Dickens addresses his letter only "My Dear Sir," but Brown is assumed to be the addressee based on the contents. See the published correspondence, cited below, for additional information.
Dickens dates the letter "1847," but Storey and Fielding argue that this is a misdating and the letter was written in 1848. On January 11, 1847, Dickens was in Paris.
Written from "Devonshire Terrace."
Envelope with seal and Dickens signature to "Brown Esquire / Piccadilly" and endorsed "Jany 11th 1848 / Mr. Charles Dickens."
The letter is part of a collection, MA 1352, which consists of letters from Charles Dickens to the Baroness, to her companion Hannah (Meredith) Brown, or the latter's husband, William Brown; with 70 letters written by others to Miss Coutts or to Dickens in his capacity as her unofficial almoner; and a few others. See the collection-level record for more information.
Explaining that Angela Burdett-Coutts asked him to convey what had been done at Shepherd's Bush that day; describing a meeting of the Urania Cottage committee and saying that only he, Archdeacon Sinclair, and William Tennant were there, two other members being absent; reporting at length on Julia Mozley, one of the inhabitants, who they suspect of meeting secretly with a brickmaker; writing that she proclaims her innocence and there is no proof of the meetings, though the brickmaker was encountered near the house looking suspicious; saying that they will continue to watch her for any changes in manner and that he believes she is contemplating leaving Urania Cottage: "My reason for desiring to know accurately what she is about, is, that we may be beforehand with her, and, if we have any new reason to believe she is going, that we may - for the general example - discharge her;" adding that she has also been ill, though "Mrs. Holdsworth thinks nothing of her indisposition;" writing that everything else is in order and "[a]ll the rest appear to be doing very well."