Part No. 16 - Letter from James Layton to Dawson Turner

1 folded sheet

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.

—————

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.

Pasted to a guard in O.13.14.

This description was created by A. C. Green in 2022.