Most studies of the poems of the Corn Law Rhymer focus on the famous poems composed during the later years; this is hardly surprising since the poet was almost unknown when he lived in Rotherham. Just to be different, I would like to draw attention to a little known poem by the Rhymer, "To The Rev. J. B." The poem appears below. The title of the poem is misleading since it is a dedication rather than a title. Possibly the bard just did not provide a proper title for his work.

The first line gives us some interesting facts: it shows us that Elliott has written a poem about himself, & we can guess this might be revealing. The first line also indicates that the poet is 38 years old. This means that the poem was written in 1819, making it one of his early works. Further, we can deduce that the poem was produced when Elliott was still living in Rotherham, since he did not emigrate to Sheffield until the end of November 1819.

"The Rev. J. B." of the title was Jacob Brettell (1793-1862) who was minister at the Rotherham Old Meeting House from 1816 to 1859. As well as being an Unitarian minister, Brettell was a classical scholar, a teacher & most importantly a poet. With Brettell's formidable accomplishments, it was hardly surprising that Elliott, with his imperfect education, should admire his minister & make use of his talents. We know that Elliott's early poems were submitted to Brettell for approval, for improvements with the punctuation & even for corrections. Such contact suggests that Brettell played a significant role in the early development of the poet. (It is perhaps worth pointing out that Robert Southey advised Elliott on writing poetry from 1808 to 1824, but of course Rev Brettell was much more accessible).

"The Rev. gentleman was one of those who sympathised with the Bard, and cheered him on when he was neglected or insulted by the would-be great of the literary world."

"Ebenezer Elliott became intimately acquainted with the Rev Jacob Brettell, whose scholarly poetic taste and experience were freely devoted to the Bard of the Iron Foundry, Rotherham's native minstrel. Mr Brettell's corrections and suggestions were the advantages that Elliott's untutored genius wanted. Elliott submitted his poems to Brettell's maturer judgement for criticism and advice."

To The Rev. J. B.

1 A care-aged bard of thirty-eight,
2    Weighing two stone more than cuckold's weight,
3   Who may not be the thing he should be,
4   But would be clever if he could be,
5   Who - lo ! what good the loves have done him!
6   Has had eight bantlings father'd on him;
7   And, though he ne'er had free grace any,
8   Might tell his faults (some say they're many),
9   Like Byron, were he skill'd to word it,
10 But that he can't, like him, afford it;
11 Of form erect, and hurried pace,
12 Not rather rough-dash'd in the face;
13 Whose grizzly locks, that once were brown,
14 And somewhat curly, are his own;
15 Whose dark frock-coat and neckcloth plain
16 Cause him to be for Quaker taen
17 Or saint, (sad blunder!) or demure
18 Quack-doctor, who all ills can cure,
19 Save ills i' the pocket, which the poet
20 Would hide just now, but cannot do it;
21 In stature dwarf'd, not five feet seven,
22 Too much to sheepish blushing given;
23 With ghost-like brow, and pale blue eye;
24 As question'd man in office shy;
25 Yet form'd for action, though not well,
26 And prouder than the devil in hell.

Turning to the poem, we see in line 1 that Elliott is "care-aged" and in line 13 we note that his hair has gone grey. All his worries - not to mention the 1816 bankruptcy - have made their mark. The bankruptcy has left Elliott impoverished as lines 19 to 20 testify.

Lines 3 & 8 wryly admit that the poet's life was not without problems, while line 4 regrets the lack of a formal education; something the "red son of the furnace" acknowledged all his life. Line 6 refers to his 8 children; (he was to have 3 more, plus two which did not live).

In 1813, Elliott bumped into Lord Byron outside a bank in Rotherham & surely line 9 recalls this unhappy meeting. The wealthy lord snubbed the Rotherham poet who was annoyed & hurt. Lines 9 & 10 are ruefully envious of Byron's success.

We see in lines 16 to 20 that Elliott is able to make fun of himself; this is quite touching for a man who has been bankrupt for 3 years.

Another insight into Elliott's personality appears in lines 22 & 24, where the poet mentions he is shy & blushes too easily. For a man of 38 years, this suggests immaturity, but also serves to underline the scale of Elliott's achievement in the next few years as a public and national figure. And yet in line 21, the poet is big enough to deride his slight physique!

The last two lines are of interest. All Elliott's life he thought he was dying. So students of The Poet of the Poor are amused to see the words "though not well" appearing; the bard is not seeking sympathy: he simply tells it as he feels & then gets on with his life - as we see in the last line! For a religious person writing a poem to a minister, the final statement shouts of a robust Rotherham "what the hell" attitude!

It is a reasonably good poem by the Rhymer at this stage in his career; amusing, interesting & revealing, but I wonder what Jacob Brettell made of it & whether he advised any alterations?

Born in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Brettell arrived in Rotherham with his new wife, Martha, in 1816 on a salary of Ł84 a year. He was Unitarian minister at the Old Meeting House until 1859; that is for 43 years.

Brettell was a fine preacher though given to produce very long sermons. He was a classical scholar, an excellent public speaker, a poet in his own write, a composer of superior hymns & a very good lecturer on poets & poetry. His poems were mainly on religious subjects, but also on the Crimean War & on the Passing of the Reform Bill. His best poem was "The Country Minister" which was published in 1821 & was partly autobiographical.

Brettell's greatest achievement was the re-building of the Rotherham Old Meeting House in 1841. Having some architectural knowledge, he drew up the plans himself. The cost was estimated at Ł400, but it emerged that the building would cost Ł800 which the congregation could not afford. He then spent weeks touring Unitarian congregations round the country & was very successful in raising funds with Ł339 coming in.

With a growing family to support, he took up a supplementary income through tutoring private pupils in Rotherham. In Sheffield he was listed in 1833 as keeping "a boarding Academy at St George's Place." Also in the 1830s, he started a day school in Brookhill, Sheffield.

The Rev. J.B. had 4 sons and a daughter, Martha Ellen Ann (born in 1818). Charles & Alfred Brettell went off to the

USA

& fought on opposing sides in the Civil War. Charles became a judge. The other sons were Francis (known as Frank) & Morris Brettell. Both men were disabled. They kept a small & unsuccessful shop on Rotherham High St under The Three Cranes. Frank was only 3ft 3 ins tall & died aged 38. Morris wed the daughter of Rev Robert Shenton.

Jacob Brettell's gravestone is in the grounds of the chapel in Down's Row, Rotherham.

(An earlier version of this article appeared in 2003 in the publication "Ivanhoe Review," an occasional journal of Rotherham Libraries Archives Service).

In the Sheffield & Rotherham Independent for 14th of December 1839, we read that Brettell delivered two lectures on Elliott at the Lyceum in Doncaster. The lectures were well received & thanks were given to Brettell "for his eloquent and able lecture." There was, however, some controversy over the lectures. A letter signed by "Alpha" appeared in the Doncaster Chronicle accusing Brettell of breaking a rule at the institute which prohibited the discussion of religious doctrine. The anonymous letter writer was also critical of the Corn Law Rhymer.

Subsequently, an angry reply to "Alpha" was sent anonymously to the Doncaster Chronicle which refused to print it. The letter was then sent to the Sheffield Independent which was quite happy to print the letter which appeared in the newspaper on December 21st 1839. This retort to "Alpha" must have come from a close associate of Elliott, if not from the bard himself.