Morning cold, dry, fine. Wrote to Ann, Shakespear, Boyd, A. Empson, Giorgis & Spiro, ― Macbean, Mrs. Thomas, & others. Great alarm at the folio of finished drawings ― sent Hansen in a cab to Tor Villa, where it had been left. Packed all for Pantechnicon.

At 2.30 ― lo! dear good Mrs. Empson & Kit! This was very pleasant though hurried. Afterwards ― 3.45 ― to Waterloo Station ― & so to Strawberry Hill. Lady W. as ever. ― [Birds], then see C.F. ― & W.H. & at dinner the Duke & Duchess d’Aumale & Lady Arlesbury. I sate next him, & found him extremely agreeable. He knew my “charming book on Calabria.” One of his stories, speaking of embalming, was very good. A great Parisian Practitioner was to embalm a defunct minister, but went by mistake into the room of his Successor. “Mais, c’est trop tard!” said he ― “il pue deja.” Moral: the successor was a dirty man. ― Afterwards I had to shew the Palestine drawings: rather against the grain ― but it went off tolerably ― spite of persiflage which I hate. ― C.F. came to my room at 11.30. Read Saturday Magazine. ― F.L.’s review of Porter’s Syria:1 & V.’s oracularities about Κερκύρα.

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

  1. Porter, Josias Leslie. A Handbook for travellers in Syria and Palestine. London: J. Murray, 1858. [↩]