4061. Robert Southey to Samuel Rogers, 21 September 1823

 

MS: University College, London, Special Collections, Sharpe Papers. ALS; 2p.
Previously published: P. W. Clayden (ed.), Rogers and His Contemporaries, 2 vols (London, 1889), I, p. 362.  Our text is taken from this.

Keswick: 21 Sept., 1823
Dear Sir,

– Having been asked for a letter of introduction to you, I somewhat hastily promised it, presuming upon your kindness to excuse a liberty which at this moment I feel that I have no right to take. Mr. Carne

(1)

John Carne (1789–1844; DNB), a traveller and author, who had just returned from an extended visit to the Near East.

came to me with a letter from Wordsworth, De Quincey having found him at Professor Wilson’s and taken him to Rydal. He has travelled in the East, has visited Lady Hester Stanhope,

(2)

Lady Hester Stanhope (1776–1839; DNB), a traveller and archaeologist, who had settled in Lebanon.

 past ten days in captivity with the Arabs in the Desert, and seen something of the horrors which are going on in Greece,

(3)

The Greek War of Independence (1821–1829), from the Ottoman Empire.

and as he likes better to tell his adventures than to set them forth in a book, his conversation is very interesting. It will remind you perhaps of poor Kemble, by making you ready to exclaim ‘O my a–ches!

’(4)

John Philip Kemble (1757–1823; DNB), actor and manager. He had famously insisted on pronouncing ‘aches’ as ‘aitches’ in Shakespearean roles. Southey is here referring to Carne’s inability to pronounce the letter ‘h’ at the beginning of words.

– but his stories are not the worse for the want of aspirates, nor his pronunciation the better for being Ionic, as well as Stafford or Lancashire.

(5)

The initial letter ‘h’ was not pronounced in Ionic dialects of Ancient Greek. This was the most prestigious version of the language as it was associated with leading figures of Greek literature, including Homer. The initial ‘h’ was also often dropped from spoken English in the West Midlands and Lancashire.

Should you be in town during the winter, I hope to have the pleasure of seeing you and receiving your forgiveness for this intrusion. Believe me, my dear Sir, yours with sincere respect,
ROBERT SOUTHEY.

Notes

1. John Carne (1789–1844; DNB), a traveller and author, who had just returned from an extended visit to the Near East.[back]
2. Lady Hester Stanhope (1776–1839; DNB), a traveller and archaeologist, who had settled in Lebanon.[back]
3. The Greek War of Independence (1821–1829), from the Ottoman Empire. [back]
4. John Philip Kemble (1757–1823; DNB), actor and manager. He had famously insisted on pronouncing ‘aches’ as ‘aitches’ in Shakespearean roles. Southey is here referring to Carne’s inability to pronounce the letter ‘h’ at the beginning of words.[back]
5. The initial letter ‘h’ was not pronounced in Ionic dialects of Ancient Greek. This was the most prestigious version of the language as it was associated with leading figures of Greek literature, including Homer. The initial ‘h’ was also often dropped from spoken English in the West Midlands and Lancashire.[back]
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