Rottingdean1
May 24th 1808
My dear Mamma
my Earache grows better & my mind worse every day I have all the Comforts I can possibly have but nothing can reconcile me to your loss, when I was with you I was not Satisfied but too late alas I repent my error [illegible deletion] when I come home for the holidays instead of seeing me fat & rosy as you said you thought you should in your letter of the 19th instant2 you will most likely see me thin & pale worn out with sorrow. I like Mrs Armstrong pretty well. my lessons are in the Latin Grammar I have got as far as Tristis, buy betty3 an english Dictionary for her to find how to spell hard words, & if she is in any great difficulty about it do you assist her & tell her that it is a present from me, I repeat my request for you to come & visit me I’ll tell you how we employ our time we get up at 7 oclock (though I awoke today befor 6) & learn a lesson till 9 oclock then we breakfast till about ½ past 9 oclock & then we do 3 lessons till 10 then we play till 12 oclock when we eat a bit of Bread for Lunch & then we play till 3 oclock when we Dine till 4 oclock & then, sup at 6 then play till ½ past eight when we go to bed. however I do not play. this is on a monday, tuesday, Wednesday, thursday, Friday & Saturday. for on Sunday we dine at one Oclock & go to church at eleven in the morning & 3 in afternoon today my 3 lessons at 10 consisted of 25 lines altogether [sic] I wish you to buy a Latin Grammar for then you can watch my progress in it as I shall not fail to tell You my dearest friend as I know it would give you pleasure. you must have been falsely told that I had a garden for I have no Such a thing. I have Alltogether [sic] learnt 190 lines of the Latin Grammar & left out 49 that Mr Hooker4 did not think worth learning. I am now just past Ambo5 in the 11th page which you may see in the Latin Grammar come & visit me for I cannot Bear being separated from You.
Your Affectionate Son
W. H. F. Talbot
I wish you would answer my letter of the 21st Mr Hooker has received your letter which he will answer tomorrow tell me what it was about
[address panel:]
Lady Elisabeth Feilding
81 Baker Street
London
Please cite as “TALBOT491,” in Ɛpsilon: accessed on