From Elisa de Lamartine

Mr John Tyndall or Mr Frankland.

Sir,

I am extremely sorry to say that I have not any means of obtaining tickets for the Chamber of Representatives.1

M. de Lamartine having retired from government,2 I have abstained from making any application of any sort; but I should imagine that if you were to ask Mr Bastide,3 Minister of Foreign Affairs, he would have much pleasure in sending you tickets for the Diplomatic Tribune.4

I regret not being able to assist you at this moment being resident in the country.5

With best compliments, | E. de Lamartine.6 | 16th July.

RI MS JT/2/14/34 LT Transcript Only

1

Chamber of Representatives: the publicly-elected lower body of the French Parliament.

2

M. de Lamartine having retired from government: Alphonse de Lamartine (1790-1869), poet and politician, led the provisional government of the Second Republic in Paris following the February Revolution of 1848. In June 1848, he was thrown out of office after the revolution was crushed.

3

Mr Bastide: Jules Bastide (1800-79), then the Minister of Foreign Affairs in France.

4

the Diplomatic Tribune: a seating area where ambassadors and other foreign persons of importance could observe the Chamber of Representatives.

5

resident in the country: i.e., Madame de Lamartine was away from Paris.

6

E. de Lamartine: painter and sculptor Elisa de Lamartine, née Mary Ann Elisa Birch, the English-born wife of Alphonse de Lamartine (see n. 2).

Please cite as “Tyndall0351,” in Ɛpsilon: The John Tyndall Collection accessed on 6 May 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/tyndall/letters/Tyndall0351