sensible how many, many reasons you have to lament your dear brother; yet your long absence will prevent the loss of him from leaving so sharp a sting as it would have done had you seen as much of him as I have of late years!  When I wrote to you, I did not know his last instance Of love to you;(743) may you never have occasion to use it!

I wish I could tell you any politics to abstract your thoughts from your concern; but just at present all political conversation centres in such a magazine of abuse, as was scarce ever paralleled.  Two papers, called the “Test” and “Contest,” appear every Saturday, the former against Mr. Pitt, the latter against Mr. Fox, which make me recollect-,’ “Fogs” and “Craftsmen” as harmless libels.  The authors are not known; Doddington(744) is believed to have the chief hand in the “Test,"(745) which is much the best, unless virulence is to bestow the laurel.  He has been turned out by the opposite faction, and has a new opportunity of revenge, being just become a widower.  The best part of his fortune is entailed on lord Temple if he has no son; but I suppose he would rather marry a female hawker than not propagate children and lampoons.  There is another paper, called “The Monitor,"(746) written by one Dr. Shebbeare, who made a pious resolution of writing himself into a place or the pillory,(747) but having miscarried in both views, is wreaking his resentment on the late Chancellor, who might have gratified him in either of his objects.  The Parliament meets to-morrow, but as Mr. Pitt cannot yet walk, we are not likely soon to have any business.  Admiral Byng’s trial has been in agitation above these ten days, and is supposed an affair of length:  I think the reports are rather unfavourable to him, though I do not find that it is believed he will be capitally punished.  I will tell you my sentiments, I don’t know whether judicious or not:  it may perhaps take a great deal of time to prove he was not a coward; I should think it would not take half an hour to prove he had behaved bravely.

Your old royal guest King Theodore is gone to the place which it is said levels kings and beggars; an unnecessary journey for him, who had already fallen from one to the other; I think he died somewhere in the liberties of the Fleet.(748)

lord Lyttelton has received his things, and is much content with them; this leads me to trouble you with another, I hope trifling, commission; will you send me a case of the best drains for Lord Hertford, and let me know the charge?

You must take this short letter only as an instance of my attention to you; I would write, though I knew nothing to tell you.