From Lois Deacon at 10 Upper Knollys Terrace, Alma Road, Plymouth, to Lewis Court, c/o Mrs Thompson, 14 Compton Park Villas Road, Plymouth.
It was so pleasant to meet him this morning, if rather unexpected. She forgot to ask for Court's address in Plymouth but was able to trace him through Mrs Hines.
She was very interested to hear of the massive work he is completing for the Bible Christian section of the Methodist Church.
The volume of minutes of Conference 1819-1844 was lent to Deacon by Stephen Quick of Penzance. His loan was in response to [Richard] Pyke's advertisement in the press. She still lacks the following:.
- Issues of the Bible Christian Magazine 1828-29, Mason's presidential year.
- Issue of the Bible Christian Magazine 1868. This contains a memoir to Mason's youngest daughter Julia, and is therefore of great potential interest.
Deacon would return the volumes without delay. She feels that she will then have sufficient material for the book.
She has never been able to trace the originals of William Mason's letters to James Thorne, despite the fact that they are quoted at length by Bible Christian historians like Frederick William Bourne. She thinks that they may have been destroyed in the fire at the Bible Christian headquarters or are mixed up in the jumble that is the modern book room.
It was Dr Leslie Church, Literary Editor of the M R, who suggested that Lawrence Spear could possibly undertake a search in the book room. Unfortunately he has never found time to do so. The records are not listed or indexed.
She has not found time to visit the book room herself as she gets very little annual leave.
Searching through her grandmother Ann Deacon's attic, she found a picture which intrigued her greatly. It is a picture on glass of a strong woman's face aged about forty-seven and she has a feeling that it may be of Mary Hewitt, wife of William Mason. She has consulted expert opinion concerning the age of the portrait and the probable date would fit the particulars of Hewitt. The problem is that the woman in the picture has flowers in her bonnet and every record which Deacon has consulted, agree that Hewitt adopted plain dress. She would dearly love to show Court the picture. The subject is very grim looking with great strength of character, and if it is not Mary Hewitt, she has no idea of who it can be.
She would be grateful if Court could find time to discuss with her the points raised in this letter. She could come at any time convenient to Court and will bring the picture with her.
Notes .
- Leslie Frederick Church (1886-1961) was born in Chester-le-Street and entered the Wesleyan ministry in 1908. After circuit work he became church history tutor at Richmond College and from 1935 to 1953 was connexional editor. He served as President of Conference in 1949. Church was a prolific writer on Methodist historical subjects. Source: Encyclopedia of World Methodism (1974)