George Dyers (you may know them by their gait), lamps lit at night,
pastry-cooks' and silver-smiths' shops, beautiful Quakers of
Pentonville, noise of coaches, drowsy cry of mechanic watchman at night,
with bucks reeling home drunk; if you happen to wake at midnight, cries
of Fire and Stop thief; inns of court, with their learned air, and
halls, and butteries, just like Cambridge colleges; old book-stalls,
Jeremy Taylors, Burtons on Melancholy, and Religio Medicis on every
stall. These are thy pleasures, O London with-the-many-sins. O City
abounding in whores, for these may Keswick and her giant brood go hang!

C. L.

[Charles Lloyd had just settled at Old Brathay, about three miles from
Ambleside.

Manning's reply to this letter indicates that Lamb's story of the
invitation to stay with Lloyd was a hoax. The first page, ended where I
have put the *asterisk--as in the letter, to Gutch. Manning writes:
"N.B. Your lake story completely took me in till I got to the 2d page. I
was pleased to think you were so rich, but I confess rather wondered how
you should be able conveniently to take so long a journey this
inside-fare time of the year."

Manning also says: "I condole, with you, Mr. Lamb, on the tragic fate of
your tragedie--I wonder what fool it was that read it! By the bye, you
would do me a very very great favour by letting me have a copy. If
Beggars might be chusers, I should ask to have it transcribed partly by
you and partly by your sister. I have a desire to possess some of Mary's
handwriting" (see Letter 79).