“. . . . . You will see by the papers that a baronetcy
has been offered to me. The offer came in a letter from Sir Robert Peel; and nothing could be more
handsome than the way in which it was made. I may tell you (what must be known
only to those from whom I have no secrets) he accompanied it with another
letter, inquiring, in the kindest manner, if there was
| 260 | LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE | Ætat. 60. |
“It was signally providential that I should have been enabled to meet the expenses which my domestic affliction has occasioned, and which, at any former time, would most seriously have embarrassed me; and what a blessing it will be if Providence should now, by this means, relieve me from all the anxieties attendant upon a precarious income—anxieties which, as you know, I have not felt before, because I was confident in my own powers of exertion; but how precarious these powers are, this recent visitation has made me feel too sensibly.
“God bless you, my dear Neville! I am in the midst of packing, and the arrangements
which are necessary upon leaving home. It will be the first time that I ever
left it without looking forward joyfully to the time of my return. But by
God’s blessing I shall soon become accustomed to a small family. If my
hopes of a permanent income are realised, I shall be able, after another year,
to devote myself wholly to my own great works, regardless of booksellers, and
without imprudence I shall be able to travel for health’s sake, whenever
it may be expedient In short, I shall be thankful for the past, make the best
| Ætat. 60. | OF ROBERT SOUTHEY. | 261 |
