TALBOT1292

Penrice ¹

July 31^st

My dear Henry

Write to me, I want to hear all about your proceedings since I left London to the present time also who is at Malvern ² & how Caroline & Horatia ³ like it – You remember the <Shysanthus?> at the Horticultural Garden that we begged a broken branch of – to my surprize when we arrived at Merthyrmawr ⁴ I found at least two dozen plants of it in the Greenhouse – Sir J. Nicholls ⁵ Gardener came from the H. Garden & I suppose brought the seed – they have given Mama ⁶ two plants & she is delighted with it – & I am happy to say she has two little seed vessels full of seed so I hope we shall not loose <sic> it – We are so dreadfully burnt up that we shall soon have neither fruit or flowers Mama is busy every evening earthing up & watering in hopes of saving some few – all the plants that usually blow in the Autumn are flowering now & very miserably – Christopher ⁷ left us a week ago – he was anxious to be present at the match between the Pearl & the <Arrow?> which is to decide an old dispute about the superiority of one of them. – I don’t know when we shall see him back but he ought to be at Cardiff at the Races as he is steward, I hope if he is you will come & join the family party & help to support him in his nervous situation – It has been too hot for driving out we attempted it once but we find good thick walls are necessary to secure us from the sun & flies. – Johnny ⁸ is as you may suppose a great amusement to his Aunts & I think it will <be> ⁹ fortunate if he is not <to>tally spoilt by their indulgence. M^r Nicholl ¹⁰ is at Plymouth by this time I heard from him at Exeter yesterday it is dreadfully hot weather for Courts of Justice & he has three weeks more of it to go thro’ before I see him. Love to all

Yours aff^ly

Jane H. Nicholl

I dont know whether you know that Maryanne Shakespear ¹¹ has lost her eldest Brother John – he died on his passage to England he was in a bad state of health – he has left nine children! his wife died a few months ago & his health which was not good at the time became rapidly worse – what will become of his children I cannot think for of course he did not get the pension as he had not served the number of years to <illegible deletion> intitle <sic> him to it & his fortune was not large.

Swansea August one 1825. Chris^r Cole
Henry Talbot Esq^re
Post Office
G^t Malvern.