Letter #5, Post #1

Tuesday 24 January 2012
Monday 5 September 1796
To Cassandra, from Rowling, "My dear Cassandra
"I shall be extremely anxious to hear the Event of your Ball, & shall hope to receive so long & minute an account of every particular that I shall be tired of reading it. Let me know how many besides their four-teen Selves & Mr & Mrs Wright, Michael will contrive to place about their Coach, and how many of the Gentlemen, Musicians & Waiters, he will have persuaded to come in their Shooting Jackets. I hope John Lovett's accident will not prevent his attending the Ball, as you will otherwise be obliged to dance with Mr Tincton the whole Evening. Let me know how J. Harwood deports himself without the Miss Biggs;- and which of the Marys will carry the day with my Brother James." - Jane Austen, Monday 5 September 1796

This is the beginning of letter number five. There is possibly a letter missing between letter number four and five.

Deirdre Le Faye says Michael is probably Michael Terry of the Dummer family. He was born in 1775, so he was the same age as Jane Austen. He would have been at St John's College, Cambridge in 1796. He was rector of Dummer from 1811 to 1848. And interestingly, he was engaged to Anna Austen in the winter of 1809-1810.

                                              All Saint's Church in Dummer, Hants.

                                                               All Saint's Church in Dummer, Hants.

This is a link to a page by the Hampshire County Councel. Their site lists interesting pages about many of the places Jane Austen mentions in her letters.

http://www3.hants.gov.uk/index/your-area/localpages/north-east/basingstoke.htm

The Harwood family at this time owned Deane. Deane is where Jane Austen's family lived before moving to Steventon. The Miss Biggs were friends of Jane and Cassandras. They were Harris Bigg-Wither's sisters, Elizabeth, Catherine and Althea.

Mr. and Mrs. Wright: Revd Robert Wright (born in 1772) and his wife, Elizabeth. He became curate of Dummer in 1797. Michael Terry must have taken over for him when Mr. Wright became rector of Ovington, Hants.

Mr. and Mrs. Wright's son, Robert-John-William, was born at Dummer in 1803. He became curate to his father at Ovington in 1826.

                                          St. Peter's in Ovington, Hants. I love these old churches.


I will refer you again to the book by Constance Hill, Jane Austen, Her Homes and Her Friends. In chapters six and seven she discusses some of the very people who have been mentioned here. This book is very entertaining. Constance Hill and her sister, Ellen Hill embarked on the trip of a Janeite's lifetime. Back in 1900, I think, the preface was written in 1901, so maybe 1899, they went to all of the places Jane Austen would have went to and wrote about what they found. I think it is well worth your time if you are interested in Jane Austen and you can read it online.

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/hill/austen/homes.html

Okay, back to the subject. I cannot find anything about Mr. Tincton, perhaps, this was a private joke.

The Mary's would have been Mary Lloyd and Mary Harrison. Mary Lloyd won. She and James were married 17 January 1797, just a few months later.

I hope you have a great day,
Terrie