a youth, and considered that there was no evidence that he was ever
dissipated or loose in his life. We may largely discount Harriet
Martineau's acid references to Taylor's harum-scarum young men,
especially as she romanced about that very wild young man Polidori,
Byron's erstwhile physician, who, during his stay in Norwich--1817-8--was
ever at the Martineaus' house.

[Picture: Ned Painter. From an Engraving. Lent by Mr. C. J. A. Howes]

Whatever were the faults of "Godless Billy," as the Norwich people called
Taylor, it was at his table that Borrow met the most intellectual people
of Norwich, and of visitors who were amongst Taylor's admirers. One of
these, in July, 1821, was Dr. Bowring (afterwards Sir John), so unjustly
and rancorously pilloried in Appendix XI. of "The Romany Rye," in 1857.
Another guest at the same time was Dr. Lewis Evans, physician to the
Norfolk and Norwich Hospital, 1821-50, a hot-tempered Welshman who had
served with distinction in Spain during the Peninsular War. In 1823
William Taylor declared that Borrow translated with facility and elegance
twenty different languages.

On Monday, February 11th, 1822, Captain Borrow made his will, and perhaps
it was not a mere coincidence that it was a Monday, also on February
11th, but back in 1793, that he married his beloved wife at East Dereham.
The old soldier again became concerned about the fate of George when out
of his articles, and was anything but heartened by being informed that
the young lawyer's clerk had acquired Armenian from a book obtained from
a clergyman's widow, who took a fancy, so he says, to him, and even drew
his portrait--the expression of his countenance putting her in mind of
Alfieri's Saul. The worthy Captain died February 28th, 1824, and was
buried in St. Giles's churchyard on March 4th. There never appears to
have been any memorial stone, and I have found it impossible to locate
the exact position of the grave. As a corner of the churchyard was cut
off to widen the street, and to remove a dangerous corner, under the City
of Norwich Act of 1867, it is quite likely that the remains are now under
the roadway.

In an obituary notice in the _Norwich Mercury_ of March 6th, 1824,
Captain Borrow's passing is described thus: "He rose from his bed about
four, apparently as well as he has usually been in the winter time;
returned to it without the least assistance, and in less than a quarter
of an hour was a corpse in the arms