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(Carbon copy of a typed original. The subscription and the date were added by hand.)

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Transcript

CORRESPONDENCE OF DAWSON TURNER. Esq. F.R.S.

The correspondence contained in these 83 volumes consists of the letters received by Mr Dawson Turner between the years 1790 and 1851.

Mr Turner was originally entered at Pembroke College of which his uncle, Dr Joseph Turner, afterwards Dean of Norwich, was then Master, but after a year’s residence, owing to the illness of his father, James Turner, he left the University for the Banking house of Messrs Gurneys and Co, Great Yarmouth, in which his father was a partner.

Mr Turner became a Fellow of the Royal Society and of other learned societies. He corresponded with scientific men and foreign botanists from whom various letters will be found especially in the early volumes.

The collection is indexed throughout following the names of the writers.

Private letters from members of his family and others have been removed from the collection though they are referred to in the Index.

These volumes were presented to the Library of Trinity College in 1890 by Mr Turner’s last surviving daughter, Mrs Jacobson, widow of Dr Jacobson, formerly Bishop of Chester, and this statement is written by Mr Turner’s grandson,

R. H. Inglis Palgrave. 11 Feby. 1895.

Transcript

Belton. | Gt Yarmouth.
14 Novr 1890.

My dear Wright,

I have heard from Mrs Jacobson who is very glad that her Fathers correspondence should rest within your Walls, & will willingly present it to the College.

The collection is at my home, here, I will have it properly packed & seen to, but as I have to be away next week for a few days on business it will have to wait for my return—But I will attend to it as soon as I can, & I will write you word again before it is sent off to Cambridge.

Yours very truly
R H Inglis Palgrave

Transcript

July 18th. 1817.

My dear Sir,

At last I return you with many thanks Mr. Cotman’s letters, & I can assure you I have felt satisfaction & delight in his satisfaction & delight. Very much should I have liked to [have] been with him (yourself & some others being of the party) at Shoreham & Steyning: ¿Is there any account of ichnography of these churches? I forget whether while waiting for the packet wch was to carry you to France, you looked at any of the neighboring villages.

I thank you again for the trouble you took respecting my question about Thou & You. I do not however feel completely answered or rather I should say refuted. ¿Can you tell me when Y was first substituted for Th? ¿Is there any language, Celtic or other, from wch both the Roman & our own are, {1} derived that is wanting in the Y, or never uses Th., or uses them promiscuously?

Do not forget, whenever you see a Norman arch regular in it’s ornaments, to examine whether it be not so connected with the other parts—windows—tower—buttresses &c. as to infer the probability of it’s never having been moved—And Vice versâ.

My inference respecting the brick & flint, & subsequently brick & thin stone, radiated arches over the windows of Churches is drawn rather circuitously. I have suspected this date to be from 1480 to 1540 for some time & should much like to have my supposition confirmed by your observation. The W. window in Ormesby tower is thus radiated: it was created 1490. Potter Heigham & other windows are so: I think I can ascertain by connecting the new roof there, with that at Ludham & another at Loddon (these roofs by the bye are another help,) that they were built about 1490. The East window of the Dutch Church, Elm Hill, Norwith (finished 1460) is not radiated. The W. window of St. Andrew’s Hall (part of the same Church) evidently more modern is radiated.

At present, my dear Sir, I cannot say when the Introduction to the Brasses will be finished, because I really cannot say when it will be begun. I am so involved with domestic trifles (for they who cannot hire assistance must use their own fingers) that I feel to have no time to spare & my wife has extorted a promise from me to compile a new Sermon every week & to preach it too—this takes me up time. “very good,” you say, “but perform all your promises in rotation, & you promised me while you were single.” I shall, I hope bye & bye be able to perform all my promises.

Mrs. Layton (my Mother is in Suffolk) tho’ unknown to Mrs. Turner, yet knowing her in character & feeling grateful for her kindness to me, begs to join me in expressions of respect & esteem for her, & for yourself. Speak for me to Elisabeth also & Harriet, Hannah, Ellen, Gurney & the poor little […] {3} How is he? How fares the colony at Halesworth? How are you all?

Yours faithfully
Js. Layton.

[Added on the outside:] Obtain for me some seeds of the Pap: Cambr: {4} & a root of a double tulip wch is at the corners of the squares in Mr. Penrice’s garden & I will thank you.

[Direction:] Dawson Turner Esq | Yarmouth.

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No marks of posting.

{1} The comma is superfluous.

{2} Reading uncertain.

{3} A word, perhaps ‘babe’, has been lost here where the seal was cut off.

{4} Papaver cambricum, the Welsh poppy.

Transcript

Belton. | Gt Yarmouth.
27 Sepr 1890.

My dear Wright,

You will remember my speaking to you here about the correspondence of my Grandfather the late Dawson Turner. He was in the habit of binding the letters addressed to him, & hence accumulated during a long & active life a considerable number of letters, some from persons of mark in their way, & curious also as illustrative of life & habits from, roughly 1790 to 1850. He was in early life, much devoted to botany, & there are among the letters a good many from botanists on the Continent which Joseph Hooker tells me illustrate the early progress of the Science. Afterwards Mr Turner directed more attention to archaeology—& there are letters on this subject also.

I have taken out of the volumes all the private letters, & those from members of his Family.—this however does not detract from the interest of those which remain.

My question to you was—Will your College Library give an acceptance permanently to these 50 to 60 Volumes. If you say—yes—I will ask Mrs Jacobson, who is the present owner to consent to this arrangement.

Mrs Jacobson is now an old Lady—& as I am constantly reminded of the miserable lapse of time—I shall be glad to settle this matter. Will you kindly assist me.

I am sorry we have not seen more of each other—or rather that I have not seen more of you this year—but I hope we shall do better in the future.

Yours very truly
R H Inglis Palgrave

(Two messages. The salutation of the first is ‘My dearest Father, Mother, & Sisters’.)

(The rest of the letter is O.14.15, No. 4.)

(Two messages.)

(Two messages, the second of which is wanting.)

(Two messages. The end of the latter is missing. Misdated the 19th. Date corrected by Dawson Turner.)

(The salutation is ‘My own dear Ellen & Harriette’. There is a brief passage addressed to ‘My own dear Inglie & Reggie’ near the end.)