TALBOT2785

Abb. ¹
Sunday

Dear Henry

I wish I could have had a little notice of your going to Laycock, & I would have met you there, as it is I must defer it to a later day – I hope you find M^r F. ² better – The Mundys ³ are here, Harriot ⁴ looking a great deal better for change of air.–

Your best way of sending to Bologna is by the Ancona Messenger – if you can find out when he goes & nobody ought to know better than M^r Hay, besides I believe the Colonial office despatch their Couriers regularly which the F. O. ⁵ certainly do not.

Shall you be at Laycock about the 14^th – I could come I think then better than any time? What are the Narcissus said to be brought from Genoa by you to Penrice? ⁶ I have brought a set of Helleborus from Hungary & lost the names – one I recognize coming up as orientalis – two others have flowered – like each other but unlike any other species I know. Also a Wulfenia not Carinthiaca.

Do you possess a 2^nd vol of Flora Sicula? ⁷

Iris Sisyrinchium is going to flower – & Tulipa Clusiana in quantities. I have two sorts of straw colour Narcissus from a nursery garden which look uncommon. Have you the Lophospermum – the Sollya, & Erodium romanum & hymenodes which are both out, & a 3 beautiful bunches of Cyclamens Persicum, hederæfolium, & Coum.

How singular that on the Terrace rockwork high in the eye of the wind, there are two large groups of yellow & white Polyanthus narcissus, of the greatest size & beauty which resist every storm & there has been very high wind since they flowered – We have Ixia bulbocod. purple & white thousands of Iris pumila dark purple & a light blue one which is new to me – All the Iris tuberosa going to seed. The Cistuses are beginning to look handsome with pink flowers – Glad. tristis is very fine – How have M^r Herberts ⁸ prospered with you?

Did you not find a Telescope ⁹ in a case, in Sackville S^{t 10} & did you send it back to B. S^t? ¹¹ It is a dialytisch-aplanatisch-achromatisches Fernsohn ¹² –

Y^r Aff
W F S

Henry Talbot Esq. MP ¹³
Laycock Abbey
Chippenham