AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED BY BISHOP OF OXFORD AND OPPONENT OF EVOLUTION SAMUEL "SOAPY SAM" WILBERFORCE. by Wilberforce. Samuel "Soapy Sam". (1805-1873). Bishop of Oxford - 1857.

Wheatley, Oxfordshire, U.K.: January 5, 1857., 1857.. Good. - Letter penned in black ink and filling just over 3 sides of a cream-colored sheet of his personal letterhead which is folded once to form 4 sides, each 7 inches high by 4-1/4 inches wide. The first side is bordered in black with the address of the bishop's residence, Cuddesdon Palace, at the top. Signed, as was typical with Anglican bishops, "Oxon". There are tears at the folds of the letter. There is a tiny chip to one top corner & a small crease to the other. Folded twice for mailing. Good. <p>The Bishop writes to the wife of Bishop [possibly Aubrey or George] Spencer, recommending Merton College, Oxford. He adds in a postscript: "You will be grieved to hear that Mrs. [Sargeant?] has met with a serious accident having fallen down & ruptured the main tendon of the knee. She is kept on her back in bed...."<p>Samuel "Soapy Sam" Wilberforce [1805-1873], Bishop of Oxford, was an opponent of evolution who participated in the 1860 Oxford debate with T. H. Huxley. His nickname was based on a comment by Benjamin Disraeli.