From Old Windsor. She received the kind letter on Saturday and was very upset at the contents as she had hoped when ‘our dear Mary [Tooth]at Teignmouth talked of dropsy, her fears would have proved groundless and what she suffered was the effect of the accident she met with…I was shocked on reading your letter to find her so ill and yourself thretened with so awful a visitation and hope and pray the Almighty will spare you so dreadful an attack.
Nothing would give Legge and her husband more pleasure than to come to Madeley immediately, but the season and her husband’s gout which he goes scarce a day without feeling the effect. To undertake such a journey now would be to run the risk of having him laid up for four or five months.
Mr Legge has asked her to express his utmost gratitude for her kind offer ‘but we most sincerely hope you may be permitted to enjoy your property and friends for many years to come. He begs me to state that we left Devonshire [Teignmouth] entirely to come to live with his brother and here we are settled comfortably. As Mr Legge was forty seven years of age last August and his brother is two years older were we by the blessing of God permitted to enjoy health a few more years…will bring us to that period when we shall desire to sit down quietly amongst old friends and the [unreadable two words] to enter on a long journey to form new acquaintance and particualar as we entered into this contract with my brother never to leave him unless forced to do so by ill health…It has hitherto been a source of comfort to my dear husband in his severe attacks that should the Almighty be pleased to remove him from this world before me, I should have immediately joined you at Madeley and with £100 per year he always flattered himself I should end my days comfortable as regards worldly circumstances…’.
Legge is sure that Tooth ‘will see the necessity of Mr Legge coming to a decision, not to prevent you putting your plans into execution as the time to settle where property shall go is while we are in the full enjoyment of our facultys now’.