4309. Robert Southey to Henry Herbert Southey, 31 December 1824

Address: To/ D^r Southey/ 15. Queen Anne Street/ Cavendish Square/ London
Stamped: KESWICK/ 298
Postmark: E/ 3 JA 3/ 1825
Seal: red wax; design illegible
MS: Keswick Museum and Art Gallery, 1996.5.338. ALS; 3p.
Unpublished.

Keswick 31 Dec. 1824

My dear Harry

Thus saith the Bp. of London – “I shall have very great pleasure in signing D^r Southeys certificate, & being instrumental in introducing so respectable a member to the Royal Society.”

⁽¹⁾

I do not know where Henry Taylor lodges, – but a note will always find him at the Colonial Office.

Turner has advised me to prosecute the M Chronicle

⁽²⁾

in a way which I shall not do; because it would involve me in trouble & expence for the purpose of vindicating my character. Thank God it needs no vindication, but if I can punish that rascally newspaper I should very well like so to do; & Turner will consult with J Coleridge upon the propriety of bringing an action for damages

⁽³⁾

They will look at the question in its legal bearings. To me it seems that I have got a scoundrel on the hip, & ought to make use of the advantage.

That you may not have William

⁽⁴⁾

is a good name; & I hold that no persons can truly understand whether a name is good or otherwise, unless they have paid that attention to the collocation of sounds which is necessary in composing verses. Arthur is not a good name, because the first r eats up the second. William is perhaps the most euphonious of all English names.

I am half way thro the last Canto of Paraguay

⁽⁵⁾

– which you will be glad to hear. Our love to all –

God bless you
RS.

Notes

1. At this time, anyone wishing to become a Fellow of the Royal Society was obliged to obtain at least three endorsements from existing Fellows on a certificate applying for membership. The Fellows then decided at their weekly meetings whether to elect the candidate. It was not a requirement to be a practising scientist and many Fellows were senior clergy, army or navy officers or lawyers. It was quite common for London physicians to become members and Henry Herbert Southey was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society on 25 April 1825.[back]

2. Southey was considering taking action over ‘Southey versus Lord Byron’, Morning Chronicle, 17 December 1824. He eventually did not do so.[back]

3. Turner had advised Southey to bring a private criminal prosecution against the Morning Chronicle; instead, Southey asked him to look into bringing a civil case against the newspaper, asking for damages.[back]

4. William Southey (1824–1871) was born on 16 November 1824. He later served with the East India Company Army, reaching the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. Despite Southey’s strictures, Henry Herbert Southey named one of his sons ‘Arthur Southey’ (b. 1833).[back]

5. A Tale of Paraguay (1825).[back]

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4309. Robert Southey to Henry Herbert Southey, 31 December 1824

4309. Robert Southey to Henry Herbert Southey, 31 December 1824

The Collected Letters of Robert Southey: Part Seven

Lynda Pratt, Ian Packer