Henry Crabb Robinson, 30 Russell Square, London, to Lady Anne Isabella Byron, [no address], 18 April [1854].

[f. 46r]

 London

30 Russ: Squ:

18th April:

Madam,

       I ought not to let you remain in expectation of a call from which you were willing to expect some benefit might be derived, since there is now no hope that my friend can be able to make the call, which in every respect would have been gratifying to him his health has been long in a very shaking condition – And now I grieve at learning that his medical attendants have proscribed – instead of prescribing in the medical sense of this one word under two shapes & meanings) Sea-Air – This I have only heard recently – I have not seen him since I last wrote –

       Your mind is so earnestly occupied by beneficient projects of various ^kinds^ that I doubt whether you ever indulge in reading books that have no direct bearing on some practical matter – tho’ it is dangerous for even the most richly endowed mind, to forego the advantage of fresh supply – Running waters only will remain sweet – Motion within a pool however [f. 46] spacious & profound, is not sufficient – There must be supply – Now under this impression I venture to mention the book I have just finished De Quincey’s Autobiographical Sketches – More than half the Second Vol: not so called (for oddly the Vols are distinguished by stars * in one and ** in the other) is devoted to Coleridge – Wordsworth and Southey – I therefore took an especial interest in this Vol: I have read it with mixed feelings – There is much that is offensive and bad in the Man – the victim of violent passions, but with noble feelings And incomparable power as a writer he is for ever exciting my anger which cannot however repress my admiration And this rifacciamento of the original sketches which appeared in Tait’s Magazine many years ago is less malignant – Indeed a stranger might discern nothing of the kind – Wordsworths friends have most reason to complain of the book – De Qu: reverses the common practice of malignants – [f. 47r] For he – “tells truth like falsehood” more dangerous ^than^ lyeing like truth tho’ the antithesis requires the words to be used in different senses

       Should Vol ** fall into your hands I would direct your attention to page 45 as an instance of what I should exhibit as characteristic excellence

       He is an exquisite painter in words – And being very acute is admirable when not misled by bad passions – I was about to praise his character of Lady C— But I am witheld by your ladyship’s assertion (– very true I have no doubt –) that there is something in the woman of which the man must be an inadequate judge – he apologises – or rather extenuates Coleridges misconduct towards his wife, treating it simply as the involuntary act of a man not master of his own will – And interposes parenthetically – “I am certain however that neither Coleridge, nor – (naming another great poet of the day) could possibly have lived happily with any wife however excellent –”

       But why thus unwarrantably occupy your time – Let me congratulate you on the improved state of your health –

       I have the honor to be

                           &c &c &c

                                      H. C. Robinson

The Lady Noel Byron

Text:  MS-DEP Lovelace-Byron 109, fols. 46-47, Bodleian Library, Oxford.