TALBOT3259

Sunday April 24 –

My dear Henry

As Mary Kennedy ( Ela’s ¹ late Nurse) is no longer of any use here either to herself or others, I think it is best that she should go to London & take care of her poor sick child. She is of course very anxious about it & therefore I have determined to send her without waiting for your sanction, which must have occasioned a delay of two days – She leaves this place at eight o’clock tomorrow morning by the Telegraph coach, w^h will set her down in Piccadilly at Hatchell’s at the New White house cellar – at about four in the afternoon. Will you se order George ² to meet her there; & to carry her box, which is quite a small light one, not at all beyond his strength. She will go immediately to Sackville S^{t 3} in hopes of seeing you, or at any rate to receive permission to sleep there the first night if she cannot be accommodated at home – I hope you will not think I have done wrong, as I have acted by the advice of the wisest heads amongst us, including M^r Maul the doctor, who says that the journey & the exertion of attending upon her child will not hurt Nurse at all. – How very kind you have been in sending D^r Kerrison ⁴ to prescribe for the poor little child. – I suppose you will wish to settle Nurse’s wages, & therefore I have consulted the book for your information – She was paid up to the 1^st of February, & 12 weeks are since owing, if we count till tomorrow the 25^th of April which at 7^s per week makes £4·4^s – if I calculate rightly. But then you are aware that Ela has been weaned exactly a fortnight & Nurse expects that you will make a deduction in consequence. For two complete months beginning the 1^st of June & ending on the 27^th of July she received 5^s too much per week making £2·0·0 w^h ought to be deducted. The error arose from the circumstance of the allowance for the child being paid regularly by Fanny ⁵ in London while the Nurse was receiving her full wages of 12^s per week at Lacock. –

Her wages have been high, & therefore she cannot expect you to make her any extra present, unless you wish to do so, on account of her present trouble. – And now about the day of your coming to fetch me. – I hope it will be soon, but my Sisters ⁶ bid me say that as the W– Ms ⁷ – do not talk of coming till the beginning of next week, you have the present week entirely at your disposal without the possibility of inconveniencing them – Perhaps towards Thursday or Friday you will have finished all your business comfortably – & we might leave Southampton either on Saturday or Monday. – And we are all agreed that if anything unforeseen were to keep you till the W. Ms really want to come; their child ⁸ might be accommodated at Bellevue ⁹ as well as Ela, & we the parents four might sleep at the George. But this is only supposing the very worst case that could happen – & even that would not be seriously inconvenient. – At the same time I cannot wish you to stay away much longer, for I begin to want you very much as I always do after a few weeks absence. –

I know you will think both of Ela & of me tomorrow – and I do feel a little disappointed that you are obliged to spend the day far away from us –

The enclosed letters came in the last Basket from Lacock. –

Dear Henry every your affectionate
Constance. –

I hope you will not forget the waistcoat for Hallam ¹⁰ – Nurse’s coach fare is sixteen shillings – ten of which have been paid to secure the place – & the other six shillings I shall give her – to pay the rest when she reaches her destination. –

Henry Fox Talbot Esq^re
31. Sackville Street
London