Horace Pym
Encyclopedia
Horace Pym was a confidential solicitor, book collector and the editor of the best-selling private journal of the Quaker writer, Caroline Fox
: Memories of Old Friends, published in 1881.
in Hertfordshire and his second wife, Edith Elizabeth Noble.
, under the supervision of her sister, Anna Maria
. In 1881 Smith, Elder & Co.
published the selection as Memories of Old Friends; being extracts from the journals and letters of Caroline Fox of Penjerrick
, Cornwall from 1835 to 1871, advertising the book in The Times for the Christmas Present market.
Despite the "extreme timidity" with which he censored the text, the book was a surprise Victorian best-seller.
A second edition was published the following year, with additional letters from J.S. Mill
.
On 12 September 1876 he married Sarah Juliet Backhouse, daughter of Edmund Backhouse and his wife, Juliet (daughter of Charles Fox, brother of Caroline's father, Robert Were Fox
F.R.S.). There were three children, Julian (1877–1898), his brother Evelyn (1879–1971) and Juliet, who was born and died in 1880. Her mother, Sarah Juliet Pym, also died in 1880.
Horace Pym then married to Jane Hannah Backhouse Fox, on 2 May 1881 daughter of Barclay Fox
, Caroline's brother and his wife, Jane (sister of Edmund Backhouse, Pym's first wife's father). There were two daughters, Juliet Caroline Fox Pym (1882–1905) and Yolande Nina Sylvia Noble Pym (1883–1928) .
, the humorous writer (pen name "F. Anstey", who wrote the novel Vice Versa)
Guthrie describes him as a long-standing friend and a great raconteur.
The Obituary in The Times (11 May 1896) asserts that he was greatly valued by his friends, who included some notable writers and painters. Among these was the writer and literary editor, James Payn
, who was also literary advisor to Smith, Elder & Co.,
In his beautiful home, "Foxwold" at Brasted
near Sevenoaks
in Kent, he had an excellent library.
Horace Pym wrote a number of small books, which he had privately printed for his friends. Some of these, held by the British Library are listed below.
He died on 5 May 1896.
The Times Obituary states that "Himself a man of great cultivation and taste, he held in affection the great masters of English literature, reverencing in particular Charles Dickens and all that pertained to him . . . . Mr. Pym's death took place with a painful suddenness owing to an affection of the heart induced by Russian influenza."
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Caroline Fox
Caroline Fox was an English diarist. She was the daughter of Robert Were Fox FRS of the influential Fox family of Falmouth, and was the younger sister of both Barclay Fox, also a diarist, and Anna Maria Fox....
: Memories of Old Friends, published in 1881.
Name, birth and parentage
He is more properly known as Horatio Noble Pym and sometimes as H.N. Pym, was born 2 July 1844. He was the son of Rev. William Wollaston Pym, Rector of WillianWillian
Willian is a small village in North Hertfordshire, with a population of approximately 326. Along with Norton and Old Letchworth, it is one of the original villages which the new town of Letchworth Garden City grew up around. Despite this, it retains a distinctive character...
in Hertfordshire and his second wife, Edith Elizabeth Noble.
Memories of Old Friends
He is famous for editing the twelve manuscript volumes of Journals of Caroline FoxCaroline Fox
Caroline Fox was an English diarist. She was the daughter of Robert Were Fox FRS of the influential Fox family of Falmouth, and was the younger sister of both Barclay Fox, also a diarist, and Anna Maria Fox....
, under the supervision of her sister, Anna Maria
Anna Maria Fox
Anna Maria Fox was a promoter of the Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society and the artistic and cultural development of Falmouth in Cornwall, UK.-Family links:...
. In 1881 Smith, Elder & Co.
Smith, Elder & Co.
Smith, Elder & Co. was a firm of British publishers who were most noted for the works they published in the 19th century.The firm was founded by George Smith and Alexander Elder and successfully continued by George Murray Smith .They are notable for producing the first edition of the Dictionary...
published the selection as Memories of Old Friends; being extracts from the journals and letters of Caroline Fox of Penjerrick
Penjerrick Garden
Penjerrick Garden, often referred to as "Cornwall's true jungle garden", lies between Budock Water and Mawnan Smith, near Falmouth, United Kingdom....
, Cornwall from 1835 to 1871, advertising the book in The Times for the Christmas Present market.
