“I have just recollected an alteration you may make in the proof to be sent to Aston.—Among the lines on Hassan’s Serai, not far from the beginning, is this—
“Unmeet for Solitude to share. |
“For many a gilded chamber’s there, Which Solitude might well forbear; |
| 418 | NOTICES OF THE | A. D. 1813. |
“Will you adopt this correction? and pray accept a Stilton cheese from me for your trouble. Ever yours, “B.”
“If* the old line stands, let the other run thus—
|
“Nor there will weary traveller halt,
To bless the sacred bread and salt.
|
“Note.—To partake of food—to break bread and taste salt with your host, ensures the safety of the guest; even though an enemy, his person from that moment becomes sacred.
“There is another additional note sent yesterday—on the Priest in the Confessional.
“P.S. I leave this to your discretion; if any body thinks the old line a good one, or the cheese a bad one, don’t accept either. But, in that case, the word share is repeated soon after in the line—
“To share the master’s bread and salt; |
“To break the master’s bread and salt. |
