TALBOT1712

Naples
18 Sept

Dear Henry

Your letter ¹ of the 3^d is just arrived & as letters are so long coming from Geneva I answer it immediately – the greatest news I have is that John ² is arrived & going to stay with me a week or two before returning to England – he seems to have seen everything in Egypt & Syria & has brought me seed of the Dead sea apple & flowers by which it appears to be an Asclepias instead of Solanum – His description of the deserts is much more delightful than I had imagined. Asiatic deserts seem to be preferable to African. Only think of finding chalk & flint full of Alcyonites in Ammon & Moab.

I have difficulty in believing G. ³ utriculosa of Campoformio to be the same as that of Prato fiorito. G. baldenis is like a single flower of amarella, much larger – a very pretty plant. What a pity you delayed your journey till so late – what could there be in London. I proclaim your intended botanic garden to everybody – how is Lacock going on pray cultivate all autumnal flowers – I wish two or three we have here were sure livers in England – the Cassias & Lantanas, Parkinsonia &c which now enliven the gardens – With plenty of Belladonna, & Guernsey lilies Pancratiums, Scilla, Crocus, Mandragora & Colchicums, Cyclamen, Plumbago, Chamæcistus gentians, & a few compositæ, you have a decent shew for Autumn – The price of Wallis ⁴ picture which I paid for you was forty pounds – I hope many patrons of the arts will see it at Lacock – I sent in your box several cultivated seeds to be tried – I sent the other day a parcel of seeds by courier to you – Gussones ⁵ work is not to be had – he is in Sicily & all the copies I believe. I suppose Willdenow ⁶ got his Corfu plants from Sieber.

I am sure I shewed you lots of Melamp. cristatum at Florence. All the botanists I ask of, disavow Cyc. linearifolium. There seem to be 5 species 3 Europ. 2. Asiatic & no more John says Lotus & Papyrus are nearly extinct in the Nile. The cotton there is the tree cotton of the tropics & not the common herbaceous of Turkey & the south of Europe.

I think Johns descriptions would make you long to make a tour in the East. He met Palin ⁷ whom you remember at Florence, who read off hieroglyphics (in his way) as if he was reading out of the bible. The Lansdownes ⁸ go to Munich, Milan, Florence, Genoa, Nice, & home Write to me & tell me your plans

Y^r aff
W F S

Svizzera
A Mons^r
Mons^r Henry F. Talbot
Poste restante
Ginevra