Letter from John Cleland to Lovel Stanhope, Law Clerk in the Secretary of State’s Office (13 November 1749).
“
I now wonder that my book could so long, escape the Vigilance of the Guardians of the Public Manners since nothing is truer than that more Clergymen bought it in proportion than any other distinction of men…. The Bishops can take no step to punishing the author that will not powerfully contribute to the notoriety of the book....
a Book I disdain to defend, and wish, from my Soul, buried and forgot.
— John Cleland
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "I now wonder that my book could so long, escape the Vigilance of the Guardians of the Public Manners since nothing is truer than that more Clergymen bought it in proportion than any other distinction of men…. The Bishops can take no step to punishing the author that will not powerfully contribute to the notoriety of the book....
a Book I disdain to defend, and wish, from my Soul, buried and forgot." in the context of "Letter from John Cleland to Lovel Stanhope, Law Clerk in the Secretary of State’s Office (13 November 1749)." to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "John Cleland" (Quotes)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About John Cleland
John Cleland (1709 – January 23 1789) was an English writer; he is best remembered as the author of the erotic novel Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, sometimes published under the title Fanny Hill.
About John Cleland
John Cleland (1709 – January 23 1789) was an English writer; he is best remembered as the author of the erotic novel Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, sometimes published under the title Fanny Hill.
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