Samuel Rogers and his Contemporaries
Sir James Mackintosh to Samuel Rogers, 24 July 1820
‘Mardocks: 24th July, 1820.
‘Dear Rogers,—I have not the smallest feeling of resentment towards
Dr. Parr, and in the present
circumstances I wish to accede to his desire if I can do ![]()
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so with propriety. On that question there can be no better opinion than yours,
and I beg you to give it frankly.
‘My only reason for declining his company was an
apprehension that my renewal of intercourse with him, if unaccompanied by some
explanation, might seem to be an acquiescence in imputations against me which I
had reason to believe were countenanced by him during my absence in India. On
my return to England, I declared my readiness to forget what had passed, if he
would intimate his belief that I was incapable of improper conduct. Do you
think that the time and nature of his present request relieve me from the
necessity of again proposing the same condition? If you do, I will indulge my
inclination, which strongly leads me to accede to his desire. You, I know, will
not advise me to gratify my feelings at any risk of my good name.
‘If you have any doubt on the subject, I can have no
objection to your asking the opinion of Sharp or Whishaw, or
Lord Holland.
‘I am, dear Rogers, yours very faithfully,
Henry Richard Fox, third baron Holland (1773-1840)
Whig politician and literary patron; Holland House was for many years the meeting place
for reform-minded politicians and writers. He also published translations from the Spanish
and Italian;
Memoirs of the Whig Party was published in 1852.
Sir James Mackintosh (1765-1832)
Scottish philosopher and man of letters who defended the French Revolution in
Vindiciae Gallicae (1791); he was Recorder of Bombay (1803-1812) and
MP for Knaresborough (1819-32).
Samuel Parr (1747-1825)
English schoolmaster, scholar, and book collector whose strident politics and assertive
personality involved him in a long series of quarrels.
Samuel Rogers (1763-1855)
English poet, banker, and aesthete, author of the ever-popular
Pleasures of Memory (1792),
Columbus (1810),
Jaqueline (1814), and
Italy (1822-28).
Richard Sharp [Conversation Sharp] (1759-1835)
English merchant, Whig MP, and member of the Holland House set; he published
Letters and Essays in Poetry and Prose (1834).
John Whishaw (1764 c.-1840)
Barrister, educated at Trinity College, Cambridge; he was Secretary to the African
Association and biographer of Mungo Park. His correspondence was published as
The “Pope” of Holland House in 1906.
