Rose early, & wrote a letter to Lord D. ― Fun & talk at breakfast with W.H. ― He advises me not to send the letter: ― at present I will put it by. Talk & dawdle & lunch. Walked ― hard rain, to Ellis Ashton’s, only Lucy at home. Back by 4. ―

(The paved roads ― red walls ―: the old Sunday church-going.)

Wrote notes, & nonsense ― & so the afternoon passed. A deal of talk with Windham ―: Phipps & his marriage &c.: καὶ ἡ πρώτη νύξ, κ’ ἡ συζυγός σου.1 ― Talking slightly about the Ionian matters ― my distinct impression was that W. knew Lord D. knew all ― or at least as much as he wished to know of things ― & that writing to him would answer no end. He did not state this ― but I somehow conceived such to be the sense. And his query, if telling. Talbot would not be the same thing? was still more suggestive of this. Ἱστορία τοῦ Θόμας [Τά—ον], κ’ τῆς [στ—γου] του.2 Dinner. Talk of Mr. J. More, who is to come from Huffield, of all places. And, after Mrs. W. went, ― long talk of many persons: ― the interview Του Μιλοδου Στάνλη, καί του “ζιο” του. – Καὶ τὸ ὀποῖον αὐτός τοῦ ἄφισε• (τέσσερα χιλιάδα λίρας.)3 ―

Then singing &c. No Mr. More.

On coming upstairs, I found a 10£ note on the table for the Corfû picture.

[Transcribed by Marco Graziosi from Houghton Library, Harvard University, MS Eng. 797.3.]

  1. “And the first night, and your [sic] wife.” “Here I am sure Lear meant to write ‘his’ – tou – but he wrote ‘sou’ meaning ‘your’ instead” (D. Harvey). [↩]
  2. “Story of Thomas [Ta—on] and his [].” Lear’s writing is very difficult to read here, on the basis of what Harvey has been able to glean, this might be a reference to Thomas Talbot, the Canadian colonist, who corresponded with the 14th Earl of Derby, see “Papers of the Stanley family, Earls of Derby,” The National Archives, http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/a2a/records.aspx?cat=138-920der&cid=-1#-1. [↩]
  3. “Of Milord Stanley, and his ‘zio’ [son]. – And who left him (four thousand pounds).” “The Greek for son is γιός (γιό when declined); Lear’s spelling of it could be playing on the way Stanley pronounced in Greek the word for son” (Harvey). [↩]