The Collected Letters of Robert Southey. Part 2: 1798-1803 A Romantic Circles Electronic Edition Southey, Robert, 1774-1843 Lynda Pratt Romantic Circles General Editor, Neil Fraistat General Editor, Steven E. Jones Technical Editor Laura Mandell 2011-08-15 rce728 letterEEd.26.719 Romantic Circles, http://www.rc.umd.edu, University of Maryland College Park, MD August 15, 2011

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. Previously published: Kenneth Curry (ed.), New Letters of Robert Southey, 2 vols (London and New York, 1965), I, pp. 286-287. Dating note: Southey misdates the letter by one day, Sunday was 19 September in 1802 and not 20 September as he states.

These letters were edited with the assistance of Carol Bolton, Tim Fulford and Ian Packer

For permission to publish the text of MSS in their possession, the editor wishes to thank the Beinecke Rare Books and Manuscript Library, Yale University; Berg Collection of English and American Literature, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations; the Bodleian Library Oxford University; the British Library; Boston Public Library; the Syndics of Cambridge University Library; the Syndics of the Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge; Haverford College, Connecticut; the Historical Society of Pennsylvania; the Hornby Library, Liverpool Libraries and Information Services; the Houghton Library, Harvard University; the John Rylands Library, Manchester; the Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas; Luton Museum (Bedfordshire County Council); Massachusetts Historical Society; McGill University Library; the National Library of Scotland; the Newberry Library, Chicago; the New York Public Library (Pforzheimer Collections); the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York; the Public Record Offices of Bedford, Suffolk (Bury St Edmunds) and Northumberland, the Master and Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge; the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne; the Trustees of the William Salt Library, Stafford, the Wisbech and Fenland Museum; the University of Virginia Library.

A research grant from the British Academy made much of the archival work possible, as did support from the English Department of Nottingham Trent University.

All quotation marks and apostrophes have been changed: " for “," for ”, ' for ‘, and ' for ’.

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Because of web browser variability, all hyphens have been typed on the U.S. keyboard.

Dashes have been rendered as a variable number of hyphens to give a more exact rendering of their length.

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Writing in other hands appearing on these manuscripts has been indicated as such, the content recorded in brackets.

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 NINES categories for Genre and Material Form at http://www.performantsoftware.com/nines_wiki/index.php/Submitting_RDF#.3Cnines:genre.3E on 2009-02-26 Architecture Artifacts Bibliography Collection Criticism Letters Drama Life Writing Politics Folklore Ephemera Fiction History Leisure Manuscript Reference Works Humor Education Music nonfiction Paratext Perodical Philosphy Photograph Citation Family Life Poetry Religion Review Visual Art Translation Travel Book History Law Southey Letters: Biographies Southey Letters: Places Laura Mandell XSLT Transforming after latest corrections Laura Mandell XSLT Transforming Averill Buchanan corrections from proofing Averill Buchanan Part II added
719. Robert Southey to Edith Southey, [19] September [1802] Address: To/ Mrs Southey/ Kingsdown/ BristolStamped: CARDIFF/ 165MS: British Library, Add MS 47888Previously published: Kenneth Curry (ed.), New Letters of Robert Southey, 2 vols (London and New York, 1965), I, pp. 286-287. Dating note: Southey misdates the letter by one day, Sunday was 19 September in 1802 and not 20 September as he states. Dear Edith

I write from Pile Inn – thirteen miles short of Neath Sunday evening Sept 20. – We mist the boat on Friday & were obliged to hire the small one – or lose the half day. our passage was quite pleasant – on the other side Miss ShaplandPossibly a relative of Joseph Shapland (dates unknown), an apothecary of Park St, Bristol. past us in a chaise – so you will have learnt our safety I suppose from her thro Danvers. 15 miles to Newport – a bottle of excellent ale half way helped us on. the country fine as to produce, but of no remarkable beauty. On arriving I made a sad discovery – a huge & ugly blister on my right heel. Saturday 12 to Caerphilly – the country rather better, the castle there famous – & large – but not fine in its parts. a huge mass but nothing when compared to Obidos or Leiria.Castles that Southey and Edith had seen on their journey in central Portugal in March 1801 (Adolfo Cabral, Robert Southey: Journals of a Residence in Portugal 1800-1801 and a Visit to France 1838 (Oxford, 1960), pp. 15-33). 8 to Llantrissant – but they were Welsh miles – better measure than they give to their ale by the by. their pints are shamefully small – not above half measure. One noble scene on the Taffe – high hills & wood – & a clear – loud – rapid – shallow stream. we crost it on a scaffold-boat for the coal waggons – & following two Welsh guides lost a fine bridge which ought to have been seen. Llantrissant a decent estalagemThe Portuguese word for an inn. – clean beds & that was all. no cream – no milk – no meat – bad ale – eggs & bacon & toasted cheese & gin about the price of otter of roses. today eleven to Bridgend. milk on the way – which was bono The Latin translates as ‘good’. – & a bathe on the way in a brook of lovely water which was bono, & the Landladys dinner ready at Bridgend when we arrived – bono – & bottled ale more bono than all the rest. 6 more to Pile Inn – an excellent inn in an ugly country – a foul country – high hills with hedges – nothing but hedges – & a muddy bay in sight. This is not a cheap country. meat 8–9.10 pence a pound – affected by the Bristol market – for we eat their beef & mutton.

But alas I am quite foundered. obliged yesterday & to day to go slip shop for the love of my great blister which is as big as the little Doctors fistAs big as the fist of Southey and Edith’s new-born daughter, Margaret Edith Southey. – the looseness of the slipt shoe has blistered the sole of my foot – & the poor sole has been in purgatory – & is in purgatory – & no indulgences can help it out. I must try coach & a day’s rest. as for the other foot he is pretty well I thank you & I am not tired & can eat like a tyger & drink like a fish & sleep like myself. But I have seen no country to tempt me even to a wish for a residence there. lower down may be better – but if it be not – & if things be not cheaper – I shall leave you to decide between Bristol & Exeter – where you know the prices, & meantimes you had better look out about No. 12.

For sundry reasons my letter must be brief. because I am tired & my ink stand is dry – so that the pen is made dirty all the way up in striving to wet it. if we see any thing better you shall speedily hear of it, & if not you shall hear of our goings on tho there be nothing better to send you than what a mere book of the roads could give. We shall not I think exceed the fortnight. I hope not & believe not for I already wish myself at home, & am not quite easy about you & the young one –

remembrances next door.i.e. to Charles Danvers and his mother. God bless you Edith. I am going to my old book & to supper & to bed.

yr RS.