Memoir of John Murray
William Gifford to John Murray, 31 December 1824
Friday morn, Dec. 31st, 1824.
My dear Sir,
In the long course of our acquaintance you can bear me
witness that the only fault I ever taxed you with in pecuniary matters, was
with that of being too liberal to me; if, in the present instance, you have
committed, as I fear, a greater fault than ever, I cannot help it; but most
sincerely and affectionately do I thank you for your kindness.
It was the Dean, who, seeing the marvellous confusion of my
table, and learning the cause, suggested to me that the paper might have
slipped out in your study. I was not sorry to think this, for I really
suspected that it had buried itself among my innumerable scraps—and,
between ourselves, had it done so, it would not be the first time.
I thank you again and again for your presents of this ![]()
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day—I wish I could make you a better, or any other
return than that of promising to think of your kindness, and to drink your
health in one of the bottles after dinner; and ’tis long since I tasted
wine. A prosperous and a happy new year to you, and I beg to join Mrs. Murray in the prayer, which comes with
great sincerity, from, dear Sir,
Yours most faithfully,
William Gifford (1756-1826)
Poet, scholar, and editor who began as a shoemaker's apprentice; after Oxford he
published
The Baviad (1794),
The Maeviad
(1795), and
The Satires of Juvenal translated (1802) before becoming
the founding editor of the
Quarterly Review (1809-24).
Anne Murray [née Elliot] (1782-1854)
The daughter of the Scottish bookseller Charles Elliot; she married the second John
Murray in 1807.