Despite the "extreme timidity" with which he censored the text, the book was a surprise Victorian best-seller.
A second edition was published the following year, with additional letters from J.S. Mill
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, economist and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of...
.
Family relations with the Falmouth Foxes
Pym married, successively to two of Caroline Fox's relations.On 12 September 1876 he married Sarah Juliet Backhouse, daughter of Edmund Backhouse and his wife, Juliet (daughter of Charles Fox, brother of Caroline's father, Robert Were Fox
Robert Were Fox the Younger
Robert Were Fox FRS was a British geologist, natural philosopher and inventor. He is known mainly for his work on the temperature of the earth and his construction of a compass to measure magnetic dip at sea....
F.R.S.). There were three children, Julian (1877–1898), his brother Evelyn (1879–1971) and Juliet, who was born and died in 1880. Her mother, Sarah Juliet Pym, also died in 1880.
Horace Pym then married to Jane Hannah Backhouse Fox, on 2 May 1881 daughter of Barclay Fox
Barclay Fox
Robert Barclay Fox was a businessman, gardener and diarist, a member of the influential Quaker Fox family of Falmouth.-Family relationships:...
, Caroline's brother and his wife, Jane (sister of Edmund Backhouse, Pym's first wife's father). There were two daughters, Juliet Caroline Fox Pym (1882–1905) and Yolande Nina Sylvia Noble Pym (1883–1928) .
Work as Confidential Solicitor
He practised as a confidential solicitor as the Principal of Thathams & Pym, 3 Fredericks Place, Old Jewry, London EC.Pym as a person
Some anecdotes concerning Horace Pym and his family occur in the memoirs of Thomas Anstey GuthrieThomas Anstey Guthrie
Thomas Anstey Guthrie , was an English novelist and journalist, who wrote his comic novels under the pseudonym F. Anstey....
, the humorous writer (pen name "F. Anstey", who wrote the novel Vice Versa)
Guthrie describes him as a long-standing friend and a great raconteur.
The Obituary in The Times (11 May 1896) asserts that he was greatly valued by his friends, who included some notable writers and painters. Among these was the writer and literary editor, James Payn
James Payn
James Payn , was an English novelist.-Family:Payn's father, William Payn , was clerk to the Thames Commissioners and at one time treasurer to the county of Berkshire...
, who was also literary advisor to Smith, Elder & Co.,
In his beautiful home, "Foxwold" at Brasted
Brasted
Brasted is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. The parish is located to the west of Sevenoaks town. The parish includes the settlements of Brasted Chart and Toys Hill, and had a population of 1321 persons . The single slightly winding street of the village has a...
near Sevenoaks
Sevenoaks
Sevenoaks is a commuter town situated on the London fringe of west Kent, England, some 20 miles south-east of Charing Cross, on one of the principal commuter rail lines from the capital...
in Kent, he had an excellent library.
Horace Pym wrote a number of small books, which he had privately printed for his friends. Some of these, held by the British Library are listed below.
He died on 5 May 1896.
The Times Obituary states that "Himself a man of great cultivation and taste, he held in affection the great masters of English literature, reverencing in particular Charles Dickens and all that pertained to him . . . . Mr. Pym's death took place with a painful suddenness owing to an affection of the heart induced by Russian influenza."
Books by Horace Pym listed in the catalogue of the British Library
- A Tour round my Book-shelves. 1891 (privately printed: 100 copies)
- Chats in the Book-room. 1896 (privately printed)
- PEPYS, Samuel. Excerpts from the Diary of Samuel Pepys. From the "Mynors Bright" edition. With an introduction by H.N. Pym 1889
- FOX, Caroline. Memories of Old Friends; being extracts from the journals and letters of C. F. ... from 1835 to 1871. Edited by H. N. Pym. pp. xxvii. 355. Smith, Elder & Co.: London, 1882 [1881]. Available online at The Internet Archive
- A mother's memoir : being a fragmentary sketch of the life of the late Edith Elizabeth Pym / by H. N. P. [i.e. Horace Noble Pym]. (Privately printed: 50 copies)
- Odds and Ends at Foxwold. A guide for the inquiring guest ... Illustrated, etc. 1887 (privately printed)
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External links
- Much of his personal library was sold at Sotheby’s, London 23 April 1996. The catalogue includes "Aspects of a Victorian Bookman" by John Pym.