3935. Robert Southey to [Sara Coleridge] [fragment], [c. mid-December 1822]
MS: British Library, Add MS 47891. AL; 1p.
Unpublished.
Dating note: This dates from Sara Coleridge and her daughter’s visit to the south of England, 1822–1823. They had left Keswick by 8 November; see Robert Southey to Nicholas Lightfoot, 8–12 November 1822 (Letter 3915). They spent about a month staying with Elizabeth Evans near Derby. This letter probably dates from mid-December 1822, when they were in transit between Derby and the Clarksons’ home, Playford Hall, Suffolk; see Southey to John May, 5 December 1822 (Letter 3927). On their way to the latter, they paid a brief visit to Cambridge, where Derwent Coleridge was a student.
Note on MS: This fragmentary letter (or at least the surviving version of it) was possibly not sent to Sara Coleridge but instead dispatched at an unknown date to Grosvenor Charles Bedford, a connoisseur of Mrs Coleridge’s linguistic practice, as an example of her lingo grande. This is suggested by the fact that the manuscript survives as part of a short run of letters to Bedford and – unusually – opens (top of fol. 1r) with an address to him: ‘And so-oh-oh/ Dar Miscumber Bedfordiddlededford/ I sub<cum>scribe myself – your sincumcere friendiddledend/ Robcumbert Southeydiddledouthey/ Student of the Lingo Grande, Graduate in Butlerology, Professor of/ the Science of Noncumsensediddledence, of sneezing, & of vocal music –/ P.L. & LLD.’ This nearly duplicates the closing salutation of Southey to Bedford, 24 December 1822 (Letter 3940), perhaps indicating that this fragment was sent to Bedford shortly after this date.
Odiddledowloo, why is it that neither you nor that poor lassitudinarian thing will write to the <Umaining> porkaboarobumbels of this family? Scampalum xxxxxxxx looks every day for a letter, & every day it gives her a pange to be disappointed. We thought you would not stay more than a jiffump among the Chappets <at Cambridge> giddytonians as they are, & shall think you can hardly be indiscrukt enough to be dumdawdling, among them, for you are not as improvidentipur. Yet had you reached Playford,
we think you would shartainly have written. This we have conclucted.
I write in your own lingo-grande, because <because then> if you should happen to leave the your <portfolio> xxxx about & any improprieter or indelicardium should be roken & dabdobbering among your papers, the signifumpification of this will not be undercamestood, at least not in a momper.
Scampalum will have told you most of what has happened, since you & the lassitudinarian left your two holes at the table here. The journey we hope will have given both your constitutions a jerk. You must stulch when the weather is not going to ramp & tear so as to make slatching disagreeavobus, – & when the rampasity of the day prevents any other exercise then I advise you to be horsemangandered, which is better than stroming or meandering up & down the room I practice what I preach It will never do for you to be a slouwdowdlecum, a slowdonothinger. For you to keep in health the nocksen must vork as well as the towsalowset the foottells-tottels & legrums as well as in chaprat under futoarum
Dont cody me now for this good advice – nor detest me, nor play the very dunder, forshammenum if you do. Dont tear goarum (why should poor gravum suffer such toru?) – dont go tarradiddle.
