TALBOT6745

Lacock Abbey, Chippenham.
Saturday June 15^th

My Dear Constance

Charles ¹ says that two of the Rhododendrons are in flower at Nethermore, ² the rest he did not visit owing to the grass being long and wet. I believe he made a very good speech at the dinner of the Friendly Society. ³ The day was fine & the rejoinings were kept up till midnight distant music reached my Ears until that hour –

Our weather is not so fine now, but cloudy & rather cold; the lights are not yet taken off the great Conservaty [sic]. I think you are right in not going to Silloth ⁴ – I never was there but I imagine it to be rather cold open and exposed – I was much pleased to hear of Monies ⁵ walk in the garden – You say the drive to Craigforth &c &c was jolly, could not a carriage with good easy springs be hired?

I am glad you are going to have D^r Begbie ⁶ again, & shall like to know what his ideas are about Climate – Is he personally well acquainted with Continental cities & their climates? This evening is too gloomy for walking in the Garden. We have a new Lily in flower. Lilium longiflorum white and sweet scented – Lilium Canadense will be in flower tomorrow – I don’t know from its bud what it will be like. Two more smaller plants of the Lilium Chalcedonium have flowered, one has 1 flower the other has 2. The large plant has 5. Wilkins to day discovered that 2 ferns (which we grow in the stove) have survived the winter on the rockwork – I hope you admired the Tecoma jasminoides (otherwise Begnonia jasminoides) w^ch we sent you last hamper. We have suffered no inconvenience from Goodwin’s ⁷ absence – I am glad he is useful at Edinbro’

Your aff^t
Henry