The Life and Letters of John Gibson Lockhart
Chapter 23: 1853-54
John Gibson Lockhart to Henry Hart Milman, 27 July 1853
“Sussex Place, July 27, 1853.
“My dear Dean,—I am
very grateful to Mrs. Milman and you,
and hope to profit, ere I go abroad,
![]()
![]()
![]()
by your kind invitation; but though I
am better than when you last called here, I am still far from being fit for the
experiment of a visit even to old friends. In fact, I am not able to be much
out of bed, and my daughter is not at all aware of my condition in many
respects. You shall hear by-and-by again, and I am hopeful of amended
prospects. I quite hold to Rome for the winter, supposing strength for such a
journey, when the proper season arrives; and I rather think Murray has already made suitable arrangements
in that view. At all events, I am for the present at least emeritus.
“You will be entertained, I think, and interested
with the Haydon Memoirs, which Tom Taylor has edited neatly, and, I believe, in a perfectly
candid spirit.—Yours very truly,
Benjamin Robert Haydon (1786-1846)
English historical painter and diarist who recorded anecdotes of romantic writers and the
physiognomy of several in his paintings.
John Gibson Lockhart (1794-1854)
Editor of the
Quarterly Review (1825-1853); son-in-law of Walter
Scott and author of the
Life of Scott 5 vols (1838).
John Murray III (1808-1892)
The son of the Anak of publishers; he successfully carried on the family publishing
business.
Tom Taylor (1817-1880)
Educated at Glasgow University and Trinity College, Cambridge where he was one of the
apostles, he was professor of English literature at London University (1845), a popular
author, and the editor of
Punch (1874-80).
