I am conscious of no misconduct, and whatever uneasiness I may feel arises solely from sympathy for your distress.
You seem to imagine that the book is edited, or principally written, by friends of mine.

I thought that you had been aware that the work is conducted in London, and that my friends and myself are merely contributors, and form a very small proportion of the contributors.
The manners of almost all of my acquaintances are so utterly alien from coarseness, and their morals from libertinism, that I feel assured that no objection of that nature can exist to their writings.

As to my own contributions I can only say that the Roman Story was read to my mother before it was published, and would have been read to you if you had happened to be at home.

Not one syllable of censure was uttered.
The Essay on the Royal Society of Literature was read to you.

I made the alterations which I conceived that you desired, and submitted them afterwards to my mother.