TALBOT672

Castleford ¹
Nov. 8^th 1815

My Dear Mamma,

Why do not you write to me? – I wrote you a long letter ² from Ferrybridge, to which you have not vouchsafed to reply. My Companions here are two; Stewart & Nuttall, – but this M^r Feilding ³ can tell you. – Stewart is now at a visit near Doncaster, so there remains only myself & Nuttall. – The bent of his genius is not towards the Classics, but inclines rather to Music, Ornithology, Ichthyology, & Pastination⁴: For his chief delight is in Ringing the Church Bells, feeding Pigeons, Fishing & digging in his Garden. – Stewart’s propensity is rather for horses, & he takes in the Sporting Calendar; – M^rs Barnes ⁵ is about eight & twenty I think, & agreeable enough, tho’ Nuttall does not much like her, for criticizing his dress, manners, & occupations. – I think you will be entertained by a passage in Æschylus’s tragedy of the Eumenides. ⁶ – You know that Agamemnon returning from Troy, was murdered by Clytemnestra, & she in turn by her son Orestes, when grown up. – In Consequence of this crime, Orestes was tormented by the Furies, or Eumenides, & took refuge in the temple of Apollo at Delphos. ⁷ – That Deity had compassion on Orestes, & lulled the Furies to sleep, advising Orestes to escape in the meanwhile, as the Furies would be exceedingly puzzled to find him again, when they awoke. – In the meanwhile however, according to the translation of Pompignan, ⁸ “ Survient l’ombre de Clytemnestre qui trouve fort mauvais que les Furies sommeillent. Mais c’est un dieu que les a endormies, et leur sommeil est bien dur, car il se passe beaucoup de tems avant que Clytemnestre parvienne a les reveiller. Cette scene est curieuse; en voici une petite partie. ⁹

“Ecoutez mes plaintes, ô divinitès infernales ! Ecoutez Clytemnestre qui se montre a vous, pendant votre sommeil” (Les Eumenides ron flent ¹⁰

Clytemnestre irritée.   ¹¹

“Vous me repondez par un vain bruit, et votre proie s’eloigne.” etcet. – ¹²

If these extracts amuse you, I will send you more in my next letter. 

I remain, Y^r Aff^te Son
W H F Talbot

The Lady Elisabeth Feilding
Melbury
Sherborne
Dorset