Cotehele House <1>
Calstock
Tavistock
Septr 30th 1863
My dear Henry
I received your letter this morning – & must answer it by return of Post – for I have behaved very ill lately to you all, & to Amandier <2> in particular, whose last letter I never answered. Please express this to her. The fact is, I have not only been extremely busy, but have felt unsettled in my plans – & am still more so today, & feel quite cross & discomfrontled [sic]. When I was at Osborne <3> I told the Queen <4> of my wish to go abroad for the winter, if it could be managed conveniently; H.M. acquiesced, at any rate f in the idea that I should go for some time – & said it might perhaps do me good as I have been suffering very much from rheumatic pain for a long time. Nothing definitive was settled just then, & I said I wd write to H.M. later. I did write, a day or two after the Qn came home – & only received an answer, from the Dss of Wellington, <5> today. She tells me that “H.M. is not sure that you can stay away for the whole winter; that for the early part you can go – but the Qn thinks it may be inconvenient with regard to the Waitings, for you to stay away the whole winter.”
Now this is exceedingly tiresome, though I dare say all right & fair; & I hope to go all the same – but of course the expense of going all that way for a short time, is very great; besides the disappointment.
Our plan is to go thro’ France, by Cannes, in order to see the Vals, <6> who have taken a Villa there for the Winter, by advice of the doctors; & then proceed to Rome, partly by land, partly be sea, as the fancy takes us. I have done nothing about a Courier yet, not knowing exactly what I was going to do – & now I think I shall very likely be able to do without, as I believe my butler, a capital servant, has been abroad, & speaks Italian. I was only told this just now – & have not yet had time to mention the subject to him – but if he does, it wd be better, & less expensive, to take him only with us, & engage a laquais de place <7> for the time we are there. Do not you think so? My maid is an experienced traveller, & Ernestine’s <8> is a Swiss girl, very quick & handy. I wish you would go to Rome too!
We are going to Mount E. <9> on Saturday for a week or 10 days – as they will soon be going away – If you are thinking of paying us a visit, do come soon, & if you will go to Mt E. I am sure they will so glad [sic] to see you there. You could combine both visits according to my movements. Only write to Val & propose yourself, in that sort of way – then we can fit the visits to both places.
The house here is quite finished externally, & all the windows & many doors. – Some of the rooms are even inhabited by servants – The Kitchen garden, only dug up in the orchard last Feby – has been most productive all the Summer – The other new one is not yet begun. I think it will be very pretty & uncommon.
I am going to make a start immediately with a grand hothouse i.e. It is to be divided in two – one for grapes, quite hot – the other cooler, for late grapes & flowers – It is to be 60 ft long. Is not that a grand idea!
Now for a matter of business. Mr Boger <10> wishes me to ask if you have received any notice about the S. Sea Stock business?
It seems that it has been settled to sell the old S. Sea House (in the City I believe), supposed to be worth £40 or £50,000, the produce to be divided among the proprietors of old S. Sea Stock. This is delightful hearing; & as soon as Mr Boger knew of it, he wrote to Stilwell <11> – but he had heard nothing.
Mr B. says you are the person to know all about it, or who at least ought to receive the notification – so please let us know as soon as you can.
I think Katie is much better than she was in London; but still it is hoped that a winter abroad will do her service. Poor Charlie <12> is on duty at Aldershott [sic] – teaching recruits to shoot – which they do very badly. The place is perfectly odious, as all agree. He was much happier at Eastbourne – by the Sea – Ernestine is very flourishing & sends her love to you & all at Millburn Tower. <13> – Give mine too please.
Yr affte Sister
Caroline
Notes:
1. Cotehele, Cornwall: ancient house, seat of the Earl of Mt Edgcumbe, now a National Trust Property.
2. Amélina Petit De Billier, ‘Mamie’, ‘Amandier’ (1798–1876), governess and later close friend of the Talbot family [See Amélina's journal].
3. Osborne House, Isle of Wight. Purchased in 1845 by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert as a retreat from court life.
4. Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom (1837–1901), Empress of India (1876–1901).
5. Lady Elizabeth Hay (1820–1904), Duchess of Wellington.
6. William Henry Edgcumbe, ‘Val’, 4th Earl Mt Edgcumbe (1832–1917), JP & Ld Steward of the Royal Household; WHFT’s nephew ‘Bimbo’ and Lady Katherine Elizabeth Edgcumbe, née Hamilton (1840–1874), wife of William Henry Edgcumbe.
7. A jobbing footman, temporary footman or servant.
8. Ernestine Emma Horatia Edgcumbe (1843-1925), WHFT’s niece.
9. Mt Edgecumbe, near Plymouth: seat of the Earl of Mt Edgcumbe.
10. Deeble Boger, attorney.
11. Of Stilwell & Company.
12. Charles Earnest Edgcumbe (1838–1915), JP, WHFT’s nephew.
13. Millburn Tower, Gogar, just west of Edinburgh; the Talbot family made it their northern home from June 1861 to November 1863. It is particularly important because WHFT conducted many of his photoglyphic engraving experiments there. The house had a rich history. Built for Sir Robert Liston (1742-1836), an 1805 design by Benjamin Latrobe for a round building was contemplated but in 1806 a small house was built to the design of William Atkinson (1773-1839), best known for Sir Walter Scott’s Abbotsford. The distinctive Gothic exterior was raised in 1815 and an additional extension built in 1821. Liston had been ambassador to the United States and maintained a warm Anglo-American relationship in the years 1796-1800. His wife, the botanist Henrietta Liston, née Marchant (1751-1828) designed a lavish American garden, sadly largely gone by the time the Talbots rented the house .
14. Rev Charles Kingsley (1819–1875), The water-babies: a fairy tale for a land-baby (London and Cambridge: Macmillan and Co., 1863).
15. Sir William Snow Harris (1791–1867), scientist.