ingenious person had lately returned from a period of residence in
Southern Africa, and established himself in London as secretary to the
Slave Abolition Society, and a man of letters. Forgetting past
differences, he invited the Shepherd, in the following letter, to aid
him in certain literary enterprises:--

"London, _May 19, 1827._

"My dear Sir,--I wrote you a hasty note some time ago,
to solicit your literary aid for the projected work of
Mr Fraser. I now address you on behalf of two other
friends of mine, who are about to start a new weekly
publication, something in the shape of the _Literary
Gazette_, to be entitled _The London Review_. The
editors are Mr D. L. Richardson, the author of a volume
of poems chiefly written in India, and a Mr St John, a
young gentleman of very superior talents, whose name
has not yet been (so far as I know) before the public,
though he has been a contributor to several of the
first-rate periodicals. I have no other interest in the
work myself than that of a friend and contributor. The
editors, knowing that I have the pleasure of your
acquaintance, have requested me to solicit your aid to
their work, either in verse or prose, and they will
consider themselves pledged to pay for any
contributions with which you may honour them at the
same rate as _Blackwood_. May I hope, my dear sir, that
you will, at all events, stretch a point to send them
something for their first number, which is to appear in
the beginning of June....