A Parental Letter A scruffy boy sits at a desk, surrounded by books and toys. In his hand he holds a letter from his father, in which his father writes: 'I hear you are coming on but very slow in your larning - for which you are an ass.' The boy shows the letter to an old woman standing next to him and says: "I say now Aunt Jenkins - beant this a pratty letter from Feather." 14 Mar 1808