Quaker Alphabet Blog Week 36 - R for 'To the Reader'

My subject for a second post on the letter R has been particularly difficult to discern so I have decided to go off at a bit of a tangent. I have already written about  Piety Promoted and its companion volume the Annual Monitor. Here is a rather plaintive cry from the editors of the Annual Monitor of 1843, Samuel Tuke (1784-1857) and Sarah Backhouse (1803-1877) of York, to their readers, which echoes some of the feelings I have about writing an alphabetical blog every week.

'Simple and easy as the compilation of this little annual volume may appear, and limited as really is the amount of literary talent which it requires, the Editors feel that the right conducting of it calls for much judicious care and discrimination, - the responsibility for which they would gladly, if a suitable opportunity of doing so had offered, have thrown into other hands.'

Samuel Tuke

Samuel and Sarah had taken on the responsibility as executors of the co-founder (with his wife Ann) of the Annual Monitor, William Alexander. In spite of their misgivings they continued as editors until 1852 when the task was 'thrown' into the hands of Benjamin and Esther Seebohm for the next ten years.

Of course I do recognise that my task of writing this Quaker Alphabet Blog is entirely of my own choice and I really have no grounds to complain whatsoever. After all I have only committed myself to one year!