“The General has
lately had a narrow, though ludicrous escape. He upset himself with an umbrella
in a little skiff which Sir Frederick
Moreshead had given him. It was within hearing of his own
island. The skiff was corked so that it could not sink, but being half full of
water after he had righted it, it was not possible for him to get in, and he
being well buttoned up against a stormy day in a thick great coat was in no
plight for swimming, so he held on
| Ætat. 48. | OF ROBERT SOUTHEY. | 123 |
“John May left me this day fortnight, and Dr. Bell departed some days after him. The exercise which I took with him completed the good work which was begun with you, and has left me in a better state than I had been in for the two last years. By way of keeping it up while the season permits (nothing being so salutary to me as vigorous exercise) I went up Skiddaw Dod this morning—one of the expeditions which is reserved for your next visit; on my return I found a letter from my brother Henry, saying he shall be here on Wednesday. This will give me ten days more of laking and mountaineering, if the weather permit.
“The temptation which the country holds out to that
exercise which is peculiarly necessary for me must be weighed among the many
reasons for remaining in it. For with my sedentary habits and inactive
inclinations I require every inducement to draw me out. But whether I remain or
remove
| 124 | LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE | Ætat. 48. |
“During the little time I had for business I have written about half a paper for the Quarterly, upon a history of the Religious Sects of the last century, by the ex-Bishop Gregoire. The book is curious for its strange mixture of revolutionary feelings with Catholic bigotry, and for the account which it gives of irreligion in France. It gives me matter for an interesting paper, to be wound-up with some seasonable observations upon the progress of infidelity at home. God bless you, my dear Lightfoot!
