Whorlton.
November. 9. 1859
Dear Sir.
I have much pleasure in answering your letter of enquiry about your son’s progress, and his present attainments – I do not find that he is altogether so deficient in elementary knowledge on Classical subjects, as he led me to expect, or as he seems to feel himself – in composition he is very well up to the mark, & likewise in translation, tho’ perhaps rather slow at both – his knowledge of grammar is very fair, & as he takes pains to increase it with every lesson, I hope that he will soon become more at home & familiar with it – I do not see any reason at all why he may not do very fairly in Classics, as he seems to be well-disposed to read – he is a little too impulsive in his habits, taking up theories & systems and over-doing them, till he tires of them – but it does not amount to much, & in those respects I dare say he will improve by experience – As to his mathematics, it must certainly have been a very great mistake setting him to Trigonometry, as he knows very little as yet of Algebra – he is now working at Equations & Problems, & seems to get on very fairly with them. He is tolerably accurate, which is a very important thing, & I hope that he will be able to get pretty well through Algebra & into Trigonometry before he goes to Cambridge, which will place him quite at his ease in his first years lectures. He does not seem to have much difficulty in Euclid, which shows that he may get on well in Mathematics generally.
Believe me, dear Sir, Your’s very Sincerely
Arthur W. Headlam
[envelope:]
H. F. Talbot Esqre
Lacock Abbey
Chippenham