In a recent post celebrating Edward Lear’s 204th brithday on the Untold Lives blog at the British Library Alexandra Ault, Curator of Manuscripts and Archives 1601-1850, posts a nice self-caricature of Lear and his cat Foss from a letter to William Bevan, the British vice-consul in Sanremo, sending the text of “How Pleasant to Know Mr Lear” — Bevan’s eldest daughter had helped with the composition of the poem — and stating:
I disclose you a Pome, which you may or may Knott send to the Lady who says “How pleasant to know Mr Lear,” It may be sung to the air “how cheerful along the Gay Mead”.
At Hymnary.org is the text for “How Cheerful along the Gay Mead,” no. XIX in A Collection of Psalms and Hymns for Publick Worship (1789), with a couple of scores. Under the title of “Hymn of Eve,” it is the only surving music from Thomas Arne‘s oratorio Abel, first performed in Dublin in 1744 and in London in 1855:
Here you can listen to a midi arrangement of the tune.
A Blog of Bosh 
The letter/poem from Edward Lear appears to be to William Armine Bevan’s father, Rev William Latham Bevan, father of Mary Louisa Bevan who lived at Hay Castle.
Vice Consul W.A.Bevan had dinner and many walks with Edward Lear in San Remo according to his diary, 1878/1879.
That’s what my research points to.
Thanks, John, for visiting and commenting.
Have Edward Lear’s Diaries for1878/1879 (Which I referred to) been transcribed?
https://hollisarchives.lib.harvard.edu/repositories/24/resources/3092 as I may have missed something about Vice Consul W.A Bevan, I am not convinced that Mary and family went to San Remo…..yet, more likely to have been through letters to her brother, saying How Pleasant to know Mr Lear.
Later in life, William Armine Bevan was involved with the Arts in Kensington.
He was one of the managing directors of Olympia who welcomed Queen Victoria in March 1887.
He was a retired merchant by 1891 aged 35, although the President of Newcastle Breweries for many years.
He wrote a small book for Bell’s Miniature Series of Musicians about Rossini in 1904
Noel Coward turned up unannounced at one of his parties for Miss Ivy St. Helier in 1930
Mary nee Bevan Dawson wrote her fair share of articles for the Archalogica Cambrensis journal, she joined the ‘Cambrians’ in 1883 as the Brecon secretary.
Mary wrote many small books, including “Lays and legends of the Celtic Church in” 1914 which was in aid of the Belgian Relief Fund.
The Bevan family were a major influence in Hay (on Wye) for 100 years.
Mary’s son Christopher Dawson was a world wide authority English Catholic history, and thought by some to have been an influence on Lewis, Elliot and Tolkien.
Mary nee Bevan, Dawson’s gravestone was carved by Eric Gill, who also supplied a front piece to Christopher Dawson’s “Religion and the modern state” book.
Another brother , Edward Latham Bevan was the first bishop of Brecon and Swansea in 1923.
Thank you for letting me ramble on.