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Document number: 8650
Date: 10 Feb 1863
Recipient: REDHOUSE James William
Author: TALBOT William Henry Fox
Collection: British Library, London, Manuscripts - Fox Talbot Collection
Collection number historic: LA63-12
Last updated: 26th April 2012

[draft:]

Feb 10 – 63

I sh b happy , / recve, & duly considr, any amdmts t Khbi suggested by Sir H R or Mr N., provided I am at liberty to decline adopting thm if they appear to me doubtful or in conclusive. correct. ^For of course I could not publish as my own, anythg opposed to my own deliberate opinion – With respect to any ^important amendmts adopted, it wd be necessry to acknowledge in a note the source of my informatnI submit therefore to (wch indeed You are aware tht the Society has long [illegible] itself not responsible as a body for the opinns of any of its members – And as Assyrn philology is a vy new science, the more completely & the more freely those opins are given the more likely is a young science, like the cuneifm, to make advance rapidly. As you say that Norris wishes some things to be altered in my transln I will have writen to him to learn the particulars – and as an alteratn ^of 1 passage has occurred to myself, I have thought it best to will send it to you, on a separate sheet of paper tomorrow. – Some portns of M. Menard’s transtn are evidly quite untenable, being in fact mere guesswork, but nevertheless his [illegible deletion] attempt is vy creditable to him, & of considble value. My own feeling is, strongly to encourage him, and the few others who like him are now entering upon this branch of archæology As to Perfect correctness of translation of transln ^it will not be attaind by anyone for many Years yet to come.

I beg to submit whether it wd not be better, if Mr N. or Sir H. R. were to append to my paper such Remarks upon it or such other versions of ^some parts of the [illegible] as they may think fit

[expanded version:]

February 10, 1863

I should be very happy to receive and duly consider, any amendments to Khammurabi suggested by Sir Henry Rawlinson or Mr Norris, provided I am at liberty to decline adopting them if they appear to me doubtful or conclusive. incorrect. For of course I could not publish as my own, anything opposed to my own deliberate opinion – With respect to any important amendments adopted, it would be necessary to acknowledge in a note the source of my informatation – I submit therefore to (which indeed You are aware tht the Society has long [illegible] itself not responsible as a body for the opinions of any of its members – And as Assyrian philology is a very new science, the more completely and the more freely those opinions are given the more likely is a young science, like the cuneiform, to make advances rapidly. As you say that Norris wishes some things to be altered in my translation I will have written to him to learn the particulars – and as an alteration of one passage has occurred to myself, I have thought it best to will send it to you, on a separate sheet of paper tomorrow. – Some portions of M. Menard’s transtn are evidly quite untenable, being in fact mere guesswork, but nevertheless his [illegible deletion] attempt is very creditable to him, and of considerable value. My own feeling is, strongly to encourage him, and the few others who like him are now entering upon this branch of archæology As to Perfect correctness of translations, it will not be attaind by anyone for many Years yet to come.

I beg to submit whether it wd not be better, if Mr Norris or Sir Henry Rawlinson were to append to my paper such Remarks upon it or such other versions of some parts of the [illegible] as they may think fit

(Over)

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