BIB_ID
419924
Accession number
MA 1352.328
Creator
Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870.
Display Date
London, England, 1853 April 11.
Credit line
Purchased with the assistance of the Fellows, 1951.
Description
1 item (5 pages) ; 18.1 x 11.3 cm + envelope
Notes
Signed with initials.
Written from "Tavistock House."
Envelope addressed as follows: "If at Richmond, to be forwarded / Miss Burdett Coutts / Stratton Street."
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Written from "Tavistock House."
Envelope addressed as follows: "If at Richmond, to be forwarded / Miss Burdett Coutts / Stratton Street."
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Provenance
The letters formed part of the Burdett-Coutts sale (Sotheby, 17 May 1922); they were purchased for Oliver W. Barrett in whose collection they remained until it was sold by his son (Parke-Bernet, 31 October 1951).
Summary
Discussing the case of a possible candidate for Urania Cottage, Louisa Cooper, whom he has interviewed at a police station; describing her appearance and behavior in detail; asking Burdett-Coutts for her approval to accept Cooper into the home; describing in detail two elderly sisters who are also in distress and how they have attempted to discharge their debts; describing how the magistate Mr. A Beckett has helped them: "It is one of those cases in which the goodness of the poor towards the poor, stands out so beautifully that you would suppose the men about the Police Court had never seen distress or known imposture ; they appear to feel the facts so much."
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