Only the last page of the letter has survived. It is dated from the postmark. In the letter Harriet Hesketh appears to be reflecting on the proposed marriage between her cousin, the poet William Cowper (1731-1800) and her sister, Theodora Cowper, which led to 'his first derangement' in her opinion. He 'left Margate in a very distressed state of mind as she has often told me'. The end of the letter suggests that this fragment is part of a long postscript. At the end, Hesketh mentions that Maitland's son has been made Governor of Ceylon in the room of Frederick North. Lieutenant-General Sir Thomas Maitland (1760–1824) was appointed governor, but he was not Penelope's son but a nephew of her husband, General Sir Alexander Maitland. He took up the position in July 1805, but this remark, and references to the new year, suggest that the date of this letter is early 1805. Penelope Maitland's son, Frederick Maitland (1763-1848) was made lieutenant governor of Grenada in March 1805.