TALBOT1437

Devonport
May 26^th

My dear Henry

Here I am still in the midst of joiners carpenters painters & plumbers – I begin to think I shall never get to sea: fitting out a ship is certainly a Herculean task, and your description of the Mediterranean makes me only more impatient – I have been here three days in my way from London to the election which will commence almost immediately

I touched at Southampton and Melbury ¹ in my way, & saw L^d Ilchester’s ² yacht which is nearly ready for launching, building by the same man who built mine, but I fear I shall not be able to persuade him to come with her into the Mediterranean –

I am at a loss to reconcile your account of the storming of Missolonghi ³ with that which has appeared in all the French and English papers, and which purports to be official – Greek bonds are I believe about 90 below par – sellers. I hope the Holy Alliance however will interfere and prevent the Turks from forging any more Greek Bonds – but as yet I believe nothing at all has been done for them, and the Duke of Wellington’s ⁴ embassy appears to have had nothing to do with the subject. You have no doubt heard the melancholy account of poor C. Lemon ⁵ when I saw my aunt in London I ceased to have the smallest hope of her recovery, but I believe Sir Charles ⁶ has never despaired of it She is now given over by her physician D^r Clarke, who says she can recover only by a miracle – She is now so weak and has been for six weeks, that she faints whenever she is moved; such a state of infirmity I suppose death will be a happy release; I only feel for poor Sir Charles, who will have lost his last tie to earthly happiness – Pray let me have from you a programme of your intended movements till the winter, I hear you are now at Florence – do you stay there long? I shall be au desespoir ⁷ if you return before I get out.

Nobody has heard of John Strangways ⁸ since November except a friend of a friend of mine who is travelling with him, and who wrote to my friend that John had been ill & could not go up the Nile. If this is true, we ought to have heard something of him.

Adieu my dear Henry Believe me ever yours
C R M Talbot.

W. H. F. Talbot Esq^r
Poste restante
Milan –