TALBOT3742

Lacock Abbey
Sunday. –

My dear Henry

I have not written oftener to you because there has been a tolerably constant correspondence between M^lle Amélina ¹ & me with the inmates of 46 Dover Street, ² & as I imagined you would hear of our welfare from them. I am rather glad you do not propose to return tomorrow, because if the weather is fine, I have fixed to drive over to Bath, sleep there & return the next day. – This little project of mine has been so long delayed that I feel quite anxious now to put it in execution – & before the weather becomes too wintery. – We have had a little rain today which has softened the air to my great delight – for yesterday & some previous days were dreadfully cold; & yesterday we had several snow storms accompanied by tremendous gusts of wind. – I feel very sorry that your Mother ³ & Caroline ⁴ should have had such an alarm about dear little William ⁵ & very thankful that no mischief ensued. – Something of the same sort & of nearly quite as little consequence happened to Ela ⁶ yesterday. – She was playing in the nursery & slipped down – but did not hurt herself (as it now appears) beyond a little strain on the muscles of her right arm. – I suppose she must have felt a slight sensation of pain where she first moved it afterwards – for she presently began to fret about it & would not be prevailed upon to use it, but kept it immoveable fixed to her side, nursing it very cautiously with her other hand – I thought there was nothing really the matter, but as she continued in the same mood after I had exhausted all my efforts to make her play with her bricks & her animals (that she is so fond of), I sent to M^r Elgie, who told me that there was nothing out of place & that she was probably only frightened. This certainly was the case – for after sleeping as usual last night, she again began to fancy her arm was very bad this morning & continued to hold it stiff half the day – At last however she happened to forget that anything was the matter, & she stretched it out for something. – & having once done so she saw the folly of her own alarms & she sat down & played with her bricks just as usual & allowed me to hold her two hands & jump [missing text] her about without any ceremony. – How strange that a timid disposition should be the sole cause of creating an evil, – & impressing it so strongly on her imagination! – I have stuck-in some of your Monkt Taurus plants – but I am sorry to say that the work was not executed with my usual neatness – for owing to the paste (which I employed for fastening the slips of paper containing the names) being I suppose a little too wet, I have sadly detrimented the leaves of the book – that is to say, they are not so smooth as they ought to be. which vexes me much – Since I began to write the rain has been falling so unceasingly, that I think I shall be forced again to put off my drive to Bath – My Sisters ⁷ have procured for me the first part of Miss Edgeworth’s Early lessons ⁸ also M^rs Banbauld’s Lessons for Children & another nice little book called ‘Easy lessons on leading things to knowledge” partly arranged by M^rs Trimman. The 2 latter have pretty little plates in them & all are nicely bound – I hope you have not chanced to fix upon any of the same in your search; if you have perhaps you might still have time to exchange them.

Your aff^te
Constance

Pray tell Lady Elisabeth that I received the Literary Gazette ⁹ & was as much pleased with the flatering [sic] critique on ‘Hermes’ ¹⁰ as she could¹¹ be –

H. Fox Talbot Esq^re
31 Sackville Streeet
London